OMH AI/AN Health Disparities Program Grant Summary Overview
There are four objectives the Health Disparities grant aims to achieve: 1) Increase the quality and availability of research, evaluation, and surveillance data including those in electronic formats; 2) To create career pathways in public health practice and prevention oriented research for tribal members; 3) To provide training to leadership at all levels in the areas of cultural competency and issues specific to AI/AN health disparities; and 4) To disseminate information and results that are obtained.
The OCAITHB has completed a study that shows the misclassification of AI/AN cancer data for Oklahoma. When we compared the state data with that of the IHS, a 45% misclassification rate was found. The OCAITHB has written a report outlining many of the factors associated with misclassification. Some of these factors include reporting facility, stage of cancer, and blood quantum. There is also a communicable disease data enhancement project between a number of I/T/U facilities and the state health department. This project is currently underway and when completed, should provide valuable insights.
The Internship opportunity offered by the OCAITHB is another one of our HD projects. The students involved are looking forward to working in Native American communities in our area. The students work on several exciting projects under the guidance of staff from the OCAITHB Epidemiology Center and the COPH. These projects are multifaceted and include working with youth and adults alike, covering many topics such as tobacco, obesity, physical activity, and other emerging opportunities to help our communities. These programs provide our interns with hands on training needed to help them be able to work more closely with, and give them a better understanding of issues facing the Native American people today.
Also, as a part of the HD grant, the OCAITHB is developing a cultural competency curriculum and technical assistance (TA) manual. The curriculum and TA manual are in the final stages of completion, they have been developed and have been through one stage of revisions and are currently on the second stage of revisions. There has been one cultural competency training so far utilizing the material created, during the OCAITHB Annual Epidemiology Conference. Once the curriculum and TA manuals final drafts are complete the trainings will begin on a broad scale to those interested.The fourth objective consists of disseminating information. Under this objective, the TEC will disseminate information via trainings, presentations, publications, journals, conferences and other meetings. Disseminations of reports on all database linkage findings (communicable disease and cancer) to Oklahoma, Kansas, and Texas I/T/U's (no identification of facilities will be made public). The TEC staff and partners will develop articles for publication in professional/peer reviewed journals. All information will be submitted for approval to IHS and Tribal Institutional Review Boards (IRB) prior to submission to any journals. This may be one or more papers and may include findings from all projects.
Information regarding the methodology and logistics of the AI/AN Health Disparities Program (including information about the TEC Internship program) will be presented at national conferences (APHA, IHS Research Conference, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, etc).