Diabetes Education & Prevention
During the last several years, AAIA’s diabetes prevention program has had two focuses.
One has been the creation of educational gatherings. These gatherings are not targeted at health care providers. Rather, the target is the larger population of Indian people diagnosed with or at risk for diabetes and their families. At these educational gatherings, diabetics learn about how to take better care of themselves while their family members and those at risk learn how to prevent the development of diabetes in themselves and how better to help care for a diabetic family member.
The approach has been to provide a comfortable, enjoyable, non-intimidating, non-clinical environment in which to learn about diabetes, diet and nutrition, physical activity for the able and disabled, and “taking control of your numbers”, such as blood pressure, blood sugar, hemoglobin-a-1-c, and cholesterol. Much of the education and physical activity takes place in small group workshops where people are more comfortable asking questions. The opportunity is also provided to ask questions anonymously. Another important aspect of the conferences has been the incorporation of traditional foods and cultural practices. An ancillary purpose of the conferences has been to educate tribal leadership about the nature and extent of the epidemic and the cultural and economic costs if it is not addressed.
The model for these gatherings was developed together with the Shakopee Mdewakanton Dakota Community in Minnesota, which annually hosts a Northern Plains Native American Diabetes and Heart Disease Prevention Conference based upon the model developed by AAIA and Shakopee. AAIA co-hosted and was integrally involved with the planning and organizing of the first three conferences.
Using this model, AAIA co-hosted a conference with the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe of Connecticut in March 2004 for the Indian communities in New England and a conference organized by the Nebraska Inter-tribal Health Coalition in Nebraska that was held in South Sioux City, Nebraska in April 2005. AAIA also provided critical support for a conference that was held by the tribes of Kansas in Mayetta, Kansas in of October 2006.
The second focus has been the funding of summer camps with a diabetes prevention focus. For example, for the past four years, we have funded the Fort Defiance Indian Hospital Wilderness, Cultural and Community Enhancement Program in Arizona.
In 2009, we also funded the Sherwood Valley Band of Pomo Indians, Pueblo of Teseque Summer Enrichment/Wellness Camp, a camp run by the St. Paul Council of Churches (also funded in 2008) and one run by the Boys and Girls Club of the Bears Paw in Box Elder, Montana.
In 2008, in addition to the camps already mentioned, we funded the Native American Youth & Family Center in Portland and the Nimiipuu Health-Kamiah Center.
In 2007, the camps funded included the Wellness Camp for American Indian Youth with Type II Diabetes run by the University of Arizona Native American Research & Training Center (also funded in 2005 and 2006), Monache Meadow/LPPSR Cultural Leadership Camp and the American Indian Center Positive Paths Program Language Mural Project.
Other diabetes-themed camps that we have funded have included the San Carlos Apache Diabetes Education Kids Camp in 2006, Poarch Band Creek Diabetes Camp and Looking into the Future and Beyond which was organized by the Ponca Tribe in 2005, and a family camp run by Denver Indian Health and Family Services in 2004.
