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Implementing women's cancer screening programs in American Indian and Alaska Native populations.

The National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program provides funding to tribes and tribal organizations to implement comprehensive cancer screening programs using a program model developed for state health departments. We conducted a multiple-site case study using a participatory research process to describe how 5 tribal programs implemented screening services, and to identify strategies used to address challenges in delivering services to American Indian and Alaska Native women. We analyzed data from semistructured interviews with 141 key informants, 16 focus groups with 132 program-eligible women, and program documents. Several challenges regarding the delivery of services were revealed, including implementing screening programs in busy acute-care environments, access to mammography, providing culturally sensitive care, and providing diagnostic/treatment services in rural and remote locations. Strategies perceived as successful in meeting program challenges included identifying a "champion" or main supporter of the program in each clinical setting, using mobile mammography, using female providers, and increasing the capacity to provide diagnostic services at screening sites. The results should be of interest to an international audience, including those who work with health-related programs targeting indigenous women or groups that are marginalized because of culture, geographic isolation, and/or socioeconomic position.

Alaska↗

Validity of the CRAFFT in American-Indian and Alaska-Native adolescents: screening for drug and alcohol risk.

OBJECTIVE: Native-American adolescents are reported to be at high risk for drug and alcohol use and related negative consequences. A brief screening instrument that is culturally and developmentally appropriate can aid clinicians who work with Native youth in determining whether more extensive assessment of substance use is necessary. The CRAFFT has been shown to be a valid and reliable screen among general adolescent outpatient clinic samples. METHOD: Data were collected as part of the Journeys of the Circle project, a collaborative effort between the Seattle Indian Health Board (SIHB) and the University of Washington's Addictive Behaviors Research Center. Psychometric properties of the CRAFFT were examined in 70 American-Indian and Alaska-Native youths ages 13 to 19 recruited from public schools and SIHBs outpatient clinics. RESULTS: The CRAFFT demonstrated good internal consistency (alpha = 0.81). A score of 2 or higher on the CRAFFT was found to be optimal for capturing youths with high alcohol-related problems (sensitivity, 0.95; specificity, 0.86), frequent alcohol use (sensitivity, 1.00; specificity, 0.72) and frequent marijuana use (sensitivity, 1.00; specificity, 0.75). A cut-point of 3 was appropriate for identifying adolescents with frequent other drug use (sensitivity, 0.86; specificity, 0.76). CONCLUSIONS: The CRAFFT may be a valid instrument for identifying Native youths at risk for alcohol and other drug problems. This brief screen can be effective in helping providers determine the need for further assessment and treatment or prevention services for Native-American adolescents.

Adolescent↗

Contextual issues for strategic planning and evaluation of systems of care for American Indian and Alaska Native communities: an introduction to Circles of Care.

This introduction to the evaluation component of the Circles of Care initiative includes background on the nature of the initiative, Center for Mental Health Services support for developing systems of care for youth with emotional disturbances, and an overview of the systems of care approach. The prevalence, unique challenges, and the historical, political, and cultural context of health care delivery for American Indian and Alaska Native peoples are also discussed.

Adolescent↗

Long-term efficacy of BCG vaccine in American Indians and Alaska Natives: A 60-year follow-up study.

CONTEXT: The duration of protection from tuberculosis of BCG vaccines is not known. OBJECTIVE: To determine the long-term duration of protection of a BCG vaccine that was previously found to be efficacious. DESIGN: Retrospective record review using Indian Health Service records, tuberculosis registries, death certificates, and supplemental interviews with trial participants. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Follow-up for the period 1948-1998 among American Indians and Alaska Natives who participated in a placebo-controlled BCG vaccine trial during 1935-1938 and who were still at risk of developing tuberculosis. Data from 1483 participants in the BCG vaccine group and 1309 in the placebo group were analyzed. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Efficacy of BCG vaccine, calculated for each 10-year interval using a Cox regression model with time-dependent variables based on tuberculosis events occurring after December 31, 1947 (end of prospective case finding). RESULTS: The overall incidence of tuberculosis was 66 and 138 cases per 100 000 person-years in the BCG vaccine and placebo groups, respectively, for an estimate of vaccine efficacy of 52% (95% confidence interval, 27%-69%). Adjustments for age at vaccination, tribe, subsequent BCG vaccination, chronic medical illness, isoniazid use, and bacille Calmette-Guérin strain did not substantially affect vaccine efficacy. There was slight but not statistically significant waning of the efficacy of BCG vaccination over time, greater among men than women. CONCLUSION: In this trial, BCG vaccine efficacy persisted for 50 to 60 years, suggesting that a single dose of an effective BCG vaccine can have a long duration of protection.

BCG Vaccine↗

Serologic and clinical outcomes of 1536 Alaska Natives chronically infected with hepatitis B virus.

BACKGROUND: Knowledge of the outcome of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is limited. OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of and risk factors for adverse events (hepatocellular carcinoma and end-stage liver disease) and clearance of hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) and surface antigen (HBsAg) in carriers of HBV. DESIGN: Population-based cohort study of hepatitis B carriers who were observed for a median of 12.3 years as part of an active surveillance program to detect carriers with hepatocellular carcinoma. SETTING: 126 communities in Alaska. PATIENTS: 1536 Alaska Natives with chronic hepatitis B. MEASUREMENTS: Bivariate comparisons, multivariable models, and other statistical methods were used to examine the relationships of risk factors to outcomes and clearance of HBeAg and HBsAg. RESULTS: 1536 chronic HBV carriers were followed up for 19 430 person-years from their first HBsAg-positive test result. At the first serologic test, 641 were HBeAg positive and 893 were anti-HBe positive. Older carriers were more likely than younger carriers to clear HBeAg (P < 0.001). The observed probability of clearing HBeAg within 10 years of diagnosis was 72.5%. Clearance of HBsAg occurred in 106 (7%) of all carriers and was positively associated with older age and positive result on initial anti-HBe test. The incidence of adverse events was 2.3 per 1000 carrier-years, and the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma was 1.9 per 1000 carrier-years (2.3 in men and 1.2 in women). Risk for hepatocellular carcinoma increased with age, among those of Yupik Eskimo ethnicity, and among carriers who reverted from anti-HBe to HBeAg. CONCLUSION: In HBsAg-positive carriers, observed clearance of HBeAg was more than 70% during the first 10 years of follow-up.

Adolescent↗

Disparities in lung cancer: focus on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, American Indians and Alaska Natives, and Hispanics and Latinos.

Significant population changes in the United States are expected over the next few decades. The changing demographics inclusive of native and newly native individuals will significantly impact health care because racial and ethnic groups vary widely in their risks for disease and approach to medical care. For lung cancer specifically, racial and ethnic groups differ in smoking habits, metabolism of nicotine, presentation, stage at diagnosis, treatment received, and outcomes. This article summarizes current information on lung cancer for American and Pacific Islanders, American Indians and Alaska natives,and Hispanics and Latinos with an emphasis on tobacco use, epidemiologic issues sur-rounding acculturation and assimilation, genetic epidemiology, and disparities in treatment outcomes.

Asian↗

Words have power: (re)-defining serious emotional disturbance for American Indian and Alaska Native children and their families.

Circles of Care grantees were provided the opportunity to develop a locally relevant definition of serious emotional disturbance that would be used to define what type of emotional, behavioral, and mental disability would be required to receive services. After conducting detailed assessments of the definition in the guidance for applicants GFA and the definitions used by others in their respective states, seven of the nine grantees developed their own local, project-specific definitions through the participation of community focus groups and Advisory Councils. The six definitions for SED developed by rural grantees all included American Indian and Alaska Native concepts specific to each tribal community's culture; the urban grantee's definition was purposely focused for reaching out to non-professional members of the community. This opportunity for the communities to redefine SED not only provided each community with a definition which would be more culturally specific, but also proved to be an extraordinarily exercise in empowerment and self-determination.

Adolescent↗

Sharing a vision of hope for diabetes care and prevention among American Indian and Alaska Native communities: the National Diabetes Prevention Center.

The National Diabetes Prevention Center (NDPC) is an emerging model for public health practice and partnership. It is rooted in a "promising practices" framework, one that looks at what works for community diabetes prevention, care, and treatment practices. Working with national and local partners to explore new approaches to diabetes prevention invites us to move beyond traditional models of community public health partnerships. Traditional community partnership models emphasized the technical assistance in research, surveillance, and program development that can be provided by partners from outside the community. While not diminishing the importance of these activities, the NDPC seeks to provide an environment for meaningful language and discourse that adequately honors the innovative and culturally rich approaches to diabetes prevention already being developed within many American Indian and Alaska Native communities, which have some of the highest rates of diabetes in the world. The NDPC strives to provide common ground for the emergent discussions around the power and practice of solid evaluation frameworks, new information technologies, capacity-building philosophies, health systems, and collaborative approaches.

Alaska↗

Regional variation in cardiovascular disease risk factors among American Indians and Alaska Natives with diabetes.

OBJECTIVE: To compare by region risk factors for cardiovascular disease among American Indian populations with diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Trained providers from 185 federal, urban, and tribally operated facilities reviewed the records from systematic random samples of the patients included in the local diabetes registries in the 1998 Indian Health Service (IHS) Diabetes Care and Outcomes Audit. Selected measures of cardiovascular risk were aggregated by region and adjusted to calculate regional rates for patients <45 years of age (n = 2,595) and those aged > or =45 years (n = 8,294). RESULTS: Among the younger group of patients with diabetes, the rates of elevated HbA(1c) (> or =9%) and tobacco use varied significantly among regions. High rates of obesity (78%) and elevated HbA(1c) (56%) were found in the Southwest. High rates of tobacco use (55%) but the lowest rates of elevated HbA(1c) (27%) were found in Alaska. Among patients aged > or =45 years, all measures including rates of proteinuria, cholesterol > or =200 mg/dl, and mean blood pressure > or =130/85 varied significantly among all regions. Tobacco use was highest in the Great Lakes (44%) and Great Plains (42%) regions and lowest in the Southwest (14%) and Colorado Plateau (8%) regions. Proteinuria was found most frequently in the Southwest (35%), Colorado Plateau (30%), and Pacific regions (35%). Older individuals with diabetes were more likely than younger individuals to have proteinuria and blood pressure > or =130/85. CONCLUSIONS: American Indians and Alaska Natives with diabetes carry a large burden of potentially modifiable cardiovascular risk factors, but there is significant regional variation.

Adult↗