Davis, Sally M. (author), Hunt, Ken (author), Kitzes, Judith M. (author), and Davis, Hunt: Center for Indian Youth Program Development, Department of Pediatrics, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM; Kitzes: Chief Medical Officer, Deputy Director, Albuquerque Area Indian Health Service
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
1989-05
Published:
USA: Washington, D.C. : Public Health Service.
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 85 Document Number: C05580
AGRICOLA IND 90041862, The health status of Indian teenagers in the United States is below that of the general population. The usual barriers to the use of health care services that young people, including young Indians, encounter are compounded in rural areas by distance, isolation, and lack of appropriate services. To overcome these barriers in rural New Mexico, a public health demonstration project (a) integrated health care services free of charge; (b) set up the initial program of services at a rural school; (c) established links with existing agencies; and (d) incorporated community action toward creating change. The project began as a joint effort of three communities, the University of New Mexico (UNM), and the Albuquerque Area Indian Health Service (IHS) of the Public Health Service; a secondary level public school soon became a participant. The project is being replicated in two other communities that have formed separate partnerships with UNM and the area IHS; also the New Mexico Health and Environment Department has joined the effort in one community. Preliminary data suggest that the services are being used by a majority of the target population, with the proportions of boys and girls about equal.
