Mobile Clinic to Assist Native Americans and facilitate expansion of Johns Hopkins “Family Spirit” to Chinle, Arizona:
Native Americans experience the poorest health, education, and socioeconomic status of any racial or ethnic group in our country. Nearly 35% of Native American children live in poverty.
On Average,
- Native youth age 0-25 die at a 3 times hight rate than US All Races.
- Experience youth suicide, alcohol-related deaths, obesity and diabetes, and teen childbearing, up to 7 time US All Races.
- More than 4 in 5 American Indian women have experienced violence and more than 1 in 2 have experienced sexual violence.
- Rates of domestic violence is 10 times higher than the rest of our country.
- Rates of PTSD amongst children exposed to violence is 3 times higher than the rest of our US population. They have suffered the greatest losses of any group in the United States, with disease rates and mortality more than double the US average.
- One in 500 Americans have died from COVID-19 as compared to one in 240 Native Americans. These statistics define only the scale of the problem.
- There is an urgent need for structured support for substance use, suicide, trauma, interpersonal violence and grief counseling.
“I am thankful to our club for financial contribution as well as all members who participated in fundraising to create this opportunity of serving Native Americans.”
Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health (JHCIH) has accepted to provide their Family Health services to Chinle in Apache County, Arizona, and we will provide them with a vehicle that JHCIH can equip with equipment and supplies and use as a mobile clinic to reach multigenerational and tribal households.
This mobile clinic will serve as a private sanctuary for the patients to independently interact with the JHCAIH staff for medical examination, treatment, grief counseling and the therapy for above mentioned mental health challenges. This is a great opportunity for us, Rotarians, and the deserving Native American Communities to have a well experienced, trusted and respected partner, The Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health.
JHCIH is already working with tribal communities, they are quite familiar with the communities tradition and culture, and they are well known and trusted by Native Americans and their leaders. JHCIH is in an exceptional position to provide necessary services through it’s family health services program.
