{"id":34535,"date":"2024-01-16T21:09:43","date_gmt":"2024-01-17T02:09:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/?p=34535"},"modified":"2024-01-16T21:32:22","modified_gmt":"2024-01-17T02:32:22","slug":"cronkite-news-tribes-welcome-new-and-upgraded-health-care-facilities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2024\/01\/16\/cronkite-news-tribes-welcome-new-and-upgraded-health-care-facilities\/","title":{"rendered":"Cronkite News: Tribes welcome new and upgraded health care facilities"},"content":{"rendered":" <a href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2024\/01\/16\/cronkite-news-tribes-welcome-new-and-upgraded-health-care-facilities\/supaivillage\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-34537\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-attachment-id=\"34537\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2024\/01\/16\/cronkite-news-tribes-welcome-new-and-upgraded-health-care-facilities\/supaivillage\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/17\/SupaiVillage.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"2000,1333\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-title=\"Supai Village\" data-image-description=\"&lt;p&gt;Supai Village&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;A Havasupai child an adult walk down the road in Supai Village, the tribe\u2019s town at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, in this 2018 file photo. Remoteness of tribal lands is one of the factors leading to poor access to health care \u2013 and the need for more facilities. Photo by Chris Cadeau \/ Cronkite News&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/17\/SupaiVillage-1024x682.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/17\/SupaiVillage.jpg\" alt=\"Supai Village\"   class=\"size-full wp-image-34537\" \/><\/a> <figcaption class=\"figure-caption\">A Havasupai child an adult walk down the road in Supai Village, the tribe\u2019s town at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, in this 2018 file photo. Remoteness of tribal lands is one of the factors leading to poor access to health care \u2013 and the need for more facilities. Photo by Chris Cadeau \/ Cronkite News<\/figcaption>\r\n<div class=\"h3-responsive font-weight-bold\">New and upgraded health care facilities for Native Americans open in Arizona<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"date\">Tuesday, January 16, 2024<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"byline\">By Caleb Scott<\/div>\r\n<DIV class=source>Cronkite News<\/DIV>\r\n<DIV class=source-website><A \r\nhref=\"https:\/\/cronkitenews.azpbs.org\/\">cronkitenews.azpbs.org<\/A><\/DIV>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\nPHOENIX &#8212; Three new and upgraded health facilities recently opened in Arizona to provide Native Americans with better access to health care, and more are in the works.<P><\/P>\r\nHealth disparities such as lower life expectancy and a disproportionate burden of diseases persist for Native American populations throughout the U.S. A 2022 review of studies about environmental health outcomes in the Navajo Nation found high rates of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity and metabolic syndrome &#8211; a group of diseases that increase the risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke.<P><\/P>\r\nThe Navajo Nation is one of the largest Native American reservations in the U.S. and delivers health services to over 244,000 people. The Navajo Nation currently has 12 primary care facilities run by the Indian Health Service (IHS), the federal agency that provides health services to American Indians and Alaska Natives. The Arizona Department of Health Services reports that the Navajo Nation is considered a &#8220;medically underserved area&#8221; by both state and federal regulators.<P><\/P>\r\n<div class=\" content_cards_card content_cards_domain_twitter-com\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"content_cards_image\">\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_image_link\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/IHSgov\/status\/1722653574465745351\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/pbs.twimg.com\/media\/F-gPRubXAAEKq4n?format=webp&#038;name=large\" alt=\"Indian Health Service (@IHSgov) on X\">\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_title\">\n\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_title_link\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/IHSgov\/status\/1722653574465745351\">\n\t\t\tIndian Health Service (@IHSgov) on X\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_description\">\n\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_description_link\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/IHSgov\/status\/1722653574465745351\">\n\t\t\t<p>The IHS held a grand opening ceremony yesterday for the upgraded replacement facility of the Supai Health Station in Havasupai, Arizona. Accessible only by helicopter, mule or horse, or on foot, the health station is located in the remote Havasupai Canyon within the Grand Canyon.<\/p>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_site_name\">\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/favicon.ico\" alt=\"X (formerly Twitter)\" class=\"content_cards_favicon\"\/>\t\tX (formerly Twitter)\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\r\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-conversation=\"none\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The 12,700-square-foot facility replaces a 2,200-square-foot clinic constructed in 1972 and provides space for primary care, dental, pharmacy and medication dispensing, lab, and radiology services. Read more: <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/lJUB1o6o0e\">https:\/\/t.co\/lJUB1o6o0e<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/NativeHealth?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#NativeHealth<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/IndianCountry?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#IndianCountry<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/13Se4kkZoC\">pic.twitter.com\/13Se4kkZoC<\/a><\/p>&mdash; IndianHealthService (@IHSgov) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/IHSgov\/status\/1722653577011679382?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 9, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote> <script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\nIn November, the IHS, in partnership with the Havasupai Tribe, celebrated the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ihs.gov\/newsroom\/pressreleases\/2023-press-releases\/ihs-announces-grand-opening-of-the-supai-health-station-at-the-bottom-of-the-grand-canyon\/\">opening of the Supai Health Station<\/a>, a new and upgraded replacement facility located on the tribe&#8217;s lands at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Accessible only by helicopter, mule or on foot, the new 12,700-square-foot facility replaces a 2,200-square-foot clinic constructed in 1972; the new facility provides space for primary care, dental, pharmacy and medication dispensing, lab, and radiology services.<P><\/P>\r\nThe Dilkon Medical Center, a new facility run by the IHS and located in the Navajo Nation, opened in Dilkon on August 4. The new facility offers 12 in-patient beds, as well as primary care, eye care, dental care, diagnostic imaging, laboratory, pharmacy, physical therapy, behavioral health and support services.<P><\/P>\r\nSage Memorial Hospital is scheduled to open a new 90,000-square-foot, 25-bed hospital located in Ganado on May 30, 2024. The hospital and medical, dental and field clinics are operated by a private, nonprofit corporation, Navajo Health Foundation-Sage Memorial, and provide health care for about 23,000 people in the area.<P><\/P>\r\n<div class=\" content_cards_card content_cards_domain_twitter-com\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"content_cards_image\">\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_image_link\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BuuVanNygren\/status\/1687608502309556224\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/pbs.twimg.com\/media\/F2uW-v7WMAAPduL?format=webp&#038;name=large\" alt=\"Buu Van Nygren (@BuuVanNygren) on X\">\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_title\">\n\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_title_link\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BuuVanNygren\/status\/1687608502309556224\">\n\t\t\tBuu Van Nygren (@BuuVanNygren) on X\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_description\">\n\t\t<a class=\"content_cards_description_link\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BuuVanNygren\/status\/1687608502309556224\">\n\t\t\t<p>The new 154,000-square-foot Dilkon Medical Center includes level 3 emergency and trauma treatment, 12-bed inpatient care, primary care, eye care, dental care, diagnostic imaging, laboratory, pharmacy, physical therapy, behavioral health, &amp; support services.<\/p>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"content_cards_site_name\">\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/favicon.ico\" alt=\"X (formerly Twitter)\" class=\"content_cards_favicon\"\/>\t\tX (formerly Twitter)\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\nThe AZDHS report showed that the Navajo Nation has 0.3 hospital beds per 1,000 residents, compared to a statewide average of 1.9 beds per 1,000 residents. But IHS doctors said calculating the number of hospital beds is not the best way to evaluate health care. Drs. Christopher \u2018Topher\u2019 Jentoft, clinical director, and Jessica Weeks, chief of primary care, see patients at the Chinle Comprehensive Health Care Facility, one of 12 IHS health care centers in the Navajo region.<P><\/P>\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s hard to put it in terms of number of hospital beds per patient population, it\u2019s a really significant oversimplification,\u201d Jentoft said. \u201cWhat leads someone to need to be in a hospital bed overnight is not just related to how many people that there are in the community, but what the resources in the community are, what the underlying health situation for the community or individuals in the community are, as well as resources for health care.\u201d<P><\/P>\r\nMedical facilities throughout the country, particularly in rural areas, are experiencing doctor and nurse shortages. Jentoft said the Chinle facility has never filled its 60 inpatient beds, but it has had times when it has not had enough staff to attend to every patient. He said this sometimes forces the facility to transfer patients to other hospitals in Albuquerque, Phoenix, Flagstaff or Tucson.<P><\/P>\r\n\u201cIn the month of October, the Chinle facility had roughly 140 primary care appointments per day,\u201d Jentoft said, \u201cprobably about 100 patients per day in the emergency department.\u201d<P><\/P><div class=\"mt-1 mb-1\"><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\" data-ad-layout=\"in-article\" data-ad-format=\"fluid\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8411603009680747\" data-ad-slot=\"6394965691\"><\/ins><script>(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/script><\/div><p><\/p>\r\nNavajo Nation currently has 37 nurse practitioners, while Arizona has 9,932. To encourage people to work for Navajo facilities, IHS is providing recruitment incentives such as loan repayment programs and scholarship programs, \u201cwhich encourage people of American Indian or Alaskan Native descent to pursue healthcare careers,\u201d Weeks said.<P><\/P>\r\nIHS has announced plans to build new facilities in Bodaway Gap in Arizona and in Gallup and Pueblo Pintado, New Mexico.<P><\/P>\r\n<STRONG>For more stories from Cronkite News, visit <A href=\"https:\/\/cronkitenews.azpbs.org\/?utm_source=referral&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=client\">cronkitenews.azpbs.org<\/A>.<\/STRONG>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\n<HR><EM>Note: This story originally <a href=\"https:\/\/cronkitenews.azpbs.org\/2024\/01\/01\/new-and-upgraded-health-care-facilities-for-native-americans-open-in-arizona\/\">appeared on Cronkite News<\/a>.  It  is published via a <A href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\/\">Creative  Commons license<\/A>. Cronkite News is produced by the <A href=\"https:\/\/cronkite.asu.edu\/\">Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication<\/A> at <A href=\"https:\/\/www.asu.edu\">Arizona State University<\/A>.<\/EM><HR>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Three new and upgraded health facilities recently opened in Arizona to provide Native people with better access to health care, and more are in the works.","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":34551,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_vp_format_video_url":"","_vp_image_focal_point":[],"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[19,1],"tags":[42,46,121,3390,210,24,167],"class_list":["post-34535","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health","category-national","tag-arizona","tag-cronkite-news","tag-employment","tag-havasupai","tag-ihs","tag-navajo","tag-new-mexico","no-wpautop"],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcoJ7g-8Z1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/17\/SupaiHealthStation.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34535","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34535"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34535\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34550,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34535\/revisions\/34550"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34551"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34535"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34535"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34535"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}