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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Stephanie N. Craig Rushing, MPH, Project Red Talon, Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board, 527 SW Hall, Suite 300, Portland, OR 97201, 503-228-4185, scraig@npaihb.org

For decades, American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) have been disproportionately impacted by high rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STD). In 2004, AI/ANs were nearly five times more likely than whites to have chlamydia, four times more likely to have gonorrhea, and twice as likely to have syphilis. From 2003-2004, the chlamydia rate among AI/ANs rose 5.0%, the gonorrhea rate rose 14.8%, and syphilis increased 14.3% (primarily among women). In response, Tribes in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho came together in 2005 to form the Red Talon STD/HIV Coalition to reduce the prevalence of STDs among Natives in the Pacific Northwest. To identify prevention priorities, the coalition conducted a comprehensive STD Capacity Assessment among 27 Native communities. Most alarmingly, this assessment found that, on average, ¾ of responding clinics regularly test for STDs, while only 40% are able to treat these conditions. Only 56% of respondents indicated that their clinic upheld a clinical protocol to report STD cases to the region's STD registry, and when asked about clinical policies to reduce the transmission of STDs, only 60% of respondents reported the presence of 8 or more of the 11 policies listed. This data guided the creation of a three-year strategic plan, which was unanimously approved by the Health Board representing the 43 tribes of the Pacific Northwest. This presentation will provide attendees with access to capacity assessment tools, materials used by the Coalition for community outreach and coalition building, and a model for developing culturally relevant prevention plans in Native communities.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

• Describe STD-related disparities that impact American Indian and Alaska Native populations.
• Access tools to evaluate the capacity of your tribe(s) STD prevention and treatment services.
• Identify steps that can be used to create a comprehensive, culturally relevant STD Prevention Plan for use by one or more tribes.

Keywords: American Indians, STD Prevention

Related Web page: www.npaihb.org/std-aids/prt.html

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered