HEALTH CARE NEEDS OF NATIVE AMERICANS Natur

An excellent description of the current health care status of Native Americans has been provided by Ray Began who, in 1998, was the President of the Association of American Indian Physicians. In this regard, it is noted by Began that in general this is a community where there are profound health care needs that are not being adequately addressed by the current health care system. As Began reports:

Native Americans receive the lowest health care dollars allocated by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Indian Health Service. The per capita amount spent on health care for Native Americans is only $1,132 compared to the $3,261 spent per capita on non-native Americans. (p. 1).

Regarding specific health care needs, it is reported by Began that Diabetes Mellitus is widespread in the Native American population wit the Pima Indians having the world's highest rate of Diabetes with lower limb amputation as a secondary result of the disease. Also, End Stage Renal Disease is much higher in Native Americans with Diabetes than in other ethnic groups with Diabetes.

Also, suicide is said by Began (1998) to be the second leading cause of death among Native American adolescents; this while there are no more than 59 psychologists in the Indian Health Service. Further, Novins, Fleming, Beals and Manson (2000) report that alcohol with all of its serious effects (e.g., more frequent need for health care ser

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rvices by Indian tribes, is that this reform really needs to work hand-in-hand with the use of educational programs. This is because Baris and Pineault (1990) have noted that such agencies can often do only so much as they tend to use a basically medical model. Thus medical/treatment efforts must be supported by educational programs that focus on prevention through decreasing stress (a well established contributor to illness) as it relates to risk factors such as geographic and socio-organizational accessibility, economic problems and high unemployment. 4. It is recommended that medical schools increasingly develop programs that are sensitive to societal needs and especially to those needs of under-served communities such as Native Americans. According to Odlum (1995), this kind of reform, although it may take years before its effects are realized, will create in students far greater awareness of their obligations to serve the medical needs of all of society and not just a part of it. Further, it will increased students' degree of preparedness in working with the under-served. 5. It is recommended that new funding approaches be used to pay for the cost of these reforms. This can be done in several ways. First, Robbins (1997) p
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Approximate Word count = 1921
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)