Good Health & Wellness in Indian Country

The mission of AASTEC’s Good Health and Wellness in Indian Country Program is to honor tribal traditions and knowledge on the path to Native defined wellness through relationships, respect, compassion, and service for the LOVE of THE PEOPLE.

We aim to provide leadership, technical assistance, training, and resources to the 27 American Indian Tribes, Bands, Pueblos, and Nations within the IHS Administrative Area to promote community level changes that support health and wellness and prevent and manage type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke and their associated risk factors, such as commercial tobacco use, physical inactivity, and unhealthy diet. This initiative is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Learn about our specific strategies to achieve these aims by clicking the links below.

Tribal Subawardees
Our Good Health and Wellness in Indian Country Program provides ten (10) tribal sub-awards for community chosen projects that support wellness and prevent and manage chronic diseases at the tribal level. These projects focus on community level changes, such as planting community gardens or developing wellness policies, in one or more of the following categories:

1) Increase access to and use of traditional and other healthy foods and beverages;

2) Improve opportunities for physical activity; and/or

3) Reduce commercial tobacco abuse and eliminate second-hand smoke exposure.

Click map to see subawardees
subawardees

Tribal Commercial Tobacco Prevention and Control Project
The aim of the Tribal Commercial Tobacco Prevention and Control Project is to enhance tribal efforts to address the burden of commercial tobacco within the 27 Tribes in the Indian Health Service (IHS) Albuquerque Area.

Key activities include:

  • Inform stakeholders about the burden of commercial tobacco use, while honoring sacred uses of traditional tobacco
  • Convene a multidisciplinary tribal tobacco coalition in the IHS Albuquerque Area
    • Learn about the Southwest Tribal Tobacco Coalition
  • Assess existing strengths, needs, and capacity for commercial tobacco control/prevention activities
  • Offer trainings on best practices for commercial tobacco prevention and control
  • Develop culturally appropriate small media to promote commercial tobacco prevention and control
  • Provide tribal sub-awards to pilot test, implement, and evaluate commercial tobacco prevention and control initiatives that:
    • Increase the number of tribal members protected from second-hand commercial tobacco smoke
    • Decrease exposure to commercial tobacco marketing and availability of commercial tobacco products

Health Communities, Healthy Ways, Keep Tobacco Sacred: An eGuide for Tribal Communities

tobacco-eguide This Keep Tobacco Use Sacred eGuide was designed to assist tribal communities and organizations to identify resources, learn established best practices, and take action to implement comprehensive community-based, commercial tobacco prevention and control initiatives.

More Information
Michele Suina
Good Health and Wellness Program Director
msuina@aaihb.org
(505) 764-0036

 

Janna Vallo
Commercial Tobacco Control and Prevention Coordinator
jvallo@aaihb.org
(505) 764-0036