RWJF Center for Native American Health Policy

About the Center

This initiative of the RWJF Center for Health Policy is designed to increase the capacity of tribal communities to be proactive in encouraging healthy habits and to deliver quality health services by providing policy analysis, leadership training and community engagement while honoring the cultural traditions and practices valued by native people.

The Center for Native American Health Policy will provide the additional resources needed by tribal leaders to drill down to the core issues and to enable them to make policy decisions that improve the health of their communities.

Policy analysis of federal, state and tribal programs is delivered in a context that has meaning and relevance to tribal leadership. Analysis is conducted from a prospective of increasing equity and the desire to preserve the traditions and practices most sacred to the tribes.

Resources for aiding tribal leaders and other community groups to create healthy communities include:

  • Culturally relevant analyses of federal, state, and tribal programs
  • Assistance in promoting healthy communities and health literacy
  • Trainings and seminars that increase the understanding of complex relationships between U.S. social health systems and tribal social health systems.

The RWJF Center for Native American Health Policy is a collaboration between the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, the UNM Office of Community Health HERO Program and the RWJF Center for Health Policy.

For Additonal Information:

Please contact:

Ken Lucero, Director
Center for Native Ameican Health Policy
klucero@indianpueblo.org
505-212-7037 or 505-220-4704

 Below are a few national resources dedicated to advancing the health of tribal communities.

·         Center for American Indian Health, The Johns Hopkins School of Public Health - works with tribes to promote strategies that will provide American Indians with the highest possible level of health and well-being.
·         National Indian Women's Health Resource Center - is a national non-profit organization whose mission is "to assist American Indian and Alaska Native women achieve optimal health and wellbeing throughout their lifetime.
·         Native American Health Website addresses the special health concerns of the 4 million Americans who claim American Indian or Alaska Native ancestry. Sponsored by the National Library Medicine, the site includes pertinent health and medical resources, including consumer health information, research results, traditional healing resources, and links to other Web sites.
·         Native Health History Database - provides bibliographic information and abstracts on medical and health reports of the American Indian and Alaskan Native population.
         Pimatisiwin: A Journal of Indigenous and Aboriginal Community Health promotes the sharing of knowledge and research experience between researchers, health professionals, and Aboriginal leaders and community members.