Project Description:
The Sonoran University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) at the University of Arizona in conjunction with the Native American Research and Training Center (NARTC) is performing a needs assessment of American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN) to explore their familiarity with and utilization of DD Network Program agencies, the availability of services and support for individuals with DD and their families in AIAN communities, and the needs of DD tribal members and their families. This project is funded by the Administration on Developmental Disabilities (ACF, HHS) through a sub-contract with the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD). We will perform four activities to provide information that characterizes the breadth of the AIAN experience nationally. We are proposing to engage five communities across the country that collectively offers some variability in size, geographic location, acculturation and type of health care service, (IHS v. tribally operated). These include one urban community, and one each in the NW, the NE, the Southern Plains, and the SW. We will:
1. Conduct a review of the science literature, public data sources and reports regarding AIAN and disabilities including reviewing disability specific, early childhood, education, health and employment systems and services offered by DD Network in sample states to AIAN.
2. Conduct interviews with 3-4 key stakeholders in each community, such as the Director of Social Services or the parent of disabled child in at least four American Indian (AI) communities and one AI dense urban community;
3. Conduct a community gathering, including a meal, for 6-8 families in a large reservation population that surveys their knowledge and utilization of DD services and assesses their needs while providing information valuable to them about a DD related topic, and the UCEDD using an audience response system for instant data gathering and feedback;
4. Conduct a survey with a national population attending 1-2 AIAN specific Native American disability or health conferences, such as the 7th Annual American Indian Disability Summit (Phoenix), and the Native Health Research Conference; and
5. Develop and submit a final report.
The goal of the project is to provide ADD with a snapshot of the AIAN experience with DD in 5 Tribal and urban Indian communities. Today there are 565 Federally-recognized AIAN communities in the US, each with distinct cultural characteristics, language, government structures, and social and political issues. A national sample allows for the identification of conditions and issues of importance to develop a national agenda for serving AIAN families and individuals with DD.
