For the first time, the Arizona Department of Health Services included the Navajo Nation in their 2020 Arizona Maternal Child Health Needs Assessment report, which is produced by the Bureau of Women’s and Children’s Health every five years.
On May 6, 11a.m.–1:30 p.m., in an online workshop, the authors of the first Navajo Nation-specific Maternal and Child Health Assessment that was included in the Arizona Department of Health Services report will discuss their approaches for collecting meaningful data from Navajo mothers and healthcare professionals.
Researchers from Diné College and Northern Arizona University, assisted by the Navajo Nation Epidemiology Center and the Navajo Nation Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS), produced the 72-page report in November last year.
“This needs assessment was a collaborative effort on and off the Navajo Nation, and with support from these partners, we’re able to continue to work toward addressing the needs established in this report,” said Amber-Rose Waters Navajo Maternal Child Health needs assessment coordinator, Diné College. “I’m honored to be able to work on a project such as this being a Navajo woman and mother. The goal is to engage partners at every level to improve the health of the future generations and this workshop is part of that process.”
The two institutes of higher education are part of the Navajo Native American Research Center for Health (NARCH), which is led by Diné College in collaboration Northern Arizona University’s Center for Health Equity Research (CHER).
In the workshop, the report team will present the challenges they met while retrieving and collecting data, the main findings of the report, their dissemination plans, and the future implications of their findings. A panel of the assessment authors will also summarize their research experience and discuss next steps for enhancing maternal and child health programs on the Navajo Nation.
The workshop is part of four workshops sponsored by the sixth annual Arizona Biomedical Research Centre Education Series. The series is an ongoing initiative to develop regional and statewide engagement in health and health equity research. The workshops bring together regional, national and international experts and participants from varied backgrounds.
The workshop is free and open to the public.
For any questions, contact Amy Gelatt at amy.gelatt@nau.edu.