SOUTHWEST AMERICAN INDIAN COLLABORATIVE NETWORK (SAICN)
PROJECT
STAFF:
John R. Lewis, ITCA Executive Director
Alberta Tippeconnic, ITCA Assistant Director
Kenton Laffoon, ITCA SAICN Program Specialist
Naomi A. Lane, ITCA Health Educator
Zeenat Mahal, ITCA Epidemiology Director
Norm Petersen, ITCA Senior Epidemiologist
Alida Montiel, ITCA Health Systems Analyst
Dr. Kathryn Coe, Principal Investigator, Arizona Cancer Center
National Cancer Institute-Community Networks to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities through Education, Research and Training Program
Grant Number 1U01 CA114696
PURPOSE:
To eliminate cancer health disparities among American Indians in the Southwest by closing the gap between the health needs of the community and the promise of cancer prevention and cure made through a responsive health delivery and research system. This aim will be through support of participatory education, training and research programs driven by American Indian community needs.
WORKPLAN OBJECTIVES:
A collaborative approach involving the three primary partners, Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc. (ITCA),Arizona Cancer Center (AZCC), and Phoenix Indian Medical Center (PIMC), with input from Arizona universities and genomics researchers from Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), is being utilized to draw upon the strengths of each entity and to provide direction, synergy, and coordination of SAICN activities. A core organizational infrastructure, made up of six core services, was developed and has been implemented in order to support community-based participatory activities and the development of effective partnerships among communities, cancer prevention/care delivery systems, and research discovery/development systems. The cores are designated to assure that this occurs at many levels, thus allowing SAICN to increase and sustain delivery of beneficial interventions and to develop pilot studies using a collaborative approach. The SAICN has created the following cores: Administrative,Data and Evaluation,Outreach and Service,Policy,Research,Training and Education. Cores were established and fully staffed during the first year of SAICN. In addition, SAICN has developed an organizational chart. A multidisciplinary team of community leaders, researchers, clinicians and educators is being identified for each core.
ISSUES IDENTIFIED:
Early studies have revealed disconnection of the cancer care system for American Indians. SAICN is working to connect the parts and build a system of care. It is recognized that any type of cancer research done in Tribal communities shall entitle Tribes to own, hold and maintain all rights to all information, processes, products, and publications.
SAICN will continue to promote the successful implementation and evaluation of this project and to ensure sustainability of all efforts by building capacity in American Indian communities throughout the region.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
If you would like to be added to the mailing list, like more information on SAICN, or require any additional information on available training and services, please contact Kenton Laffoon, SAICN Program Director at (602) 258-4822.
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