The Georgia Health Policy Center (GHPC) and Seven Directions would like to welcome you to the Rural Health Link: The Rural Tribal COVID-19 Quarterly Digest. This newsletter will share program updates, the technical assistance schedule of events, as well as a variety of resources focused on COVID-19 and tribal health. Each issue will also feature a grantee spotlight article and video. We welcome your feedback. If you have any comments or recommendations for future content, please reach out to us at chsdteam@gsu.edu.
GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT
Grantee Spotlight: Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe 

The Georgia Health Policy Center recently spoke to Brittany Wind, grants director; Jenna Kudak, health services director; and Lisa Blahosky-Olivarez, public health director for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, about the tribe’s efforts to combat COVID-19. 
PROGRAM SPECIFIC UPDATES
RTCR Quarterly Technical Assistance Schedule  
Quarter 4: August- October 2021 

RTCR Webinars 

Motivational Interviewing Part 2: Vaccine Hesitancy 
As a reminder the slides and recording from the Motivational Interviewing Part 2: Vaccine  Hesitancy held on August 5, 2021, has been posted to the grantee website. You may find the materials directly on the Rural Tribal COVID-19 Response Grant page.   

Indigenous Evaluation Approaches Part 2 
The slides, recording, and resources from the Indigenous Evaluation Approaches Part 2 held on August 25, 2021, have been posted. You can find them on your grant page here.

Indigenous Evaluation Approaches Part 3 
The slides, recording, and resources from the Indigenous Evaluation Approaches Part 3 held on September 14, 2021, will be posted soon, you can find them on your grant page here.  

Webinars will begin again in November 2021 
A schedule for the year, including topic areas, date and time will be sent out in October. Please send or discuss any topic ideas with your TA provider!  
RTCR Peer Group Calls
The third quarter peer group calls took place in July on the following topics:  

  • Building capacity to support provider and community wellbeing and mental health + the data to strengthen health department efforts 
  • Substance use disorder (SUD) 
  • Youth mental health - talking with youth about resources 
  • Stress reduction and staying well 

There were some great resources shared during these calls, you can find them here under the resources section.    
Upcoming Peer Calls for September 2021
Peer calls were restructured as you all transitioned into year 2 of your grant program.  We organized you all into the following geographic regions: 

  • Alaska 
  • West Coast/California 
  • East/Plains 
  • Western 
  • Southern Plains 
  • Southwest 

The purpose of the restructure of RTCR peer groups is to build stronger connections across your regions and facilitate shared learnings across communities. They provide an opportunity for you to connect with your peers regularly in a small group format supported by a team of two Seven Direction TA providers.  

For your reference here is your group information and schedule: 
Alaska
September 1 at 11 a.m. PT/2 p.m. ET 
Myra Parker | myrap@uw.edu  

  • Ahtna' T'aene Nene' 
  • Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium 
  • Kenaitze Indian Tribe 
  • Mentasta Traditional Council 
  • Native Village of Tatitlek 
  • Norton Sound Health Corporation 
  • Southcentral Foundation 
  • Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium 
  • Village Of Aniak 
West Coast/California
September 11 at 11 a.m. PT/2 p.m. ET 
Myra Parker | myrap@uw.edu  

  • Bear River Band of Rohnerville Rancheria 
  • Big Valley of Pomo Indians of the Big Valley Rancheria California 
  • Blue Lake Rancheria 
  • Colusa Indian Community Council 
  • K’IMA: W Medical Center 
  • Round Valley Indian Health Center, Inc. 
  • Tule River Indian Health Center, Inc. 
  • Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians 
  • Yurok Tribe 
East/Plains
September 2 at 11 a.m. PS/2 p.m. ET 
Lynette Jordan | ljordanc@uw.edu   

  • Wabanaki Health And Wellness, NPC 
  • Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) 
  • Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians  
  • Northern Arapaho Tribe 
  • Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate 
  • Rosebud Sioux Tribe 
  • Bighorn Valley Health Center, Inc 
  • Blackfeet Tribe of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation 
  • Rocky Boy Health Center 
  • Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe 
Western
September 15 at 11 a.m. PT/2 p.m. ET 
Lynette Jordan | ljordanc@uw.edu   

  • Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon 
  • Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, The 
  • Lower Elwha Tribal Community 
  • Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe of the Shoalwater Bay Indian Reservation 
  • Skokomish Indian Tribe 
  • Squaxin Island Tribe 
  • Benewah Medical Center 
  • Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall Reservation of Idaho 
  • Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe 
Southern Plains
September 14 at 11 a.m. PT/ 2 p.m. ET 
Sofia Singer | spsinger@uw.edu    

  • Omaha Tribe of Nebraska 
  • Ponca Tribe of Nebraska 
  • Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribes 
  • Chickasaw Nation 
  • Quapaw Nation 
  • The Cherokee Nation 
  • Chitimacha Tribe of Louisiana 
  • Inter-tribal Council of Michigan, Inc. 
  • Sokaogan Chippewa Community 
  • Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin  
Southwest
September 8 at 11 a.m. PT/2 p.m. ET  
Carly Marshall | carlym3@uw.edu   

  • Fort Defiance Indian Hospital Board, Inc. 
  • Tohono O'odhan Nation  
  • White Mountain Apache Tribe 
  • Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe 
  • First Nations Community Health Source Inc.  
  • Pueblo Of San Felipe 
  • Ute Mountain Ute Tribe 
  • Pueblo of Toas 
GRANTEE DELIVERABLE
Year 2 quarter 1 reports are due September 26, 2021. As a reminder you can use your monthly calls to discuss your reports with your TA provider and get assistance with completing your quarterly reports. Additionally, refer to or ask your TA and project officer for the quarterly report guidance that was sent to you via email in April. 
NEWS ARTICLES
The Tribal community suffered from high infection and mortality rates during the current COVID-19 pandemic. This experience is very similar to what Tribal communities experienced during the 1918 flu pandemic. This article highlights what we can do as a nation to prevent another health care crisis within Tribal communities including addressing economic, cultural, and medical barriers and building health care resilience in tribal communities. Click here to access the article.  
 
Tribal communities have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Native Americans have a higher vaccination rate than any other racial and ethnic group in the nation, but still roughly 45% of the Native American population remains unvaccinated. This article provides insight into overcoming vaccine hesitancy including engaging the unvaccinated population with effective messaging. Click here to access the article.  
RESOURCES
Collection of Resources from John Hopkins Center for American Indian Health: 

The John Hopkins Center for American Indian Health recently released a collection of new COVID-19 resources 
 

New National Indian Health Board Resource: COVID-19 Response Plan Template: The National Indian Health Board recently published a COVID-19 response plan template for Tribal Nations to use to develop COVID-19 or other outbreak response plans or to crosswalk with existing plans. Click here to access the template.  
 
Customizable COVID-19 Vaccine Communication Toolkit for Rural Communities: The Delta Region Community Health Systems Development Program, with support from the Delta Regional Authority and the Health Resources Services Administration's Federal Office of Rural Health Policy, created a toolkit to support rural health organizations with developing internal and external communication materials. Click here to access the toolkit. 

COVID-19 Vaccine Confidence Toolkit: The National Rural Health Resource Center developed a toolkit to build confidence around the COVID-19 vaccine. The toolkit includes posters, print ads, brochures, social media posts, and toolkit user guide. Click here to access the toolkit.  

COVID-19 Communication Vaccine Communications Resource: The American Hospital Association compiled a list of resources to assist and support health care and public health professionals with COVID-19 vaccination efforts. The resource includes a rural resource toolkit, communication materials by audience, and more. Click here to access the resources. 
UPCOMING EVENTS 
Monthly, every Friday from 11-12 p.m. MT 
Please join the National American Indian and Alaska Native Prevention Technology Transfer Center Network and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Tribal Training and Technical Assistance Center as they host virtual trainings for prevention specialists to support Native communities. The training will cover topics including crisis response and resources will be shared.
Upcoming dates: Sept. 17, Oct. 15, Nov. 19, Dec. 17. 
Sept. 17, 2021, Sept. 24, 2021 & Oct. 1, 2021  
Please join the U.S. Department of the Interior as they collaborate with a few other agencies including the Federal Communications Commission, to host the National Tribal Broadband Summit. This year's summit will focus on implementing the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Grant; planning for long-term success; technical solutions, middle mile, connectivity solutions; and broadband use and adoption.  
October 4-8, 2021
Please join the National Indian Health Board as they host the National Tribal Health Conference. This year's conference will focus on health equity; disruption, governance, and politics in the Tribal health space; transformational approaches to financing Tribal health systems; resilience during sustained crisis; and the rise of technology to revolutionize Tribal health.