Thursday, April 3, 2025
4/3/2025
Kenaitze's Model of Care for Addressing Dementia - Kenaitze Indian Tribe (Kenaitze, “the Tribe”) is a Federally recognized tribal government reorganized in 1971 under the statutes of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, as amended for Alaska in 1936. Kenaitze has established long-term goals to enhance the health, social, and economic wellbeing, cultural heritage, and governmental concerns of its people by administering programs that serve 1,906 enrolled Tribal Members who are Kahtnuht’ana Dena'ina ("People of the Kenai River", Kenaitze) Athabascan; and approximately 4,740 Alaska Native/American Indian (AN/AI) residents of the central Kenai Peninsula Borough (KPB), including the communities of Kenai, Soldotna, Sterling, Nikiski, Ridgeway, Funny River, Kalifornsky, Kasilof, and Cooper Landing—a service area encompassing more than 15,000 square miles in rural Alaska. Tribal health and Elder Center facilities are located in Kenai, Alaska, close to the ancestral fishing grounds of the Kenaitze. The term un’ina is the Dena’ina word meaning “those who come to us”; the Tribe uses this term to refer to all Kenaitze Tribal Members, AN/AI, and other community members who seek services from Kenaitze programs. Kenaitze’s Dena’ina Wellness Center (DWC), a state-of-the-art facility operated in partnership with the Indian Health Service (IHS), offers a wealth of services including primary care, dental, optometry, behavioral health, chemical dependency, wellness, physical therapy, pharmacy support, and traditional healing. The DWC is located just across the parking lot from the Tyotkas (“Auntie’s Place”) Elder Center, which is the nexus for Elder services. Tyotkas programming provides services to Tribal and AN/AI Elders ages 55 and older, including weekday lunches served at the Center (with a delivery option for less mobile Elders), transportation for errands and appointments, home visits and light housekeeping, traditional craft-making activities, social events and field trips, Elder advocacy and abuse prevention, and caregiver support. The purpose of this project is to provide comprehensive, culturally relevant, evidence-based dementia care services to our un’ina and their caregivers to ensure that these conditions do not remain undiagnosed and untreated within our Elder community as they age. The twin goals of this project that address the most prominent gaps in Kenaitze’s existing model of care follow: 1) The development of appropriate screening tools and processes for the approximately 1,044 un’ina who are 54 and older active within the Tribe’s healthcare system, given that age is the most substantial risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease and other related dementias. Of this total population, Kenaitze will screen at least 200 un’ina over the 2-year performance period 2) The formation of a multidisciplinary dementia case management team, including DWC and Tyotkas staff, that reflects the holistic approach of the Tribe’s Dene’ Philosophy of Care, which seeks to address all aspects of a person’s overall well-being in the physical, social, spiritual, and emotional dimensions. The efforts of Kenaitze’s multidisciplinary dementia care team will be coordinated by a newly created 1.0 full time equivalent (FTE) Elder Care Case Manager position, who is meant to act as the primary guide for un’ina diagnosed with dementia and their caregivers as they negotiate this new phase of their health journey. Team members will work in tandem to support un’ina and their caregivers as they navigate the procedural and health-related complexities of the assessment and treatment process for this disease. Kenaitze will hold twelve (12) bimonthly meetings and two (2) annual meetings within the 2-year performance period.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).