Fort Defiance Indian Hospital Board, Inc., (FDIHB) is a tribally chartered, 501(c)(3) nonprofit healthcare organization whose mission is “to provide superior and compassionate healthcare to our community by raising the level of health, Hozho, and quality of life.” FDIHB operates and manages two facilities on the Navajo Nation, Tsehootsooi Medical Center (TMC) and the Nahata’ Dziil Health Center located in Sanders, Arizona.
TMC serves approximately 47,000 people in 16 communities located in northeastern area of Arizona including: Cornfields, Crystal (AZ/NM), Fort Defiance, Ganado, Greasewood, Houck, Kinlichee, Klagetoh, Lupton, Nahatadziil, Oak Springs, Red Lake (AZ/NM), Sawmill, Saint Michaels, Steamboat, and Wide Ruins.
According to the Navajo Epidemiology Center Update report , suicide remains a significant contributor to mortality among Navajo, contributing to 3 percent of total deaths, and named the 7th leading cause of death. It is the second leading cause of death for youth ages 10-19 and third for ages 20-29. In an effort to reduce these statistics among youth, FDIHB proposes to implement the Native Connections Program to make enhancements to patient services and improve inter-agency collaboration among youth serving agencies in the community.
The Adolescent Care Unit at TMC will direct the program activities and ensure that the following objectives are met:
Objective 1: By the end of Year One, FDIHB will have completed a Community Health Needs Assessment, System Analysis, and Readiness Assessment.
Objective 2: By Year Two, FDIHB will have examined and revised its current policy and/or developed new policy as it relates to transition to treatment, follow-up care services, and postvention protocols with input from organizational partners and youth serving agencies.
Objective 3: By July 2020, FDIHB will have developed an Action Plan that addresses at least two tiers of prevention and intervention strategies based on the results of the analysis and assessments.
Objective 4: By Year Five, FDIHB will have developed and implemented a sustainability plan to continue the program beyond grant funding.
Objective 5: By Year Five, the number of youth suicides and substance abuse reported in the Fort Defiance Service are will have been reduced by 10% as evidenced by the number of reports recorded in RPMS.
The program hopes to serve 500 youth per year in the Fort Defiance Service area through treatment, aftercare services, and postvention activities. The overall goal of the program is increase the capacity of health facilities and youth serving organizations to decrease the number of suicides completed by youth, decrease suicidal behavior and substance abuse and reduce the impact of trauma within the Fort Defiance service area.
