Damian Chase-Begay, PhD, MS, is a cultural epidemiologist with a background in Indigenous
health whose research largely focuses on reducing the burden of problem substance use in
urban, multi-tribal communities. The study he proposes, entitled “Reducing opioid misuse
among urban Indigenous young adults in Montana using a culturally centered intervention,”
combines rigorous implementation science with cultural adaptation of an existing evidence-
based practice (EBP).
Candidate: Dr. Chase-Begay is an associate research professor in the University of Montana
Center for Population Health Research (CPHR), housed within the School of Public and
Community Health Sciences in the College of Health. He completed a Master of Science degree
in Healthcare Administration and Interprofessional Leadership at the University of California,
San Francisco, and a PhD in Public Health at the University of Montana. His previous work has
explored the potential for traditional ceremonial practices (TCPs) to be incorporated into the
delivery systems of urban Indigenous health organizations (UIHOs) for a number of physical,
behavioral, and health promotion practices.
Mentoring Committee: Dr. Chase-Begay and his primary mentor, Dr. Annie Belcourt, who
holds dual appointments as professor of public health and chair of Native American studies,
have assembled a strong team of mentors to guide the proposed training, research, and career
development activities. Dr. Curtis Noonan is a professor of epidemiology, and director of CPHR,
and will serve as co-mentor for the award. Dr. Bonnie Duran is professor emerita at the
University of Washington School of Social Work, Dr. Daniel Dickerson is an associate professor
of psychiatry at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, and Dr.
Shannon Wiltsey Stirman is an associate professor in the Stanford University Department of
Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences.
Research: The proposed study seeks to rigorously adapt an evidence-based substance abuse
prevention intervention to incorporate TCPs and then test this invention with urban Indigenous
young adults in Montana. Aim 1 will seek to obtain community-informed guidance on the
selection and adaptation of an evidence-based substance use prevention intervention, and
incorporation of TCPs, through a sequential mixed-methods process. Aim 2 will seek to test the
effectiveness and sustainability of the adapted EBP at five UIHO sites throughout Montana via a
hybrid type 2 implementation-effectiveness trial.