Primary Prevention in Gila River

Olivia and I will start working with public health Monday, and I am looking forward to all of the educational opportunities associated with that. Even though we will be with public health, we will still participate in at least four of the flu clinics held in the schools. Public health often teams up with school health services to ensure all of the children, after their parents fill out a consent form, are given flu shots. I'm pretty excited because we will be using the Bioject, a needle-free instrument used to deliver the flu vaccine.

Aside from working with school health, I have participated in several breast cancer awareness events. On the 8th, the Komatke clinic had booths set up with educational materials for community-members to become more informed of ways to be healthy. There was an area set up for people to learn how to and practice doing self-exams. Also, the mobile mammography unit was available for community-members to have an exam done. Guest speakers shared their stories about the impact breast cancer has had on their lives and those of their families and friends. Their heart-felt stories brought tears to a lot of people's eyes, including myself. On the 10th, I went to the breast cancer walk in downtown Phoenix, helping with Gila River's booth. It's great to see the health care team places a large emphasis on raising awareness on breast cancer, since it is one of the leading causes of death among women on the reservation.

Friday, Olivia and I helped Janie and Estella with the Elder Conference in Blackwater (District 1). There, we administered flu shots, distributed pamphlets with health information, and did vitals and blood sugar checks. The conference was intended to bring the elders together to share experiences while providing support and information on raising their families. Many elders on the reservation have taken the responsibility of caring for their grandchildren or great-grandchildren so that they are not placed in foster homes. With this heavy burden, a lot of them put the needs of their family members before their own. By holding this conference, the goal of the health care team was to keep the elders as healthy as possible. Having a healthy, aware elder will impact their families and the community as a whole.