Methylmercury risk and awareness among American Indian women of childbearing age living on an inland northwest reservation.

lsharp — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 11:38:05 +0000

Published Date:

Sat, 2009-08-01 (All day)

American Indian women and children may be the most overrepresented among the list of disparate populations exposed to methylmercury. American Indian people fish on home reservations where a state or tribal fishing license (a source of advisory messaging) is not required. The purpose of this study was to examine fish consumption, advisory awareness, and risk communication preferences among American Indian women of childbearing age living on an inland Northwest reservation. For this cross-sectional descriptive study, participants (N=65) attending a Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) clinic were surveyed between March and June 2006. An electronic questionnaire adapted from Anderson et al. (2004) was evaluated for cultural acceptability and appropriateness by tribal consultants. Regarding fish consumption, approximately half of the women surveyed (49%) indicated eating locally caught fish with the majority signifying they consumed medium- and large-size fish (75%) that could result in exposure to methylmercury. In addition, a serendipitous discovery indicated that an unanticipated route of exposure may be fish provided from a local food bank resulting from sportsman's donations. The majority of women (80%) were unaware of tribal or state fish advisory messages; the most favorable risk communication preference was information coming from doctors or healthcare providers (78%). Since the population consumes fish and has access to locally caught potentially contaminated fish, a biomonitoring study to determine actual exposure is warranted

Negotiating Three Worlds: Academia, Nursing Science, and Tribal Communities

nfs — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 16:58:44 +0000

Published Date:

Wed, 2009-04-01 (All day)

The purpose of this article is to use a cross-cultural model to guide the exploration of common issues and the dynamic interrelationships surrounding entrée to tribal communities as experienced by four nursing research teams. In the article, the members of four research teams discuss the primary lessons learned about successful strategies and challenges encountered during their projects' early stages. It was found that understanding the cultural values of relationship and reciprocity is critical to the success of research projects conducted in Native American communities. Conducting cross-cultural research involves complex negotiations among members of three entities: academia, nursing science, and tribal communities. The lessons learned in these four research projects may be instructive to investigators who have the opportunity to conduct research with tribal communities.

Nurse Faculty Scholars - Native American

Methylmercury risk and awareness among American Indian women of childbearing age living on an inland northwest reservation.

Negotiating Three Worlds: Academia, Nursing Science, and Tribal Communities