Tribal health officials work to fill vaccination gaps

RAPID CITY

- Arielle Zionts, Tribune News Service

The vaccine clinic was hosted by the Great Plains Tribal Leaders' Health Board, which serves tribes across Iowa, Nebraska, and the Dakotas. It’s one way Native American tribes and organisations are responding to concerns about low measles vaccination rates and patients’ difficulty accessing health care

Cassandra Palmier had been meaning to get her son the second and final dose of the measles vaccine. But car problems made it difficult to get to the doctor. So she pounced on the opportunity to get him vaccinated after learning that a mobile clinic would be visiting her neighbourhood. “I was definitely concerned about the epidemic and the measles,” Palmier, a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, said at the June event. “I wanted to do my part.”

So did her son, Makaito Cuny. “I'm not going to be scared,” the 5-year-old announced as he walked onto the bus containing the clinic and hopped into an exam chair. Makaito sat still as a nurse gave him the shot in his arm. “I did it!” he said while smiling at his mother.

The vaccine clinic was hosted by the Great Plains Tribal Leaders' Health Board, which serves tribes across Iowa, Nebraska, and the Dakotas. It's one way Native American tribes and organisations are responding to concerns about low measles vaccination rates and patients' difficulty accessing health care as the disease spreads across the country.

Meghan O'Connell, the board's chief public health officer, said it is also working with tribes that want to host vaccine clinics.

Elsewhere, tribal health organisations have launched social media campaigns, are making sure health providers are vaccinated, and are reaching out to the parents of unvaccinated children. This spring, Project ECHO at the University of New Mexico hosted an online video series about measles aimed at health care professionals and organisations that serve Native American communities.