Each November, the American Diabetes Association observes American Diabetes Month as an opportunity to bring attention to the disease and its impact on millions of Americans. Diabetes affects the health of our Alaska Native people at a greater rate than the general population. The ANTHC Diabetes program works to reduce the instances of diabetes and health complications from the disease among Alaska Native people. Diabetes program staff are a multidisciplinary team of diabetes experts who work in partnership with the ...

The first phase of construction to replace the flooring in the ANMC front entrance and gathering area is complete and the front entrance is now open for regular use. The Information Desk and Central Registration have also moved back to their original locations near the front entrance. Construction work will continue in front of the craft shop and a detour will be necessary to access the main elevators. This project removes the uneven slate tile flooring and replaces it with ...

Our Alaska Native community is an important part of fulfilling our mission and vision at the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, as equal partners in the care that we provide and champions of the Tribal values that ANTHC is known for. When the 202-room patient housing facility opens in January 2017, many individuals and organizational partners will be a part of the healing “home away from home” community through their generous financial support of patient housing benefits for guests. There ...

ANTHC’s programs are constantly collaborating and partnering with local organizations in improving the wellness of Alaskans statewide. Recently, ANTHC Diabetes Program Community Educator and Dietician Luz Smeenk partnered with Camp Fire Alaska’s Rural Program to develop a wellness curriculum for Alaska’s rural youth. Over the last several years, Camp Fire worked to develop a wellness curriculum that is holistic, youth centered, and culturally relevant for Alaska’s rural communities. Through a close partnership, Smeenk and Camp Fire took great strides to ...

Staff from the ANTHC Department of Rural Utility Management Services (DRUMS) presented at the Alaska Rural Water Association (ARWA) conference in Anchorage. The annual gathering, which provides training for water and wastewater operators from across the state, was held Oct. 31-Nov. 3. DRUMS personnel often share their rural sanitation expertise, including new solutions and emerging technologies. Pierre Costello, lead civil engineer, delivered an overview of ANTHC’s custom treatment system for the Selawik water plant. William Hickey, utility operations specialist, presented ...

This November marks the Alaska Native Health Campus’ 10-year anniversary of becoming a tobacco-free campus. The Alaska Native Health Campus has been 100 percent tobacco free since 2006 and will celebrate this achievement on Nov. 17 in conjunction with the American Cancer Society’s Great American Smokeout. The American Cancer Society began celebrating the one-day Great American Smokeout event in the 1970s primarily as a way to encourage current tobacco users to make a plan to quit, or to go completely ...

ANMC celebrated American Pharmacists Month in October by recognizing our talented pharmacy staff. Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are an integral part of the health care team and offer an array of education, prevention and wellness services to help our people improve their health. The month was a time to recognize our more than 100 pharmacy staff for the vital contributions they make to health care through improved medication use and advanced patient care. Special events were held throughout the month ...

ANTHC has long been a champion of health training and education as a means to provide the best quality health care for our people. Internal medicine grand rounds at ANMC have been offered regularly since 1999 as part of a coordinated effort of the Alaska chapter of the American College of Physicians (ACP) to provide relevant continuing medical education (CME) opportunities for Alaska’s health care providers. Grand rounds, the traditional medical education lecture and case studies presentation, have been adapted ...

As flu season begins, it is important to know the health benefits of getting an annual flu shot versus myths about the vaccine. Myth: I am healthy, so there is no need for me to get a flu vaccine. Fact: It is true that the flu vaccination is routinely recommended for people who have a chronic illness. But anyone – even healthy people – can benefit from being vaccinated. Current guidelines suggest that children ages 6 months to 19 years ...

When it comes to recovering from an injury or illness, for many people the healing process includes more than the medicine and care received from our medical staff. Many of our patients welcome visits from clergy members volunteering at the Alaska Native Medical Center. October is Clergy Appreciation Month, and ANMC’s Volunteer Services celebrated and thanked our pastoral volunteers with a special meal and tokens of appreciation for all. ANMC has 35 clergy volunteer members, 17 of whom are Alaska ...