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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Deborah Poling Scott, MPH, Sage Associates, Inc., 4407 Rose Street, Houston, TX 77007, 281 773 9677, dsscott@sageways.com and Charlotte Gish, RN, MSN Womens Health Coordinator, Office on Women's Health, 1301 Young Street, Suite 1124, Dallas, TX 75202.

In June 2005, the Office on Women's Health sponsored the Tribal Young Women's Health Summit in Bernalillo, New Mexico for 28 women and 46 girls aged 14-16 from 23 tribal communities in Public Health Region VI. The purpose of the conference was to twofold—to provide an educational opportunity for teens to learn about the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of health, and to create a mentoring relationship between the adults and teens. While the teens were learning about health, the adults were learning mentoring strategies. Evaluations at the conclusion of the conference indicated an increase in knowledge for both teens and adults. Additionally, there was an increase on the part of teens to make presentations to their tribal council leaders. To further measure impact of the project, each mentor and teen(s) developed a health-related project to be implemented in their home communities by the end of the calendar year. At follow-up, 14 of 23 programs had achieved successes, including health fairs, youth-facilitated exercise programs for community seniors, cooking and exercise programs using traditional foods and a Native urban hip hop dance group that combined hip hop with powwow and traditional dances. The programs touched over 600 community members of all ages. Programs were challenged by distance, scheduling conflicts with school and community activities, and participants' relocations. Lessons learned included involving younger girls, pairing all members of the team from the same community, and providing clearer direction to mentors.

Learning Objectives: