The Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board (NPAIHB) is a non-profit tribal advisory organization in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

, run and organized by participating tribes. It was established in 1972 to focus on four areas as they pertain to the health of Native people: health promotion and disease prevention, legislative and policy analysis, training and technical assistance, and surveillance and research. It serves 43 federally recognized tribes in

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

and

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...

, with each tribe appointing a delegate to the board that oversees the NPAIHB. The board meets quarterly to discuss current projects and issues.

Mission

The mission of the NPAIHB is: “to eliminate

health disparities Health equity arises from access to the social determinants of health, specifically from wealth, power and prestige. Individuals who have consistently been deprived of these three determinants are significantly disadvantaged from health inequiti ...

and improve the quality of life of American Indians and Alaska Natives by supporting Northwest Tribes in their delivery of culturally appropriate, high quality healthcare.” Its slogan is “Indian Leadership for Indian Health.” In fulfilling its mission, the NPAIHB seeks to support tribes in addressing health problems, to present unified position on health issues facing Indian communities, to provide partnership with Indian Health Services and other governmental organizations, and to advocate for issues related to Indian health.

Services

The Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board houses the Northwest Tribal Epidemiology Center (The EpiCenter or NWTEC). The NWTEC provides research, surveillance, training and technical assistance to the 43 federally recognized tribes of the Portland Area of Indian Health Service. At the direction of the Board of Delegates, the NWTEC performs research and surveillance programs pertaining to health and quality of life of American Indians and Alaska Natives. The NWTEC receives core funding from the Indian Health Service. In addition, the NWTEC has funding for projects from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), along with other federal agencies and non-governmental foundations. The NWTEC's functions and status as Public Health Authorities are outlined in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Indian Health Care Improvement Act (Title 25, Chapter 18 Indian Health Care 161m(2010)) The Portland Area

Institutional Review Board An institutional review board (IRB), also known as an independent ethics committee (IEC), ethical review board (ERB), or research ethics board (REB), is a committee that applies research ethics by reviewing the methods proposed for research to ens ...

(IRB) of the

Indian Health Service The Indian Health Service (IHS) is an operating division (OPDIV) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). IHS is responsible for providing direct medical and public health services to members of federally-recognized Nativ ...

(IHS) is run through the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board. It reviews all research that uses IHS facilities, data, staff resources, or funding and that affects members of the Portland Area American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) population and tribes. It collaborates with the National IHS IRB.

Current projects

Current projects of the NWTEC: Northwest Tribal Immunization Project Improving Data and Enhancing Access (IDEA-NW) Northwest Tribal Dental Support Center Project Red Talon WE R NATIVE Native STAND Hepatitis C Treatment and ECHO Western Tribal Diabetes Program

Northwest Comprehensive Cancer Prevention Program Native Children Always Ride Safe (Native CARS) Tots to 'Tweens Native American Research Centers for Health (NW-NARCH) Summer Research Training Institute Thrive (Suicide Prevention) Good Health and Wellness in Indian Country (WEAVE-NW) Injury Prevention Project Public Health Emergency Preparedness Conference Environmental Health Tracking Project

References

{{Authority control Organizations based in Portland, Oregon 1972 establishments in Oregon