Reclaiming Indigenous Health in the US: Moving beyond the Social Determinants of Health

Stephanie Russo Carroll, Michele Suina, Mary Beth Jäger, Jessica Black, Stephen Cornell, Angela A. Gonzales, Miriam Jorgensen, Nancy Lynn Palmanteer-Holder, Jennifer S. De La Rosa and Nicolette I. Teufel-Shone
Additional contact information
Stephanie Russo Carroll: Native Nations Institute, Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
Michele Suina: Good Health Wellness in Indian Country Program, Albuquerque Area Southwest Tribal Epidemiology Center, Albuquerque, NM 87110, USA
Mary Beth Jäger: Native Nations Institute, Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
Jessica Black: Department of Alaska Native Studies and Rural Development and Tribal Governance, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK 99775, USA
Stephen Cornell: Native Nations Institute, Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
Angela A. Gonzales: School of Social Transformation, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
Miriam Jorgensen: Native Nations Institute, Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
Nancy Lynn Palmanteer-Holder: BALCSTAR Consulting PLLC, Omak, WA 98841, USA
Jennifer S. De La Rosa: Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine Tucson, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85711, USA
Nicolette I. Teufel-Shone: Center for Health Equity Research, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 12, 1-12

Abstract: The lack of literature on Indigenous conceptions of health and the social determinants of health (SDH) for US Indigenous communities limits available information for Indigenous nations as they set policy and allocate resources to improve the health of their citizens. In 2015, eight scholars from tribal communities and mainstream educational institutions convened to examine: the limitations of applying the World Health Organization’s (WHO) SDH framework in Indigenous communities; Indigenizing the WHO SDH framework; and Indigenous conceptions of a healthy community . Participants critiqued the assumptions within the WHO SDH framework that did not cohere with Indigenous knowledges and epistemologies and created a schematic for conceptualizing health and categorizing its determinants. As Indigenous nations pursue a policy role in health and seek to improve the health and wellness of their nations’ citizens, definitions of Indigenous health and well-being should be community-driven and Indigenous-nation based. Policies and practices for Indigenous nations and Indigenous communities should reflect and arise from sovereignty and a comprehensive understanding of the nations and communities’ conceptions of health and its determinants beyond the SDH.

Keywords: social determinants of health; Indigenous knowledge; WHO; healthy community; health; Indigenous (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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