LTSS Research

This page includes links to papers, literature reviews, and online resources related to LTSS in Indian Country.

General LTSS Topics

AI/AN Age and Disability – trends for AI/AN populations nationwide, with statistics and additional references.

Issues Affecting American Indians and Alaska Natives Consumers with Disabilities (PDF) (PDF, 23p) – a paper on disability among AI/AN populations and related issues, including indigenous perspectives on disability, health status statistics, and examples of programs serving AI/AN individuals with disabilities.

Tribally-Operated Nursing Home Facilities (PDF) (PDF, 10p) - a report providing an overview of tribally operated nursing home facilities, including facility ratings on the Medicare Nursing Home Compare website.

Nursing Homes in Indian Country (PDF) (PDF, 3p) - a directory of tribally-run nursing homes currently operating. Includes contact information for each facility.

Caregiver Support

LTSS Research: Annotated Literature Review, Caregiver Support in Indian Country (PDF, 40p) (PDF) – an annotated literature review that discusses the challenges of caregiver support in American Indian and Alaska Native communities, available support for caregivers, and recommendations to overcome barriers. The document includes a glossary of terms, a 4-page executive summary and 29 research sources.

Program Profiles for Caregiver Support

Fact sheets describe each program and present findings on successes and innovations, funding, lessons learned, and how each program addresses culture in providing caregiver support services.

• Blackfeet Eagle Shields Senior Center (PDF)
• Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc. (PDF)
• Oneida Nation Elder Services (PDF)
• Southeast Senior Services (PDF)
• South Puget Intertribal Planning Agency (PDF)
• Taos Pueblo Senior Citizen Center (PDF)

Elder Abuse Prevention

Best Practices in Elder Abuse Prevention: A Snapshot of Research Findings (PDF, 1p) (PDF) – an overview of elder abuse research, including types of abuse, challenges to addressing abuse and recommendations for establishing an elder abuse prevention program.

Elder Abuse in Indian Country: An Annotated Bibliography (PDF, 42p) (PDF) – a literature review paper that defines the different types of elder abuse, its causes, and its prevention, with special attention given to related issues unique to AI/AN populations. A 4-page report overviews relevant issues and recommendations for addressing abuse, followed by citations and detailed summaries for 31 additional research sources.

Reclaiming What Is Sacred: Addressing Harm to Indigenous Elders and Developing a Tribal Response to Abuse in Later Life (PDF, 60p) – a report that explains the issue of elder abuse, offers strategies for preventing elder abuse in tribal communities, and encourages communities to look closely at how elders are treated and to use local strategies to respond to abuse compassionately and effectively.

Program Profiles for Elder Abuse Prevention

Fact sheets describe each program and present findings on strategies for success, funding, lessons learned, and how each program attends to specific cultural considerations when addressing and preventing elder abuse in their tribal communities.

• Adult Services Program: Poarch Band of Creek Indians (PDF)
• Elder Abuse Prevention Interventions Program: Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska (PDF)
• Elder Abuse Prevention: Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin (PDF)
• Elderly Protection Team Department: Standing Rock Sioux Tribe (PDF)
• Elderly Services Program: Central Council Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska (PDF)

Funding

Offering and Funding Home- and Community-Based Services in Indian Country (PDF) (PDF, 17p) – an overview of ways that AI/AN communities provide home- and community-based care, including common funding sources, profiles from five programs, and recommendations from program administrators.

Hospice and Palliative Care

Hospice and Palliative Care in Indian Country (PDF, 2p) (PDF) – a fact sheet that analyzes as a group the four hospice programs that serve Indian Country.

Hospice in Indian Country: Literature Review (PDF, 37p) (PDF) – a literature review paper that defines hospice and palliative care and explains issues related to access, use, and cultural issues for these care types for AI/AN populations. A 5-page report overviews relevant issues and the document gives citations and detailed summaries for 25 additional research sources.

An Inventory of Hospice Programs in Indian Country (PDF, 3p) (PDF) - a brief discussion of hospice services as well as an inventory of tribally operated hospice programs, organized by region.

Program Profiles for Hospice and Palliative Care

Fact sheets describe each program and present findings on successes and innovations, funding, lessons learned, and how each program approaches the incorporation of culture in end-of-life care.

• Cherokee Nation Home Health Services – Hospice of the Cherokee (PDF, 2p) (PDF)
• University of New Mexico – Palliative Care (PDF, 2p) (PDF)
• Tohono O’odham Nursing Care Authority – Tohono O’odham Hospice (PDF, 2p) (PDF)
• Pueblo of Zuni – Zuni Home Health Care Agency (PDF, 2p) (PDF)

 

Program Profiles

Program profiles provide real-life examples of how tribes are implementing long-term services and supports (LTSS) in their communities by highlighting successful programs. Explore the following resources to learn about the diverse tribal programs currently in practice.

LTSS Programs

These pages profile five tribes that have established LTSS programs using models such as home- and community-based services (HCBS) and facility-based care. Each profile describes the choices programs made in deciding health care delivery systems and funding options based on the needs of their communities.

• Pueblo Of Zuni (Program: HCBS)
• White Earth Band of the Ojibwe/Minnesota
• Cherokee Nation/Oklahoma (Program: Home Health Agency)
• Oneida Nation/Wisconsin (Program: HCBS and Facility)
• Cherokee Nation PACE Model

Hospice Programs

There are four hospice programs currently serving Indian Country. For each program, these brief profiles address successes and innovations, funding, lessons learned, and how each program approaches the incorporation of culture in end-of-life care.

• Cherokee Nation Home Health Services – Hospice of the Cherokee (PDF, 2p) (PDF)
• University of New Mexico – Palliative Care (PDF, 2p) (PDF)
• Tohono O’odham Nursing Care Authority – Tohono O’odham Hospice (PDF, 2p) (PDF)
• Pueblo of Zuni – Zuni Home Health Care Agency (PDF, 2p) (PDF)

Videos

Visit the Videos page to see tribal and urban program profiles presented as brief videos. Profiled programs include:

• Serving Diverse Populations and Places: Phoenix Native Health
• Keeping Elders in the Village: Tanana Chiefs Conference Community Health Outreach Program
• LTSS in Indian Country: Pueblo of Zuni
• LTSS in Indian Country: Tohono O’odham Nation
• LTSS in Indian Country: Oneida Nation of Wisconsin
• LTSS in Indian Country: Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians