S06GM142120

WMAT-JHU NARCH XI Application - Project Summary:

The White Mountain Apache Tribe (WMAT) and Johns Hopkins University (JHU) have partnered successfully on NARCH I, III, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, and X. Each NARCH application has included an integrated focus on training and community-driven research, which has deepened our understanding of local and cross-tribal health disparities, produced new public health solutions, and added to the continuous development of our innovative training model that combines student and faculty development.

The overall goals of the WMAT-JHU NARCH XI initiative are to:

1) Increase the pool of trained American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) scientists and research professionals.
2) Strengthen our partnership with JHU and other research institutions through innovative community-based participatory research, combining WMA and Western cultural and scientific knowledge and worldviews.
3) Field innovative, strengths-based, and culturally driven research to combat major AI/AN health disparities.

The WMAT-JHU NARCH XI application includes four components to meet these goals:

1) A student and faculty development project that will integrate academic and field-based research training.
2) Three NARCH research projects to:
a) Address the large burden of Staphylococcus aureus.
b) Address alcohol, opioid, and other substance use among at-risk Apaches.
c) Improve breast cancer screening among White Mountain Apache women.

The research projects are focused on tribal-specific priorities and designed to provide a supportive, multidisciplinary platform for training Apache investigators on broad scientific research methods. Methodological approaches and rigorous evaluation designs will contribute new cultural and scientific understanding to protective factor-based intervention development and outcomes in AI/AN settings.

Apache scientists will build skills in biomedical and behavioral sciences, qualitative and quantitative research methods, culturally grounded development, and deep structure adaptation of strengths-based evidence-informed interventions. They will also learn rigorous, culturally competent evaluation approaches.

The studies are built upon previous NARCH research findings, will apply innovative methods and approaches, and tap cultural and community assets to address major AI health disparities across the lifespan with the potential for intergenerational impact. Activities have been selected and will be guided by the existing White Mountain Apache NARCH Community Advisory Board.

White Mountain Apache Tribe

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF GENERAL MEDICAL SCIENCES (NIGMS) SUPPORTS BASIC RESEARCH THAT INCREASES OUR UNDERSTANDING OF BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES AND LAYS THE FOUNDATION FOR ADVANCES IN DISEASE DIAGNOSIS, TREATMENT, AND PREVENTION. NIGMS ALSO SUPPORTS RESEARCH IN SPECIFIC CLINICAL AREAS THAT AFFECT MULTIPLE ORGAN SYSTEMS: ANESTHESIOLOGY AND PERI-OPERATIVE PAIN, CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY ?COMMON TO MULTIPLE DRUGS AND TREATMENTS, AND INJURY, CRITICAL ILLNESS, SEPSIS, AND WOUND HEALING.? NIGMS-FUNDED SCIENTISTS INVESTIGATE HOW LIVING SYSTEMS WORK AT A RANGE OF LEVELSFROM MOLECULES AND CELLS TO TISSUES AND ORGANSIN RESEARCH ORGANISMS, HUMANS, AND POPULATIONS. ADDITIONALLY, TO ENSURE THE VITALITY AND CONTINUED PRODUCTIVITY OF THE RESEARCH ENTERPRISE, NIGMS PROVIDES LEADERSHIP IN SUPPORTING THE TRAINING OF THE NEXT GENERATION OF SCIENTISTS, ENHANCING THE DIVERSITY OF THE SCIENTIFIC WORKFORCE, AND DEVELOPING RESEARCH CAPACITY THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY.

93.859 - Biomedical Research and Research Training

National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) [HHS - NIH]

Arizona United States

State-Wide

Native American Research Centers for Health (NARCH) (S06 Clinical Trial Optional) (PAR-20-125)

Amendment Since initial award the End Date has been extended from 07/31/25 to 01/31/26 and the total obligations have increased 1175% from $240,495 to $3,066,457.