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BEHAVIORAL HEALTH

ISSUE

Greater thaMethamphetamine (meth) abuse and suicide are two top concerns in Indian Country.  Suicide rates among American Indians and Alaska Natives ages 15 to 34 are 1.9 times higher than the national average for that age group. Suicide is the second leading cause of death behind unintentional injuries for Indian youth ages 15-24 residing in IHS service areas and is 3.5 times higher than the national average.n one-third of the demands made on health facilities in Indian country involve concerns related to mental health, alcoholism, and substance abuse.

BACKGROUND

The Indian Health Service (IHS) behavioral health programs include community-oriented clinical and preventive services that are part of a broader, multidisciplinary health care team that includes IHS, tribal, and urban Indian health facilities. Challenges facing American Indian and Alaska Native communities and programs include substance abuse, trauma, forced cultural change, poverty, lack of economic opportunity, and limited access to services.

SITUATION

Meth is a low-cost, highly addictive stimulant drug.  Its introduction to the American Indian and Alaska Native communities has resulted in destabilizing and disrupting entire health and social systems.  Users may display high levels of aggression and may injure or kill themselves and others. Injection use puts the user at risk for hepatitis, abscesses, HIV/AIDS, tetanus, and infected blood clots that can lodge in the heart or lungs. 

Suicide is a complicated public health challenge with myriad contributors in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. To address youth suicide in Indian Country appropriately requires public health and community interventions as much as direct, clinical ones. Since 2003, the IHS National Suicide Prevention Initiative has provided a critical framework for addressing the tragedy of suicide in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. The IHS National Suicide Prevention Initiative builds on the foundation of the Department of Health and Human Services “National Strategy for Suicide Prevention” and its goals and objectives to reduce suicidal behavior and its consequences, while ensuring that Native traditions and practices are honored and respected.

The system of services for treating mental health problems among American Indians and Alaska Natives is a complex and often fractured web of tribal, federal, state, local, and community-based services. The availability of these programs varies considerably across communities.  The behavioral health needs are largely unmet, services generally are lacking, and access is often difficult and costly.

OPTIONS/PLANS

The IHS has implemented a comprehensive, coordinated program to provide much-needed, targeted meth abuse and suicide prevention and intervention resources for Indian Country.  This initiative promotes the development of culturally appropriate, evidence-based and promising practices for prevention and treatment approaches to meth abuse and suicidal behaviors in a community-driven context.

• The goal of the Methamphetamine and Suicide Prevention Initiative is to intervene effectively to:
• Prevent, reduce or delay the use and/or spread of meth abuse;
• Build on the foundation of current meth and suicide prevention/treatment efforts to develop and implement culturally-appropriate prevention strategies;
• Increase access to meth and suicide prevention services;
• Demonstrate efficacy and impact.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

For referral to the appropriate spokesperson, contact the IHS Public Affairs Staff at 301-443-3593.

June 2009