Native American Studies
Permanent URI for this communityhttps://scholarworks.montana.edu/handle/1/51
The Department of Native American Studies was established to provide and advance quality education for and about American Indians of Montana, the region, and the nation. In fulfilling this mission, the Department is committed to meet the changing needs of Montana's Indian tribes and all Montana citizens through excellence in teaching, research, and service. In its academic program, the department provides concentrated study through an undergraduate minor, the first online graduate certificate in Native American Studies offered, and a Master of Arts degree in Native American Studies. Students in any major can also gain a multicultural perspective through NAS offerings in the University's core curriculum. The Department, through its research and other creative efforts, actively pursues interdisciplinary scholarship in the field of Native American Studies.
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Item The pain experience of traditional Crow Indian(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Nursing, 1996) Krumwiede, Norma KayItem Cultural considerations at the end of life : communication of helathcare providers with Native American patients(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Nursing, 2012) Hunsucker, Heidi Lynn; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Yoshiko Yamashita ColcloughThe purpose of this project was to provide information to non-Native-American healthcare providers to help enhance their communication with Native-American patients at the end of life. The end of life can be a distressing time for patients, families, and healthcare providers alike. Cultural differences which may exist among these groups can make the transition even more difficult. Communication may be hindered due to misunderstandings or unclear expectations. This project was an extension of a study focusing on an Indian reservation in north central Montana which identified several areas to focus on for improving end-of-life care including educating the patients and families about palliative care options, helping healthcare providers become more culturally sensitive, and creating a culturally appropriate and sensitive end-of-life program. A pamphlet was developed based on the findings of a literature review and information from a cultural expert to help healthcare providers identify and address communication issues at the end of life. The pamphlet addressed communication issues between non-Native-American healthcare providers and Native-American patients. Madeleine Leininger's Theory of Culture Care Diversity and Universality was used to guide the project, and a modified Delphi method was used to help create a culturally appropriate pamphlet for non-Native-American healthcare providers. By understanding their own cultural influences and taking the time to understand and respect the cultural influences of their patients, healthcare providers can provide quality end-of-life care. Communication at the end of life can be enhanced by recognizing that culture may confound understandings and expectations, and addressing that factor can help remove barriers from quality care. This pamphlet will serve as a device to help prepare APNs for the barriers they may encounter when working with patients from not only the individual tribe in north central Montana, but also to make them aware of the fact that cultural barriers exist among different cultures. Perhaps making APNs aware of the cultural differences will open the way for increasing research about different cultures in the future. APNs should enter into every patient encounter with the knowledge that there are things they can learn from their patient to better provide effective care.Item Cultural perceptions of American Indian women in Southcentral Montana regarding pre-diabetic education(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Nursing, 2008) Hartford, Lori Ann; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Christina SieloffTreatment of prediabetes includes education which provides the prediabetic person with information to help them make lifestyle modification choices regarding their nutrition, exercise and weight control; in order that they control their illness and delay or prevent the development of diabetes. American Indians have a high incidence of both prediabetes and diabetes as a group compared to other ethnic groups in the U.S. There is a lack of data in the literature about what American Indians from the Crow Tribe in Montana consider to be cultural information that they feel should be included in education for pre-diabetics. This qualitative ethno-nursing study was conducted through one-on-one interviews with six American Indian women of the Crow Tribe over a period of months to determine what they defined as culturally important for the health care provider to know when teaching about prediabetes. The data from these interviews were then analyzed using qualitative software by Ethnograph ®, and four primary themes were found. These themes were: extended family and elders, spirituality and traditions, culturally specific foods and activities and a feeling of inevitability of developing diabetes. As cultural competency is an area that is included in all schools of nursing and some schools of medicine, it is important that health care providers have an awareness of cultural specific health information. All the informants in this study reported that they felt more respected when their health care provider brought up the topic of how their culture affects their health habits, as well as how important to them it is that the health care provider be open to learning about the specifics of their culture.Item Words, wounds, chiasms : Native American health care encounters(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2005) Lande, Nancy Carol; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Lisa AldredMy research explores the theme of the production and reception of intercultural mis/communications between Indians and non-Indians as expressed through linguistic narratives in the material setting of health care facilities on Indian reservations in Montana. My thesis focuses on how the βobjectifyingγ discourse of Western practices of biomedicine are taken for granted and impede doctorsα abilities to actually communicate with Native American patients about their health care by exploring sociolinguistic disparities that are revealed through personal interviews. Since the doctor-patient relationship is always contextualized by problematics of social differences, I elaborate on the personal and social effects of cross-cultural linguistic communication. I have isolated several culturally specific aspects of sociolinguistic miscommunications resulting from intercultural differences in speech assumptions and perceptions that interfere with achieving higher levels of Native American health care. Given the recent emphasis on training doctors to be more proficient in communicating, it is critical to determine whether these strategies are relevant to communicating with Native Americans. I examine how differences in the legitimated linguistic abilities and etiquettes that people possess shape ongoing negotiations of high stakes health situations in order to determine how these differences can be bridged.