Alzheimer’s Program Grantees Address Safety Through TIPCAP Funding
The Indian Health Service (IHS) Tribal Injury Prevention Cooperative Agreement Program (TIPCAP) provides funding for federally recognized tribes and tribal and urban Indian organizations to address the gaps in injury rates throughout American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
The effort is managed and supported by the IHS Division of Environmental Health Services Injury Prevention Program.
Several Alzheimer’s Program grantee organizations use TIPCAP funding and training for projects and programs to protect elders from preventable harm, such as traumatic brain injuries and falls. As a population, Native people experience the highest rates of falls across the U.S., with more than one in three American Indian and Alaska Native adults 65 and older reporting a fall. Falls are the leading cause of injury deaths among older adults. Home assessments, modifications, and evidence-based interventions promoted by the programs can reduce this number.
Here’s how three programs are making a difference:
Northern Valley Indian Health
Northern Valley Indian Health focuses on fall and suicide prevention programs for elders:
- “Standing Strong on Your Feet” helps improve strength and balance through weekly activities and movement classes, such as Bingocize, Healthy Steps, and Tai Chi—often set to music that elders enjoy.
- "You Matter,” a new suicide prevention pilot, promotes well-being and connectedness.
- The program provides a way to store medications or firearms safely, and medication safety education kits help reduce accidental overdoses or misuse.
Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation
Tuba City’s “Ramp Project” helps elders with limited mobility stay safe at home. As part of their TIPCAP work, they have:
- Installed aluminum wheelchair ramps in 24 homes across eight Navajo Nation
communities.
- Shared elder fall prevention posters in clinics, businesses, and community spaces.
- Collaborated with an Arizona-based project to distribute 300 smoke alarms and smoke/carbon monoxide detectors.
Norton Sound Health Cooperation
IHS Injury and Violence Prevention Fellowship graduate Katie Hannon is bringing new energy to Norton Sound Health Corporation’s injury prevention efforts. The 18-month fellowship offered hands-on training, mentorship, and leadership development. It's empowered Hannon to:
- Implement new strategies and build on local efforts.
- Strengthen relationships with other fellows and mentors, providing encouragement and support for the work ahead.
Hannon calls the fellowship “the most meaningful education I have ever experienced.”
“The program’s mission is to raise the health status of American Indian and Alaska Native people to the highest possible level,” she said. “Reducing serious injuries and deaths, and increasing capacity, equips our communities to address these challenges better.”
Read more TIPCAP grantee success stories in their newsletter.
Captions:
1) Participants of Northern Valley Indian Health take part in exercise classes geared towards improving strength and balance through weekly activities and movement classes, such as Bingocize.
2) Tuba City’s “Ramp Project” has installed aluminum wheelchair ramps in 24 homes across eight Navajo Nation communities.
3) Katie Hannon, pictured with others here, graduated in May 2024 from the Indian Health Service Injury and Violence Prevention Fellowship Program.
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