United Indian Health Services

United Indian Health Services (UIHS) is a tribally owned and governed nonprofit health-care organization based in Arcata, California, serving Native American communities in Humboldt and Del Norte counties. Incorporated in 1970, it operates Potawot Health Village in Arcata and a network of clinics in Northern California. Its services combine clinical care with community health, nutrition, and cultural programs.

History

UIHS developed from efforts by local Native American community members to obtain health services in the late 1960s and was incorporated in 1970. Reporting for public television in 2018, journalist Debra Utacia Krol described its founders as a group of women and traced its growth from a small building in Weitchpec to the Potawot campus.

During the late 1990s, UIHS proposed consolidating services at Potawot Health Village on a 40-acre (16 ha) former dairy farm in Arcata, within the ancestral homeland of the Wiyot people. The proposal required rezoning agricultural land and drew opposition from residents concerned about preserving farmland. Between December 1996 and July 1997, the proposal was discussed at ten planning commission and city council meetings. UIHS organized presentations and community outreach during the approval process. Potawot Health Village was completed in 2001. The new facility replaced UIHS locations in Trinidad, Cutten, and Sunny Brae. UIHS sought a more central location for patients and proximity to Mad River Community Hospital.

In February 1999, the Bank of America Foundation announced a $100,000 grant toward the Health Village project.

Organization and services

The Indian Health Service lists nine tribes in UIHS's service profile: the Bear River Band of the Rohnerville Rancheria, Big Lagoon Rancheria, Blue Lake Rancheria, Elk Valley Rancheria, Resighini Rancheria, Table Bluff Reservation, Tolowa Dee-ni' Nation, Trinidad Rancheria, and Yurok Tribe. Its service area encompasses Humboldt and Del Norte counties. A 2020 account by UIHS clinicians described the organization as serving approximately 10,000 patients through six clinic locations.

Services listed by the Indian Health Service include medical, dental, pharmacy, behavioral health, and community health and wellness services, with the combination varying by location.

In November 2021, Liz Lara-O'Rourke was named chief executive officer, succeeding John Reeves. She had worked at UIHS for 34 years in several roles.

Potawot Health Village

Potawot Health Village combines health-care facilities with gardens and ecological restoration. The site includes a 20-acre (8.1 ha) restoration area and a three-acre organic food garden and orchard. The garden supports nutrition education, community activities, produce distribution, and a seasonal produce stand.

Restoration work began in 1998, before the main buildings were designed. Historical maps and aerial photographs guided the excavation of former swales; excavated soil was moved to the future gardens, while ponds received stormwater from the buildings and parking lots and overflow from Janes Creek.

In a 2003 report, garden writer Amy Stewart described the clinic's circular layout around a native-plant garden and the use of concrete cast to resemble redwood on the building's exterior. She also documented the integration of the produce stand with nutrition education, including tastings and recipes introducing clients to unfamiliar vegetables.

Krol's 2018 reporting described the garden's role in Indigenous food sovereignty and efforts to provide fresh produce to rural communities with limited access to grocery stores. UIHS also provided meals and produce to homebound tribal elders.

The original complex comprised twelve buildings designed to evoke regional Native architecture. Its gathering room served as a lobby and intake area, while the main corridor, called the Walk of the Elders, also functioned as an art gallery. Potawot also hosted Yurok language classes taught by elder Aileen Figueroa and her daughter Kathleen, as reported in 2008.

A 2003 account in Humboldt State University’s newsletter described a permanent basket collection displayed in community areas, initially assembled from donations by UIHS staff and board members. It also reported collaboration with the California Indian Basketweavers Association on a basket garden and interpretive booklets.

Community health programs

In a 1999 article, UIHS staff described the Cultural Health and Mobilization Project (CHAMP), a program promoting physical activity through culturally relevant community activities. Over a three-year grant period, the project established seven community coalitions to help design and organize activities, including fitness events, walking groups, and training for community fitness leaders.

During the 2009–2010 H1N1 influenza pandemic, UIHS used Native American community health workers to educate rural communities about vaccination. In January 2010, chief executive Jerome Simone told The Sacramento Bee that reaching patients was difficult because some lacked telephone access.

UIHS began expanding local hepatitis C treatment in 2016, supported by remote consultation with specialists at the University of California, San Francisco. The program combined clinician training, a patient registry, screening, and case management. In their 2020 account, UIHS clinicians reported that the proportion of patients aged 21 or older who had been screened increased from 21 percent in December 2015 to 68 percent in December 2019.

External links

• Official website

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