Wellmark Foundation Grant to Support Native American Caregiver Education Project in South Dakota

October 8, 2007

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Contact:
Angela Feig
515.245.4551
feigab@wellmark.com

(Des Moines, Iowa) – A $50,334 grant from The Wellmark Foundation will allow the Aberdeen Area Tribal Chairmen’s Health Board in Rapid City, S.D., to develop an education project for Native American caregivers of cancer patients.

The Northern Plains Native Families Caregiving Project will provide education, training and tools to Native American caregivers of cancer patients in a multi-county region of South Dakota, according to Leah Frerichs, M.S., program manager for the Northern Plains Comprehensive Cancer Control Program. The region includes nine Native American tribes residing on rural reservation lands.

“The project will include development of a toolkit and workshops for family members, friends and community health providers, all of whom may provide support and care to cancer patients in Native American communities,” says Frerichs. Tribal health leaders, including health directors and health committees, will be consulted throughout the development of the project, and a workgroup will be formed to provide oversight and leadership for the project.

According to Frerichs, the toolkit will provide caregiving strategies and community resources. A series of four workshops will be held to provide hands-on learning and training on the toolkit materials. Emphasis will be given to preparing caregivers to manage a wide variety of end-of-life issues, including providing palliative and comfort care, interpersonal communication skills, advanced care planning, living wills and more.

Project partners include the South Dakota Comprehensive Cancer Control Program and the University of Nebraska Medical Center. For more information on the Northern Plains Native Families Caregiving Project, contact Leah Frerichs at (605) 721-1922 ext. 110 or epifrerichs@aatchb.org.

The Wellmark Foundation has provided more than $12.77 million to fund 374 health-related grants in Iowa and South Dakota since 1997, including a total of $1,854,175 to date in 2007. “The Wellmark Foundation works to improve the health of Iowans and South Dakotans,” says Matthew McGarvey, director of The Wellmark Foundation. “This collaborative project will offer much needed information and support to many Native Americans in South Dakota who are caring for loved-ones and friends battling cancer.”

The Wellmark Foundation is a private, non-profit foundation created by Wellmark, Inc., doing business as Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa. Visit The Wellmark Foundation's Web site at www.wellmark.com/foundation for a list of grant recipients and grant application instructions. Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield and The Wellmark Foundation are independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.