Background: Widespread transmission of COVID-19 continues to threaten public health, particularly of rural, American Indian communities. Although COVID-19 risk factors for severe disease and clinical characteristics are well described in the general population, there has been little shared on hospitalized American Indian populations.
Methods: In this observational study, we performed chart extractions on all persons hospitalized with COVID-19 from April 1 through July 31, 2020 among an exclusively American Indian population living on or near Tribal lands in eastern Arizona.
COVID-19 has disproportionately affected Indigenous communities. The Whiteriver Service Unit (WRSU) took an integrated public health-health care system delivery approach in collaboration with the White Mountain Apache Tribe to decrease the case fatality rate (CFR). The WRSU performed daily data analyses identifying risk factors, expeditiously treating and proactively vaccinating people during at-home visits.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIndigenous populations have been disproportionally affected by COVID-19, particularly those in rural and remote locations. Their unique environments and risk factors demand an equally unique public health response. Our rural Native American community experienced one of the highest prevalence outbreaks in the world, and we developed an aggressive management strategy that appears to have had a considerable effect on mortality reduction.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis quality improvement study compares outcomes among high-risk Native American patients who did or did not receive monoclonal antibody treatment for COVID-19.
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