ACL Awards ADPI-Dementia Capability in Indian Country Cooperative Agreement

ACL is pleased to announce the 2021 award for its ADPI - Dementia Capability in Indian Country initiative. The Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, whose membership includes representatives from the governments of 21 tribal nations in Arizona, has been awarded a 3-year cooperative agreement to deliver culturally competent education and training services to increase dementia capability in Native communities across Arizona. The award totals $785,752.

As American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN) are living longer, the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) are increasing in tribal communities. The number of AIAN elders is expected to triple over the next three decades. ADPI - Dementia Capability in Indian Country provides funding and technical assistance to increase Native communities’ ability to support and assist elders living with ADRD and their caregivers.

The Inter Tribal Council of Arizona will pilot the delivery of the evidence-informed Savvy Caregiver in Indian Country to three member tribes: the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, the Tohono O’odham Nation, and the Hualapai Tribe. This intervention is just one of several tools that the council will deploy to empower elders living with ADRD to remain independent and safe in their communities.

The Inter Tribal Council of Arizona joins four other ADPI grantees across the nation that are establishing practical and culturally-competent approaches to increasing ADRD capability among Native communities.

• The Absentee Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma, is increasing the capability of its health system by hiring and training dementia care specialists and raising awareness in the community about how to recognize the signs of dementia and support elders and caregivers affected by ADRD.
• In Southwest Alaska, the Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association is embedding dementia-capable care coordinators in the island communities to adapt and deploy resources in a culturally sensitive way.
• In Wisconsin, the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council is adapting an existing state-based model for dementia care coordination to expand their comprehensive and sustainable network of education, referral, and person-centered dementia services for member tribes.
• At Spirit Lake in North Dakota, a dementia capable home and community based care system is being developed within the Tribe’s Senior Services Program to provide elders and their caregivers with access to information, person-centered care, and streamlined eligibility.

All ADPI - Dementia Capability in Indian Country grantees dedicate a significant portion of their funds to direct services. Direct service programming includes, but is not limited to, delivery of home and community based, evidence-based, and evidence-informed dementia specific interventions, and dementia education and training programs.

Learn more about ADPI and other related ACL initiatives