A Partnership for Native American Health

Greater tribal involvement in their healthcare · Recruitment of Native Americans into health and science careers · Research linked to the health priorities of Native Americans.
Thanks to an innovative, synergistic partnership among lead agency, Indian Health Council (IHC), San Diego State University (SDSU), and the University of California San Diego (UCSD), these laudable goals are now possible to attain.

IHC, in partnership with SDSU and UCSD, is funded as a Native American Research Center for Health (CA-NARCH) by the National Institutes for Health (NIH) and Indian Health Services (IHS). It is one of 14 NARCH organizations in the United States.

Under the leadership of Dan Calac, MD (Indian Health Council) and Stephanie Brodine, MD (SDSU), CA-NARCH began as an exciting concept funded by seed money in 2001. A NARCH grant of $1.3 million in 2003 enabled CA-NARCH to begin fully pursuing its goals to strengthen tribal sovereignty over the healthcare of the community and to recruit and support students pursuing science and health fields.

CA-NARCH Mission: The mission of the CA-NARCH is to increase the number of Native American researchers and health professionals, and to decrease health disparities in the Native American populations in California. To this end, the CA-NARCH includes a NA Tribal IRB and is guided by a Community and Scientific Advisory Board.

CA-NARCH is uniquely positioned to draw from and serve several
rural and urban Native American populations.