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Gulf Today
31-07-2025
- Health
- Gulf Today
Tribal health officials work to fill vaccination gaps
Arielle Zionts, Tribune News Service Cassandra Palmier had been meaning to get her son the second and final dose of the measles vaccine. But car problems made it difficult to get to the doctor. So she pounced on the opportunity to get him vaccinated after learning that a mobile clinic would be visiting her neighbourhood. 'I was definitely concerned about the epidemic and the measles,' Palmier, a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, said at the June event. 'I wanted to do my part.' So did her son, Makaito Cuny. 'I'm not going to be scared,' the 5-year-old announced as he walked onto the bus containing the clinic and hopped into an exam chair. Makaito sat still as a nurse gave him the shot in his arm. 'I did it!' he said while smiling at his mother. The vaccine clinic was hosted by the Great Plains Tribal Leaders' Health Board, which serves tribes across Iowa, Nebraska, and the Dakotas. It's one way Native American tribes and organisations are responding to concerns about low measles vaccination rates and patients' difficulty accessing health care as the disease spreads across the country. Meghan O'Connell, the board's chief public health officer, said it is also working with tribes that want to host vaccine clinics. Elsewhere, tribal health organisations have launched social media campaigns, are making sure health providers are vaccinated, and are reaching out to the parents of unvaccinated children. This spring, Project ECHO at the University of New Mexico hosted an online video series about measles aimed at health care professionals and organisations that serve Native American communities. The presenters outlined the basics of measles diagnosis and treatment, discussed culturally relevant communication strategies, and shared how tribes are responding to the outbreak. Participants also strategized about ways to improve vaccination rates, said Harry Brown, a physician and an epidemiologist for the United South and Eastern Tribes, a nonprofit that works with 33 tribes in the Atlantic Coast and Southeast regions. 'It's a pretty hot topic right now in Indian Country and I think a lot of people are being proactive,' he said. Measles can survive for up to two hours in the air in a space where an infected person has been, sickening up to 90% of people who aren't vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The US has had 1,319 confirmed cases of measles this year as of July 23, according to the CDC. It's the largest outbreak in the US since 1992. Ninety-two percent of the 2025 cases involve unvaccinated patients or people with an unknown vaccination status. Three people had died in the U.S. and 165 had been hospitalised as of July 23. O'Connell said data on Native Americans' vaccination rates is imperfect but that it suggests a lower percentage of them have received measles shots than the overall US population. The limited national data on measles vaccination rates for Native Americans is based on small surveys of people who self-identify as Native American. Some show that Native Americans have slightly lower measles vaccination rates, while others show significant gaps. Data from some states, including South Dakota and Montana, shows that Native Americans are less likely than white children to be vaccinated on schedule. The national measles vaccination rate is significantly lower for Native Americans who use the mostly rural Indian Health Service. About 76% of children 16 to 27 months old had gotten the first shot, according to data collected by the agency during recent patient visits at 156 clinics. That's a 10-percentage-point drop from 10 years ago. But the IHS data shows that its patients are at least as likely as other children to have received both recommended measles shots by the time they're 17. O'Connell said it's unclear if currently unvaccinated patients will continue the trend of eventually getting up to date on their shots or if they will remain unvaccinated. The immunisation rate is probably higher for older children since schools require students to get vaccinated unless they have an exemption, Brown said. He said it's important that parents get their children vaccinated on time, when they're young and more at risk of being hospitalised or dying from the disease. Native Americans may have lower vaccination rates due to the challenges they face in accessing shots and other health care, O'Connell said. Those on rural reservations may be an hour or more from a clinic. Or, like Palmier, they may not have reliable transportation. Another reason, O'Connell said, is that some Native Americans distrust the Indian Health Service, which is chronically underfunded and understaffed. If the only nearby health care facility is run by the agency, patients may delay or skip care. O'Connell and Brown said vaccine skepticism and mistrust of the entire health care system are growing in Native American communities, as has occurred elsewhere nationwide. 'Prior to social media, I think our population was pretty trustful of childhood vaccination. And American Indians have a long history of being severely impacted by infectious disease,' he said. European colonizers' arrival in the late 1400s brought new diseases, including measles, that killed tens of millions of Indigenous people in North and South America by the early 1600s. Native Americans have also had high mortality rates in modern pandemics, including the 1918-20 Spanish flu and Covid-19. The Great Plains Tribal Leaders' Health Board reacted quickly when measles cases began showing up near its headquarters in South Dakota this year. Nebraska health officials announced in late May that a child had measles in a rural part of the state, close to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Then, four people from the Rapid City area got sick later that month and into the middle of June. 'Our phones really rang off the hook' once that news came out, said Darren Crowe, a vice president at the board's Oyate Health Center in Rapid City. He said parents wanted to know if their children were up to date on their measles vaccines. Crowe said the health board ordered extra masks, created a measles command team that meets daily, and called parents when its online database showed their children needed a shot. Brown praised that approach. 'It takes a concerted outreach effort that goes individual to individual,' he said, adding that his organisation helped the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas with similar efforts. Brown said reaching specific families can be a challenge in some low-income Native American communities, where many people's phone numbers frequently change since they use temporary prepaid plans. Once a health worker reaches a parent, Brown said, they should listen and ask questions before sharing the importance of the vaccine against measles, mumps, and rubella. 'Rather than trying to preach to somebody and beat them over the head with data or whatever to convince them that this is what they need to do, you start out by finding out where they are,' he said. 'So, 'Tell me about your experience with vaccination. Tell me what you know about vaccination.'' Most people agree to immunise their children when presented with helpful information in a nonjudgmental way, Brown said.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Jackley targets $525 million for prison spending
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — South Dakota's top law enforcement officer, who sits on a task force examining where to recommend putting a new men's prison, is sharing the kind of price tag he wants to see: a cost that's notably different from a previous guaranteed maximum price as well as a fraction of what a recent consultant report recommends. Oglala Sioux Tribe sends measles alert after case in border county In February, South Dakota lawmakers voted down House Bill 1025, which would have appropriated money to build a new 1,512 men's prison in Lincoln County with a guaranteed maximum price of $825 million. The failure paved the way for Project Prison Reset and the consultant report which includes a recommendation to build a 1,728-bed replacement for the current penitentiary. The report also recommends building an additional prison or prisons and adding beds to the Sioux Falls Minimum Center. Per the report, this could all cost up to $2.1 billion. South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley, who sits on the task force, is targeting a price that's notably lower. 'I think there are several proposals out there,' Jackley said Tuesday. 'The ones that I'm more interested in fall in that $525 million range, 'cause again, for me this is about protecting not just the public, but the taxpayers.' That cost, Jackley says, would still pay for 1,500 beds. At the task force's most recent meeting, the group unanimously voiced approval to replace the current penitentiary. Still on Gov. Larry Rhoden's to-do list for the group is figuring out how big this facility should be and where it should go. 'We've got two meetings left before a special session,' Minnehaha County State's Attorney Daniel Haggar said Tuesday. 'I think it's important for us to address those questions that the governor has tasked us with. There's going to be a lot of conversation, and we've seen things can move slowly. They can also move quickly.' Haggar is also on the task force. As of Tuesday, he hasn't landed on a specific location. 'I'm not quite there yet,' Haggar said. 'I haven't ruled anything out.' As for Jackley, he says locations already within the Department of Corrections' orbit are possible. 'It could be utilizing existing facilities, and when I say utilizing existing facilities, that's Jameson, that's the Hill, that's Springfield,' Jackley said. 'It's areas that already exist so you don't have some of the community pushback.' The task force's next meeting is June 3 in Pierre. Eventually, the plan is for a special session of the state legislature to learn on July 22 about the group's recommendations. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Which areas of KELOLAND need more rain?
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Even with all the rain we've had this month, there are still areas that are below average. Meteorologist Scot Mundt shows us who can still use the water. Oglala Sioux Tribe sends measles alert after case in border county There were periods of rain in eastern KELOLAND throughout the day as temperatures remained below average. While we've been getting steadier rain for the second half of May, it still hasn't been enough to bring some in KELOLAND to their climate average, but that's not the case for everyone. This graphic shows the rain compared to the average for May so far (not including today). While many in central South Dakota are above average, it's not the case for eastern or western South Dakota. Sioux Falls remains over an inch below average and Rapid City is around three-quarters inch below. Compared to the year so far, many that have been above average for May are also above average for the year. And the same is true for those that haven't been getting as much rain this month. Check out Sioux Falls, over 3 inches below average for the year. Huron is below by an inch and a third. On the other side, areas are over two inches from Buffalo to Mobridge. As temperatures warm later this week and last into next week, scattered showers and storms will remain in the forecast as I expect things to improve for those that haven't seen much improvement. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
State board oks another suicide-prevention course
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — There will now be a half-dozen different ways that K-12 educators in South Dakota can get their required suicide-prevention training. The South Dakota Board of Education Standards on Tuesday approved a New Hampshire-developed program called 'CALM — Conversations on Access to Lethal Means.' Oglala Sioux Tribe sends measles alert after case in border county State law calls for educators to receive at least one hour of suicide training every five years. The CALM program joins five others already recognized and listed on the state Department of Education's website. Andrea Effling is the department's school counseling and student support administrator. She made the presentation during the state board's teleconference meeting. Effling said the CALM training can be taken in person or online and will always be in a live group format. The cost is $300 per school or district for the CALM instructor and materials, plus mileage for any location that is more than 20 miles outside Sioux Falls. 'It's just to add to the menu of options,' Effling said. The five other suicide-training programs are free if taken online or have a travel charge if the trainer visits the school. Among them is based within the University of South Dakota's School of Health Sciences. Board member Rich Meyer of Rapid City suggested another training program based in Arizona that's not on the list. Effling said the department has an official application process and offered to provide a form. 'It's another avenue to a big problem,' Meyer said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Oglala Sioux Tribe sends measles alert after case in border county
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Officials on the Pine Ridge Reservation have sent an alert for Oglala Sioux Tribe members about Nebraska's first confirmed case of measles. On Tuesday, the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services confirmed a measles case in Sheridan County, which is the Nebraska county directly south of Pine Ridge in South Dakota. National Parks head into prime season in South Dakota The Nebraska alert said, 'The patient is an appropriately vaccinated child with no out-of-state travel history.' Individuals present at the following public locations may have been exposed to measles and should visit and fill out the risk assessment survey. Family Dollar in Rushville, Nebraska, from 9 a.m. to noon on May 17 Gordon Clinic in Gordon, Nebraska, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 21 The OST alert said 'your child can catch the Measles easily and its spreads quick. Contact your local IHS to find out if your child are caught up on the vaccinations.' In South Dakota, State Epidemiologist Joshua Clayton told KELOLAND News earlier this month that South Dakota's MMR vaccination rate is trailing behind the national average. 'We have decreased to the point where we had been almost very close to the national average and now, we're starting to dip a little bit below that national average,' Clayton said. The last measles outbreak in South Dakota was in 2015 with about eight to 10 cases. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
