The objective of the Nimiipuu Health Joins the Digital Information Age project is to support the provision of quality healthcare to the Nez Perce Tribe by ensuring that all staff have the skills necessary to access health information on the internet. Through access to on-line resources staff will be able to keep abreast of the latest information in their field, access information that will help in the care of specific patients, and gain knowledge useful for program planning, implementation and evaluation. Nimiipuu Health provides healthcare to Native Americans living on or near the Nez Perce Reservation which extends across northern Idaho nearly from Washington to Montana. The land is rural, mountainous, and sparsely populated; public transportation is nearly non-existent; and poverty is widespread. Significant health problems seen by Nimiipuu Health include obesity, alcoholism, diabetes, depression, domestic violence, accidents, chronic pain, and respiratory problems. These overwhelming problems require state-of-the-art solutions by staff with access to the latest clinical research and best practices in program development. This project will achieve that goal by training Nimiipuu Health staff to access National Library of Medicine databases and other digital library resources. Staff will be taught individually or in small groups with a focus on their specific information needs. A system will be developed for sharing on-line information sources among staff members. Project staff will take before and after measures of the types of information needed by Nimiipuu Health staff and of the ease, frequency and success of locating that information on-line.
