Joe Bointy, of Lawrence, was one of several dancers Friday, July 30, 2010, at Haskell Indian Nations University. by Richard Gwin

From left, Haskell Indian Nations University students Frederick Diaz, and Isaiah Stewart, get ready to entertain about 100 people Friday July 30, 2010, in Stidham Union. They performed after Kansas University Medical Center leaders announced their new Center for American Indian Community Health. The center will address the severe health issues facing American Indians. by Richard Gwin

The five-year grant was given by the National Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities.

Compared to the rest of the U.S. population, American Indians are 420 percent more likely to die from diabetes and 100 percent more likely to die from tobacco-related diseases. They have the lowest five-year survival rate for all major cancers and the lowest screening rates for breast cancer and colorectal cancer.

About 50,000 American Indians live in Kansas, which is 1.8 percent of the population.

Dr. Allen Greiner, an associate professor and research division chair of family medicine at KU, is one of two principal investigators for the center. He said the center will focus on two specific research projects:

• It will promote repeat breast cancer screenings among American Indian women.

• It will epidemiologically track smoking and health behaviors in college students, including those at Haskell. Tobacco is incorporated in a lot of American Indian traditions, and that’s one of the reasons usage is so high.

Dr. Christine Daley, an associate professor of preventive medicine and public health at Kansas University Medical Center, talks about the new Center for American Indian Community Health during a press conference Friday, July 30, 2010, at Haskell Indian Nations University. Daley is one of two principal investigators on the project. by Richard Gwin

Dr. Christine Daley, the other principal investigator and an associate professor of preventive medicine and public health at KU, said the center culminated from a need for a tobacco cessation program in 2003. She said some Haskell students were seeking a program and there were none that specifically addressed American Indians.

The new center is a collaboration of people who work in various buildings at KUMC. In the spring, they hope to be relocated in a building that is under construction.

The effort involves partnering with communities, reservations and American Indian schools, mostly in the region. This summer, 19 interns worked on collecting data, and this fall, there will be between five and seven. They are collecting a lot of data by visiting with people face-to-face.

“You will see us at a lot of pow-wows,” Daley said.

The center’s team is beginning to work with communities from California to Minnesota and Oklahoma.

“We are really starting to broaden and work with people around the country, Daley said.

Health disparities exist because many American Indians have limited access to services, live in poverty, and have limited education.

The center also plans to set up a system to attract American Indian high school and college students to KU School of Medicine’s Masters of Public Health program and other graduate programs in an effort to increase the number of American Indians entering health professions.

“Our goal is to train and educate the next generation of native health researchers and health care professionals, hoping that they will return to their communities and help to address health disparities,” Daley said.