April 28, 2016

Native Health Initiative’s Shannon and Anthony Fleg visit IWRI

On October 14, 2015, IWRI hosted a lunchtime meet and greet with Shannon and Anthony Fleg, who were visiting Seattle from Albuquerque for the Native Health Pathways Conference. Shannon Fleg is a Diné woman from Arizona, who is trained with a master’s in health education, and serves as a coordinator for the Native Health Initiative (NHI). Anthony Fleg, M.D., is a family physician at the University of New Mexico, and is also a coordinator for NHI. The Native Health Initiative is a program that addresses health inequities in Indigenous communities through community partnerships, with 95% of their activities done via ‘loving service’ or volunteering, and 5% of their work supported by monetary donations.

This gathering at the UW was a community partnership-building event, as well as one that provided an opportunity for UW students to connect with a non-profit organization focused on eliminating health disparities in Native communities through a process called ‘Loving Service.’ The Flegs described two learning opportunities at NHI that students can engage in to make a difference, such as the Indigenous Health Leadership Institute, a three-day culture and health immersion program held in April 2016, and the Summer Health Justice Internship, a one-month long program where students get to work in an Indigenous community in New Mexico or Arizona on a community health-focused project. For more information about NHI, visit http://www.lovingservice.us/home.