Abstract
Few studies examine how traditional Native American and Western healing practices are being integrated in Native American substance user treatment centers. Data are presented from a 2008 study of providers of integrated substance user treatment for Native Americans at an urban Western US center. Nineteen semistructured interviews were conducted to examine 10 providers’ views of the integration of traditional and Western healing and the impact on recovery for clients. We used a grounded theory approach to data analysis with manual and NVivo codes and themes developed. Limitations and implications for practice are discussed.
THE AUTHORS
Jacquelene F. Moghaddam, M.S., M.Ed., is a graduate student in Clinical Psychology at the University of Michigan. Her research interests involve culturally tailored mental health practices for urban Native Americans. Additional points of study include the roles of spirituality and mindfulness in substance abuse recovery. Jacquelene is currently completing a predoctoral clinical rotation at the Ann Arbor Veteran's Affairs Substance Abuse Clinic. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, yoga, and learning new languages.
Sandra L. Momper, Ph.D., M.S.W. (Chippewa/Ojibwa), is an Assistant Professor at the University of Michigan in the School of Social Work and a former National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) post-doctoral research fellow at the University of Michigan Substance Abuse Research Center. She earned her doctorate from the University of Pittsburgh's School of Social Work where her mixed method dissertation research on maternal gambling, parenting in the home environment, and child outcomes in American Indian families was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. Her research interests include exploring gambling, smoking, and the use of alcohol and other drugs among American Indians on reservations to assist in designing prevention/intervention programs. She conducts culturally appropriate collaborative research with Indian people encouraging tribal members to become full participants in all phases of the research. Dr. Momper serves on the board of the American Indian Health and Family Services of Detroit. In the fall of 2008, she will assume a position as an assistant professor in the University of Michigan's School of Social Work. In her spare time, she swims, kayaks, and attends a weekly Ojibwa language group called “Noongo e-Anishinaabemjig” that means “People who speak Anishinaabe today.”