Sixth National Conference on Quality Health Care for Culturally Diverse Populations: Preconference Sessions Sudanese refugees in the Midwest: Background and recommendations for health providers
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Preconference A-8 Culture and health intensives - AM

Sudanese refugees in the Midwest: Background and recommendations for health providers
Sunday, September 21, 2008: 9:00 AM-12:00 PM, Minn Marriott, 8th Floor - Wayzata Bay
The Midwest is currently experiencing rapid ethnic diversification.   As its young workforce leaves the region for jobs in other states, and its native-born population of white European Americans ages, newcomers from Latin American, Eastern Europe, and Africa are arriving in the region to work in meatpacking, agricultural processing, manufacuturing, and other jobs.  Sudanese refugees are among the largest groups to arrive in recent years, and can now be found throughout the Midwest, even in some small rural towns.  For example, the largest population of Sudanese immigrants is now in Omaha, Nebraska, with the second largest in Des Moines, Iowa.  These refugees from Africa are particularly diverse, and represent multiple tribes and languages.  Many health providers in the Midwest have little experience working with this population, and have almost no understanding of the unique history, background, culture, socio-economic patterns, family patterns, or traditional health beliefs of this population.  This two-hour pre-conference workshop will provide important background information on Sudanese refugees, and will discuss important elements of their culture that are important for health providers to understand.  The Iowa Center on Health Disparities will be presenting this workshop, and has significant experience conducting programs, consulting, and research with rural Midwestern towns that have welcomed Sudanese immigrants in recent years.

Presentation Information:

Program: Preconference Sessions
Primary Category: Culturally Competent Care
Subtopics: Access in underserved communities, eg, rural, urban, Disparity reduction, Community health education, Patient education, Social services, Mental health services, Clinical interactions

Region Addressed by Presentation: US - Midwest
Organization: University
Population/Demographic: Sudanese refugees
Keywords: sudanese refugees, african immigrants, culturally approrpriate care
Michele Yehieli, Dr, PH , University of Northern Iowa, Iowa Center on Immigrant Leadership and Integration, Cedar, IA
    Professor and Director
    Iowa Center on Immigrant Leadership and Integration
    University of Northern Iowa
    107 HPC
    Cedar IA, USA 50614

    Phone: 319 273-5806
    Fax: 319 273-6413
    Email Address: michele.yehieli@uni.edu

    Biographical Sketch:     Dr. Michele Yehieli is a professor of public health at the University of Northern Iowa, where she is the recipient of the Richard Remington Award, the Governor’s Award, the Iowa Civil Rights Award, and other local, state, and national honors for outstanding teaching, scholarship, and service in the health and human rights field. Dr. Yehieli is Director of the Iowa Center on Health Disparities, a model organization funded by the National Institutes of Health to improve health equity for underserved populations. She completed her master’s and doctorate degrees in international public health at the University of California at Los Angeles. Dr. Yehieli’s primary areas of specialty include refugee, minority, and immigrant care, as well as cultural competency and health communication with underserved populations. She has published multiple scientific reports and books, including Health Matters: A Guide to Working with Diverse and Underserved Populations. In addition to her academic expertise, Dr. Yehieli has more than 25 years of field experience working with public health agencies, non-profits, corporations, and government organizations, conducting programs both domestically and internationally with refugees, women, children, minorities, the elderly, and other at-risk individuals. Dr. Yehieli is also the founder and advisor of the award-winning “Global Health Corps,” a model service-learning program that has trained more than 500 students in conducting culturally appropriate public health programs with over 40,000 diverse and underserved populations in the United States and abroad. Dr. Yehieli has extensive travel experience, and has worked, visited, or studied in 40 nations around the world.
Mark Grey, PhD , University of Northern Iowa, Iowa Center on Immigrant Leadership and Integration, Cedar Falls, IA
    Professor and Director
    Iowa Center on Immigrant Leadership and Integration
    University of Northern Iowa
    221 Lang Hall
    Cedar Falls IA, USA 50614

    Phone: 319 273-6496
    Fax: 319 273-6413
    Email Address: mark.grey@uni.edu

    Biographical Sketch:     Mark A. Grey is Professor of Anthropology at the University of Northern Iowa. He is also Director of the Iowa Center for Immigrant Leadership and Integration and the New Iowans Program. The Center is an award-winning program that provides consultation, training and publications to Iowa communities, churches, organizations, and employers as they deal with the unique challenges and opportunities associated with influxes of immigrant and refugee newcomers. Dr. Grey received his Ph.D. in Applied Medical Anthropology at the University of Colorado-Boulder. He has published extensively in academic journals on immigration in the Midwest including recent articles in Human Organization and Religion and Education. He has also published extensively for non-academic audiences. His handbooks include Welcoming New Iowans: A Guide for Citizens and Communities; Welcoming New Iowans: A Guide for Managers and Supervisors; and Welcoming New Iowans: A Guide for Christians and Churches. With Dr. Michele Yehieli, he recently published A Health Provider’s Pocket Guide to Working with Immigrant, Refugee and Minority Populations in Iowa; several pocket guides on providing health services to diverse seniors; and A Health Providers Pocket Guide to Working with Orthodox Jewish Patients in Hospital Settings. Dr. Grey has won numerous awards for his activities, including the Iowa Friends of Civil Rights Award, the University of Northern Iowa Distinguished Service Award, and the Iowa Regents Award for Faculty Excellence.
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