Montana Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (MT REACH)
Montana REACH is a five-year cooperative agreement wherein MORH/AHEC is working alongside the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, Fort Peck Tribes, Rocky Boy, and Montana DPHHS with the goal of elevating Indigenous health knowledge to reduce the burden of chronic disease. MT REACH is specifically working in areas of Nutrition, Produce Rx, Physical Activity, and Family Wellness.
REACH is a national program administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in chronic disease. This is the first occasion REACH has been implemented in Montana.
Focus Areas
Nutrition & Produce Rx
CSKT operates their REACH programming through the Food Sovereignty Program and is focused on Nutrition and Produce Rx in Year 2 of the agreement. They partner with local food banks and pantries to implement culturally relevant food guidelines and policies that help customers to make healthier choices. The Food Sovereignty program is also partnering with Tribal Health to pilot a Produce Rx program wherein families identified by Tribal health may receive fresh, locally grown produce to help manage chronic disease and combat food insecurity.
Physical Activity
Rocky Boy Health Center (RBHC) is the lead on MT REACH physical activity strategies. In Year 2 RBHC staff will conduct several assessments of the policies and built environment that contribute to active way finding and physical activity in the community. Assessments include the Rural Active Living Assessment, pieces of the Active Communities Tool, and several community-led walk audits. When priority areas have been identified by the community, RBHC will begin to make improvements to the built environment with the goal of increasing physical activity and safety.
Family Wellness
Spotted Bull Recovery Resource Center (SBRRC) in Fort Peck is focused on Family Wellness in Year 2 of the agreement. SBRRC staff in partnership with MSU and DPHHS are working to adapt and family wellness curriculum MEND to become more culturally relevant. SBRRC holds community events where they gather feedback on the curriculum. They also connect with the community’s ceremony people to add culturally relevant stories and images to the curriculum. SBRRC is also working to create program recruitment strategies that best suit the community.
Community Partners
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CSKT Food Sovereignty ProgramContact: Dana Hewankorn dana.hewankorn@cskt.org
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Rocky Boy Health CenterContacts: Melody Henry mrhenry@rbclinic.org, Mike Geboe mgeboe@rbclinic.org
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Spotted Bull Recovery Resource Center (Fort Peck)Contacts: Season Crawford season.crawford@fortpecktribes.net, Leena Sherman eleena.sherman@fortpecktribes.net, Bethany Fatupaito bfatupaito@allysonkelleypllc.com
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Montana Department of Public Health & Human ServicesContact: Jessica Kechely jessica.kechely@mt.gov |
Landscape Assessments
Landscape assessments focus on the physical and social environment surrounding a community and how it impacts the health of its residents.
During Summer 2024, each REACH community partner survey their community to gather information on what would most increase physical activity and nutrition. Those responses along with more information about each focus area, including pertinent historical and geographic context can be found in landscape assessment. This assessment is a living document, currently in Draft #2.
Outline of findings from CSKT.
Outline of findings from Rocky Boy.
Outline of findings from Fort Peck.
