Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 30, Number 8, 1 August 2013 — Aloha mai kākou, [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Aloha mai kākou,

When you go to your health care professional, you might notice a cultural divide. These professionals are good, hardworking people who are trying to do the best for you. But if they're not Native Hawaiian, sometimes, things get lost in translation. Native Hawaiians are underrepresented in our heahh care workforce. Without a diverse workforce, we don't have workers who are familiar with their patients' belief systems, culture and traditional treatments. We also know that Native Hawaiians have some of the worst socio-economic and heahh disparities in the State of Hawai'i; they have the highest levels of obesity, among many other problems. But we've taken a landmark step to improve conditions for Native Hawaiians. In June, The U.S. Department of Heahh and Human Services Office of Minority Heahh and Nā Limahana o Lonopūhā, the Native Hawaiian Heahh Consortium, signed a memorandum of understanding for a five-year partnership to improve heahh care for Native Hawaiians. This critical partnership is designed to create a pipeline to get more Native Hawaiians into heahh care professions and to work to reduce obesity, diabetes and heart disease. It will also work to integrate culturally competent heahh care services, and decrease cultural barriers to encourage people to get the heahh care they need. We've agreed to work together to address the heahh problem. And this goal is attainable.

The University of Hawai'i's John A. Burns School of Medicine has been working to attract more Native Hawaiians into heahh care fields. In addition, the members of Nā Limahana o Lonopūhā ean draw from its members' strengths to bring together money and expertise and to leverage it with resources from the federal government. It is all part of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs' effort to step up our advocacy at all levels and to bring together as many resources as we ean muster. By bringing everyone together, we ean make real progress in the heahh of our lāhui. This is just the start. Nā Limahana o Lonopūhā will lead the way to create a well-coordinated heahh care delivery system to benefit Native Hawaiians and communities throughout the state. As Native Hawaiians, we are all part of our larger community, and as we work with service providers to create a better way to get help to those who need it, our entire community will benefit. And in that way, we will strengthen all of Hawai'i. 'O au iho nō me ke aloha a me ka 'oia'i'o, Kamana'opono M. Crabbe, Ph.D. Ka Pouhana/Chief Executive Officer

MAULI OLA IS 0 U R DESTINY

MESSAGE FR0M -< THECEO >

Allop, OHA Ka Pouhana/CEO Kamana'opono Crabbe, Ph.D., (representing Nā Limahana o Lonopūhā) and Office of Minority Health Director J. Nadine Gracia, M.D., shake hands after signing the memorandum of understanding. Below, a group photo with members of their staffs.