The Rural, Remote, and Culturally Distinct (RRCD) Populations program of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) awarded funds for projects designed to improve the availability, accessibility, and effectiveness of services to individuals with culturally distinct characteristics who reside in rural, remote, and geographically isolated areas. The State of Alaska, the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation (YKHC) and CSAT signed a cooperative agreement ion 1993 for a special substance abuse treatment and recovery services project with YKHC as the primary provider. the purpose of the RRCD grant funding the project was to create a decentralized substance abuse treatment program in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta that would provide culturally appropriate outpatient recovery services to Alaska Natives in three villages. A detailed review of the literature on cross-cultural research issues regarding substance abuse program evaluations is provided in Appendix A. The project became known as the Chemical Misuse and Treatment Recovery Services (CMTRS) program. This was the first example of a collaborative effort between YKHC, the State of Alaska, and CSAT in joining forces to create a new way of providing services to culturally distinct populations in the Yukon-Kuskokwim area. The goal was for local village members, trained in substance abuse, to provide successful, village-based interventions and treatment services, making maximum use of local Alaska Native cultural traditions and language. CMTRS thus sought to incorporate the wisdom, beliefs , and knowledge of the indigenous Yup'ik and Cup'ik people. Over the course of five years, many innovative approaches in the program were developed to achieve this goal.
Notes
The CMTRS Evaluation is supported by a contract with the State of Alska, Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse. CMTRS is supported through CSAT RRCD Grant #5U94 T100883.