In partnership with The Healing Lodge of Seven Nations
Principal Investigator and Project Leads: Martina Whelshula, PhD (Overall PI), Debi LaPlante, PhD (Administrative Core, Research Infrastructure Core, and Research Core Project Lead) Sarah Nelson, PhD (Research Infrastructure Core and Research Core Project Lead), & Heather Gray, PhD (Research Core Project Lead)
Funder: National Institutes of Health (National Institute of General Medical Sciences, National Institute of Nursing Research, and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) via The Healing Lodge of the Seven Nations (Grant No. 1S06GM164729)
Timeline: 2026 – 2030
The Healing Lodge of the Seven Nations (HL) is a youth residential addiction treatment center with a focus on the Native American population. Seven Tribal communities started and continue to support HL: the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, the Kootenai Tribe, the Nez Perce Tribe, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, the Kalispel Tribe of Indians, the Spokane Tribe of Indians, and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Reservation.
The NIH has awarded the HL with funds for Advancing Cultures of Recovery in Tribal Communities (NARCH XIV) building upon earlier awards: NARCH XII – Assessing Cultures of Recovery in Tribal Communities, NARCH X–Building Recovery in Tribal Communities and NARCH VIII–Promoting Cultures of Recovery in Tribal Nations. Through this agreement, the Division will work in partnership with the HL to complete three research projects, one research infrastructure project, and an administrative core. Through the use of focus groups, pre- and post-testing, and objective data analysis, the research projects will adapt and evaluate the First Face for Mental Health curriculum for the educational setting, for the law and justice setting, and for adolescents. The infrastructure project will create and evaluate new research infrastructure at the HL, supporting clinical and other research that improves the health and wellbeing of HL residents and the partner Tribal communities. Finally, the administrative core will oversee the execution of the research projects and the capacity building project. It will provide oversight, communication, coordination, and reporting functions.