Physician (Family Med/Prac)

• Responsible for the practice of medicine or direct services to patients that involves the performance of diagnostic, preventative, or therapeutic services in hospitals and clinics.
• Prescribe or administer treatment, therapy, medication, vaccination, and other specialized medical care to treat and prevent illness, disease, or injury.
• Order, perform, interpret tests, and analyze records, reports, and examination information to diagnose patients conditions.
• Monitor progress of patients conditions and re-evaluate treatment as necessary. Explain procedures and discuss test results or prescribed treatments with patients.
• Coordinate work with Nurses, Pharmacists, Social Workers, and other allied health professionals in the provision of a variety of health services.

The Navajo Area Indian Health Service (NAIHS) is one of 12 regional administrative units of the Indian Health Service (IHS), in the US Department of Health and Human Services. The NAIHS delivers health services to a user population of over 244,000 American Indians in five Federal service units on and near the Navajo Nation. The Navajo Nation is one of the largest Indian reservations in the United States. The Navajo Nation consists of more than 25,000 contiguous square miles and three satellite communities, and extends into portions of the states of Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. NAIHS primarily delivers health services to members of the Navajo Nation and the San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe, and also provides services to other Native Americans, including Zunis, Hopis, and other American Indian beneficiaries. The five (5) Federal Service Units (SUs) include Chinle, Crownpoint, Gallup, Kayenta, and Shiprock SUs.

NAIHS provides inpatient, emergency, outpatient, public health, and other services at four hospitals: Chinle Comprehensive Health Care Facility, Crownpoint Health Care Facility, Gallup Indian Medical Center, and Northern Navajo Medical Center (Shiprock, NM). These inpatient facilities comprise a total of 222 hospital beds. The Kayenta Health Center in Kayenta, AZ will transition to begin operating as an Alternative Rural Hospital in late 2017 by offering ten short stay nursing beds and ambulatory surgery. Navajo Area also has seven full-time health centers providing outpatient, community health, preventive health, and other services. There are also five part-time health stations.

In addition to the NAIHS, the Navajo health care system includes an urban health program in Flagstaff, Arizona, the Navajo Department of Health (NDOH), and five Tribal health care corporations. Native Americans for Community Action, Inc. (NACA), founded in 1971, is one of 34 Urban Indian health programs in the United States. NACA provides outpatient, behavioral health, health promotion, and other services to the population in and around Flagstaff, Arizona. The NDOH, created in 1977, ensures access to quality and culturally acceptable health care. The NDOH offers nutrition, aging, substance abuse, education, community health outreach, and other services to the Navajo population through regulation, direct service delivery, and coordination with federal, state, and local partners. NDOH has a master contract with NAIHS under the auspices of Public Law 93-638, the Indian Self Determination and Education Assistance Act.