Why LungPATHs exists
Meet the people and partners behind LungPATHs, and the values guiding their work.
About us
Why LungPATHs exists
Meet the people and partners behind LungPATHs, and the values guiding their work.
About the toolkit
We worked with several urban American Indian and Alaska Native Elders, representing different tribes, to create commercial tobacco cessation and lung cancer screening resources grounded in Indigenous values centered around family, empathy, empowerment and reclaiming culture and traditions. Through a human centered design approach, Elders shared their knowledge, values, lived experience and stories, as an offering, through this toolkit for people who want to improve their lung health and leave commercial tobacco behind.
Known as Lung Health Promotion for American Indian and Alaska Native People through Human-Centered Design (LungPATHs), this toolkit has been constructed under the principles of human-centered design, a system of problem solving centering human experience and perspectives at every step of the design process. Our toolkit reflects the values of both our research team and our community partners – values including centering family, honoring multiple ways of knowing, understanding and empathy, empowering community members, and reclaiming culture and traditions.
Carry the teachings.
Care for your lungs.
Built with American Indian, Alaskan Native Elders and community partners, with care and respect.
Who we are
We are a small but mighty team of clinicians, researchers, and community members dedicated to creating pathways to lung health.
Several urban American Indian and Alaskan Native Elders, representing different tribes, met over multiple gatherings to develop a culturally grounded resource for lung cancer screening and tobacco cessation methods. These Elders came together to conceptualize a toolkit that includes the gifting of medicine bags along with information about the harms of commercial tobacco and the benefits of lung cancer screening. Through this offering, they hope to support community members who choose to leave commercial tobacco behind and reconnect with a more sacred, traditional role of tobacco.
PATCHES Lab, at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, partners with communities at high risk to improve access to lung cancer screening and prevent cancer.
The həliʔil* program (HP), an Indigenous lung health promotion program at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, supports community outreach, prevention and early detection of lung cancer.
*həliʔil means become well or heal in Lushootseed.
The Seattle Indian Health Board, a community health center that specializes in providing culturally attuned, high-quality care to Indigenous people in King County.
Special thanks to
“Whether you grew up with these teachings or are finding your way back, this toolkit is for you.”