Future Directions in Disseminating Research Findings to Urban Alaska Native People

Southcentral Foundation (SCF), a tribal health organization based in Anchorage, Alaska, operates and plans health care services in response to the priorities and tribal values of Alaska Native and American Indian (AN/AI) people, including traditional concepts of wellness, reciprocity, and working in relationship. In an effort to better incorporate AN/AI priorities and values in research dissemination, the SCF Research Department hosted the Alaska Native Health Research Forum (Forum) in May 2016. In this paper, we describe the communication strategies used by the SCF Public Relations Department, which were shared with Forum attendees, describe attendee recommendations for researchers to consider and implement, and then discuss future directions for dissemination. Lessons learned through the Forum were 1) customer-owners are interested in learning more about research, 2) dissemination should be done throughout all stages of projects using a variety of media channels, and 3) SCF Research Department dissemination should continue to shape health care.