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Nine awarded Native Hawaiian Health Scholarship

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  September 19, 2017 

(Kaka‘ako, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i)   Papa Ola Lōkahi is pleased to announce that nine scholars in diverse medical and allied health training programs have been awarded the Native Hawaiian Health Scholarship.

"The students in this 2017-2018 cohort are stellar scholars and committed to serving the needs of our medically underserved communities," asserted Keaulana Holt, director of the Native Hawaiian Health Scholarship Program (NHHSP), which is administered by Papa Ola Lōkahi. "I'm proud of each one."

Three awardees are studying to be physicians, one a dentist, one a masters level social worker, and one public health worker.  Three are in nursing programs at three different local schools at three different levels. 

Six are in school in Hawai'i; and three are in accredited programs on the continental United States.

NHHSP scholars may attend any accredited program at any college or university in the United States.  Eventually, they’re called home to Hawai’i to fulfill their service obligation.

The objective of the NHHSP is to address access to health care by developing a Hawaiian health work force committed to serving the unique needs of Hawaiian communities. Once licensure is complete, these scholars will work full-time in medically under-served areas in Hawai'i for two (minimum) to four (maximum) years, relative to the length of scholarship support.

Since 1991, more than 275 awards have been made in 20 different primary and behavioral health care disciplines. More than 200 have already been placed into the workforce on six islands impacting the well-being of the communities they serve.  Of those who have fulfilled their service obligations, nearly 90% have continued to serve medically underserved areas and populations in Hawai'i.

More significantly, NHHSP scholars have risen to positions of leadership, impacting change in health perspectives, policy, promising practices, and emerging technologies among their patients, colleagues and the communities they serve. They are the role models for other Kānaka Maoli who aspire to be of service in a healing profession. 

Visit www.nhhsp.org for more information about the Native Hawaiian Health Scholarship Program.

PDF News release attached

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In this series, executive director Sheri Daniels celebrates someone special in the Papa Ola Lōkahi ‘ohana each Monday.

Meet Donna-Marie Palakiko! 

Donna is honored to be part of the Native Hawaiian Health Scholarship Program (NHHSP) ‘ohana.  Joining the scholarship program in September has been an easy transition, as she is an alumna of the program, and member of the advisory board.  She fulfilled her service obligation at the O‘ahu-based Native Hawaiian Health Care System Ke Ola Mamo, and continued to provide leadership there.  Donna has more than 15 years of Native Hawaiian community-based program management and research experience.

After a long academic journey, Donna recently received her PhD in Nursing from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Her dissertation was on Native Hawaiian Caregivers' Cultural Perspective of Pediatric Asthma Management.

Donna's collective experiences motivate her to provide peer support to Native Hawaiian students, which she is able to do at NHHSP Operations Coordinator.  Outside of the office, she is an active member of St. Augustine by the Sea Parish, a student of Halau Hula ‘O Maiki, and member of ‘Ahahui Ka‘iulani. In her free time, Donna travels, of course, because life is meant to be adventures filled with experiences!

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