Purpose: Palliative care options are limited for Native Americans (NA) in South Dakota (SD). This exploratory study offers the perspectives of Native and non-Native health care professionals regarding palliative care specific to NAs.
Design: Semi-structured interviews were conducted (N = 7) with participants representing NA (4) and non-Native (3) ethnicities. Non-Native participants were practicing health care professionals in palliative medicine, whereas the NA health care professionals had experience with palliative care.
Findings: Concept analysis revealed two main themes and five subthemes: (a) barriers to palliative care, for example, insufficient funding, lack of infrastructure, and misconceptions; and (b) implementation strategies, for example, openness and listening and creating the right team.
Discussion: Genuine interest and concern exists for the provision of palliative care to NA communities using collaborative and innovative approaches.
Implications: To address the health disparities of the NA population specific to palliative care, public health policy reform and education for health professionals are necessary.
Keywords: clinical areas; cultural groups; health disparities; palliative care.
© The Author(s) 2014.