ANTHC opens regional office in Sitka
February 13, 2020
Crystal Duncan, Tlingit and an enrolled member of the Sitka Tribe of Alaska, was recently hired as ANTHC’s Regional Liaison for SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC). After spending time at ANTHC’s offices in Anchorage learning about the ANTHC resources available, Duncan has returned to Sitka to support patients in her region. Duncan is located on the SEARHC campus in Sitka at 223 Tongass Drive (small house across from Mount Edgecumbe Medical Center).
ANTHC’s wide range of services can make it difficult for a Tribal health organization to navigate. ANTHC recognizes the need to better support our partners by providing a local point of contact. Regional liaisons will enhance the knowledge of services available and improve specialty care referrals between Alaska regions and the Alaska Native Medical Center.
Patients often have questions regarding their reservations for travel and housing arrangements or scheduled clinic and diagnostic appointments at ANMC. Duncan can view these schedules and work with case managers and patients should any of the arrangements need to be changed. Additionally, after the patient leaves ANMC, she can help ensure staff members within the SEARHC region receive the correct information for follow-up care.
Duncan is from southeast Alaska. For the last four years she has been working for University of Alaska Southeast as a Personal Education Planner with Native Student Services. Before this position, she worked as a Senior Human Resources Generalist for SEARHC and for the Sitka Tribe of Alaska as a Personnel and Procurement Manager.
She looks forward to working with the SEARHC patients and her first goal is to help make improvements to the patient travel experience for the patient and their escort.
“My first experience with being referred to ANMC was this past spring. At the time I was worried about my health but also arrived not knowing where to go, who I could contact on this very large campus, and how this organization operated, which was different from the SEARHC system that I was used to. So, when I saw this job advertised, I thought this is an opportunity to have a positive impact with my community, especially those most in need of support because of their health situation, said Duncan. “I’m excited to work directly with beneficiaries.”
Duncan will also be able to assist with connecting members of SEARHC with any other ANTHC services they may need assistance with, including trainings, environmental health and engineering and more.
She can be reached at (907) 966-8772 or by email at crystald@searhc.org or clduncan@anthc.org.
ANTHC is currently recruiting for Regional Liaisons in Kodiak and Unalaska . New liaisons will be starting soon in Bethel to join the liaisons working in Bristol Bay, the Copper River area, and Norton Sound.
If your region is interested in having an ANTHC Regional Liaison, please contact Jenni Harrison, ANTHC Senior Tribal Health Liaison at jdharrison@anthc.org or (907) 223-7144.