HEADLINE: Tribal Council grills IHS Unit Director, accomplish nothing

SUBHEAD: New Dental Unit experiencing access, communication issues

By Louis Montclair
For The Journal
Frustrations with Indian Health Service were all dumped on the local service unit director.
During the October 10, 2023 full board meeting, Fort Peck Service Unit Director Marjorie Spotted Bird
and her assistant Jackie Hippie reported to the council the current status of the service unit and the
update on the dental unit take over by the Tribes.
But first, council members were visibly frustrated and angry with Spotted Bird and certain things about
the Fort Peck Service Unit.
One of these is accessibility.
Councilwoman Carolyn Brugh asked about the new restrictions on movement in the facility. All of the
doors are locked, and administrators are behind several locked doors in the back of the clinic and they
are not available the way they were before.
Up until the pandemic, many of the doors at IHS were not equipped with electric locks. After being
closed because of COVID-19, the government issued recovery money and that was used to put in new
repairs and additions to the clincic. This includes electronic locks for all of the doors.
Spotted Bird told them she is always there, as are the rest of her staff, and the locks installed are part of
federal security rules and regulations. All federal agencies have this kind of security, and if anyone
needs to speak with her they just have to let the front desk know and they will be seen.
This is something out of her hands and it comes from the national office. Because IHS is part of the
federal government, these mandates apply across the board, she said.
While Spotted Bird was addressign the council, Adrian Ricker from the dental unit came by to present
some further problems they are having.
Perhaps the biggest is the lack of communication all around. In June, they were told about the move
and there was lots of confusion on the side of the employees. It created chaos from the confusion.
There is no internet connection. Without it, the Fort Peck Dental Unit cannot access records through the
main server.
An attempt was made to install new wireless internet, but when they tried to install their own line they
were told they couldn't do that because it's not allowed.
There are also no clock-in stations, and it's hindering work.
Therein lies another problem, access. When they were part of the main IHS, gaining access to records
was not an issue but now they are running into road blocks.
Hippie said the government firewalls are in place and it's up to the area office to fix the issue. If they
get the names of the computers and their locations in the new building then she can get them access.
Spotted Bird said there are federal guidelines as to how medical records can be handled on their side.
It's a federal law, and patient medical records are “layered.” For example, a dentist cannot access
mental health records of a patient.
The dental unit is now located next to the IHS clinic in Poplar.