Feasibility of an Indigenous Food Is Medicine Program for Patients With Heart Failure in Rural Navajo Nation

Among Navajo patients with heart failure living rurally on the reservation, is a medically tailored meal delivery program incorporating Indigenous foods and recipes feasible and acceptable?This nonrandomized clinical trial included 20 American Indian patients with heart failure receiving care at 2 Indian Health Service sites in rural Navajo Nation. A community-designed, Indigenous, medically tailored meal program was implemented; the intervention was deemed both feasible (90% of weekly meal boxes received by patients) and acceptable (mean Acceptability of Intervention Measure score, 17 of 20).A Native and locally sourced meal delivery program of medically and culturally tailored meals was found to be a feasible and acceptable intervention for Navajo patients with heart failure who reside rurally.

Corresponding Author: Lauren Eberly, MD, MPH, Gallup Indian Medical Center, Indian Health Service, 516 E Nizhoni Blvd, Gallup, NM 87301 (lauren.eberly@ihs.gov).

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