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SELINA MOHAMMED
Nursing

 A desire to lessen the health disparities between various racial and ethnic groups is the common thread in Selina’s clinical practice, research and community service.  Her dissertation research is an ethnographic study of perceptions of diabetes among the Navajo people in Chinle, Arizona, for whom she has provide nursing care for several years.

As a volunteer family nurse practitioner on the Navajo Reservation Chinle, Arizona, Selina Mohammed witnessed firsthand the impact of cultural and geographic disparities in health care.  “The rates of diabetes among the Navajo are four times higher than for the rest of the US population,” Mohammed says.  “While there have been numerous clinical interventions designed to lessen the burden of diabetes among the Navajo, they predominantly stem from Western perspectives and understandings of the illness.”

            Since 1994, Mohammed has continued to work on the Navajo Reservation at every opportunity.  She believes that the clarification of the Navajo people’s range of cultural perspectives regarding diabetes is necessary in order to enhance understanding of one of their largest health issues.  “I want to understand how culture, historical, and political contexts, and socialization processes shape Navajo beliefs and experiences around diabetes,” Mohammed says, “so that these meanings may be used to improve diabetes treatment and educational materials—making them better suited for Navajo communities.”

            Mohammed’s experience on the Navajo reservation solidified her devotion to cross-cultural nursing, and motivated her to seek answers to her questions by pursuing a PhD in Nursing at the University of Washington.  “Working with this group of people inspired a passion in me that I had never felt before,” Mohammed says.

            While she tackles the seemingly solitary endeavor of a doctoral dissertation, Mohammed continues to advocate for underserved populations and promote cross-cultural understanding in health care.  “Selina is a shining illustration of a true scholar-citizen,” says Nancy Woods, Dean of the School of Nursing.

Mohammed’s outreach efforts are not limited to her work on the Navajo reservation.  She has also volunteered as a family nurse practitioner at the Seattle Indian Health Board, and serves as the student outreach coordinator for the UW School of Nursing.  “Selina has cultivated ongoing partnerships with students and their families in underrepresented and underserved communities in an effort to build future leaders who might eventually contribute to a shift in the current state of health disparities in our world,” says Woods.

“Making a connection between practice and research is a hallmark of social change,” Mohammed says.  “My PhD program strengthens this connection, which in turn strengthens my ability to make a positive impact among individuals, families, and communities cross-culturally.”

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