Board of Directors

Sadie Anderson, MSN RN is an enrolled member of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians in Wisconsin. She moved to Alaska at the age of 12 and traveled to many villages all over the state with her parents and grew to love Alaska. She started her nursing career with a bachelor degree from the University of Alaska Anchorage in 2006. She graduated with a master’s degree in Nursing-Family Nurse Practitioner 2016 from the University of Alaska Anchorage. In 2018 she earned a graduate certificate in Alaska Native Executive Leadership through Alaska Pacific University.

Sadie has worked at the Alaska Native Medical Center since 2007. She started as a nurse on the orthopedic/neurosurgery unit. She became the manager for that department in 2012, and director of nursing in 2013. In addition to being the director of the medical/surgical units, Sadie’s efforts focus on mentoring entry-level employees, developing a Certified Nursing Assistant Training program with yearly conferences, and coordinating student nurse rotations within the hospital.

Sadie resides in Anchorage, Alaska with her husband, Ian and their four children. They have a passion for helping others and house yearly foreign exchange students, baseball players, and soccer coaches in the summer. Sadie enjoys photography, skiing, snowboarding, and doing beadwork.

Teresa Brockie, PhD, RN, FAAN is an Indigenous nurse scientist and educator known for her research focused on achieving health equity through community-based prevention and intervention of suicide, trauma, and adverse childhood experiences among vulnerable populations, with a particular emphasis on Indigenous communities. She is an Associate Professor at Johns Hopkins School of Nursing with a Joint Appointment in the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg Center for Indigenous Health. A member of the A'aninin Nation from Fort Belknap, Montana, Dr. Brockie earned her PhD at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing and completed a postdoctoral fellowship with the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center. Dr. Brockie has secured significant research funding, serving as Principal Investigator or Co-Investigator on eleven projects including two R01s and two randomized controlled trials. She is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing and is actively engaged in the Diversity and Inclusivity Committee. In 2023, Dr. Brockie was awarded the Betty Irene Moore Fellowship for Nurse Leaders and Innovators, highlighting her leadership and innovative contributions to nursing. In 2020, she received the Brilliant New Investigator Award, Council for the Advancement of Nursing Science - American Academy of Nursing and received the RADM Faye G. Abdellah Award for Nursing Research, The United States Public Health Service (USPHS) in 2016. Dr. Brockie’s research and contributions significantly contribute to advancing nursing science and addressing critical health disparities, especially focusing on Indigenous communities and mental health concerns.

Taloa’s heart is her “okla” (people) of the Chahta (Choctaw) and Chikasha (Chickasaw) Nations. Her life represents the fierce resilience, grounded spirituality, abiding humbleness, and unyielding compassion of the ones who walked before her. Through the faith in healing she was shown through the lives of her Grandparents and her Mother, Taloa found her “iyyikowa” (service to others) in the nursing profession. Taloa completed the Licensed Practical Nurse program at Pontotoc Technology Center in 2009. She graduated from Murray State College in 2015 with her Associate Degree in Nursing. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Southwestern Oklahoma State University in 2021. Throughout this time, she served in Primary Care, ER, and ICU. She is a proud member of the Oklahoma Indigenous Nurses Association, Secretary of the National Alaska Native American Indian Nurses Association, and member of the National Commission to Address Racism in Nursing. She and her husband/best friend, Jonathan, are ICU travel nurses currently. During time away from the hospital, it brings Taloa joy to be in the presence of her family. She also loves to find her center and stay grounded while hiking with her husband, Jonathan. Taloa looks forward to evolving on the path of service to people by continuing her education and staying the course in activism and advocacy opportunities. Through her life she is determined to plant seeds of good energy and hope, to represent her people in a good way.

Mechem is a nurse of 22 years and has a background in ICU and Urgent Care nursing. She obtained her MBA from The George Washington University and her BSN from Georgetown University, both in Washington, D.C. As an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, Mechem hails from Sanders, AZ, which is located near the Navajo Nation in Arizona.

She began her career with the Indian Health Service and has worked with various organizations in the Albuquerque Area. Most recently, she helped lead the COVID testing team for Presbyterian Healthcare system by setting up a mobile testing unit site during the pandemic, helping the local Indigenous communities with COVID testing.

Mechem’s decision to enter nursing came when she saw a hospice nurse care for her terminally ill grandmother during high school, and wanted to follow. As her career grew, she knew her place in healthcare was best fit in managing operations of practice in healthcare environments and delivery settings. She enjoys caring for patients by helping remove barriers that patients encounter to make it easier for patients to access their healthcare needs. Mechem is active in amplifying the voice and practice of Indigenous nurses by mentoring nurse leaders.

Mechem resides in Placitas, NM with her husband, kids, and their two dogs. When not working Mechem enjoys reading, doing Spartan races, skiing, and cooking for her family.

Sandy is an enrolled member of the Lower Sioux Mdewakanton Dakota Community of Morton, Minnesota. She received her Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) from St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN, and her Master of Art (MA) in transcultural nursing and community care at Augsburg College, Minneapolis, MN. She holds a certificate in healthcare management from the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse.

Sandy’s 40-year nursing career has spanned long-term care, clinic, and hospital care settings. She has been at Gundersen Health System in La Crosse, WI for the past 32 years and has held a variety of leadership roles in clinical operations and presently is clinical operations director of the Center for Cancer & Blood Disorders, Hospice, Palliative Medicine, Spiritual Care and Advanced Care Planning.

Sandy has been an active contributor for many academic, state, and national nursing initiatives related to diversity and Native American nursing priorities. She is immediate-past President of the National Alaska Native American Indian Nurses Association (NANAINA), current Treasurer of NANAINA and represents NANAINA on the board of the National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurses Association (NCEMNA), having recently completed a 6-year term as Treasurer of NCEMNA.

Sandy was honored to have co-authored with her dear friend, the late Dr. Roxanne Struthers, “The Essence of Native American Nursing” in 1999, which was then presented at the International Council of Nurses (ICN) in London, England. In June 2020, Sandy was a contributing author to “Culturally Congruent Health Care of COVID-19 in Minorities in the U.S.: A clinical practice paper from The National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurse Associations”, published in the Journal of Transcultural Nursing. Sandy also contributed to the development of “Diversifying the Nursing Workforce: Mentoring for Student Retention and NCLEX Success at AI/AN Serving Institutions”, a curriculum to guide nursing schools serving AI/AN students. In 2021, the curriculum was presented to a select group of nursing faculty from across the country.

Sandy has been married to her husband Greg for 39 years. They have children and grandchildren that light up their lives. Sandy is an avid golfer, likes going to pow wows and enjoys beading caps and visors for her family and friends.

Ursula is a nurse-midwife, a graduate of the University of Utah with an Master’s Degree in 1970. She received a Master’s Degree in Public Health in 2007 from the University of New Mexico She has worked many years in promoting the integration of Navajo cultural concepts into health care practice for health care professionals. She has lectured locally, nationally and internationally on various Navajo cultural topics. In August 2013, she received the Indian Health Service Chief Nurse Officer Award in recognition of outstanding contribution to Nursing. She is a member of the Delta Omega Honor Society of Public Health, Gamma Epsilon Chapter. Ursula is the recipient of the William H. F. Haffner Award given by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology for Outstanding Women’s Health Service. Ursula is co-Founder and President of the Navajoland Nurses United for Research, Service and Education, Inc. an organization offering biannual symposiums on various health topics and native medicine.

Lillian Tom-Orme, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN, a member of the Navajo Nation grew up in northern New Mexico; her first language is Dine’. She holds graduate degrees in transcultural nursing and public health from the University of Utah. She is currently adjunct faculty in the Department of Pediatrics, University of Utah, and has held an adjunct appointment in the College of Nursing in addition to serving as Diversity Coordinator. Dr. Tom-Orme has been active in numerous local and national committees including the American Diabetes Association’s Awakening the Spirit Program (co-chair and national/regional board member), the National Alaska Native American Indian Nurses Association (president, secretary and currently as emeritus board), the American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiians Caucus of the American Public Health Association (twice chair and current board member), Advisory Member of the NIH Center for Health Disparity and Minority Health, Panel of Experts member to the Office on Women’s Health of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Native Research Network (Founder and co-chair), the Network for Cancer Control Research among American Indian and Alaska Native Populations, the national Indian Health Service Institutional Review Board, the National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurses Associations, Advisory Committee for the Elimination of Tuberculosis through the CDC, and as reviewer for the Journal of American Indian Education, Journal of Transcultural Nursing, Nursing Communication, and Qualitative Health Research. Additionally, she served as External Advisory Board member to Montana State University’s Center for Native Health Partnerships and the Little Bighorn College Research Infrastructure Development via NIH grants. She served as Academic, Cultural, and Community Mentor to the Native American Research Internship’s summer students while on faculty at the University of Utah Department of  Internal Medicine, Division of Epidemiology Dr. Tom-Orme received the National Impact Award twice by the National Indian Health Board, the American Diabetes Association Reaching People Award, the Living Legend Award by N-NURSE, Inc., and the National Cancer Institute’s Award of Merit for her work on outreach and improving cancer data among American Indians/Alaska Natives.

Alicia Myrick Werk, RN, BSN, is Aaniiih from Fort Belknap, MT and is onsite Research Coordinator for the study, “Enhancing Nursing Capacity to Understand and Address the Needs of Native American Youth on the Fort Belknap Reservation.” She is enrolled in the Master of Science in Nursing Healthcare Organizational Leadership at Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing. Alicia obtained an Associate Degree in Nursing in 2008 and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2015 from Montana State University. Her career goal is to improve health outcomes for her community through research.

Angela Acuna, BSN RN is the Member- at-Large for NANAINA, joining in 2023. Angela is a member of the Tohono O’Odham Nation in Southern Arizona. She received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2023 from The University of Arizona and although she is new in nursing, she has worked in the healthcare field for 21 years that spanned from front office, back office, referrals, billing/coding, and Laboratory Technician. She is currently working for the Tohono O’Odham Nation Healthcare and enjoys giving back and working for her community. Her next step is to get wound care certification to help the patients in her community and start school again to obtain her Doctor of Nursing Practice-Family Nurse Practitioner. She resides in Tucson, AZ with her husband, Derek, who is a great supporter of Angela’s nursing goals.