title: Communicating through stories: experience of the Native American Diabetes Project.
abstract: Stories appear to provide an indirect way of confronting the inherent conflict between the concepts of disease and wellness and assisting in the transition to a new concept of living well with the disease. This new concept may engender feelings of acceptance and hope that can facilitate application of knowledge and behavior change. In addition, culturally appropriate stories allow people to draw from their own personal beliefs and values to interpret and apply new information to their own lives. A good story takes listeners on a collective journey with many paths; each path is uniquely suited to the needs of the individual, with wisdom gained that is uniquely suited to their own life.
authors.affiliation: The Medicine Service, Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Albuquer­que, New Mexico (Dr Carter)|The Department of Medicine and Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Univer­sity of New Mexico School of Medicine, Al­buquerque, New Mexico (Dr Carter, Mss Perez and Gilliland)
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Carter
authors.affiliation: The Department of Medicine and Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Univer­sity of New Mexico School of Medicine, Al­buquerque, New Mexico (Dr Carter, Mss Perez and Gilliland)
authors.forename: G E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Perez
authors.affiliation: The Department of Medicine and Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Univer­sity of New Mexico School of Medicine, Al­buquerque, New Mexico (Dr Carter, Mss Perez and Gilliland)
authors.forename: S S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Gilliland
mesh_terms: D003142:Communication; D003479:Curriculum; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007198:Indians, North American / Q000523:psychology*; D008019:Life Style; D008960:Models, Psychological; D009516:New Mexico; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000458:organization & administration*