K’ima:w Medical Center Names Chief Operating Officer
HOOPA, CA – Stephen Stake has been named as the Chief Operating Officer at K’ima:w Medical Center, according to Keith Dobbs, CEO.
“We are elated to have Dr. Stake join us in the Hoopa Valley. He brings over ten years of public health leadership focusing on social and behavioral interventions for indigenous people,” said Dobbs.
Stake comes to K’ima:w from The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where he completed both his doctorate of public health and masters of health science and remains associate faculty within the International Health Department. At Johns Hopkins, Stake became a specialist in health system administration, program development, monitoring and evaluation, analysis, teaching and cross-cultural communication. He earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama.
He is currently publishing in professional journals for his work with violence and depression among the Sylheti Tribe of rural Bangladesh. In the four years of his work with this indigenous group, Stake assisted in supervising a team of local community health workers to conduct a comprehensive health survey of 4,000 Sylheti families and then made recommendations for health system deliveries.
As a Johnson & Johnson Health Scholar, he trained a large Latino organization, Congreso de Latinos Unidos, how to develop and evaluate health interventions for diabetes and obesity. In Oaxaca, Mexico, he facilitated medical and dental clinics and led public health interventions for a number of rural tribes in the Mixtec region.
Also, as administrator of Native Vision and “Nalwod” programming for Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health, he developed and managed numerous community-based, culturally-sensitive health interventions to strengthen families and prevent suicide, drug abuse, diabetes, and obesity for the White Mountain Apache Tribe of Arizona.
During his tenure with the White Mountain Apache Tribe, he met his wife Eileen, who is an enrolled member of the tribe and grew up on the rural reservation. The couple’s passion for serving at-risk children and families drew them together. “Our background has uniquely prepared us for service within the community and we want to be an integral part of the Hoopa Valley,” Stake stated.
Prior to their move to Hoopa, his wife had been working with children and families experiencing homelessness in Baltimore, Maryland. Eileen Stake has earned a master’s degree in education with an emphasis in early childhood development from Liberty University.
“Our goal is to serve, lead, and equip indigenous people in achieving great health, quality education, and strong families,” he continued.
Dobbs stated that the addition of Stake to the team will bring resources for taking K’ima:w Medical Center to the next level of care for the community. “I envision Dr. Stake being especially involved in the outreach programs, behavioral health, dental, and diabetes education for the valley,” Dobbs added. “He will certainly add dimension to our quest for improved patient access, communication, and customer service.”
Stake began his duties as COO on March 8. “You’ll see the couple in the community as they are already learning the language and culture of the Hoopa Valley. They are a great trophy for us all,” concluded Dobbs.
