LT Danielle “Dani” Barstad, DDS
Graduated From: The University of Chicago in 2004
IHS Career Path: Commissioned Corps

Where Dani Works: The Hopi Health Care Center in Polacca, Arizona, on the Hopi reservation. She’s been there for 3 ½ years. The oldest continuously inhabited community in the US is on this reservation.

Why Dani Chose an IHS Career
The Opportunities: Dani was attracted to the commissioned corps since it offered her many benefits that she hopes to take advantage of, including a residency program where you can earn a salary during your training. She also loves to travel and she was able to take time off to enjoy a trip to Nepal while not having to worry about the day to day operations of the clinic.

The Purpose: Dani used to work with people who had limited access to dental care, and she loved being part of the solution to the problem. At IHS, she gets the same professional and personal rewards, and the great feelings of satisfaction, all over again. She is truly helping people who need her, and working with colleagues who all have a service mindset.

Best Things About the Job, According to Dani
Her IHS Colleagues: Dani’s supervisor encourages her to do the projects she wants to do and provides her the opportunity to get additional training through continuing education. Her colleagues are helping her to become a better and more efficient dentist. Dani says: “In private practice, I wouldn’t get this kind of mentoring and patience.” And the clinic assistants, who are all Native Americans, are always there to help.

Her Patients: Dani says her patients are truly great people. “They never complain and are always grateful,” she says. She is learning that family is extremely important to the Hopi people, and as they get to know Dani better, they’ve begun inviting her to their own family events. Dani even says her patients are “filling in for my own family.” She’s discovering what so many other IHS dentists have found: Even if you’re far from home, the reservation can become your “home away from home.”

Her Lifestyle: She has learned to adapt to a slower pace of life, a way of the Hopi culture. The people take time to really listen to each other. They think before responding, choosing their words carefully. Dani says her patients sometimes have to remind her to slow down because they think she talks too fast!

What Dani Says About the Hopi Health Care Center:

• “The clinic is beautiful! The Hopi Tribe takes great pride in their clinic.”
• “The equipment we have is state-of-the art, and the clinic layout flows well.”
• “We’ve recently set up equipment at the elementary schools to treat kids right there. Instead of missing a half-day of school to come to the clinic, the children can stay at school and be out of class for only about 20 minutes for treatment.”
• “I have no commute – I live right next door to the clinic.”
• “It’s a health center, like a small hospital with all the health care disciplines, but without an operating room.”

Facts About the Hopi Tribe:

• The Hopi have lived in this area for more than a thousand years.
• Ancient cliff dwellings, windswept mesas, lofty sandstone spires – not what Dani would see working in a “big-city” clinic!
• The Hopis call their reservation “The Center of the Universe.”
• Traditional healing is a respected part of the Hopi culture.

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LCDR (04) Brian Talley, DMD
Graduated From: The University of Mississippi School of Dentistry, 2002
IHS Career Path: Commissioned Corps

Where Brian Works: The Southern Ute Health Center in Ignacio, Colorado. Ignacio is a major tourist center with great restaurants and a surprising variety of cultural events for its size. Brian lives in nearby Durango, about 25 miles from the clinic.

Why Brian Chose an IHS Career

The Opportunities: The mobility an IHS career affords was attractive to Brian, as was the salary and benefits of the Commissioned Corps. This is his second duty station – the first was on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana, home to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. Brian can move from state to state with his Mississippi dental license. Commissioned Corps and Civil service dentists need just one license in any of the 50 states or federal territories to practice in IHS.

The IHS Loan Repayment Program: When Brian first began his career, he made a two-year commitment to work on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana to be eligible for the IHS Loan Repayment program. As a new hire, Brian was eligible for the LRP program that repays all, or a portion, of his loans in annual payments of up to $24,000 (including allocation for taxes). Brian continues to be eligible for an additional $24,000 per year for each year of service until his school loans are completely repaid.

The Adventure: Snow skiing, snowshoeing, white water rafting. “This is the mountain bike capital of the world, and my wife and I participate in that. We’ve also started doing a lot of road biking.”

The Purpose: Brian says he and his IHS colleagues are fulfilling a need. “I was looking to take the path a little less traveled.” Brian believes that if new dentists are inspired by the prospect of a challenging and rewarding opportunity in a career path less traveled, they should join the IHS team of health care providers, who are working to improve the oral health and the overall health of American Indians and Alaska Natives.

Best Things About the Job, According to Brian:

• “Being able to help the patients – people who in most cases wouldn’t have any other option if it wasn’t for us at IHS.”
• “The Tribe manages their own health care system. In the dental clinic, I’m the sole practitioner – the decision-maker.”
• “I get to live in beautiful parts of the country! The Wild West, the wide open spaces!”
• “Learning about the Tribal cultures. Working with the Tribal people is great; they’re a very thankful and welcoming population.”
• “Our clinic is part of an ambulatory medical center. We’re prepared on site to handle emergency situations and don’t need to send people to another facility.”

Facts About the Utes of Southwestern Colorado:

The Utes were a confederation of seven bands. Today, the Mouache and Capote bands make up the Southern Utes, with headquarters at Ignacio; and the Weeminuche band is now called the Ute Mountain Utes, with headquarters at nearby Towaoc, Colorado. The area is notable for mesas and rock formations in a high, deeply sculpted landscape.