Sara K. Dye

Sara Dye (born 1945) is a physician and surgeon who has worked with Native American tribes in Oklahoma and South Dakota. Dye was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1945 and is a member of both Sac and Fox Nation and the Shawnee.[1]

Education

Upon reaching graduation of high school, a counselor discouraged Dye from becoming a physician, so Dye decided to pursue a career in x-ray technology.[1] Receiving the highest grade on her x-ray technician exit exams, Dye decided to study medicine again. In 1968, Dye enrolled at Northeastern Oklahoma State University for her undergraduate, where she graduated with a 3.8 in pre-med.[1] In 1971, Dye continued her education at the Dartmouth Medical School in New Hampshire, and in 1975 she graduated with her Doctorate in Medicine.[1] Later in 1983, Dye returned and completed a residency with Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center of New Hampshire.[1]

Career

Oklahoma

Returning to Oklahoma, Dye took a position as a general medical officer in Claremore Indian Hospital. In 1983, after completing a residency in general surgery, Dye became the sixteenth practicing Native American Surgeon in the United States,[1] when she was named the staff surgeon at Carl Albert Indian Hospital. Dye continued working there for the next ten years working in research, women's health, and preventive healthcare[2] and as director of the Non-Invasive Vascular Laboratory.[1] Dye also worked with the Indian Health services in Administration/management, and research and training during her time in Ada, Oklahoma.[2] In between her hospital work and IHS work, Dye served on the admission board of the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine.[1]

South Dakota

In 1994 Dye moved to Aberdeen, South Dakota to accept a position with the Indian Health Service as the chief medical officer.[1] Starting at the same time, Dye became a consulting surgeon at Cheyenne River Indian Hospital.[1] As the chief medical officer, Dye stood on committees for Infant Mortality Study (IMS) and the Perinatal Infant Mortality Review (PRMR).[3] Those committees look into the infant mortality rates of the Native American populations and SIDS or Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.[3]

Dye started teaching in 2003[1] when she took an Assistant Professor position at the University of South Dakota. Dye continues to teach in Aberdeen, South Dakota as a Clinical Assistant Professor[4] with a focus in Family medicine for the University of South Dakota's Sanford School of Medicine.

Sources

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Dr. Sara K. Dye". Changing the Face of Medicine. 3 June 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2018.
  2. ^ a b "Survey of Indian Health Service physicians to study issues related to recruitment and retention - survey report". University of New Mexico Digital Repositiory. 1993.
  3. ^ a b Randall, Leslie L. (2001). "The Aberdeen Indian Health Service Infant Mortality Study: Design, Methodology, and Implementation". American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research. 10 (1): 1–20. doi:10.5820/aian.1001.2001.1. PMID 11484150.
  4. ^ "Sara Dye". University of South Dakota: Sanford School of Medicine. 26 April 2018.