NREL: Addressing Energy Challenges of Housing Health Care Professionals on Remote IHS and U.S. Tribal Lands

The Indian Health Service (IHS) serves 2.6 million American Indians and Alaska Natives annually on a mission to raise physical, mental, and spiritual health. One of the biggest hurdles is staffing.

Many IHS facilities are so remote that attracting talented and experienced health care professionals is difficult. To bolster recruitment and retention, the IHS provides housing options for its more than 15,000 staff members and their families. But in remote, rural areas, meeting federal sustainability goals for IHS facilities and housing developments poses its own set of unique challenges.

Through a new partnership, the agency will tap the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL’s) energy-efficient-building experts to develop a comprehensive set of design recommendations for new residential buildings across various locations on IHS and U.S. Tribal lands.