We believe recovery is driven by culture and connection. Community members and relatives who seek recovery services can rely on culturally sensitive and appropriate care for various substance dependence. The recovery services team looks at all aspects of one’s well-being to support their journey on the road of recovery.
Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT Program)
The Indian Health Board in Minneapolis is offering Medication Assisted Treatment or MAT to those that may benefit from Suboxone. MAT is a voluntary program that uses Suboxone as a supporting tool to help relatives and community members in addressing opioid dependency.
Suboxone is a prescribed medication that contains buprenorphine and naloxone, two compounds that bind to the opioid receptors in the brain to curb opioid dependence. We understand that not everyone may benefit from the MAT Program. In these cases, we will work to integrate care across clinics to meet your needs. For more information, please email Dr. Laiel Baker-DeKrey at Laiel.Baker@indianhealthboard.com.
Bison Moon Recovery Group Flyer
Meet the Team
Recovery Services Director
Laiel Baker-DeKrey, PhD, LP
Laiel is a doctoral-level licensed clinical psychologist. Since 2008, she has lived and practiced in the Minneapolis Indigenous community (on Ojibwe and Dakota territory). She is an enrolled member of the Nu’eta, Hidatsa Nations (Knife Clan) located near the North Dakota Badlands and Lake Sakakawea. In addition to overseeing recovery services, she provides psychological services to adults, adolescents and children.
Her research and training have been primarily in trauma-informed, land-based, Indigenous-focused care and health equity. She earned her Doctor of Philosophy degree in Clinical Psychology from the University of North Dakota. She successfully completed the Indians into Psychology Doctoral Education (INPSYDE) Program.
Intensive Outpatient Program Manager | LADC Supervisor
Natasha Babvani, LADC-S
Natasha is a licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor Supervisor since 2019, She has a Bachelor of Science in Alcohol & Drug Studies, a minor in Sociology from Minnesota State, Mankato and currently enrolled at Minnesota State, Mankato to attain a Community Health Education master’s degree.
Natasha’s clinical approach is that she values a person-centered approach when working with individuals. Her clinical approach includes utilizing a variety of treatment modalities to meet each individual where he/she/they are in their recovery journey. Specific treatment modalities utilized include motivational interviewing, dialectical behavioral therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, solution-focused therapy, rational emotive behavioral therapy, and integration of a variety of recovery-based programs (trauma-informed groups, harm reduction, 12-step programs, SMART, etc.). Her clinical interests are working with culturally specified, gender diverse, co-occurring disorders, trauma-informed, adolescents, adults, and families in a Substance Use Disorder intensive outpatient setting.
Community Opioid Intervention & Prevention Health Educator
Heather Benjamin
Heather is from the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe. Since 2021, she is IHB’s Community Opioid Intervention & Prevention Health Educator. She has a BA in Psychology from Metropolitan State University and a Community Health Worker Certificate from the program at Saint Catherine University. Heather’s goal for the position is to educate patients and others on the effects of opioids on our community and support the decreased use of opioids and increased awareness of the effects of opioids on our community. She co-leads the Bison Moon group, and she recently passed the UMICAD test and is working on her hours for licensure.