Three years ago, Jennifer Thompson, enrolled member of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians from the Yellowhill community, stepped into the role of Rehabilitation Services Manager at Cherokee Indian Hospital Authority (CIHA). Jennifer’s transition to Manager of the department aligned with unprecedented growth in the department that she continues to juggle with innovation and purpose. Today, Jennifer’s vision is taking shape in meaningful ways—from new specialty service lines like Occupational Therapy and Speech Language Pathology to expanded rehabilitation care at Tsali Care Center, and even to regional outreach in Cherokee County and Snowbird.
While CIHA’s commitment to high-quality, culturally informed care has always guided its work, CIHA experienced a unique opportunity to grow services utilizing ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funding that was awarded in the wake of the pandemic. That moment created the chance to reimagine what rehabilitation could look like for patients across all generations.
“Occupational Therapy and Speech are often seen alongside Physical Therapy in most rehab departments,” Jennifer said. “We’d historically referred these services out. With the ARPA funding and support from leadership, I saw an opportunity to build those programs here—and to do it in a way that fit our community’s needs.”
Jennifer, who has served the community as a member of the Cherokee Central Schools Board of Education combined her passion for education and proven leadership to recruit Cordell Green, an enrolled member of the EBCI who had just graduated as a licensed Occupational Therapist to launch the program.
“With the right expertise and a funding source that would allow us to pilot the program while being responsible stewards of tribal resources, I seized the opportunity to create a program that has historically not been available in Cherokee and naturally Speech Language Pathology came along with Occupational Therapy,” said Jennifer.
The results have been tangible. Patients are now able to receive multiple therapy services in one visit, often coordinated or co-treated by different disciplines. That means fewer off-site referrals, reduced travel burdens for patients, and better continuity of care.
“Access to care has always been part of the strategic plan for CIHA and I have taken this as a personal mission to see what our community needs and address it head on,” she said. “Our rehab staff was able to see needs in our community that were not being fully met and fortunately my connection with the community and the schools also gave me insight on what some of the needs were. We created a vision and with the support of the Executive Team and Governing Board, we are bringing that vision to our community.”
With the ARPA funding to support a test launch, the long-term benefits were quickly realized. The addition of new service lines meant expanded care for the community. CIHA’s rehab department has been able to better meet the needs of multiple patients with the expanded access to different services such as Occupational Therapy, Speech Therapy, Podiatry, and Physical Therapy. Staff are able to coordinate services and care for patients that has previously been referred out. Staff can now also schedule patient appointments together and at times, are able to co-treat with different disciplines in order for the patient to get the best care. Patients no longer have to travel to multiple appointments in varying locations, improving ease of access for care.
Just as Jennifer was getting the new services at the main CIHA campus on steady footing, she was tasked with coordinating care needs for satellite clinics in both Snowbird and Cherokee County. Grown out of a need expressed by the Snowbird Community, Jennifer and her team serve patients at the Snowbird Clinic throughout the week. She is also currently working with the project team overseeing the new Cherokee County Clinic to ensure appropriate space is available for when the new building opens this Fall.
“Increasing access to care in Snowbird and Cherokee County Clinic is extremely important in order to improve the quality of care for both populations of patients,” said Jennifer. “Both SBC and CCC patients drive over an hour for care and most can only make the drive once a week, most patients would benefit from having 2-3 appointments a week. As of today, SBC has physical therapy services that are offered two days a week. Once the new clinic in Cherokee County is opened, the plan is to provide physical therapy services twice a week. As occupational therapy and speech language pathology services grow, there is a plan to expand to SBC and CCC in the near future.”
One of the most significant increase to access Jennifer has overseen since taking the lead of CIHA’s Rehabilitation Department has been the integration of CIHA’s rehab team at Tsali Care Center, where services were previously provided through a contracted vendor. Since January 2025, Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, and Speech Language Pathologists from CIHA.
“It has been a learning process to resume the role but the top priority has always been and will always be to provide quality care to the patients at Tsali Care Center. My staff truly encompass the guiding principle “Like Family to Me” and I try to instill in that daily,” said Jennifer.
The services CIHA’s Rehabilitation Department have expanded recently are not all internal. To remain a resource for the community and to serve as a partner with the Tribe, CIHA’s Governing Board prioritized expanding Worker’s Compensation services to be accessible for all tribal entities. “My orthopedic team had been treating workman’s compensation patients, but the rehabilitation patients were being referred out for the services,” said Jennifer. “We saw this as an opportunity to treat all patient within CIHA’s Rehabilitation Department for continuity of care. We were hearing from our Tribal Partners that their employees who needed rehabilitation care were unable to be seen in a timely manner and were out of work for extended periods of time. We took the issue to CIHA’s Patient and family Council for consideration and after securing their approval, we presented it to the Governing Board which also approved extended eligibility for any Tribal employee, regardless of if they are eligible for other CIHA Services.”
Looking back over the last three years, Jennifer reflects not on the logistics or milestones, but on the impact, she sees every day: patients regaining strength, reclaiming independence, and improving quality of life.
“The most meaningful part has been seeing patients benefit from the care. Watching someone regain their independence—knowing we helped make that possible—is everything,” she said. “The support I’ve had from CIHA leadership to bring these services home has made all the difference.”