Pictured above AMSANT CEO John Paterson along with Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance NT chair Marion Scrymgour and Central Australian Aboriginal Congress CEO Donna Ah Chee who will sit on the Back on Track taskforce
Minister for Health Robyn Lambley has today announced the Back On Track taskforce that will lead an action plan to increase the number of Aboriginal Health Practitioners in the Northern Territory.
“It was wonderful to see that the Country Liberals Government’s Aboriginal Health Practitioners Back on Track plan received support from all sides of politics in Parliament today,” Mrs Lambley said.
“In July I announced that we would boost the number of Aboriginal Health Practitioners across the Territory by 10 per cent a year.
“We are also committed to working with five key communities including Wadeye and Papunya to reach specific targets of Aboriginal Health Practitioners working in health clinics
“Today I am pleased to announce that I have so far asked Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance NT chair Marion Scrymgour, AMSANT CEO John Paterson and Central Australian Aboriginal Congress CEO Donna Ah Chee to sit on the Back on Track taskforce.
“I will chair the Taskforce and together we will concentrate on reaching these targets.
“We will work closely with community leaders, health managers and current Aboriginal Health Practitioners.
“I am committed to ensuring that representatives from the Department of Health visit communities that have been left without an Aboriginal Health Practitioner for years, to work with the community to encourage people to train as Aboriginal Health Practitioners.
“We need to know the barriers to successful outcomes. We need to find ways through those barriers, because as far as I am concerned, the result is too important to too many Territorians and their communities.
“We cannot afford to let this fall by the wayside and fail our remote areas as the previous Labor Government did, if we are to see real progress in Indigenous health outcomes and economic opportunity in our remote communities.
“Encouraging more Aboriginal Health Practitioners into health clinics across all areas of remote Australia is an important national health issue for Indigenous people.
“I’m looking forward to standing up in Parliament next year and reporting to the Assembly that we are well and truly back on track in the Territory.”