Category Kidney

Sep 20 2023

NACCHO Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health News: Community investment key to reducing diabetes

feature tile Central Australia dialysis patients Selina & Rhonda Bob exercising; text ' ACCHO sector has shown what can be achieved through investment in community driven solutions'

The image in the feature tile is of Selina and Rhonda Bob (who spend 16 hours a week on dialysis, but are doing everything in their power to live a healthy lifestyle) as they appeared an article Diabetes rates in Central Australia among highest in the world, new research shows published by ABC News on 6 August 2022. Photo: Xavier Martin.

The NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health News is platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.

We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.

Community investment key to reducing diabetes

13% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people over the age of 18 have been diagnosed with diabetes – three times the national rate for non-Indigenous people, according to data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). Dr Jason Agostino, NACCHO’s senior medical advisor, said lack of local health services was one of the reasons for the higher rates. “We don’t want people running from this clinic to that clinic,” Jason Agostino said. “We want people to be able to access care in a clinic that they feel safe, where they know that people there and understand the treatments.”

Dr Agostino said the disease was increasingly being diagnosed in younger children, often in cases where their mother had already been diagnosed. “We’ve always thought [of the disease] as adult onset, but the patients are getting younger and younger,” he said. “A lot of them under the age of 10.” He called for more localised Aboriginal health organisations that could work to prevent the disease, through education and health advice but also diagnosing and treating the disease earlier and quicker.

Australia needs to invest in local community-led health providers to reduce rates of type 2 diabetes in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

To view The Guardian article Investment in Indigenous community health key to reduce diabetes rates in full click here. You can also watch the Too Deadly For Diabetes video below which emphasises the need for community-led responses to diabetes prevention and treatment.

Climate action must be accelerated

This week, leaders from around the world are in New York for the United Nations (UN) Climate Ambition Summit. To coincide with the summit, The Australian Institute has coordinated an open letter, signed by over 220 leading climate scientists and eminent experts, calling on the Australian Government to follow the science and stop new fossil fuel projects. The letter with the title ‘Australia Must Accelerate Climate Action, Not Climate Annihilation’ will appear as a full-page ad in the The New York Times.

The letter opens with “World leaders convene this week at the UN Climate Ambition Summit in recognition that the global community must accelerate efforts to prevent irreversible and catastrophic climate change.” The letter continues “The UN Secretary General, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), International Energy Agency (IEA), and scientists from all over the world have made it clear there is no room for new gas, coal and oil projects in the global carbon budget. Yet, in Australia, over 10,000 miles from where leaders will meet to demonstrate their commitment to climate action, vast areas of the continent are covered by coal, gas and oil production and licenses.”

“In this – the ‘decisive decade’ for climate – there are over 100 new coal and gas projects in development in Australia according to official data. If all these projects proceed, research by The Australia Institute shows they would add a further 1.7 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent to the atmosphere every year – roughly the equivalent emissions of the entire Russian Federation, the world’s forth-largest polluter. Accelerating the pace and scale of climate action means an end to new fossil fuel approvals and subsidies. As the world’s third largest exporter of fossil fuels, Australia has a special responsibility to stop fueling the increase in global emissions caused by Australian fossil fuel production, both in Australia and overseas.”

For more information about The Australia Institute’s open letter you can visit their website here.

banner text 'The Australia Institute Research that matters. Australia Must Accelerate Climate Action, Not Climate Annihilation'

MyMedicare webinar for GPs and Practice Managers

The Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care (DHAC) is hosting webinar tomorrow Thursday 21 September 2023 from 12.30pm–1.30pm about the MyMedicare practice and patient registration processes. The webinar aims to help organisations prepare for patient registration from 1 October 2023.

If you’re interested you can register for the webinar using this link.

If you can’t attend the webinar live, you can watch the recording whenever it suits you best at this link. The recording will be available within the week following the live webinar.

Panellists will include:

  • Simon Cotterell PSM – First Assistant Secretary, Primary Care Division, DHAC; and
  • Tara Welsh -Practice Manager, Australian Association of Practice Management (AAPM).

Representatives from Services Australia will facilitate a system demonstration.

If you have any questions feel free to ask them during the webinar and share your thoughts in the comments.

You can invite friends to the webinar using this link.

tile text 'MyMedicare - session for GPs and Practice Managers'

Common dermatological conditions webinar

The AH&MRC Public Health Team are hosting a webinar Identification and Management of common dermatological conditions in primary care. The webinar, being held from 3.30pm–4.30pm on Wednesday 27 September 2023, will provide valuable knowledge and insights into common dermatological presentations in primary care and clinical management of these presentations, for anyone working in ACCHOs. Topics of focus include identifying and managing cutaneous fungal infections, eczema and its common complications, and rare entities not to be missed.

The webinar will feature a panel of fantastic presenters including Dr Dana Slape, Dr Rhiannon Russell and Dr Victoria Snaidr.

  • Dr Dana Slape is a Larrakia Dermatologist, who works in a variety of settings across priority communities in urban and rural areas including the local Aboriginal Medical Service at Tharawal, Campbelltown Hospital, Darwin Hospital, and custodial facilities for children, women, and men across NSW and the NT.  Dana is the first Aboriginal dermatologist and is deeply committed to growing the First Nations specialist health workforce.
  • Dr Rhiannon Russell is a Dermatology Registrar and proud Worimi woman. She currently works in the Western Sydney region at Liverpool hospital. She hopes to return to the NSW South Coast where she is connected to the community through her training as a medical student and junior doctor. She is committed to growing the First Nations medical graduates through her mentorship at Wollongong University.
  • Dr Victoria Snaidr is a dermatologist with a special interest in rural and remote medicine. Prior to gaining her Fellowship of the Australasian College of Dermatologists (FACD), Victoria was a GP whose interest and experience specifically in Aboriginal health was founded after working as a GP in remote Aboriginal communities in Central Australia, and further cemented during her years working at Redfern Aboriginal Medical Service. Victoria is currently working as a dermatologist in the central Sydney area and Gosford.

Audience input is welcome, including asking questions and/or offering examples of how things may be working in your ACCHO.

To participate in this webinar, you can register here. Upon registration, you will receive a confirmation email with the webinar details and instructions on how to join – please check your spam/junk mail for the confirmation email.

If you have any questions or require further information, please do not hesitate to contact the AH&MRC Public Health team by email here.

tile Aboriginal dot art; text 'AH&MRC Dermatology Webinar'

High blood pressure risk for NT mob

In a first-of-its-kind study, screening has detected concerning levels of a major hypertension risk among young people in Australia’s Top End. Associate Professor Jun Yang has previously confirmed that primary aldosteronism (PA), a hormonal condition, is a significant yet often undetected contributor to high blood pressure (hypertension). However, there is currently no available data on the prevalence of PA within Australian First Nations communities.

Through a partnership with Professor Gurmeet Singh from the Menzies School of Health Research, Dr Yang and her team successfully conducted PA testing in pre-existing groups of young individuals, Australian First Nations communities, and non-Indigenous residents residing in the NT.  A/Prof Yang believes the results are concerning in themselves, but also potentially open a window into broader issues of public health for Indigenous people. “We found positive tests for PA in over a quarter of the urban-residing participants of the Cohort studies who were tested,” she said. “Australian First Nations people are known to have high rates of hypertension and cardiovascular disease, but this is the first time this type of testing has been done in these communities. PA is a highly modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease and correct identification will enable appropriate targeted treatment.”

Lead author and PhD candidate Dr Elisabeth Ng said the “timely detection of primary aldosteronism is particularly important for Australian First Nations people due to their high rates of heart and kidney diseases, both of which may be associated with having too much aldosterone”. “Targeted treatment to block aldosterone action or remove aldosterone excess may be a lifesaver.” The next steps are to establish a process of appropriate screening process across the Top End.

To view the National Indigenous Times article High blood pressure risk revealed in Top End First Nations communities in full click here.

Sector Jobs

Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.

Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.

Key Date – Dementia Action Week 18–24 September 2023

Each day during this year’s Dementia Action Week – 18–24 September 2023 NACCHO has been sharing a range of information and resources that may be of use to the ACCHO sector.

In September last year an article, available here, about a study into the high prevalence of dementia among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, was published in The Lancet. The authors of the study said it is likely that historically recent exposure to modifiable risk factors underlie the high dementia rates, and a large proportion of dementia may be potentially preventable.

The researchers said dementia is, and will remain, a major challenge for First Nations populations. Their largely theoretical study estimated that half the burden of dementia in First Nations residents of the Torres Strait and NPA may be due to 11 potentially modifiable risk factors. They said the results make a clear case for governments to invest in preventative health, health promotion, and education, to reduce the largest contributing factors while fostering protective factors already present. The protective factors include good levels of social contact, low alcohol abuse, and levels of education that are improving across generations.

You can find out more information about Dementia Action Week 2023 on the Dementia Australia website here. You can also watch the below video The Fading Moon – it is one of a series of videos and other resources, available here, developed by Dementia Australia for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Aug 30 2023

NACCHO Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health News: Referendum an overwhelming time for mob

feature tile image of Aboriginal flag flying with Australian Parliament House in background; text 'Voice commentary leading to rise in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander psychological distress'

The image in the feature tile is from an article Voice to parliament won’t give ‘special rights’ to Indigenous Australians, legal experts say published in The Guardian on 13 December 2022.

The NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health News is platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.

We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.

Referendum an overwhelming time for mob

In an opinion piece about the Voice referendum proud Bundjalung woman and journalist Bronte Charles said “I get asked which way I’ll be voting. I’ve watched others speak over my people.  I’ve seen the racist tweets and posts, and held my breath as discussions get more toxic. I hear the nasty conversations and go to bed feeling anxious. The referendum on the Voice to Parliament has brought with it a lot of emotions – some good, some bad, some eh. To put it mildly, it’s been an overwhelming time for mob. In a time full of uncertainty – one thing is for sure: whether the outcome of the referendum is a yes or a no, we need to be there for one another and, most importantly, be there for ourselves.”

Ms Charles spoke to three First Nations people working in the mental health space:

  • Tanja Hirvonen is a Jaru Bunuba clinical psychologist and Board Director of the Australian Indigenous Psychologists Association
  • Dr Clinton Schultz, a Gamilaroi psychologist and director at the Black Dog Institute
  • Maddison O’Gradey-Lee is a provisional psychologist and is currently completing a PhD that explores young mob’s mental health

who all agreed the Voice has fuelled bigoted attitudes and behaviours, with “a lot of mob are reporting that they’re finding that constant attention, as well as the criticism and debate, becoming quite toxic and impacting heavily on their social and emotional well-being. The psychological distress that we’re seeing amongst mob at the moment is definitely raised.”

Tanja Hirvonen said mob can look after themselves during the referendum by doing what mob do best: “check in on each other as well as your Elders. Draw on the strength of your ancestors and draw on the strength of your mob and make sure to look after yourself. Touch base with your family and have those conversations with your trusted peers or family members. Make sure that you’re connecting with people that are like-minded, who are going to give you that care and compassion and that warm hug that you might need.” Whether you’re voting yes, no or you still haven’t decided, Tanja says that mental health should be a priority.

To view the SBS NITV article OPINION: The referendum campaign already has me overwhelmed. Here’s how you can look after yourself in full click here.

image of back of heads of protesters & Aboriginal flags flying

Photo: AAP. Image source: SBS NITV article ‘The Voice will spark an improvement in Indigenous mental health, say peak bodies.

Maningrida named NDIS market gap trail site

The NT Labor Government has welcomed the announcement of Maningrida as the first of two trial sites in a $7.6m investment into the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). Minister for the NDIS, the Hon Bill Shorten MP revealed that Maningrida would be a beneficiary of the pilot program for alternative commissioning approaches in thin markets where there are not enough services available to meet participants’ needs.

This is to ensure that participants can better access supports in remote and First Nations communities and will build on the work the NT Government is undertaking in partnership with the community, NDIA and sector as part of the deep dive into how the NDIS is working in Maningrida. Alternative commissioning will be undertaken in partnership with First Nations and remote communities to ensure the pilot is both culturally appropriate and underpinned by an understanding of community strengths and preferences.

Minister Shorten announced Maningrida’s inclusion as a trial site following a gathering with all State and Territory Ministers for Disabilities for a meeting of the Disability Reform Ministerial Council (DRMC) in Darwin, saying “This pilot will allow us to gain invaluable information on how we can ensure Australians with disability living in remote and First Nation communities can access supports and provide lessons on how to build the capability of communities and governments, and the types of alternative commissioning that work best.”

You can view The National Tribune article Maningrida announced as first trial site in $7.6 million NDIS market gap investment in full here and a transcript of the doorstop interview where Minister Shorten refers to the Maningrida trial here.

Manuel Brown Member for Arafura, Luke Gosling MP, Manuel Brown MP, Member for Arafura; Luke Gosling OAM, MP, Member for Solomon; Minister Bill Shorten; Member for Karama and NT Minister for Disabilities Ngaree Ah Kit

L-R: Manuel Brown MP, Member for Arafura; Luke Gosling OAM, MP, Member for Solomon; Minister Bill Shorten; Member for Karama and NT Minister for Disabilities Ngaree Ah Kit. Image: Manuel Brown’s Facebook page.

NT CTG should start with kids

Human-rights activist Timmy Duggan OAM said the Aboriginal Deaths in Custody and Bringing Them Home reports highlighted the ‘urgent national crisis’ of the Gap more than 25 years ago. But as a history of generational trauma continues to weigh on the NT’s Aboriginal kids, he said it was clear more needed to be done to give today’s young people “doses of resilience”. “We can have an impact on them while their brain is still developing and provide good, positive experience[s], good, positive Aboriginal role models that they see day in and day out,” he said.

The NT’s first NBL player combined his sporting career and knowledge of Aboriginal health to launch Hoops 4 Health in 2002, with hopes to drive better outcomes for the NT’s kids. The organisation’s first base is set to open in about six weeks in one of Palmerston’s northern suburbs. Palmerston is home to 7.9% of the NT’s Indigenous population, according to 2021 census data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Mr Duggan said the organisation started as a way to give back to the NT community and engage with kids in the Palmerston and Darwin areas.

Following a royal commission into the protection and detention of children in the NT, he said he was spurred into action and has not missed a weekend session with the kids in Don Dale Youth Detention Centre since 2016. The latest Productivity Commission data shows 96% of NT kids in detention are Indigenous, with First Nations children locked up at a rate 33 times higher than non-Indigenous children. Mr Duggan said Hoops 4 Health was not just about basketball – it was based on Bruce Perry’s neurosequential model for addressing trauma. “Using the trauma-informed model and culturally-informed coaching … can have a big impact in addressing trauma and chronic traumatic experiences,” he said.

The above has been taken from an article Palmerston, NT Closing the Gap efforts should start with kids published in the Gold Coast Bulletin earlier today, 30 August 2023.

founder of Hoops 4 Health, Timmy Duggan OAM with hands on shoulders of young ATSI boy holding basketball, background wall with basketball figures & basketball hoop

Hoops 4 Health founding director Timmy Duggan OAM said the Gap was reaching a ‘crisis’ point and more needed to be done to close it. Photo: Sierra Haigh. Image source: The Gold Coast Bulletin.

100% pass rate for GPs in training

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) has today labelled a recent 100% exam pass rate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander GPs in training as a phenomenal achievement. It comes following the recent results of the College’s Clinical Competency Exam (CCE), an exam designed to assess clinical competence and readiness for independent practice as a specialist GP.

RACGP Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Censor Dr Olivia O’Donoghue congratulated the GPs in training. “As Censor of the faculty this warms my heart and soul to see more of my peers achieving success in these high stakes assessment and moving onto RACGP Fellowship,” she said.  “The RACGP Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health faculty and assessment team have improved the Yagila Wadamba program – ‘Learn to heal’ in Wurundjeri – a culturally appropriate AKT and KFP intensive, and there are policies and procedures supported by the faculty Censor to provide additional advocacy and support through training and assessments. Moving towards training and workforce equity for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander GPs is a priority for the RACGP and a key performance indicator for our training program.”

Dr O’Donoghue said that she was keenly focused on boosting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander GP numbers. “We are making progress, but there is a lot more work to be done,” she said. “Numbers of self-identified Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander trainees have been steadily increasing. The RACGP currently has 60 GPs in training and 124 Fellows. The aim is for greater than 3% representation across training and for Fellows.

To view the RACGP media release RACGP welcomes Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander exam success in full click here.

ATSI GP checking patient's heart with stethoscope

Photo: James Cook University General Practice Training. Image source: RACGP newsGP.

IWC tackles antenatal care gap for mums-to-be

The healthcare gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians is well-known, but its extent concerning women’s antenatal and reproductive care remains relatively obscure. This is one of the reasons the Indigenous Wellbeing Centre Ltd (IWC) in Bundaberg, Qld, runs a midwifery program that offers monthly ante-natal check-ups, post-birth weigh-ins, and breastfeeding checks. Working alongside participants general practitioners or the hospital ante-natal clinic, this bulk-billed program provides expecting mothers of Bundaberg and North Burnett with vital continuity of care, which has been proven to improve a mum’s comfort level through her pregnancy and into early motherhood.

Through their dedicated work in this program, midwife Stephanie Rackemann and Indigenous health practitioner Lisa McGrady could not ignore the lack of engagement from Indigenous mums-to-be in mainstream healthcare services during their pregnancy in the Bundaberg and North Burnett region. “I’ve seen too many Indigenous mums late in their pregnancy who have not so much as had a GP appointment. It is sad to know that there is such a mistrust of the mainstream health care system that Indigenous mums would rather avoid care,“ Stephanie said.

“There are so many reasons these mums aren’t engaging in their healthcare, with barriers like lack of transport, a lack of understanding on the importance and not having the confidence to speak up and advocate for themselves in a clinical situation,“ Lisa explained. This is where the difference in the IWC Midwifery program comes in. Not only do these mums have access to a knowledgeable, experienced and approachable midwife, but they also have continued access to Lisa.

To view the Bundaberg Today article IWC tackles the gap in antenatal care for Indigenous mums-to-be in full click here.

Lisa McGrady, IWC Indigenous health practitioner with some of the valuable supplies provided by the community

Lisa McGrady, IWC Indigenous health practitioner with some of the valuable supplies provided by the community. Image source: Bundaberg Today.

Better access for people with diabetes and CVD

“Many Australians have diabetes and cardiovascular disease” (CVD), says Expert Advisory Panel member Professor John Prins. “These chronic diseases cause severe illness and death. But healthcare services are not uniform across Australia for people living with these diseases.” A new Targeted Translation Research Accelerator Research Plan calls for ‘better methods of getting that care to people.”

Prof Prins continued. “One way to improve care is to build our knowledge of the causes of diabetes and CVD. “If you have both these diseases, they get worse faster than if you had just one disease. If we can find common mechanisms causing both diseases we can attack them both at the same time. The research plan also calls for new ways to predict who is at risk of diabetes and CVD and their complications. This will help health practitioners get the right care to people at risk. We want health practitioners to recognise patients they need to escalate to that next level of care. That might be the GP 100kms down the road or a major centre that can do further investigations.”

The plan supports researchers to build our knowledge about disease mechanisms and risk prediction with Incubator project funding. This research will help develop new diagnostics, devices, therapies and risk predictors for people living with diabetes and CVD. The plan also supports funding for large-scale multidisciplinary projects that use technology and data to improve care. The large-scale projects will be codesigned with consumers and health services to:

  • improve remote patient monitoring
  • focus on urban, rural, regional and remote areas
  • focus on First Nations people
  • focus on culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) people.

The aim of these projects is to improve access to high-quality, patient-centred care.

To view the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care news article Improving health outcomes for people with diabetes and cardiovascular disease in full click here.

ATSI man gripping chest

Image source; Medical Journal of Australia.

Sector Jobs

Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.

Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.

Aug 29 2023

NACCHO Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health News: Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia Conference

The image in the feature tile is of NACCHO CEO, Pat Turner at the Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia Conference.

The NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health News is platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.

We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.

Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia Conference

Day 1 of the Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia conference kicked off today, Tuesday 29 August. Speakers included NACCHO CEO Pat Turner, Professor Tom Calma AO, Tania Rishniw, and Professor Pat Dudgeon AM. The theme for this year’s conference is ‘Ways Forward.’ A reflection on the policy development in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing, mental health, and suicide prevention. Drawing on the significance of the 1995 Ways Forward Report as a milestone in Australia’s mental health history, marking a pivotal moment of collective action and community engagement in shaping the future of mental health care.

“By choosing this theme, we aim to honour the courage and resilience of those who participated in the first national mental health consultation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’, and to recognise the lasting impact of their contributions.

“…This conference theme presents an opportunity to reflect on the progress made since the release of the report, to critically examine the gaps that still exist, and to explore innovative approaches and solutions for the future.”

Learn more here.

Puggy Hunter Memorial Scholarships Scheme

Applications for the 2024 Puggy Hunter Memorial Scholarships Scheme (PHMSS) open tomorrow, Wednesday 30 August. Offering up to 300 scholarships, PHMSS encourages and assists Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander undergraduates in health-related disciplines to complete their studies and join the health workforce. The Australian Government established PHMSS as a tribute to the late Dr Arnold ‘Puggy’ Hunter and his outstanding contribution to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and his role as Chair of NACCHO.

“[PHMSS] means more First Nations nurses, midwives, doctors, dentists, and allied health workers in the health system and directly helping patients in their own local communities in many cases,” said Australian College of Nursing CEO, Professor Kylie Ward.

“The scholarships are deservedly very popular and prestigious. Over the years, we have received more than 7,500 applications,” Professor Ward said.

Applications close Tuesday 10 August. More details are available here.

Ashleigh Ryan. Previous PHMSS recipient. Image source: Australian College of Nursing.

Healing Right Way

More than 100 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who have experienced a stroke or traumatic brain injury in WA have engaged in the Healing Right Way initiative. A collaboration between ACCHOs, hospitals, and the Stroke Foundation, researchers successfully introduced and tested the program, aimed at improving rehabilitation. During the study, Aboriginal brain injury coordinators engaged with patients during their hospital stays, providing both in-person and telephone support for up to six months. The study also delivered cultural training to hospital staff.

“Aboriginal Australians experience stroke and traumatic brain injury at significant rates and a culturally appropriate response to rehabilitation and recovery has been really lacking,” said chief investigator, Professor Beth Armstrong.

Before the Healing Right Way initiative, Aboriginal people who had experienced strokes communicated to Professor Armstrong’s team that their care experience could have been improved through increased cultural sensitivity. This included communication with healthcare providers and higher involvement of Aboriginal healthcare experts in their treatment.

“Healing Right Way was the direct result of these recommendations, and the Aboriginal Brain Injury Coordinator role was developed. It is the first such role and nine Coordinators were employed across WA,” said Professor Armstrong.

Read the full National Indigenous Times article here.

Aboriginal Brain Injury Coordinators Rebecca Clinch & Renee Speedy celebrating NAIDOC 2020 with colleagues at Neurological Council of WA. Image Source: National Indigenous Times.

kidney disease on the rise

Kidney disease is on the rise in Australia, with Kidney Health Australia reporting that two million people have kidney disease and 1.8 million are unaware they have the disease. The prevalence of kidney disease in Australia is one in ten, and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people it is one in five. Kidney Health Australia Clinical Director, Dr Karen Dwyer said underneath the statistics is a huge wave of people with less advanced kidney disease, who if left untreated may reach kidney failure.

Dr Dwyer said the high prevalence of kidney disease amongst Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can be attributed to the impact of “the social determinants of health, such as access to health care, fresh healthy foods and education, lower birth weights and recurrent childhood infections play into a lot of long-term conditions.”

Indigenous Elder, Ronald Morgan said as well as receiving dialysis and the logistics of travel, his diagnosis has also had a large emotional toll.

“[receiving the diagnosis] was very disheartening to have that put on you, especially when you’re in the middle of all these good stuff, you got planned for your life, you know with kids and your wife, stiff like that,” he said.

Dr Dwyer pointed to the implementation Kidney Australia’s guidelines for Culturally Safe and Clinical Kidney Care for First Nations Australians to increase prevention. The guidelines recommend:

  • Addressing institutional racism and cultural safety.
  • Ensuring community and family involvement.
  • Improving access to transportation and accommodation.
  • Supporting and developing an Indigenous health workforce.
  • Screening for kidney disease and referring early for specialist treatment.
  • Promoting self-management through education and public awareness.
  • And exploring alternative models of care that meets the need of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Read the full article here.

Dr Janet Kelly and Nari Sinclair at the launch of Kidney Health Australia’s Guidelines to tackle kidney disease. Image source: National Indigenous Times.

NT GP shortage

According to the Menzies School of Health Research, just 14 people have enrolled in GP vocational training in the NT this year. It comes as the NT is suffering an 80% drop in new GPs in just seven years. A recent summit in Alice Springs saw Federal and local ministers, and stakeholders develop a plan where ‘no patients anywhere in the territory are left behind.’

The summit resulted in a seven-point plan aimed at increasing GP numbers through:

  • Tax relief incentives for GPs.
  • A ‘Portability of entitlement’ scheme allowing doctors to retain employment entitlements when changing locations.
  • A gradient for Aboriginal health salary support, recognizing remoteness through a higher rate.
  • A two-year structured training pathway in the territory for GPs in training.
  • An injection of funds for capital expenditure to upgrade existing housing and build new facilities.
  • Funding for international medical graduates who are not yet registerable as a GP in Australia to train in remote areas.
  • Recruiting up to 10 GPs in training from interstate to work in the NT.

Read more here.

Image source: The Medical Republic.

BRAMS Wear It Purple.

Broome Regional Aboriginal Medical Service (BRAMS) staff showed off their purple clothes to celebrate Wear It Purple Day on Friday 25 August, to raise awareness on LGBTIQA+ for young people in Australia. Staff participated in a questionnaire survey on questions around LGBTIQA+ and information sessions.

The aim of Wear It Purple is:

Awareness – We provide support and resources for Schools, Universities, Gender & Sexuality Alliances (GSA’s) and Youth Organisations to assist them in creating inclusive experiences for rainbow young people. We act as a source of resources to support the effective delivery of Wear It Purple Day in Schools, Universities, workplaces, and the broader community.

Opportunity – We provide meaningful opportunities for rainbow young people to develop their skills, expand their network and contribute to the inclusivity of their communities.

Environment – We provide supportive and safe spaces (digital and physical) and contribute to a world where young rainbow people feel proud of who they are.

Collaboration – We collaborate and unite with other organisations to further the inclusion of rainbow young people. Through partnerships, we support the effective delivery of Wear It Purple Day in Schools, Universities, workplaces, and the broader community.

For more information about Wear it Purple Day click here.

An Australian Human Rights Commission article Brotherboys, Sistergirls and LGBT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, available here, describes how Brotherboys, Sistergirls and other LGBT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples experience a number of significant and intersecting points of discrimination and marginalisation in Australia.

BRAMS Staff Wear it Purple Day. Image source: BRAMS Facebook.

Sector Jobs

Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.

Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.

Aug 28 2023

NACCHO Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health News: VAHS marks 50 years of saving lives

feature tile image VAHS premises on Nicholson Street, Fitzroy; text 'Victorian Aboriginal Health Service celebrates 50 YEARS making a difference and saving lives'

The image in the feature tile is of the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service (VAHS) premises on Nicholson Street, Fitzroy. The image appeared in an article by Bertrand Tungandame – VAHS celebrates 50 years making a difference and saving lives, published by NTIV Radio on 25 Auguste 2023.

The NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health News is platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.

We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.

VAHS marks 50 years of saving lives

The Victorian Aboriginal Health Service (VAHS) was set up in 1973 by Aunty Alma Thorpe, Uncle Bruce McGuiness and other Aboriginal community advocates as a place where Aboriginal people could access medical and social care in a time when racism and other barriers prevented Aboriginal people accessing care. Marking the 50th anniversary on August 18, 2023, VAHS Chairperson Tony McCartney reflected on the importance of the date in the history of not only Aboriginal health, but in the Aboriginal rights movement of Melbourne, Victoria, and Australia at the time.

“…VAHS is the oldest Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation in Victoria, and second oldest in the country. Since its inception VAHS has been instrumental in self-determined Aboriginal health and wellbeing in Australia. Since starting from humble beginnings and with volunteers at the small shop front in Fitzroy to a place community members called a home away from home – we have grown into a service with sites across Fitzroy, Preston, Epping and expanding to St Albans in our 50th year,” Tony McCartney said.

Over the years VAHS has achieved many supports and firsts in Australia – including establishing the first Aboriginal dental clinic that travelled around Victoria and to border towns, the first Aboriginal women and children’s program and the country’s leading Aboriginal health worker education program Koori Kollij.

To read the VAHS media release VAHS celebrates five decades of making a difference and saving lives in full click here. You can also listen NITV Radio podcast of VAHS Chairperson Tony McCartner talking about the history of VAHS here.

tile VAHS 50 years 1973-2023 Respect our past. Honour our present. To build our future.

UQ student dental clinic making a difference

Gavin Saltner, Wulli Wulli man is among more than 800 rural patients who attend a student-run dental clinic in SW Queensland each year. The UQ Dental Clinic — run by supervised fifth-year dental students — opened at Dalby 10 years ago, with another practice opening more recently at St George. Mr Saltner said having access to the clinic was important, with cost and travel time making dental treatment prohibitive for some Western Downs residents.

A report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) earlier this year found that regional and remote populations had poorer oral health standards than those in the city. It also found that access to fewer dentists, longer travel times and limited transport options impacted the oral health care rural residents received. But the model of the dental clinics in SW Queensland has been deemed so successful it could be used elsewhere. The clinics are a partnership between the university and Indigenous organisation Goondir Health Services.

Goondir Health Services executive Shubham Weling said the unique co-location model and a student-led workforce had the potential to be replicated across a range of allied health fields. “We’re opening a clinic in Chinchilla as well and we want to advocate for this model out there,” Mr Weling said. He said placing the clinics’ treatment rooms within the Indigenous organisation’s building allowed for easy referrals to other services. “So you’ve got cross influence between GPs, dentists, as well as disability support workers for the one client,” Mr Weling said. “It improves the uptake of services and just overall health outcomes and family gain because it’s all interrelated.”

To view the ABC News article UQ free dental health clinic in Dalby improves Indigenous oral health outcomes in full click here.

ATSI man Gavin Saltner in in dental chair at UQ Dalby Dentral Clinic, Goodnir Aboriginal Health Services & Dental Clinic

Gavin Saltner is a regular patient at the UQ Dalby Dental Clinic. The clinic is embedded within the Goondir Health Services facility and treats about 800 Indigenous patients a year. Photo: Laura Cocks, ABC Southern Qld.

Kidney Health 4 Life effectiveness study

Newly diagnosed with kidney disease and want more support? Then Kidney Health 4 Life might be for you!!

This September, Kidney Health Australia is launching a research study to assess the effectiveness of Kidney Health 4 Life , a pilot program designed to help people with kidney disease to self-manage their condition. By participating in the study, you will have access to the program before it goes to the wider public, as well as helping to shape the future of kidney disease support.

You may be eligible for the study if you meet the following criteria:

  • Adults (18+ years) diagnosed with early to mid-stage CKD (Stages 1-4) within the past 12 months (from time of enrolment)
  • Adults (18+ years) who have commenced dialysis (both PD and HD) in the past 12 months (from time of enrolment)

Eligible participants will be assigned to either the program group or standard support group. This will help determine how effective the program is compared to Kidney Health Australia’s standard support. People assigned to the program group will have access to online modules covering topics such as diet and nutrition, disease management, exercise, and managing stress and sleep. Health coaching will also be offered.

People assigned to the standard support group will have access to Kidney Health Australia’s current services including Helpline and Kidney Buddy peer support program and extensive resources. The good news for those assigned to the standard support group is that they will have access to the full KH4L program once the study is complete

If you think you fit the eligibility criteria, you can submit an EOI form on the Kidney Health Australia website here. HURRY. Places are limited.

Kidney Health Australia tile text 'are you new to kidney disease or dialysis & need more support? Apply for the KH4L research study today.

Just 3 in 10 kids had a health check in 2021–22

Just three in 10 First Nations children aged 0–14 years received a health check within the past year, according to new data released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). The AIHW report — Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander specific primary health care: results from the OSR and nKPI collections, available here, contained data collected from more than 200 organisations.

A total of 586,000 First Nations patients were treated between 2021 and 2022, but only 30% of children had a formal health check in the previous 12 months, making target 4 of the Closing the Gap agreement’s socioeconomic outcome areas — which reads “Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children thrive in their early years” — seemingly further away than ever.

With regards to other preventive health measures, 45% of patients received an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health assessment and 47% received a risk assessment for heart disease in the last two years. 70% of patients aged 11 and over had their smoking status recorded in the past year, of which 53% reported quitting smoking or never smoking. Among First Nations patients assessed for CVD risk, 58% aged 35-74 with no known history of CVD reported a low absolute risk within the last two years, 35% were high risk and 7% had a moderate risk. 65% of First Nations patients with type two diabetes reported blood pressure results within recommended guidelines in the past six months, while more than half had a chronic disease management plan completed within the past two years.

To view the Health Services Daily article Just three in 10 First Nations kids had health check in past year in full click here.

young ATSI child having ear check

Image source: QLD Government Children’s Health Queensland Hospital and Health Service webpage.

Mental Health for Mob fills service gap

Walgalu-Ngambri and Dharawal woman and Mental Health for Mob founder Kristen Franks has seen and heard a lot over the past decade working in the mental health sector. She has worked across towns in central west NSW and in Canberra and its surrounding regions and helped an array of people – from children, the young, schools and families to pregnant women, the suicidal or self-harming, those with behavioural disorders and in the criminal justice system.

“Throughout all this, I noticed that I was often the first Aboriginal mental health clinician an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person would see,” Kristen says. “It was incredibly difficult to hear this was the first time they’d felt culturally safe [and that] they’ve never felt heard or connected because there was no lived experience understanding.” A decade of hearing this message reached fever pitch in late 2021 when Kristen’s community and Elders supported her to meet this cultural need.

While Kristen never intended to make a profit from offering free mental health care, she soon found herself staring down the hard realities of starting a non-profit organisation. Insurance, registrations and finding a space for clients, to name a few. All while Kristen held down a full-time job and tried to begin to address an “overwhelming” community need. Over the following six months, crowdfunding and some modest grants transformed Mental Health for Mob from an Instagram page that shared mental health resources to a fully fledged mental health service.

You can read the Riotact article How Kristen turned an Instagram page into a culturally safe mental health service in less than six months in full here.

Kristen Franks' face with white body paint & Mental Health for Mob logo

Kristen Franks established Mental Health for Mob. Image source: National Indigenous Times.

Emergency aeromedical evacuation training

About 7 million of Australians (about 30%) live in rural and remote areas. People living in these areas have poorer health outcomes overall according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), and also have access to fewer primary, secondary and tertiary health services. Potentially preventable hospitalisations are twice as high as for those in metropolitan and regional areas. A 2023 Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) report found that Australians in rural and remote settings are at substantially higher risk of heart, stroke and vascular disease (accounting for a quarter of all RFDS missions), and the health services are not always there to support them.

A new agreement between CareFlight and Charles Darwin University (CDU) will give health students the opportunity to work in the Top End with emergency aeromedical retrieval teams on flights. The agreement creates clinical placements for future medical students at the CDU Menzies School of Medicine. The university will apply for 40 of 80 places in the Australian Government’s $114.2m Increasing Rural Medical Training Grant Opportunity to support the placements.

Ms Quinn is excited about the CDU partnership. “It is something we have wanted to do for years,” Ms Quinn said. “It is really important for building our workforce for the future. Our patients are some of the most disadvantaged in Australia; they have complex medical problems and disease processes. Students will see what it’s like to be an independent practitioner. It’s not just the medicine – it’s about logistics and making quick decisions,” Ms Quinn said, who added it was a privilege to work in those remote locations.

To view the InSight+ article Tyranny of distance: emergency aeromedical retrieval in outback Australia in full click here.

CareFlight van, plane, patient on gurney, 3 medical professionals

CareFlight treats and transports patients needing specialist care. Photo: CareFlight NT. Image source: InSight+.

Sector Jobs

Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.

Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.

Aug 18 2023

NACCHO Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health News: Local solutions vital for sustainable healthcare

feature tile image pilbara landscape in heatwave; text 'Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Service co-designs culturally appropriate heatwave adaption resources'

The image in the feature tile is of the Pilbara region of WA from the article WA’s Pilbara hits 45C as large swathes of Australia swelter in heatwave published in The Guardian on 17 February 2023. Photo: John White, Getty Images.

The NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health News is platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.

We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.

Local solutions vital for sustainable healthcare

Amid growing global concerns about the impacts of heatwaves upon health and health services, a regional ACCHO in WA is taking steps to adapt to the changing environment. The Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Service (KAMS), which represents eight independent member ACCHOs from towns and remote communities across the Kimberley region, is co-designing culturally appropriate heatwave adaptation resources for the region.

Community consultations as part of the KAMS Climate Health Adaptation Project found that heatwaves are a priority issue in the Kimberley region, according to Dr Sophie Moustaka, public health registrar and project officer employed by KAMS for its Climate Health Adaptation Planning project, “We identified that there was an awareness that it is getting hotter, there is an increased intensity of heatwaves, and also less relief between the heatwaves.”.

How health services are addressing climate mitigation and adaptation will be profiled at the Greening the Healthcare Sector Forum next month on 14-15 September, in-person at the Fiona Stanley Hospital, and online, with the aim of providing “opportunities for connection, knowledge sharing, learning and upskilling for all attendees”. Following its theme, “empowering action for sustainable, climate resilient healthcare,” the forum will focus on ‘how’ to empower action and include sessions on Caring for Country, strategy and systems, engagement, leadership and sustainability in practice.

To view the Croakey Health Media article Cultural context, empowered staff and local solutions are vital for sustainable healthcare in full click here.

exterior of KAMS, WA

Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Services.

Voice necessary to close the gap

As co-chairs of the National Close the Gap Campaign Karl Briscoe and June Oscar AO say they are privileged to represent 52 First Nations and mainstream organisations, who – since 2006 – have come together as allies to create a national movement committed to ensuring health equity and equality and improved life outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Since 2006, this Campaign has advocated for large-scale systemic reform and a paradigm shift in policy design and delivery to truly empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. And since the inception of the Uluru Statement from the Heart the Campaign has supported the full implementation of its three components – Voice. Treaty. Truth.

If successful, the Voice, through constitutional recognition, will allow Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander elected representatives to make representations to the Executive and to Parliament. The Executive can choose to incorporate these representations when creating legislation, policy, or program design. Equally, they can choose not to. But key to this structural reform is that it provides Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples with a constitutionally enshrined voice, a permanent seat at the table, and a genuine opportunity to provide advice on matters that directly affect our lives. The intention of the Voice is to change old practices by governments and their agencies. We cannot keep doing more of the same. Large-scale structural reform is necessary if we ever hope to close the gap.

In truth, across the political and policy spectrum there is a tendency to attribute the lack of progress or success of the Closing the Gap Strategy as the individual failures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. But it is in fact systemic political, institutional and policy failures. It is the continual development of poor policies, pursued and implemented by successive Governments, that consistently fail Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities. This has real and often detrimental consequences. It is felt in our lived experiences, it is visible in our exclusion, and it is crippling this nation’s ability to pursue justice, equity, and equality for all. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities know when policy is harmful instead of helpful, and we know what our own communities need to thrive.

To view the Law Society Journal article The Voice is necessary if we want to close the gap in full click here.

portrait shots of Closing the Gap co-chairs Karl Briscoe & June Oscar

Closing the Gap co-hairs Karl Briscoe (image source: Law Society of NSW Journal) and June Oscar (Image source: IndigenousX website).

Mob must be central to LGBTQIA+ plans and policy

Yesterday Dameyon Bonson was a guest on the podcast Joy 94.9 Radio Drive with Warren, discussing why Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people must be central to LGBTQIA+ plans and policies. Dameyon has extensive experience working in and with remote Indigenous communities in suicide prevention and is the founder of Black Rainbow, Australia’s first and only national Indigenous LGBTIQA suicide prevention charity organisation.

Mr Bonson hopes data that has come out of the recent Walkern Katatdjin: Rainbow Knowledge survey will mobilise work that should have been happening decades ago. He explained that until now there has been no data, and when there is no data there is no policy and when there is no policy there is no funding. To date, Mr Bonson said, there has been no formal recognition of First Nations LGBTQIA+ people in any policy across the country, particularly at a Commonwealth level, that one we exist as a population group but also our needs, because as the report stresses the issue is not just about suicidality it is also around mental ill health, homelessness, and drug and alcohol usage. Mr Bonson wants investment in First Nations LGBTQIA+ led work in this space.

To listen to the Joy Drive 94.9 Radio Drive with Warren podcast episode Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people must be central to LGBTQIA+ plans and policies click here. You can also read an ABC News article Walkern Katatdjin: Rainbow Knowledge survey shines spotlight on mental health issues faced by Indigenous LGBTIQA+ youth about the report referred to in the podcast here.

banner JOY 94.9 Radio DRIVE with Warren & image of Dameyon Bonson

Banner from Joy Media website. Dameyon Bonson is the founder of Australia’s first Indigenous LGBTI support group. Photo: Anthony Pancia, ABC South West.

Lowitja Institute on health and climate strategy

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and research sectors must be resourced appropriately to respond to climate change, according to the Lowitja Institute’s submission to the National Health and Climate Strategy consultation. The Lowitja Institute said their submission to the National Health and Climate Strategy consultation could be summarised under the following nine themes.

  • strengths-based
  • governance matters
  • resource services
  • emissions reduction
  • building the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mitigation and adaptation workforce
  • dedicated research funding
  • human rights and climate justice
  • terminology matters
  • acknowledgements

You can access the National Health and Climate Strategy consultation paper here and read the Croakey Health Media article Nine key messages for the National Health and Climate Strategy: Lowitja Institute in full click here.

cover of Aust Govt Dept Hlth & Aged Care National Health & Climate Strategy Consultation Paper

Understanding the toll of everyday racism

Everyday racism is a familiar experience for many Indigenous people in Australia. Its impact on wellbeing has been understood anecdotally, but a long-term study has recently been able to demonstrate this with data. In an epsiode of BLA.C.K Medicine, Dr Mikayala Couch chatted with Kirsty Nichols about Mayi Kuwayu, a ground-breaking research project tracking Indigenous health over time. The Mayi Kuwayu Study is a large-scale project tracking 12,000 participants over time, providing data for Indigenous-led research projects.

One project that developed from the study was to determine how much psychological distress is caused by everyday racism. Two thirds of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adult population have experienced the eight types of everyday discrimination included in the study. Examples of everyday racism include being treated with less respect than other people or being given worse service. People reported being insulted or yelled at, being treated as stupid, or dangerous, or followed around in shops. The study demonstrated that for those with high or very high psychological stress, up to half of it was caused by everyday racism. If we eliminated everyday racial discrimination, we could hypothetically half the gap in the prevalence of high to very high psychological distress.

The study aims to provide data for research that can address Indigenous health from an Indigenous perspective. People can apply to access data from the study to develop research projects that align with Indigenous needs. These strategies need to be Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander identified and led. We can no longer afford for anything we do to improve health to be implemented through the white lens. And also, the white savior complex that these western institutional changes are born out of needs to stop.

You can listen to the SBS BLA.C.K Medicine podcast episode Understanding the toll of everyday racism here.
banner for BLA.C.K. Medicine podcast episode Understanding the toll of everyday racism & image of ATSI woman Kirsty Nichols

Kirsty Nichols (pictured left) is a Muran and Kungarakun woman who works in health service policy, public health, system planning and delivery. Image source: SBS.

Too Deadly for Diabetes funding boost

A successful program supporting people living with Type 2 diabetes in Aboriginal communities will benefit from a funding boost so that more people will be able to access the service. NSW Minister for Regional Health, Ryan Park has pledged $40,000 to Too Deadly for Diabetes to work with the Walhallow Aboriginal Health Corporation to expand its community-based lifestyle programs. Too Deadly for Diabetes is a research-based lifestyle program developed by Gomeroi man Ray Kelly, and is run primarily through local Aboriginal Medical Services.

“I was so impressed to see this initiative in action through the Coonamble Aboriginal Health Service and the incredibly positive impact it’s having on the local community,” Mr Park said. “We know that communities are achieving great health results, and with the right support they can accomplish even more. I’m pleased to be able to help this program expand into other communities where it can make a big difference. This funding will allow Too Deadly for Diabetes to expand into more regional communities, including Quirindi, Caroona, and for the first time Werris Creek.”

Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Treaty, David Harris, welcomed the funding that would improve health outcomes for Aboriginal people, particularly in rural and regional areas. “The further you get from major centres in NSW, the worse your health outcomes are. This is particularly the case for chronic disease in our Aboriginal communities,” Mr Harris said. “This funding boost shows our commitment to closing the gap in health outcomes.”

To view the NSW Health media release Too Deadly for Diabetes given funding boost in full click here. You can also find more information about the Too Deadly for Diabetes program, including videos like the one below on the Too Deadly for Diabetes website here.

Sector Jobs

Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.

Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.

Jul 19 2023

NACCHO Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health News: Structural reform needed to CTG

feature tile of Aboriginal mother holding baby & young girl interacting with the baby; text 'Structural and systemic change will have a positive effect on trajectory of CTG targets'

The image in the feature tile is from am article More to be done on closing gap for Indigenous wellbeing published in The Canberra Times on 8 March 2023.

The NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health News is platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.

We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.

Structural reform needed to CTG

The Productivity Commission’s third Closing the Gap Annual Data Compilation Report shows only four of the 19 targets are on track, while four have deteriorated. “Four targets are getting worse – this is not acceptable. More of the same isn’t good enough, we have to do better. A Voice to Parliament will help to close the Gap, because we know that listening to communities leads to better outcomes that improve people’s lives,” said Federal Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney. Similarly, Coalition of Peaks lead convenor [and NACCHO CEO] Patricia Turner said that “When structural and systemic change is made, there will naturally be a positive effect on the trajectory of the Closing the Gap targets.”

Encouragingly the latest report shows the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 25–64 who are employed is improving and on track. There has been a 30% reduction in the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people (10–17 years) in detention, while preschool enrolments have improved. Land subject to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s legal rights or interests also remains on track.

However the data shows a slide in the number of children developmentally on track, increased numbers of children in out-of-home care, increased adult incarceration rates and an alarming rise from baseline in suicide. Peak body for Indigenous Children SNAICC CEO Catherine Liddle said the gap was becoming a chasm for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. “More and more Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are being removed from families and put into out-of-home care. Fewer children are developmentally on track when starting school. Where we are seeing progress it’s encouraging but it’s not happening at the scale required for genuine reform. Australia needs to do things differently if Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are going to have a brighter future.”

To view the Australian Nursing & Midwifery Journal (ANMJ) article Voice to Parliament the structural reform needed to Closing the Gap in full click here.cover of Australian Government Productivity Commission Closing the Gap Annual Data Compilation Report July 2023

WAMS launches Freedom Rides Memorial and website

The Freedom Riders arrived in Walgett on 15 February 1965. They protested outside the Walgett RSL Club because they had been told the club was refusing to admit Indigenous ex-servicemen. After their protest their bus was run off the road by a car driven by an unidentified person. This event led to Walgett, the Freedom Riders and the plight of Indigenous Australians in rural NSW getting national and international media attention. Little of the history of the Freedom Rides however was publicly recorded or known from the perspective of local Aboriginal people from Walgett, who both themselves and their ancestors took part in this significant event in history.

On Monday this week (17 July 2023) the Walgett Aboriginal Medical Service (WAMS) launched the Freedom Ride Memorial Park and Freedom Rides to Walgett website. The Remembering the Freedom Ride to Walgett project was initiated by WAMS Chairperson Mary Purse, the daughter of the late Harry Hall who was a primary leader, along with the late Charles Perkins (AO). The project includes history and archival research to tell the story of the Freedom Rides and its surrounding events from the perspective of the local Gamilaraay and Yuwaalaraay people. It is being led by Mary Purse, assisted by Christine Corby OAM, the CEO of WAMS. WAMS has been collaborating on this project with a historian from Nura Gili, University of NSW to research the history through participation of local community members and their families who took part in these events.

The project began with WAMS securing state government funding to develop an artwork to commemorate the Freedom Ride to Walgett to be displayed in a park in Walgett.  The display’s focus is on Walgett’s association with the Freedom Ride, identifying significant local Aboriginal people who had a key role in the demonstrations and events specific to the town.

To access the Freedom Rides to Walgett website click here.

WAMS staff in front of Freedom Rides to Walgett 1965 Memorial Park sign, 17.7.23

WAMS staff at the launch of Freedom Rides Memorial Park. Image source: WAMS.

Financial barriers to sight-saving treatment

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are ending up with avoidable blindness because of the high out-of-pocket costs of sight-saving treatments, according to Dr Guy Gillor, Lose (Rose) Fonua and Associate Professor Mitchell Anjou. As well, the most common treatment for diabetic retinopathy, an intravitreal injection, is challenging to access, as it involves multiple and regular treatments, predominantly in private ophthalmology clinics. Diabetic retinopathy is one of the three conditions that contribute most to avoidable blindness for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Gillor, Fonua and Anjou from the Indigenous Eye Health Unit (IEHI) at the University of Melbourne, say “Without a public or no-cost option, these fees mean the difference between retaining one’s vision, and losing it.” In the absence of such a solution, the IEHU has developed a new information sheet – Diabetic Retiopathy Treatment and Cost in Private Practice, available here, to support patients and healthcare teams in negotiating access for intravitreal injection treatment with private ophthalmology clinics.

To view the Croakey Health Media article Financial barriers to sight-saving treatment are leading to avoidable blindness in full click here.

ATSI man having an eye test

Image source: AHCSA website.

ACCHO to deliver healthcare in youth justice centre

Barwon Health has been commissioned to deliver healthcare services to young people at the new Cherry Creek Youth Justice Centre, just outside of Little River, a town approximately 44kms SW of Melbourne. To open next month, the $419m facility is funded and managed by the Department of Justice and Community Safety and will accommodate young men aged 15–17 who are sentenced or on remand.

Barwon Health public health and primary care co-director Deborah Kay said the regional health service’s vision for Cherry Creek was to offer a range of comprehensive culturally safe services tailored to the needs of the young people in the facility. “We will work with the young people to build knowledge, health literacy, resilience and trusted relationships while preserving dignity and enhancing health outcomes. We know that young people need to be engaged and empowered to understand their own health needs and treatment options.”

Barwon Health will partner with Wathaurong Aboriginal Co-operative to ensure safe and high-quality care is provided. Ms Kay said it was important to establish a safe, appropriate and sustainable service that was culturally safe for young people from a range of backgrounds.

To view the Geelong Times article Barwon Health to provide services at Cherry Creek in full click here.

exterior of Cherry Creek Youth Justice Precinct

The Cherry Creek Youth Justice Precinct will accommodate young men aged 15 to 17 who are sentenced or on remand. Image source: Geelong Times.

New research to look at dietary practices

Victoria University (VU) researchers have received a VicHealth $230,000 grant to investigate Aboriginal Australian dietary practices and place-making in public health equity. The two-year project, led by Dr Kristina Vingrys together with VU’s Indigenous Academic Unit Moondani Balluk, hopes to uncover ancestral Aboriginal knowledge about the ‘deadly tucker’ and Aboriginal food practices that can be used by the Aboriginal community today. “The project aims to support Aboriginal people and Country, to strengthen social and emotional wellbeing, inter-cultural understanding, skills and knowledge to support sustainable, healthy food systems, and reduce health inequities currently experienced by Aboriginal Australians in Victoria,” Dr Vingrys said.

The multidisciplinary project will involve Aboriginal community and researchers, with research expertise also from dietitians, community psychology, sociology and ecology teams. “We hope to also gather information through lived experiences – we want to uncover the lost knowledge about traditional foods that were grown in the Kulin Nation and the practices around growing, harvesting and preparing them” Dr Vingrys explained. “We are also really interested in identifying the potential nutritional benefits that might have been prescribed to those consuming these foods.”

Moondani Balluk Executive Director Karen Jackson said: “Once the knowledge has been gathered, it will be protected and used by and for the local Aboriginal community for cultural healing and place-making to support their social and emotional wellbeing.”

To view the University of Victoria article VicHealth funding for new research looking at Aboreiginal Australian dietary practies and place-making in full click here.

Pelargonium - a tuberous root plant that was used by Aboriginal people

Pelargonium – a tuberous root plant that was used by Aboriginal people. Image source: Victoria University News webpage.

Mob contribute to health and climate strategy

The Australian Government is engaging with First Nations leaders as it develops Australia’s first National Health and Climate Strategy. Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care Ged Kearney MP is holding a roundtable today with First Nations peak bodies and representatives from across Australia. The Strategy will provide a plan of action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the health system and better prepare the sector for the challenges presented by climate change, including threats specific to the health and wellbeing of First Nations people.

Climate change threatens to disrupt connections to Country, further limit access to safe drinking water and increase the difficulty in accessing appropriate housing, infrastructure and health services. Embedding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives and expertise in the strategy will strengthen climate adaptation and mitigation planning. Co-designing the strategy in partnership with First Nations peoples across the country is essential to its successful development and implementation.

Minister Kearney said “The World Health Organisation has described climate change as the greatest threat to public health in the 21st century. First Nations people already face inequality in health outcomes, and these will only be exacerbated by climate change – it is critical we hear from First Nations people as we develop this strategy.”

To view the Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, the Hon Ged Kearney MP’s media release First Nations voices input to National Health and Climate Strategy in full click here. In the below video residents of Poruma (Coconut) Island, a low-lying coral cay in the Central Islands group of the Torres Strait, calling for urgent action to help protect their island from the coastal flooding and erosion linked to climate change.

Sector Jobs

Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.

Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.

Jul 14 2023

NACCHO Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health News: ‘Courage’ needed to address disadvantage

feature tile image graphic art of black & white hands reaching across Aboriginal flag; text 'Coalition of Peaks says governments lack "necessary courage" to close the gap on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander disadvantage'

The image in the feature tile by Dionne Gain appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald article Missing the target: goodwill fails to overcome entrenched inequalities published on 15 February 2020.

The NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health News is platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.

We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.

‘Courage’ needed to address disadvantage

The Coalition of Peaks, which was involved in a 2020 overhaul of the approach to closing the gap, said the barriers facing Indigenous Australians were the result of a “tremendous and successive failure of public administration” involving neglect, discrimination and the “whims of politics”. In a powerful argument for enshrining a Voice to Parliament in the constitution, the group argued: “Our seats at the table with governments and public servants have too often been temporary, interchangeable, and all for show”.

The arguments were detailed in a letter to the Productivity Commission’s first three-yearly review of the closing the gap targets. The Coalition of Peaks lamented the lack of overall progress. The latest Closing the Gap data, published on Wednesday, showed just four of 19 targets were on track to be met, and a further four were getting worse. The peak body said while it was encouraged by some of the progress, the overall efforts were “too inconsistent” and “lack the necessary courage”. In a stinging criticism, the peak body said governments and public servants had benefited from the “notorious reputation” of Indigenous affairs as the most difficult set of policy problems to address.

“It is without doubt that the barriers our people face are complex and multifaceted,” the letter stated. “But they are a consequence of what our people have endured for millennium. It has been a tremendous and successive failure of public administration featuring the whims of politics, neglect, discrimination, top-down approaches, legislative changes, defunding and investment, distributed responsibilities and everchanging goal posts.”

You can view the Australian Government Productivity Commission’s Closing the Gap Annual Data Compilation Report July 2023 here and the Narrogin Observer article Pilbara Aboriginal groups back Yes vote and call for real action to improve lives in full click here.

back of man holding Aboriginal flag at protest outside APH

Photo: Michael Black, ABC News.

Transformative ‘Big Dream, Small Steps’ traineeships

There was an air of excitement and anticipation in the room at Mackay Base Hospital (MBH) last week as 10 students with big dreams took a step towards pursuing careers in the health sector. The Budyubari Bidyiri Kebi Stapal (Big Dream, Small Steps) program 2023 cohort are beginning twelve-month school-based traineeships across selected departments of MBH which will equip them with a Certificate lll qualification in either Health Services Assistance, Allied Health Assistance or Dental Assistance.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Employment Program Officer Emily Vanderwolf said the Year 11 students came from seven Mackay region high schools. “We had nine students graduate from the first Big Dream Small Steps program last year and we are excited to have another 10 students who are wanting to take up this opportunity to complete Certificate III qualifications while they are finishing high school,” Ms Vanderwolf said. “The aim of the program is to build our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workforce to better reflect the community we care for.”

There were also some proud family members on hand at Tuesday’s induction day. Andrea Pinkard, whose daughter Lara graduated from last year’s program, felt it was a good career move for her son Fletcher. “Fletcher’s older sister really enjoyed the program and she has now been accepted into James Cook University to study pharmacy,” Ms Pinkard said. “I thought it would be a great program for Fletcher as well.”

To read the Mackay and Whitsunday Life article Taking Big Dreams To The Healthcare Horizon in full click here.

2023 Big Dream Small Steps trainees are, back from left, Dom Battersby (MCC), Fletcher Pinkard and Bella Roberts (Mirani SHS), Jess Maley (St Patricks College), Yasmin Johnston (Pioneer SHS), and front from left, Martia Gela (Sarina SHS), Macy Rudken (Mackay SHS), Tiani Walker (Mackay North SHS), Ellie Hansen (Mackay SHS) and Brenice’Sha Blanco (Sarina SHS)

The 2023 Big Dream Small Steps trainees are, back from left, Dom Battersby (MCC), Fletcher Pinkard and Bella Roberts (Mirani SHS), Jess Maley (St Patricks College), Yasmin Johnston (Pioneer SHS), and front from left, Martia Gela (Sarina SHS), Macy Rudken (Mackay SHS), Tiani Walker (Mackay North SHS), Ellie Hansen (Mackay SHS) and Brenice’Sha Blanco (Sarina SHS). Image source: Mackay Whitsunday Life.

Overcoming fragmented child and family services

One of the biggest challenges for people who most need social services is navigating a fragmented service system. Everyone leads a complex life, and the issues we face don’t necessarily fit into neat boxes. Government services, on the other hand, are delivered in siloes through individual contracts, resulting in multiple individual services with little connection between them.

Services that help with issues such as child and family, early child education, domestic violence, homelessness / housing, health and mental health are all hampered when delivered in a fragmented way. Understanding the impacts of this and how to overcome them is important not only for those working in these systems, but the people designing and funding them as well. Those with the greatest need are least likely to access the services or receive the comprehensive support they need.

Social Ventures Australia (SVA) recently launched Happy, healthy and thriving children: Enhancing the impact of Integrated Child and Family Centres in Australia, a discussion paper, available here, exploring current integrated child and family centre (ICFC) models in Australia. It focuses on the key enablers and barriers impacting the outcomes delivered. ICFCs are not currently defined nor consistently recognised as a service model in the Australian early years landscape. There is currently no national approach to delivery, and no overall leadership or responsibility for outcomes. And while quality is essential for integrated centre outcomes, there is currently no overarching approach to measuring or assessing quality.

To view The Sector article Integrated child and family centres overcome fragmented service delivery in full click here.

Aboriginal Child & Family Centre NSW

Aboriginal Child and Family Centre (ACFC), NSW. Image source: NSW Government ACFC webpage.

CTG report shows ‘privileged’ claims absurd

Nothing highlights the absurdity of claims Indigenous Australians would become a “privileged group” or that the nation would be divided by race if the country votes “yes” than the latest Closing The Gap report which shows a huge disparity between the rates of incarceration, suicide, life expectancy and infant and child mortality for Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.

Study to help young men take care of mental health

Curtin University has been given nearly $100,000 by Healthway for a study aimed to help young Aboriginal men aged 14-25 take care of their mental health and well-being. The research team will collaborate with young Indigenous men to understand their thoughts on mental health and how they currently promote their well-being, also exploring the challenges and factors that support mental well-being and resilience.

Lead researcher from Curtin’s School of Population Health, Professor Penelope Hasking, said the team will create and test mental health messages that are culturally appropriate and meaningful to young Aboriginal men. “We will conduct co-design workshops to develop new strengths-based approaches to increase mental health literacy and mental health promotion grounded in Indigenous ways of knowing and being, which might include social media campaigns or mass media campaigns,” she said. “We will soon be recruiting our research team to guide the project, which will comprise young Aboriginal men and Aboriginal Elders before we commence an initial pilot within the City of Stirling early next year.”

Lotterywest and Healthway CEO Ralph Addis congratulated Professor Hasking and her team, and all researchers who received funding through Healthway’s Targeted Research Round, “We look forward to the outcomes of all the research projects, including Curtin’s which will improve the mental health literacy and reduce health inequities among young Aboriginal men.”

To view the National Indigenous Times article Curtin University to conduct study into young Indigenous men’s mental health and wellbeing in full click here.

Professor Penelope Hasking, Curtin University

Curtin University’s Professor Penelope Hasking. Image source: National Indigenous Times.

Sector Jobs

Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.

Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.

Key Date – National Diabetes Week – 9–15 July 2023

Each day during National Diabetes Week 2023 NACCHO has been sharing information relating to diabetes as it impacts Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

An article published last month in the International Journal of Epidemiology – The impact of diabetes during pregnancy on neonatal outcomes among the Aboriginal population in Western Australia: a whole-population study, available here, found:

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women have a high prevalence of diabetes in pregnancy (DIP), which includes pre-gestational diabetes mellitus (PGDM) and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). The study which aimed to characterize the impact of DIP in babies born to Aboriginal mothers found DIP differentially increased the risks of fetal overgrowth, shoulder dystocia and congenital anomalies in Aboriginal babies. The study authors said improving care for Aboriginal women with diabetes and further research on preventing shoulder dystocia among these women can reduce the disparities.

Desiree Weetra who was diagnosed with gestational diabetes holding her baby

Like many Aboriginal mothers in the Northern Territory, Desiree Weetra was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Photo: Michael Franchi, ABC News.

Jun 28 2023

NACCHO Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health News: Professor Calma: act now for those who come next

feature tile: portrait shot of Prof Tom Calma; text '2023 ANU Reconciliation Lecture: Professor Tom Calma AO urges action NOW for those who COME NEXT'

The image in the feature tile is of Professor Tom Calma AO from the ANU Reconciliation Lecture 2023 in partnership with UC webpage of the Australian National University (ANU) website.

The NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health News is platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.

We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.

Professor Calma: act now for those who come next

The ANU Reconciliation Lecture is part of a lecture series, which began in 2018 to highlight Indigenous researchers and Indigenous research, has since become the ANU’s flagship event for National Reconciliation Week. This year the lecture was delivered by Professor Tom Calma AO, a Kungarakan Elder, a member of the Iwaidja people, 2023 Senior Australian of the Year and the Chancellor of the University of Canberra.

Professor Calma said that although National Reconciliation Week had passed, reconciliation is an ongoing endeavour as the theme “Be a Voice for Generations” aptly illustrates. Professor Calma said “The theme is about speaking up and carrying on the work of those who came before us. To honour their legacy by acting now for those who come next. It’s a call to not be silent, but to raise our voices to demand action for a better future.”

Professor Calma reiterated comments he’d made in 2008 as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, “Without proper engagement with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, governments will struggle in their efforts to make lasting progress in improving the conditions of Indigenous people and in our communities. Much of the failure of service delivery to Indigenous people and communities, and the lack of sustainable outcomes, is a direct result of the failure to engage appropriately with Indigenous people and of the failure to support and build the capacity of Indigenous communities. It is the result of a failure to develop priorities and programs in full participation with Indigenous communities.”

“Put simply, governments risk failure – and will continue to do so – if they develop and implement policies about Indigenous issues without engaging with the intended recipients of those services. Bureaucrats and governments can have the best intentions in the world, but if their ideas have not been subject to the “reality test” of the life experience of the local Indigenous peoples who are intended to benefit from this, then government efforts will fail.”

To read the ANU article 2023 ANU Reconciliation Lecture: Full Speech by Tom Calma in full click here. You can also watch Professor Tom Calma AO delivering the 2023 ANU Reconciliation Lecture in the video below:

$3.4m to WA ACCOs to improve service delivery

The WA Government has awarded grants to 16 Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs) as part of the implementation of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap. In partnership with Lotterywest, the WA Government, released the grants program in October 2022 calling for ideas from ACCOs to improve the delivery of priority community services to Aboriginal people and communities across WA.

Not-for-profit ACCOs across WA were encouraged to apply for a share of grants from the $3.4m Closing the Gap funding. Grant applications were invited from organisations who wanted to improve, expand or develop initiatives across the priority sectors of housing, health, disability, and early childhood care and development. The grants are to assist ACCOs in delivering high-quality, sustainable services and outcomes for Aboriginal people and communities.

Of the 16 grant recipients, four are ACCHOs:

  • Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Services Limited (KAMS)
  • Moorditj Koort Aboriginal Corporation
  • Ngaanyatjarra Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Women’s Council Aboriginal Corporation (NPY Women’s Council)
  • South-West Aboriginal Medical Service Aboriginal Corporation (SWAMS)

To view the Government of WA’s media statement Grants inject $3.4 million to support services for Aboriginal people in full click here.

Clockwise from L: KAMS building; Moorditj Koort gym; NPY Women's Council logo; SWAMS mobile van

Clockwise: KAMS, Moorditj Koort, NPY Women’s Council logo and SWAMS mobile van.

Smart glasses to improve foot wound treatment

Mixed-reality smart glasses with holographic features are set to revolutionise the treatment of leg and foot wounds for people with diabetes and vascular disease in regional and remote areas in the future. University of Adelaide researchers are leading the development of new software for a mixed-reality headset that will allow practitioners working in the city to “see through the eyes” of rural health workers in real time as they assess and treat patients’ leg and foot ulcers.

“This new technology will potentially change how wounds are treated and the way telemedicine is practiced,” said the University of Adelaide’s Professor Robert Fitridge from the Adelaide Medical School, who is chief investigator on this study. “Chronic ulcers on the lower limbs are a common problem and cause significant illness and diminished quality of life. The new software will allow health professionals in different locations to work more closely together, potentially preventing leg and foot amputations and saving lives,” he said.

“Seeing through the eyes of rural health workers to accurately diagnose and treat wounds will reduce the rates of emergency hospitalisations for rural and regional patients while frequently allowing them to stay in their home communities when they otherwise would have needed to come to a metropolitan hospital,” said Dr Neil McMillan, a researcher at the Adelaide Medical School. “There is an increasing need for this type of technology as the rates of diabetes and cardiovascular disease continue to rise. Reduced access to health services outside of the city contributes to delayed screening and detection of disease in rural communities, not to mention the financial burden on patients and the health system,” said Dr McMillan. Diabetes-related foot disease caused an estimated 1,700 deaths and more than 5,000 lower limb amputations in Australia in 2019–2020 alone.

To view The University of Adelaide article Smart glasses to improve diagnosis and treatment of foot wounds in full click here.

health worker using smart glasses to examine patient's feet

Image source: The University of Adelaide website.

Empowering communities with My Health Record

The Australian Digital Health Agency is hosting a webinar for consumers to learn more about the benefits of My Health Record and the my health app in supporting the preservation of bush medicine information, care on Country and community wellbeing.

There will also be an opportunity for questions and answers at the end of the session.

WHEN: Wednesday 5 July 2023

TIME: 1.00 – 1.30pm AEST

To register for the Empowering communities with My Health Record webinar click here.

AIDA My Health Record banner - logos of AIDA & My Health Record

PAMS wins social impact architecture award

Puntukurnu AMS Healthcare Hub has been named a joint winner of the inaugural ArchitectureAU Award for Social Impact. The award recognises projects that promote the common good and rewards architectural practice that preferences empathy over aesthetics. Situated in one of the remotest communities in Australia (1,200 km north of Perth), the project collaborated and consulted community, including the Nyiyaparli and Martu Elders. Now, the state-of-the-art health facility is infused with the needs and wishes of the users and serves as a significant meeting place.

The award’s jury chair Katelin Butler said, “Design excellence is not found in the creation of beautiful buildings alone. It is also found in the architectural process – that is, how the problem or brief is defined, who is empowered to be part of the journey, and who benefits from the outcome. How does the building work to support the client? How does it align with the broader public benefit? And how does the design itself enhance these benefits?”

The building designed by Kaunitz Yeung Architecture creates a visual narrative that emphasises inclusion and history of the local. Beyond aesthetics, the Health Hub has increased presentation rates for medical treatment by reducing the need to travel long distances for care.

Read more about the ArchitectureAU Award for Social Impact here.

Puntukurnu AMS Healthcare Hub (WA) courtyard

Puntukurnu AMS Healthcare Hub by Kaunitz Yeung Architecture. Photo: Robert Frith. Image source: Arch Daily.

Plan to deliver holistic mental health care for mob

The Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District (ISLHD) has launched a three-year plan aiming to improve mental health services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in the region. The Aboriginal and Mental Health and Wellbeing Implementation Plan prioritises culturally safe and accessible care, and focuses on involving Aboriginal people in the planning, delivery, and evaluation of mental health services. Aboriginal community members participated in yarning sessions to provide feedback and share their mental health experiences.

ISLHD says it recognises the overrepresentation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in in-patient mental health services and highlights the need for a shift towards community-based care to better meet the community’s needs. That includes an emphasis on the importance of creating culturally inclusive and responsive services that address the historical trauma and barriers faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Fostering an environment of respect, empathy, and support, the plan aims to close the gap in mental health outcomes.

ISLHD CEO, Margot Mains said, “We commit to acknowledging the past and we commit to continuing to strive to close the gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people. We’ve worked hard to build a stronger workforce and a healthier Aboriginal community, but we have a long way to go.

Read the full Region Illawarra article Mental Health Plan aims to deliver holistic model of care for Aboriginal communities here.

Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District CEO Margo Mains, Clinical Lead Sharlene Cruikshank & Acting Director Mental Health Services Adam Bryant

At the launch of ISLHD’s Aboriginal Mental Health Plan: CEO Margot Mains, Clinical Lead Sharlene Cruikshank and Acting Director Mental Health Services Adam Bryant. Photo: Jen White. Image source: Region Illawarra.

Sector Jobs

Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.

Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.

Apr 19 2023

NACCHO Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health News: Decolonising harm reduction: what, how, why

feature tile image: back of person wearing black hoodie with words 'Harm Reduction Saves Lives'; text: wide-ranging benefits to flow from decolonising harm reduction'

The image in the feature tile is from the NZ Drug Foundation webiste. Photo: Charles Mackay, HRI.

The NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health News is a platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.

We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.

Decolonising harm reduction: what, how, why

People and organisations working for harm reduction have been urged to decolonise their work and unpack “the biases, structures, systems that operationalise racism, in our own practices and organisations”.

In a powerful address to the Harm Reduction International conference taking place in Naarm/Melbourne this week, Professor James Ward, Director of the University of Queensland Poche Centre for Indigenous Health, outlined wide-ranging benefits that would flow from decolonising harm reduction. In his address Prof Ward considered why  current harm reduction policies that is not working for Indigenous peoples.

“Beyond Australia, contemporary substance use among Indigenous peoples today is inextricably linked to colonialism, both in the ways land was acquired and in relation to the disruption and trauma that came with colonisation, including the ongoing intergenerational trauma experienced by the younger generations of Indigenous peoples today.”

“The introduction of drugs and substances, to Indigenous peoples has had devastating impacts on our peoples globally. The most common feature of the modern day response to the weaponising of alcohol and other drugs against Indigenous peoples has been to double down on law enforcement and control.

“Indigenous, Black and Brown peoples who use drugs are over-policed, have higher rates of arrest, fatal overdoses, prosecution and incarceration for drug use than other identifiable population. And at the same time they lay bare their bodies to the triple whammy of discrimination, racism and stigma.”

To view the Croakey Health Media article A powerful call to decolonise harm reduction in full click here.

Professor James Ward portrait photo

Professor James Ward, Director University of Queensland Poche Centre. Image source: Harm Reduction Australia.

Biodiversity loss matters to human health

Australia is one of 17 megadiverse countries globally, with many plants, animals and ecosystems found nowhere else on Earth. Unfortunately, over 200 years since European colonisation, Australia has suffered the largest decline in biodiversity of any continent, including the highest rate of extinctions in the modern world.

Now, a comprehensive and sobering report on the state of Australia’s environment (SOE) over the past five years has been released. This shows ongoing environmental deterioration at a continent‐wide scale. Pressures from climate change, habitat loss, pollution, resource extraction, and invasive species are threatening every Australian ecosystem, with 19% showing signs of collapse.

Yet, although we are increasingly hearing dire warnings about our environment, there is a lack of reflection on the consequences for human health among policy makers and the general public. Addressing this, for the first time, the SOE report explores environment–human health linkages, recognising that the state of our environment is highly consequential for the health and wellbeing of Australians.

To view the Medical Journal of Australia article Why losing Australia’s biodiversity matters for human health: insights from the latest State of the Environment assessment in full click here.

word 'save' spelt with wooden letters 's' 'a' 'e' and 'v' is a seedling; globe on soil, trees in background

Photo: Getty Images. Image source: Flinders University webpage – Pandemic exposes biodiversity-health nexus.

Mob face double NDIS disadvantage

A fraction of the estimated 60,000 Indigenous Australians living with a disability are receiving support through the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). The federal government has outlined plans for serious and systemic reform to ensure the decade-old NDIS’s long-term effectiveness.

The First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN) works with individuals whose needs are more complex than some. “The complications of living in regional, rural or remote areas means often the only disability services available to mob are hundreds of kms from where they live with no allowance made for transportation to access these essential services,” FPDN CEO Damian Griffis said. “The tyranny of distance is enough of an issue, but throw in the lack of cultural safety in mainstream disability services and you have another compounding factor in mob not participating in the NDIS.”

But the most fundamental reform would be to ensure the NDIS was surrounded by increased community and mainstream support services. Mr Griffis said it is vital that the reforms address the under-representation of Indigenous people in the NDIS. “When you get things right for our people and overcome the double disadvantage that disabled Indigenous people face, you invariably improve things for everyone,” he said.

To view The Senior article Indigenous face double NDIS disadvantage, network says in full click here.

young ATSI man in wheelchair with 2 camp dogs

Photo: Karen Michelmore, AAP. Image source: The Conversation.

Major disparity in organ donations

The World Transplant Games in Perth have been used to highlight the disparity faced by Indigenous Australians who face five times the risk of kidney disease and a lower chance of receiving organs. Only a small percentage of First Nations people (9.5%) are waitlisted compared to non-Indigenous counterparts.

The consent rates for organ donation in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families was also significantly lower than non-Indigenous families in 2016, with only 20% providing consent compared to 67%. To address this issue, Transplant Australia is actively promoting the discussion of organ donation within these communities to encourage consent for organ donation.

“Indigenous Australians receive a kidney transplant at about a quarter of the rate of non-Indigenous Australians and that inequality needed addressing urgently. Kidney transplantation is the optimal treatment for End Stage Kidney Failure but there is significant and persistent disparity in transplants to Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Sadly, Indigenous Australians are also five times more likely to suffer kidney disease due to lifestyle, genetic and economic factors,” Transplant Australia CEO Mr Thomas said.

To view The National Indigenous Times article World Transplant Games kick off in Perth, addressing the major disparity in organ donations among First Nations communities in full click here.

World Transplant Games 2023 logo & participant Ken Farmer, Indigenous heart recipient

Ken Farmer, Indigenous heart recipient in attendance at the World Transplant Games in Perth, WA. Image source: National Indigenous Times.

The making of a doctor

Two chance encounters were just the right medicine for Riley Phillips when he was grappling with a major career change. The first was fleeting, meeting an elderly Aboriginal man while working as an employment officer in his home town of Taree, on the mid North Coast of NSW. “I had a lot of older clients and there was this one particular bloke who had mental and physical issues who one day started to cry,” Riley recalls. “He didn’t need employment help; he needed medical help. But he didn’t know what help was available; that there were people called psychologists and mental health care plans. I helped get him in to see a GP.”

The second major influence was Dr Keith Gleeson, also an Aboriginal man, who worked as a locum at Taree’s Biripi Aboriginal Corporation Medical Centre and had begun studying medicine at a mature age. “After meeting Dr Keith, he kept saying to me ‘you could be a doctor’. We had many chats about how I would cope studying as an older student with a young family.”

At 35 Riley was the first in his family to even contemplate university, a path supported by the University of New Englands’s TRACKS Tertiary Preparation Program, which caters to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students looking to prepare for undergraduate studies.

To view the UNE article The making of a doctor in full click here.

Riley Phillips, medical student University of New England

Medical student and future doctor Riley Phillips. Image source: University of New England website.

Room to Breathe Program extends houses

Minister for Housing and Homelands, Selena Uibo, says families in Angurugu and Galiwin’ku have recently returned to their homes, which were extended as part of the Room to Breathe program. In Angurugu, Miranda Lalara and her family received an extension to their home, which included two new bedrooms, plus a separate toilet and bathroom.

The upgrades have reinvigorated the much-loved family home, where Miranda has lived since she was a child with her parents and four siblings. The Room to Breathe program has converted the family home into a five-bedroom residence, allowing Miranda to share her home with her sibling and adult children while ensuring there is room for generations to come.

Galiwin’ku will receive 87 new builds under HomeBuild, and 45 homes will receive Room to Breathe works, which are already completed and underway. The Room to Breathe program aims to improve the living conditions of Aboriginal Territorians in remote communities by extending homes and upgrading amenities. A goal to extend an identified 996 homes in remote communities is underway, with works completed to 392 homes and works currently underway in 209 homes.

To view Minister for Housing and Homelands Selena Uibo’s media release Room to Breathe program improving housing on Elcho and Groote islands in full click here.

2 images - ATSI builders brick laying & moving materials

Images from the NT Government Department of Territory Families, Housing and Communities Room to Breathe webpage.

Sector Jobs

Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.

Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website Current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.

Mar 21 2023

NACCHO Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Health News: Birthing service reduces preterm births by 38%

–feature tile text Birthing in Our Community services reduces preterm birth rates for ATSI babies by 38%

The image in the feature tile is from an article Indigenous-led birthing program gains international recognition published in the National Indigenous Times on 1 April 2021.

The NACCHO Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health News is a platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.

We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.

Birthing service reduces preterm births by 38%

A birthing service established by three SE Queensland health organisations has reduced preterm birth rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander babies by 38% and demonstrated significant cost savings to the health system. Results published in the Lancet Regional Health – Western Pacific this week highlighted improved outcomes for women having a baby through the Birthing in Our Community (BiOC) service. The reduction in preterm birth rates meant that women accessing the program required fewer costly interventions, procedures and neonatal admissions, resulting in savings of $4,810 per mother/baby pair. Additionally, the BiOC service reduced two thirds of women’s out of pocket costs by bringing the service closer to home.

The cost-effectiveness study concluded that replication of the BiOC service across Australia has the potential to reduce the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander babies born preterm by 965 each year, thereby potentially saving the Australian health system $86,994,021 per annum. The BiOC service and model of care was established in 2013 by the Institute for Urban Indigenous Health (IUIH), the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community Health Service (ATSICHS) Brisbane and Mater Health in Brisbane in response to a need for women who are pregnant with an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander baby to access culturally and clinically safe care throughout their pregnancy and at birth.

Ms Renee Blackman, ATSICHS Brisbane CEO, said that “the success of the BiOC service shows what can be achieved when partners work together with a shared vision and a commitment to Aboriginal-led models of care”.

You can view the medianet. article Improved birthing outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families generates savings to the health system in full here and the The Lancet Regional Health Western Pacific research paper (The Lancet Regional Health Western Pacific article Birthing on country service compared to standard care for First Nations Australians: a cost-effectiveness analysis from a health system perspective) in full click here.

IUIH tile Birthing In Our Community, ATSI mum and baby

Image source: Birthing in Our Community North Facebook page.

Disproportionate impact of diabetes on mob

Diabetes WA is calling for greater recognition of the disproportionate impact of diabetes on Aboriginal Communities in WA. Aboriginal West Australians are at far greater risk of diabetes and diabetes-related complications than any other community in the State. Aboriginal West Australians are nearly 40 times more likely to have major lower limb amputation. Aboriginal people living in remote areas have 20 times the incidence of end-stage renal disease compared with the national average. Cataract and diabetic retinopathy continues to be the leading causes of vision loss in Aboriginal people in WA. The diabetes gap is also generational.  Type 2 diabetes in children, once rare, is on the rise.

Gestational diabetes, also more common in Aboriginal Communities, is the fastest growing type of diabetes in WA, with many women remaining undiagnosed while diabetes silently impacts their unborn baby. In some remote communities, 60–70% of people over the age of 65 have type 2 diabetes. Too many older Aboriginal people are living with preventable disabilities as a result of diabetes and its silent damage.

Project Lead for Diabetes WA, Natalie Jetta, is an experienced Aboriginal Health Professional. She says training Aboriginal Health Professionals will make diabetes education more accessible and more culturally safe for Aboriginal West Australians. “We know that Aboriginal Health Professionals are best placed to talk to people within their own Community, because they already have the respect, trust, knowledge and connection they need to nurture their clients,” Natalie says. “We have now trained 20 Aboriginal Health Professionals employed by the Aboriginal Community Controlled Health sector to deliver the Diabetes Education Self Yarning (DESY) program. This will improve the cultural security of this diabetes education program and enable it to be delivered on Country across WA.”

To view the News Medical Life Sciences article Diabetes WA calls for greater recognition of diabetes impact on Aboriginal Communities in full click here.

6 Aboriginal female graduates of the Diabetes WA Diabetes education program - Diabetes Education Self Yarning (DESY)

Graduates of the Diabetes WA Diabetes education program – Diabetes Education Self Yarning (DESY). Image source: News Medical Life Sciences.

Jury is in on vaping – time for action

The jury is in on the harms of vaping, with a new study published in the Medical Journal of Australia today providing the most comprehensive review yet on the health impacts of e-cigarettes. Australian Medical Association (AMA) President Professor Steve Robson said the findings of the study leave zero room for confusion about the dangers of e-cigarettes and vaping. “It’s time for stronger, strictly enforced regulations so we can avoid another public health crisis like tobacco,” Professor Robson said.

“Vaping is not harmless, it is not safe, it is not part of tobacco control. It has become a scourge in our schools, with parents and educators reporting that it has got out of hand. And we are seeing adults and children alike suffering as a result of vaping.” Risks identified in the review include addiction, poisoning, especially in small children, seizures and loss of consciousness caused by nicotine overdose, headache, cough, throat irritation, and burns and injuries, largely caused by exploding batteries.

Another major risk identified by the study was that young non-smokers who use e-cigarettes are around three times as likely to go on to smoke regular cigarettes, compared to young people who did not use e-cigarettes. “Vaping products are a gateway to smoking for young people and there are significant risks from vaping that warrant much stronger regulation. For example, we know many products marketed as not containing nicotine have been found to contain nicotine and products have also been found to contain prohibited chemicals that can cause serious harm, like vitamin E acetate and diacetyl, which can cause serious damage to the lungs.”

To view the AMA’s media release Jury is in on vaping and associated harms – time for action in full click here.

cloud of vape smoke obscuring most of man's face

Image source: ABC News.

RACGP says international medical graduates needed

As Australia’s health system faces a crisis, amid a growing shortage of GPs and mounting pressure on both primary and secondary care services, the RACGP is calling on the Federal Government to support international medical graduates (IMGs). College President Dr Nicole Higgins said the workforce shortage is a significant part of the crisis, and that it is widespread, from general practice to pharmacy and nursing.

She said IMGs could help to address the issue in the short-term, and that many are eager to work in Australia, but are being held back and becoming disillusioned by red tape and a lack of support. “Rural and remote communities are particularly affected,” Dr Higgins said. “But there is a simple solution to boost the number of GPs in the short-term: we can and should be doing much more to attract IMGs to Australia, and to support and retain them as valuable community members. This includes cutting red tape and making the application process easier for doctors who want to work in areas of need.”

To view the RACGP newsGP article IMGs a ‘simple solution’ to boost GP numbers: RACGP in full click here.

RACGP President Dr Nicole Higgins

RACGP President Dr Nicole Higgins says barriers to overseas doctors wanting to work in Australia make no sense amid crisis. Photo: Jono Searle/AAP Photos. Image source: Bunbury Mail.

Sector Jobs

Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.

Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website Current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.

International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, Andrew Giles, says every year in March, Australians come together to mark Harmony Week, culminating in the observance of the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on the 21 March. Australia is one of the world’s most successful multicultural nations. We are home to the world’s oldest continuous cultures as well as migrants from nearly 200 countries.

This week schools, workplaces and community groups will reflect on this diversity by participating in events across the country and nearly 7000 people from more than 120 countries will become new citizens. Multiculturalism is integral to our national identity- but we cannot take it for granted. This International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination marks 75 years since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and focuses on the urgent need to combat racism and racial discrimination.

To view Minister Giles’ media release Harmony Week and International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in full click here. You can find more information about International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on the United Nations website here.

tile text International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination March 21

Image source: Ontario Nurses’ Association website 14 March 2023.

World Down Syndrome Day

Today, Tuesday 21 March 2023, is World Down Syndrome Day. World Down Syndrome Day aims to celebrate the progress that has been made over the last 50 years and, in particular, over the last 10 years. Progress is often made in small steps, sometimes pausing to review our journey, but always aware of how far we have come and the difference that our small steps make to the day-to-day life of people living with disability.

As part of the worldwide celebrations, World Down Syndrome Day lights up buildings of significance. This is referred to as ‘Light up a Landmark’. Buildings that have been lit up previously, include: Palais des Nation – UN Geneva; The Empire State Building – NY; Eiffel Tower – Paris; Tower 42 – London and Belfast City Hall – Ireland. Once the buildings are lit up, images are taken and shared on Social Media to build awareness and engagement throughout the world. This year the iconic Canberra Grammar School Quad will be the first in Australia to take part in this international event!

Dietitians Week 20–26 March 2023

Today is Day 2 of Dietitians Week 2023. When it comes to managing health through food and nutrition, a dietitian should be your first port of call. Ongoing and specialised education ensures dietitians are the reliable choice for life-changing food and nutrition support. Because we all have our own unique goals, challenges and lifestyles, Accredited Practising Dietitians understand that our health is not a one-size fits all approach. They are trained to offer personalised health advice that is fine-tuned to a person’s specific needs.  Dietitians Australia has an Indigenous nutrition role statement, available here, which listed the knowledge and skills of an APD working in the area of Indigenous nutrition.