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Welcome to the eighth edition of Gwalwa-Gai, the newsletter for the CRC for Aboriginal Health. Gwalwa-Gai is an expression used by Larrakia people to call other members of the Larrakia nation to meet. It is used to call clan groups together. |
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A leading Central Australian-based Aboriginal health researcher has been appointed to head up the Baker Heart Research Institute's new satellite centre in Alice Springs . Baker Institute Director, Garry Jennings said Dr Alex Brown will head up the new centre in which Baker has invested 1 million as part of a boosted commitment to indigenous cardiovascular health. The new institute will be created by a merger between the Baker and the Melbourne-based International Diabetes Institute. The strength and expertise of both organisations will combine to form a new force in obesity research to and its devastating cardiovascular and diabetic consequences. Dr Brown, a Wadiwadi man from NSW who combines his research in the area of public health with his medical training as a GP, says the huge differences in rates of cardiovascular disease between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians is something he finds “ethically, morally and professionally abhorrent”. “I am almost entirely driven by reducing inequalities,” Dr Brown told Gwalwa-Gai. “The three diseases that represent the most significant health burden in indigenous communities are kidney disease, heart disease and diabetes. They form a very ugly cluster … and they cluster importantly in Aboriginal people”. “Most of the indigenous people with these diseases die from heart disease. We can't research one in isolation – the common interplay between them is fundamentally important.” He believes it is a national tragedy that the Aboriginal community is losing people in their prime to cardiovascular disease, and that this premature mortality is preventable to a large extent. “This is the reality of my family, of my community – so many people being lost to heart disease. There wouldn't be an Aboriginal person I know of in the country who hasn't lost someone to heart disease. It is not necessarily true of cancer for Aboriginal people, but certainly heart disease.” A passionate advocate for improved men's health services and more men's health research Dr Brown's research project “Men Hearts and Minds” is Australia's first attempt to measure depression and look at its contribution to coronary artery disease, bringing together health and social research. A second project, conducted in collaboration with the George Institute in Sydney and the Menzies School of Health Research, is aiming to reduce barriers to care for chronic disease (diabetes, heart disease and kidney disease) in Alice Springs, Sydney and Brisbane . This project is looking at performance of health care systems and how those systems identify people at risk, how well their risk is then mitigated and how the conditions of those living with disease are managed. The study involves an audit of health care systems in these areas and understanding the experiences of patients and their families, with the hope that systems can be improved. Dr Brown believes it is imperative that basic science and public health research inform one another – the ultimate aim, he says, whatever the health research approach, is to improve the quality of life for patients and the communities they live in. For more information: www.baker.edu.au
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New Project will Assist AMSs to Deliver Best Possible Services |
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The CRCAH has been contracted by the Office of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health (OATSIH) to advise them on the views of the Aboriginal community controlled Health organisation (ACCHO) sector regarding standards and accreditation processes for the sector. The Quality Standards in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Project is to advise OATSIH on the views of the ACCHO sector on:
Many services have significant experience with accreditation processes, reviews and/ or quality improvement programs and others will be considering undertaking such processes. The project team is aware that OATSIH funds a wide range of types of programs (eg clinical services, drug & alcohol programs, children's programs) and is keen to cover the full spectrum of types of programs delivered by ACCHOs. The aims of the project will be achieved by engaging key stakeholders to:
It is anticipated the outcomes of this project will include:
The project will be carried out in three phases. Phase one will include a review of published and unpublished literature around existing accreditation standards, approaches to implementation and support needs to achieve and maintain accreditation and prepare them for presentation to and/or information for ACCHOs. The first phase will also involve interviewing stakeholders about ACCHOs experience in undertaking and implementing accreditation processes, the appropriateness of the standards to organisations and what support ACCHOs need in order to undertake and implement quality improvement and accreditation processes. In Phase two the project will plan and invite selected interested participants to regional workshops to address the issues that emerge from the literature review and top-line consultation carried out in Phase 1. It is proposed there be four regional stakeholder workshops, bringing together participants from all jurisdictions, held in Western Australia , Queensland , South Australia and New South Wales. This second phase will also see a call for public submissions on issues that emerge from the literature review and top-line consultation from sector informants not participating in regional consultations. Phase 3 will include preparation of final documentation and consultation with sector peak bodies on results of Phases 1 & 2 and seek input to developing the recommendations in the advice to OATSIH. Phase 3 will finalise and present a report to OATSIH on the findings of the research. It is anticipated the report will contribute significantly to the development of a final framework by OATSIH that will need to be endorsed by the Health Minister. During these Phases, OATSIH will be facilitating engagement with the ‘Accreditation Sector' (whose role it is to set and get approval for the standards) to ensure the framework being developed is feasible for implementation as health industry standards that can be applied across the health sector and not just to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations. The recruitment of a project team and the final details of Phases 1 & 2 are now being finalised. Once a program of engagement with regional stakeholders is developed the team will then be able to provide advice on the regional workshops as well as information on how you can engage more fully in this process. Regular project updates will be issued and an accreditation project web page is being constructed on the CRCAH website so that interested parties can be kept informed on its progress. In the meantime, if you have any queries about the project please feel free to contact either of the following: Pippa Duncan – pippa.duncan@planhealth.com.au Tel: 02 4268 3781 Mick Gooda – mick.gooda@crcah.org.au Leah Ahmat – leah.ahmat@crcah.org.au; |
In the last edition of Gwalwa-Gai we published a letter from researchers from the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO) expressing their concerns about the scientific legitimacy of a relatively new term, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder or FASD. VACCHO is currently working on a literature review on FASD and we look forward to publishing the results of that review when it is completed. The reality of FASD is questioned by some Aboriginal health researchers and practitioners, as outlined in our last edition's VACCHO article, and supported by others including some prominent in Aboriginal substance abuse research and practice. In the interests of encouraging debate around this issue, Gwalwa-Gai presents a contrary view on FASD from Sue Miers of the National Organisation for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Related Disorders……. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is a term used to describe a range of disabilities that may affect people who have been exposed to alcohol during pregnancy. FASD is not a diagnostic term in itself but it includes the range of diagnoses that fall under the spectrum i.e. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), partial Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (pFAS), Alcohol Related Neurodevelopmental Disorders (ARND) and Alcohol Related Birth Defects (ARBD). Stated simply and putting aside dosage, frequency and trimester issues, alcohol is a toxin and a teratogen and as such can adversely affect the developing fetus and in particular the developing brain. Alcohol freely crosses the placenta and as a result the developing fetus and the mother have the same blood alcohol level so while there are still no studies that can determine a safe level of alcohol exposure for the developing fetal brain, the only responsible message for pregnant women is: “No alcohol in pregnancy is the safest choice”. So FASD is not just a label or just a behaviour disorder – it is a permanent brain based physical disability. The consequences of this disorder last a lifetime – children with FASD grow up to be adults with FASD – they have neurological damage and they will need support throughout their lives. What is particularly concerning is that many well-meaning professionals still hesitate to address alcohol use during pregnancy or FASD as a specific condition for fear of labeling and stigmatising affected persons or causing unnecessary guilt for the mother. To use the perceived stigma for the mother as an excuse for not diagnosing a child who has FASD is totally inappropriate and unacceptable. Families with a child affected by FASD need support and they need services. Nobody would expect that a mother whose child has the signs and symptoms of cancer should provide her own treatment but that is exactly what mothers and parents of children with suspected FASD have to do. Diagnosis is also the key to preventing further affected births. The birth mothers of affected children also need support and intervention – they will be at very high risk of giving birth to another child with FASD. They may have FASD themselves and this may be the reason they were unable to adequately care for their children in the first place. I particularly wish to stress that prenatal exposure to alcohol is not just a women's issue and there is a need to shift the negative views we have of mothers with affected children. Determinants of health such as life conditions and experiences are the risk factors that set the stage for women's use of alcohol during pregnancy and it is crucial that holistic and culturally sensitive programmes are developed to address these risk factors. I am privileged to count amongst one of my close friends, Elizabeth Russell, a birth mother of two sons with FASD. Elizabeth 's humility and courage cleared away the cobwebs of ignorance for me regarding the trauma and tragedy of alcohol and other drug addictions. She has confronted the grief and the shame she felt from being the birth mother of a child with FAS and transformed those emotions into a strong sense of responsibility to educate others about the unique needs of birth families by writing two books. In one of her books Elizabeth says: Diagnosis is the first stage in providing affected families with the support they need. The prenatal damage is permanent, and is associated with impaired reasoning skills and difficulty controlling one's behaviour. Without proper supports in school the child with FASD is often viewed as lazy or defiant because he or she is unable to meet the expectations of others and these children are usually punished for the symptoms of their disability. The estimated incidence for FASD in the western world is 1/100 live births but there have been very limited studies to determine the prevalence in Australia and those studies that have been undertaken give the impression that it is rare and mainly a problem in Indigenous communities. I believe that the results from Australian studies must be questioned on both counts. The reality is that FASD has no cultural, social or economic boundaries and this disability will be found wherever alcohol is part of the culture. Individuals with FASD have many strengths and abilities and these deserve to be celebrated, however, I know they are struggling in a society that doesn't fully understand them or their feelings and needs. I concede that they have some of the most difficult symptoms and behaviours professionals will ever have to face but as a parent I can accept no less than maximum effort and maximum understanding. My daughter and all others with FASD deserve that. The Hippocratic Oath suggests “Above all do no Harm”, but sometimes the harm that is done is not caused by doing something incorrectly, it is caused by doing nothing at all. For further information or support please contact sue@nofasard.org or Streissguth, A; Barr, H; Kogan, J; Bookstein, F; Understanding the Occurrence of Secondary Disabilities in Clients with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects Final Report 1996 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention |
| Science Left to Count Cost | |||||||
G-G reprints this appeal by prominent science communicator, Dr Julian Cribb, for a rethink of Australian Government science education and research policy, including an end to the requirement to link research dollars with commercialisation. Dr Cribb's article was originally published in the Australian newspaper's Higher Education supplement…. One measure of an advanced and advancing country is what it puts into its science, and by that yardstick Australia continues to fall short. In the wake of all the institutional forelock-tugging over the 2007 budget, a cooler appraisal would be that it didn't do much for science. The $6.5 billion in federal spending on science reflects a declining share of total government spending as well as gross domestic product. The glamorous centre-piece of the budget, the Higher Education Endowment Fund, might yield about $1 million a year for each science faculty, which nowadays would scarcely buy a new piece of equipment, let alone refurbish a rundown science or engineering building. This raises the question of whether it would have been smarter simply to give every university $125 million for capital works, of which the science faculties might expect to obtain $20 million to $30 million, rather than dribbling it out in the form of an endowment. Such an injection would constitute a huge, urgently needed boost to get science back on track, though it might lack the headline-grabbing flavour of a fund. However, there are more and better ways to invest in the future than with money alone, knowledge being the most valuable, as it is the element that drives half of world economic growth. So why not put the whole sum, not just the interest, into knowledge? Another eye-catching element of the budget was the extra $60 million a year plus four-year budget predictability for the CSIRO. It looks quite reasonable until one remembers how the CSIRO resources have been allowed to run down over the past 20 years by both sides of politics. Traditionally, science budgets carve up the limited cake among the main sectors the universities, the science agencies, medical research and the co-operative research centres with each receiving a larger helping every three years or so to partially offset previous losses. This has the political advantage of keeping all sectors paranoid and docile during the years in which their funding stagnates, serving to remind them who has the whip hand. It is from this practice that concerns arise about the censorship of science and political control over scientific output. In their anxiety to prove they are supportive of government policy, as opposed to pursuing the best science, research organizations self-censor, terminate politically unpopular lines of research and bend strategic science to the poll-driven dictates of politics. Running science based on the knee-jerk response to opinion polls is at best foolish and unlikely to deliver good results for the nation. An example of this is the budget category energy and environment, where funding has grown from $9 million a year to $143 million over the past 10 years. At the behest of the coal industry and thinking nobody would care, the Government axed the Energy R & D Corporation in 1997. Now that polls say energy and the environment are important issues to most Australians, it is falling over itself to repair the damage, far too late and having lost enormous scientific ground in the meantime. Another example is geosciences. Although Australia is enjoying the biggest, longest resources boom in its history, its schools of geosciences are falling apart. Ten have either been closed or downsized in the past decade. What kind of planning for the future does this indicate? The same is true of the parlous state of Australian mathematics, about which 110 international mathematical leaders recently wrote to the Prime Minister in protest. The other crisis, that young Australians are turning off science in droves, is not a consequence of problems in education alone: its causes include the fact that scientific institutions, impelled by political pressure to commercialise, are putting young researchers on short-term contracts. Study for seven or more years, work as a scientist for two, and end up driving a taxi: whose idea is that of a career in science? Science is telling them they are not wanted. It is high time Australia dispensed with knee-jerk science policy and funding based on whatever is hot or cold politically at the time of the budget. Rather, we should:
Alas, in an election year Australian politicians will have other things on their minds, even if the future is on their lips. Julian Cribb is adjunct professor of science communication at the University of Technology, Sydney, and edits R & D Review and www.sciencealert.com
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The Australian Government's policy of “practical reconciliation” will come under more scrutiny following a new report which found a continuing massive gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians in various lifestyle indicators, including health, education and employment. The Productivity Commission's 2007 Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage report is just out and has found that Indigenous students are only half as likely to continue through to grade 12. While the gap in work force participation has narrowed over the past 10 years, the unemployment rate for Indigenous Australians is still three times higher. In health, Aboriginal people are 10 times more likely to have kidney disease and report higher rates of arthritis, heart disease and asthma. Aboriginal people are massively over-represented in the criminal justice system, both as victims and offenders. They are 13 times more likely to be jailed, with imprisonment rates soaring by 32 per cent over the past six years. Indigenous children are four times more likely to be in danger of being abused or neglected than non-Indigenous children, with alcohol abuse and overcrowding big factors in that figure. Indigenous Australians also face a greater threat of domestic violence. To read the full report: Click Here |
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The Northern Territory Aboriginal health peak body, the Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance of the NT (AMSANT) takes its responsibility for mentoring the next generation of Aboriginal health leaders very seriously. So seriously that in 2006 AMSANT made leadership the first priority in their Strategic Plan: Strengthen health leadership among member organisations. Newly appointed CRCAH Executive Support Officer, Erin Lew Fatt, who has been actively involved in planning the 2 nd AMSANT Leadership Workshop to be held as Gwalwa-Gai goes to publication, writes about the challenge to ensure continued effective Aboriginal health leadership ……
This workshop will be held on 4-8 June this year at Kakadu with the theme of “Going back to basics”. The delegates will be camping in Kakadu to get back in touch with country and allow for delegates to learn more about the history of Aboriginal health and AMSANT as well as learn skills such as public speaking, debating, and lobbying for Aboriginal Health. These skills will increase the delegates' self-confidence and awareness. Leadership is critically important to the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander community. Leaders in our communities are the advocates and net workers for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander health in the local, national and international arena. If we do not have leaders in our community, then the community will have no voice to speak up for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander rights. Leaders have passion and commitment, they have the respect of their community to working towards improved outcomes for A&TSI health in Australia . Leadership is a strength that is not only found in CEO's and Managers, they are also found in Elders, community workers and young people in the community. |
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| Norma Benger Recognised for “Outstanding Contribution” to Health Research | |||||||
The NT's Chronic Diseases Network will hold its 11th annual conference in Darwin on August 30 - 31. Themed "Learning for Living” the conference will focus on education as a key approach for empowering clients, health professionals and communities to respond to the chronic disease epidemic. There are calls both locally and internationally for a re-think of the skills and knowledge required to manage chronic disease. A significant challenge is to re-orient our education systems towards a coordinated focus on prevention, primary care, team-based, community and self-management approaches. The conference aims to highlight best practice responses to this challenge. Conference organisers are calling for expressions of interest for oral and poster presentations under the following themes: 1. Community –What are the best ways to educate communities about chronic disease prevention?
2. Clients/ Consumers/ Families - What are the best ways to educate clients/ consumers and /or families to prevent and manage their illness?
3. Health Professionals - What are the best ways to build the capacity of health professionals to enable them to be effective in managing and educating clients with Chronic Disease?
For more information, Phone Rachael McGuin, Chronic Diseases Network (08) 89 228280 rachael.mcguin@nt.gov.au
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A big congratulation to Norma Chidanpee Benger on winning the inaugural ‘Ryan Prize' awarded for making an outstanding contribution to the work of the Menzies School of Health Research. Norma, who has been working at Menzies for more than 14 years, came to medical research via an unconventional path, having previously worked in schools to promote Aboriginal culture and knowledge. Another Aboriginal researcher from MSHR saw her work in the schools and approached her to her use artwork as a way of translating biomedical knowledge. Joining the staff of Menzies Norma played a major role in Aboriginal community consultation, data collection, maintaining community support and feedback of results in several key research projects. She has served on the Indigenous Subcommittee of the Human Research Ethics Committee of Territory Health Services and MSHR, has pioneered the use of artwork to promote specific health messages to both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people and has co-produced highly-acclaimed educational material (video, DVD, booklets and pamphlets) for the prevention of acute rheumatic fever. Norma has been a great supporter of the CRC for Aboriginal Health and a much respected and cherished member of the Aboriginal health research community. The Ryan Prize is named after Mr Richard Ryan AO who, when he retired from Henry Walker Eaton, asked that instead of a big farewell dinner, the money that would have otherwise been spent on this event be given as a donation to Menzies. Elaine Maypilama, Prof Joan Cunningham and Michelle Dowden all won honorable mentions.
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Australasian Drug & Alcohol Nurses will hold their 2007 Conference from 11 - 13 July 2007 at the University of South Australia , Centre for Regional Engagement in South Australia 's Whyalla. The conference, titled Regional Perspectives in Practice will include a series of workshops and presentations related to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives of drug and alcohol misuse. On Wednesday July 1 Workshop 1, Alcohol and Other Drugs: An Indigenous Perspective, will be hosted by Prof Charlotte de Crespigny. The following day a series of presentations will be delivered including:
For further info and for registration: http://www.danaconference.com/ |
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The CRCAH is fortunate to have recruited Erin Lewfatt to the position of Assistant to the Executive. Born and raised in Darwin, Erin completed her certificate three and four in Business Traineeship with Danila Dilba Health Service after being accepted in the CRC for Aboriginal and Tropical Health trainee program from 1999-2001. After completing her traineeship she gained full time employment at Danila Dilba Health service where she worked as Executive Assistant to the CEO and more recently as Health Service Office Manager. Erin is currently studying a Bachelor of Business at Charles Darwin University while working at CRCAH. |
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| The CRCAH is a partnership of 12 core and four associate partners which can make communication within the organisation extremely challenging. However, in this challenge we are very ably supported by a group known as the Link people. Every partner appoints a Link Person whose task is to liaise between the CRCAH and the partner organization, ensure effective participation and information flow within and between partner organisations and the CRCAH and, where possible, contribute towards the development and strengthening of collaborative relationships and partnerships.
The Link people meet regularly as a group to update each otheron activities across the CRCAH and its organisations. This is an excellent opportunity to exchange information and perspectives between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people; between research organisations, government departments and health service providers; and between researchers and administrative staff. Penny Smith is our Link person at La Trobe University and in the course of her work has produced a brochure that outlines the work of researchers and academics who have an interest in and are undertaking research in the area of Aboriginal health at La Trobe University. This brochure includes contact information, research background, research interests and photo for ease of recognition. The brochure, which includes a brief overview of agencies, including the CRCAH, with whom La Trobe researchers are associated with, was mainly undertaken by volunteer undergraduate Health Sciences student Natasha Krajcar with Penny providing direction. The brochure has been a great success and it is planned that it will be updated on a yearly basis as the network grows. The CRCAH congratulates Penny Smith and Natasha Krajcar for this excellent resource and for Penny's continued hard work as the “link” between the CRCAH and La Trobe University. Click here to view the brochure. |
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"A very well thought out course; an event that enables reflection, reassessment. Sometimes confronting, but done in a non-threatening way. Will contribute to the quality and thoughtfulness of work in Indigenous health." Short course participant. Menzies' popular short course Race, Culture, Indigeneity and the Politics of Public Health was held again recently in Darwin hosted by former CRCAH scholarship holders Yin Paradies and Emma Kowal. Attended by a group of policy makers, health professionals and program managers from all over Australia the course introduced participants into a new perspective on the complex political and ethical issues they deal with on a daily basis. The course draws together a range of theoretical tools from sociology, anthropology, social psychology and critical theory and makes them accessible to Indigenous health practitioners using interactive exercises and small group work. Participants came away with a new vocabulary to draw on in understanding the complex issues they encounter in Indigenous health. They learnt more about their own beliefs and attitudes, met a group of like-minded colleagues, and also had a lot of fun! The course will be run again next year in April. Assessment is available for students wishing to case the course for credit, and cross-institutional enrolment can be arranged. For enquiries please contact: Catherine Richardson
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Gwalwa-Gai has previously reported on a paper issued by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) which found Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were three times more likely to have a heart attack than non-Indigenous Australians. Identifying disturbing disparities in treatment for cardiac patients the AIHW found Aboriginal people were 40 per cent less likely to receive basic investigative procedures while in hospital, as well as being 2.3 times more likely to die in hospital after suffering a coronary event. Following the release of the AIHW report the Heart Foundation says not enough is being done to address this appalling disparity. National Program Manager for the Heart Foundation's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Program, Traven Lea says it is disappointing that governments and health authorities have not acted on the report since its release 11 months ago. Describing the silence around the report as "quite deafening" Traven said that there to be “a severe level of attention given to what the data is saying to us". "Further investigations need to be undertaken. Follow the path of the patient going into the hospital, what happens in the hospital, and going outside of the hospital as well." Inadequacies in treatment of Aboriginal patients by some hospitals are well recognised and the CRCAH is contributing to efforts to address this shortcoming by funding a major national research project, Improving the Culture of Hospitals for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (see story below). To read the AIHW report go to: |
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A new Australian Government initiative to provide $60 million over five years to 217 industry-focused research projects was announced recently by the Minister for Education, Science and Training, Julie Bishop. The Linkage Projects scheme under the Australian Research Council (ARC) encourages traditional research academics and organisations outside the higher education sector to develop long-term strategic research alliances, including industry bodies, businesses, state governments, community organisations and not-for-profit groups Minister Bishop told Gwalwa-Gai. She said the funding included allocations for 130 Australian Postgraduate Awards (Industry), 26 Australian Postgraduate Awards in information technology, and 17 Australian Postdoctoral Fellowships (Industry) to provide research training to postgraduate students and foster a national pool of world-class researchers. For more information: Click Here |
CRCAH partner the Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education is hosting two major educational events in July. The 3rd national Cultural Collaborations Forum will take place on 9 and 10 July and the 9 th Indigenous Researchers' Forum from 11 to 13 July. The Cultural Collaborations Forum was originally initiated by the current Batchelor Institute Director Dr Jeannie Herbert in her previous role as Chair of Indigenous Studies at James Cook University in Queensland. Dr Herbert brought the event over with her to Batchelor Institute and says the Forum attracts a wide range of people from the private and public sectors as well as academics. The Indigenous Researchers' Forum, 11 to 13 July, is a national event held in a different location each year and Batchelor Institute was successful in their bid to host it in 2007 in Alice Springs, the first time the event has been held in the NT. The theme of the 2007 Indigenous Researchers' Forum is ‘Research: Critical tool for self-empowerment' and it is expected to attract some of Australia 's leading Indigenous researchers and academics. For more information on the forums go to: 3rd Cultural Collaboration Forum at: www.culturalcollaborations.net.au |
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One of Australia 's most prominent Aboriginal academics has compared Australia's commodities boom to the 19th century colonisation of Africa and accused the nation's political leaders of ignoring evidence-based solutions to the plight of indigenous people in favour of "political grandstanding". Speaking at a lunch for the Jessie Street Trust, Professor Marcia Langton, the foundation chairwoman in Australian indigenous studies at the University of Melbourne, said Aboriginal Australia was a failed state, a "heartland of instability" within a booming economy, 40 years after the most successful referendum in Australian history gave Aborigines the vote. As urban industrialists got fat off the land, its traditional owners were being left behind with no economic future. "But so little of that money is going back into the community. It's a classic case of colonisation … like Africa in the 19th century, when all the wealth was extracted out for the people of Manchester and London while the people in Africa went poor." "That [mining] wealth flows through to you in the cities but it's based on the extraction of all that Aboriginal people can rely on in the future." An absence of evidence-based policy from all Australian governments had created the situation, she said, citing as another example the Federal Government's policy to take control of Alice Springs town camps by overturning their perpetual leases over the land in return for $50 million of federal spending on housing and infrastructure. The plan was recently rejected by camp residents. |
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Worried about whether she and her non-Aboriginal colleagues working in Aboriginal health were having a positive impact, recently completed PhD student Dr Emma Kowal decided to investigate their motivations and the effectiveness of their work. The result is a PhD thesis entitled The Proximate Advocate: Improving Indigenous Health on the Postcolonial Frontier. Now working as an NH&MRC Post Doctoral Fellow at the Centre for Health and Society, University of Melbourne, Emma has provided the following summary of her thesis to Gwalwa-Gai……..
Are you a non-Indigenous person working in Indigenous health? Have you ever wondered whether you can ever really make a difference? Ever worried that good intentions are no guarantee of having a positive impact on Indigenous communities? After a few years working in Indigenous health in the Northern Territory , these were the questions that kept me up some nights. I realised that many of my colleagues also worried about the whole enterprise of non-Indigenous people trying to help Indigenous people, and that many tearoom and dinner party conversations revolved around these fears and frustrations. As I am an anthropologist, I began to see this as an anthropological problem. I started to think, what does it mean for a group of well-meaning, white, left-wing middle-class people to leave their metropolitan homes to come to the north of Australia and try and empower a group of Indigenous people to take action to improve their own health outcomes in the early twenty-first century. How can we understand this particular mix of people and beliefs? The Proximate Advocate: Improving Indigenous Health on the Postcolonial Frontier addresses this question through an ethnography of white anti-racist health professionals who work in Indigenous health research. Based on participant-observation and interviews with non-Indigenous health researchers at the fictitious Darwin Institute of Indigenous Health, it explores the belief system that white anti-racists bring to their work in Indigenous health, and how this belief system is affected by their work experiences. The set of beliefs that white anti-racist people share (for instance, that Indigenous ill-health is due to the effects of colonisation) is termed postcolonial logic in the thesis. Many white anti-racists come to work in Indigenous health because of their political commitment to social justice. There are two aspects of this commitment. One is a belief in an equal distribution of resources and benefits, and a belief that the lives of those less fortunate can be improved through interventions. The second aspect is a belief that Indigenous culture and communities are uniquely different to the rest of Australia . The interaction of these two aspects means that postcolonial logic constructs Indigenous people as different from non-Indigenous people, but not so different that they will not respond to well-thought out interventions. I show how white anti-racists are attached to this particular construction of Indigenous difference - what I call remediable difference - and how this attachment leads to the breakdown of postcolonial logic when white anti-racists are faced with the material reality of Indigenous people's lives. The thesis draws on theories from postcolonial studies and political theory to explain what non-Indigenous people are doing when they try to help Indigenous people, and why anxiety, frustration and cynicism are so often the result. If you have been kept up at night by nagging doubts about the project of postcolonial justice, or even if you have wondered what your colleagues get so worked up about, then this thesis may be of interest to you. To read a copy of Dr Emma Kowal's thesis or to discuss issues raised in her study contact her at: e.kowal@unimelb.edu.au |
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There is only so much Aboriginal Community Controlled Medical Services can do to build improvements in Aboriginal health if many hospitals continue to be places hostile to Aboriginal interests and with little semblance of cultural security. For this reason the CRCAH Board has prioritised research within the Comprehensive Primary Health Care, Health Systems and Workforce Program to improve the way hospitals serve Aboriginal patients. is one area of activity that the Board has endorsed as a research priority within the. After an extended period of development, we are pleased to report that the CRCAH project Improving the Culture of Hospitals for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People which aims to influence cultural reform in this area has now commenced. The project team met in early May to plan the implementation detail of the initial phases of project activity. Phase one, which will last approximately 3 months, sees the setting up of the project advisory committee and a communication strategy and network. The Advisory Committee, project team members and the CRCAH will identify people and organisations who will be regularly informed of project activities and issues. The advisory committee is likely to consist of:
The Advisory Committee will play an important role in assisting identify those who should be involved in specific project activities. Phase two, which will last approximately five months, involves reviewing documents and consulting with state and commonwealth governments and Aboriginal community groups to understand factors that influence cultural reform within hospitals. This stage also involves identifying potential case study sites (hospitals) for Phase three activity. Phase three involves recruiting four hospitals to be involved in the first round of case studies which will specifically look at initiatives that have improved the experience of Aboriginal people. If you would like to find out more general information about the project contact the Program Manager - Barbara Beacham at: barbara.beacham@flinders.edu.au If you would like more specific information, contact the project leader - Russell Renhard at: r.renhard@latrobe.edu.au
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The latest Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Report Card from the Australian Medical Association has highlighted research, conducted by the CRCAH, Charles Darwin University, the NT Government and Yolngu community groups, into miscommunications between Aboriginal patients and health practitioners. One of four good news stories featured in the AMA's report card the Sharing the True Stories project identifies and addresses barriers to effective communication between Aboriginal client groups and health staff in renal and hospital services in the top-end of the Northern Territory. Other “good news” stories featured are a family home visiting program conducted by the Children, Youth and Women's Health Service of the South Australian Health Department, the Katherine West Health Board and the Wu Chopperen Health Service's Healthy Heart Cardiac Rehabilitation Program in Far North Queensland. In his introduction to the 2007 AMA report card, entitled “Equal Health Access a Priority for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, retiring AMA federal President, Dr Mukesh Haikerwal writes that the report card is all about access barriers. “There is a great divide between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians in actually getting into the health system to take advantage of the care and treatment that is supposed to be there equally for all of us,” writes Dr Haikerwal. “Some of these barriers are financial, some are geographic, and others are personal and cultural.” Describing the state of Aboriginal health as a “national tragedy and a national shame”, Dr Haikerwal argues that “It is time to remove discrimination from our health system.” To read the AMA's 2007 report card:Click Here To read more on Sharing the True Stories:
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Aboriginal people removed from their natural family were almost twice as likely as those who had not been removed to have been a victim of violence (38% compared with 23%) according to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics Indigenous snapshot. The ABS paper: Law and justice statistics - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People: a Snapshot, 2006 is divided into three sections:
The report found that one-third (33%) of young Indigenous people (aged 15-24 years) were a victim of violence in 2002 and that the Australian Capital Territory, Victoria and South Australia all reported victimisation rates at or above 30%. Another recently released ABS paper on the health status of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women shows Indigenous women were more than 10 times as likely as non-Indigenous women to have kidney disease and more than four times as likely to have diabetes. The report shows Indigenous women are about one-and-a-half times more likely to be overweight than non-Indigenous women. The figures show Indigenous women were more than two-and-a-half times more likely to have been victims of physical or threatened violence. The report says the most common health conditions reported by Indigenous women are problems with eyesight, back pain, heart disease and asthma. It shows the life expectancy of Indigenous women is 65 years, around 17 years younger than for non-Indigenous women. To read the full report on criminal justice statistics: Click Here To read the full report on the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal women:Click Here |
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Years of anecdotal evidence that living and working on country leads to better health outcomes for Aboriginal people has been supported by newly released research. The Healthy Country, Healthy People study, a collaboration between the Aboriginal people of western and central Arnhemland, the Bawinanga Aboriginal Corporation, Charles Darwin University's Institute of Advanced Studies, the Northern Land Council and the Menzies School of Health Research, has demonstrated an association between Indigenous ‘Caring for Country' practices and a healthier, happier life. The exploratory study investigated the close connections between Aboriginal people, their country and the impacts that continued involvement in land and sea management activities may have on the health of landscapes as well as the physical health and well-being of people. CDU's Dr Stephen Garnett, said that sustained pressure to centralise populations and services has led to the depopulation of homelands and the creation of remote area townships. “Indigenous people living in remote townships suffer from a burden of illness associated with inactivity, malnutrition, social dysfunction, and other social disadvantages. “This has had a negative effect on the health of both the landscapes and the people,” Dr Garnett said. Key findings from this innovative study have shown for the first time that people taking part in customary and contemporary land and sea management practices, particularly those living in traditional homelands, are much healthier, including lower rates of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. “In addition, participants in natural and cultural resource management practices report a more nutritious diet and a greater degree of physical activity,” he added. The authors of the study conclude that the expansion of natural and cultural resource management activities in remote Indigenous communities would deliver a healthier environment, sustainable economic development opportunities and also has the potential to deliver significant economic savings in health care expenditure. “This is a positive study in Indigenous health that is a response to Indigenous requests to investigate ‘what works',” Dr Garnett said. “We think these results justify investment by government in natural and cultural resource management, along with further work to ensure our initial research findings are confirmed.” The release of the Healthy Country, Healthy People study coincided with an Australian Government announcement of a long-overdue $47 million over four years program, Working on Country, to fund Aboriginal land and sea ranger groups.
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Comprehensive Primary Health Care Health Systems and Workforce Program Update |
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Strengthening Quality and Effectiveness in Aboriginal HealthThe CRCAH has developed a body of work, primarily within the Comprehensive Primary Health Care Health Systems and Workforce Program, which is set to make a major contribution to the quality, appropriateness and effectiveness of systems and services relevant to the providing comprehensive primary health care for Aboriginal people. The CRCAH aims to do research that will lead to a stronger and more effective Aboriginal health sector and not research for research's sake. We know that to achieve this aim we need to work closely with those who are able to implement changes at the “coal face” of Aboriginal health particularly the Aboriginal community-controlled health sector and government agencies delivering health services to Aboriginal people. Development of the ‘quality and effectiveness' body of research work has therefore been driven by the CRCAH through a process of active consultation with the Aboriginal health sector – both government and community based – and we are confident that the program of work reflects the needs and priorities of the sector. A summary of the key research projects is provided below. If you require further information about this work please do not hesitate to contact the Program Manager, Barbara Beacham Summary of key CRCAH Quality and Effectiveness Research Projects 1. CRCAH/OATSIH Accreditation Project – Ian Anderson & Mick Gooda – University Melbourne and CRCAH This six-month project aims to provide advice from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community controlled health sector (‘the Sector') about: Accreditation standards that could be applied to the Sector; the most feasible approach to implement accreditation against those standards; and the support needed throughout the Sector in order to achieve such accreditation. Extensive consultations will be conducted, and the main methods of data collection will be:
A key outcome of the project will be the provision of a draft quality and accreditation framework that is based on input from the Sector and accreditation providers. The project has potential to build the capacity of the Sector and to influence the further development of Australian primary health care standards. See related article of this edition of GG. 2. ABCD(E) and service quality improvement achievements and potential - Ross Bailie – Menzies School of Health ResearchABCD is an action-research project that is supporting health services to develop state-of-the -art continuous improvement approaches to strengthen systems for prevention and management of chronic illness. ABCD stands for Audit and Best Practice in Chronic Disease. For more information about project activity visit the ABCD website at www.abcdproject.org.au 3. Improving the culture of Hospitals for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People– Russell Renhard – LaTrobe University This project aims to support a program of cultural reforms to improve cultural sensitivity in acute health care institutions. Using the experience of Aboriginal people as the central reference point, systematic case studies of hospitals with different levels of experience in actively attempting to make their services and surrounds more culturally sensitive to the needs of Aboriginal patients, their families and friends will be used to gather information and to inform the development and implementation of relevant tools and processes. See related article in this edition of GG. 4. Support systems for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander primary health care services – Ian Anderson – University MelbourneThis project addresses the recognised problem that many Indigenous-specific primary health care services (especially, but not limited to, small services in remote Aboriginal communities) do not have the capacity (for various reasons, including their size) to develop all aspects required of them to provide high-quality comprehensive primary health care. The focus of the research will be on corporate systems and business capacity that contribute to organisational capacity to operate effectively, viably and sustainably. Project activity is expected to commence in mid 2007. 5. Learning from Action – Judith Dwyer – Flinders University , Cindy Shannon and Shirley GodwinThis project describes both the management challenges faced by senior managers in Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services (ACCHS) in Queensland. It also explored the corporate governance challenges of ACCHSs, from the perspective of the management level (by corporate governance, we mean the system of control and accountability for the organisation). Project activity has now been completed and a report will be available in the next few months. 6. Good practice in funding and regulation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health care – Judith Dwyer – Flinders University, Cindy Shannon and Shirley GodwinThis project aims to further understanding of current problems and identify and test possible solutions in the way that Aboriginal-specific PHC is funded and regulated across jurisdictions in Australia . PHC funding programs and the regulatory arrangements that accompany them are intended to support the delivery of high quality care, to ensure appropriate accountability to communities and to government and to be consistent with good human resource management practice; to enable recruitment and retention of a skilled workforce. See related article in this edition of GG. 7 Health services utilisation and linkage [for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people] Stage 2 – Michael Bentley – Flinders University; Rae Walker – LaTrobe University; Queensland Aboriginal Health Council.The overall aim of the research into Health Services Utilisation and Linkage is to increase understanding of patterns of service utilisation (or non-utilsation) of primary health and related services by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in urban and peri-urban locations. Ultimately this knowledge aims to contribute to the formulation of health policies and practice, at local, state and national levels. Development of a robust design is being undertaken in a number of stages. Stage 2 activity will use qualitative methods, to distill the critical and defining key questions which will be explored in later stages using quantitative methods. Stage 2 of the project is currently under final development. 8. Building capacity in Aboriginal health services to use data and research to improve service provisionThe CRCAH has committed to the development of resources that will enable health services to improve skills in the use of data and research activity to improve service provision, including identifying sustainable infrastructure to support the application of those skills, and to work with governments and other funders to identify resources that can be used to support such activity. The CRCAH's initial step will be to employ a project officer to explore opportunities for partners in the project, sustainable funding, and to develop a project proposal. The project is expected to commence in 2007. 9 CQI and health promotionThe CRCAH has also committed to the development of a project in the Chronic Conditions Program which will extend the model used in the ABCD/E project to health promotion, particularly to examine how evidence-based health promotion practices can be applied using a CQI approach within existing systems and infrastructure. The project will also include an exploration of how Aboriginal people understand and interact with the concept of health, and refinement or further development of good practice guidelines in health promotion for Aboriginal people. An important component of the project will be the interface between policy and practice and its impact on health promotion practice. The project is expected to commence in 2007.
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The CRCAH hosted the successful Commission on the Social Determinants of Health (CSDH) - International Symposium on Indigenous Health in Adelaide at the end of April. A report from the symposium has been prepared, and will be presented at the next meeting of the CSDH in Vancouver , Canada on 7 th June 2007 by three Indigenous representatives who attended the forum - Dr Shane Houston ( Australia ), Bernice Downey ( Canada ) and Lucia Ellis ( Belize ). The report will be available on the CRCAH website at www.crcah.org.au by mid-June. The program, background overview document and case studies from the symposium are available now on the website: Click Here Other developing activities in the Social Determinants of Aboriginal Health Program are discussions regarding the setting of 25-year targets for Indigenous health; consideration for a workshop on Indigenous prison health; and the development of a proposal for a workshop on racism and health in November (see below). More details on these activities will be available in the August edition of Gwalwa-Gai.
Health and Racism A workshop on Racism and Indigenous Health: Setting the Research Agenda is being planned to be coincide with the World Psychiatric Association International Conference: Working Together for Mental Health: Partnerships for Policy and Practice
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Two New Projects Near Approval Two research proposals have been through a lengthy quality assurance process where reviewers have provided written comments, taken part in a face to face workshop and provided written reviews for a second time. These two proposals will now be assessed by the Research Director and CEO for endorsement to commence. The CRCAH wishes to thank the twelve reviewers who have been providing advice on the development of the proposals and the Chronic Conditions Program Leaders and Project Leaders. Research Proposals:
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In May the Australian Institute of Criminology ran a seminar on the challenges of turning research into policy. Presenter Scott Prasser, Senior Lecturer in Management in the Faculty of Business at the University of Sunshine Coast, argues that although governments talk of rational scientific decision making, of making choices based on evidence and research, this is not necessarily how governments act. Drawing on his experiences heading the Industries Strategies Branch of the Queensland Department of State Development and later the Science and Technology Unit in the Department of Premier and Cabinet Prasser's presentation explores how political, organisational and institutional pressures adversely affect the utilisation of research and data produced to inform the policy process. Suggestions for overcoming some of the barriers are highlighted. For more information: Click Here
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CRCAH partner, the Menzies School of Health Research (MSHR), has received $5.3 million of infrastructure funding in the Federal Government budget, including $5 million for an extension to their current building. MSHR has been operating from its existing building, located on the Royal Darwin Hospital campus, since 1995 and on present employee growth rends of 15 per cent per annum MSHR's Darwin office will have reached capacity within 9 months. MSHR Director, Professor Jonathan Carapetis , said that the additional funds will allow Menzies to expand and broaden its work in Indigenous health research. “A building extension will not only result in an extension to our office space to allow us to continue to expand our Indigenous health priorities but will ultimately lead to improved health outcomes for Indigenous Australians,” he said. |
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At their last meeting the CRCAH Board endorsed the SEWB Program Statement, and ranked research priorities that were identified from an industry roundtable held in September last year. Work is now well underway in developing research projects that meet those priorities. The Program presented a preliminary outline of the research proposals and activities for 2007-08 to the April 2007 Board meeting for discussion. The Board is currently considering two proposals within the Social & Emotional Wellbeing Program including the Parenting Support Interventions for Indigenous Families: Let's Start Extension Project. At the industry roundtable seven priorities with clear and consistent messages about industry priorities for research within the Social and Emotional Wellbeing area were identified. The first identified priority was research into families and the Parenting Support Interventions for Indigenous Families: Let's Start Extension Project is part of this priority area. The proposed project builds on existing research projects called Parenting Support Interventions for Indigenous Families and the Let's Start project conducted in the Tiwi Islands. Let's Start developed from an earlier project which was partly funded by the Co-operative Research Centre for Tropical Health (predecessor to the CRCAH) and the Tiwi Life Promotion Evaluation project which was the first attempt to adapt and implement a resilience-promoting intervention for Indigenous families on the Tiwi Islands. This program has been redeveloped for Indigenous preschool and early primary school children and their parents. The project is currently being peer reviewed by a variety of experts within the CRCAH partnerships. Spirituality was also identified as a priority at the SEWB roundtable and subsequently a call for expressions of interest in a literature review on resilience was made. The literature review aims to explore and review the evidence on the relationship between spirituality and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing. What are the concepts and experiences of Indigenous Spirituality? What is the evidence for the role of spirituality in promoting or enhancing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' social and emotional wellbeing? There were a large number of applications from across a wide and varied field of interest. Applications were assessed and the panel have requested further information from two applicants before an announcement can be made. See the August edition of Gwalwa-Gai for results.
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Fighting Family Violence - The eYarning Circle The eYarning Circle is an Internet based discussion board for Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people working to end family violence. The board was established by the Queensland Centre for Domestic and Family Violence Research (CDFVR) through close consultation with Indigenous agencies and individuals.
Over 70 Indigenous agencies, including the CRC for Aboriginal Health, and individuals, from across Australia but mostly in Queensland , participated in the consultation process. Based on the results of the consultation CDFVR has developed an electronic networking facility for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women. This facility is comprised of two parts. The first part is the eYarning Bulletin; and the second is the eYarning Circle. The eYarning Circle process will include the following components:
If users can't make it to a live discussion, they can still log in at any time and contribute to the discussion already generated or create new discussion topics of interest to them. It is important to note that the future direction of the eYarning Circle will be shaped by the needs of its members. Becoming a member of this email network is easy; simply go to the eYarning Circle which is located at: www.noviolence.com.au/forum2 , click on the “Register” link under the eYarning Circle banner and follow the prompts. Registering at the eYarning Circle will ensure that you receive the monthly bulletin and that you can contribute to eYarning Circle discussion. Gwalwa-Gai and the CRC for Aboriginal Health congratulates all those behind this important and unique response to family violence.
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| New Link People Welcomed | |||||
The CRC for Aboriginal Health Recently Welcomed Four New Link People: Megan Williams from University of Queensland Gail Garvey from the Queensland Institute of Medical Research Karrina DeMasi from Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education Zane Hughes from Charles Darwin University
On Wednesday 16 May, the CRC for Aboriginal Health held an induction for the new Link people in Melbourne attended by Zane, Megan and Karrina. Unfortunately Gail Garvey was unable to attend. At the induction, Mick Gooda gave a brief overview of the CRCAH structure and governance arrangements. The new Link people and staff present also discussed what do link people do, what were benefits of their organisations in linking with the CRCAH and talked about ‘in-kind myths debunked'. The following day on Thursday 17 May most of our Link People and staff met at the Melbourne Wildlife Sanctuary. This meeting gives the opportunity to exchange information about research being done by the CRCAH and our partners. For example, we heard about Charles Darwin University 's input into the development of courses at Batchelor, information around Indigenous prison health research being done at the University of Queensland, and about research AIATSIS is doing with Muuji Regional Centre for Social and Emotional Wellbeing. The group had a useful discussion on the benefits of linking up with the CRCAH, especially through in-kind projects and gave feedback on the new website that the CRCAH is developing. Jack Bulman also attended and talked about the development of the ‘Indigenous Men's Sheds/Spaces' project in the Chronic Conditions program. Thank you to La Trobe Link person, Penny Smith-Bisset for organising the venue. |
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Students from Batchelor Institute's (BIITE) BAppSc (Environmental Health) & the University of Queensland 's BAppHlthSc (Indigenous Health) courses came together recently at UQ's Herston Campus to undertake a five day environmental health workshop. Facilitated by BIITE's Peter Stephenson with support from UQ's Kym Kilroy, Sue Vlack and Condy Canuto, the workshop brought together first year BIITE environmental health students taking an introductory first semester unit and third year Indigenous Health students from UQ undertaking their first environmental health unit. Individuals from both groups brought different knowledge bases and strengths to the combined workshop, and each group as a whole supported the other with their areas of expertise. The workshop demonstrated good cooperation between groups, a willingness to share and support each other and a real commitment to maintain the broadened personal and professional network established at the workshop. The course included a field visit to a major Sewage Treatment Plant and water desalination plant. After the workshop students submitted a written essay and a literature review. |
A lively animated video called “Livin' in a House” produced by the NT's Human Services Training Advisory Council (HSTAC) and Darwin's Skinny Fish and written by rock and roll legend George Barrawanga and Michael Hohnen, has won an award from the World Health Organisation. The animation, produced as a learning resource for Aboriginal people living in remote communities, addresses some of the challenges around health, hygiene and house maintenance. Head of HSTAC, Barbara Pittman said the animation and song are examples of what can be achieved with collaboration between industry, Aboriginal artists and the corporate world. George is an elder of the Gumatj clan and of Aboriginal music having co-founded the ground-breaking Warumpi Band in the early 1980s. George sees himself as a messenger and believes many stories can be told through song. He is passionate about people being responsible for their own living environment and wants this song to support the Aboriginal environmental health workers in Australia. "I hope these images will catalyze the political and social changes needed to reach our goals and targets on health issues in relation to climate change, water, poverty reduction, and air pollution" said Dr Maria Neira, WHO's Director for Public Health and Environment. Congratulations from the CRC for Aboriginal Health to Barbara Pitman and the staff at HSTAC and Mark and staff at Skinnyfish Music. To watch video: Click Here |
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| A new survey on Scientists and Science Communication in Australia conducted by the ANU's Centre for the Public Awareness of Science is open online until Friday June 8th.
The survey "Scientists and Science Communication in Australia " The research findings will be published and the project is endorsed by FASTS and supported by the Australian Academy of Science To complete the survey: |
The Don Dunstan Foundation has established the Lowitja O'Donoghue (Annual) Oration to honour the tireless work of Professor O'Donoghue in promoting the rights of Indigenous Australians. The inaugural oration was delivered by Professor O'Donoghue AC CBE DSG herself as part of Reconciliation Week which celebrated the 40th Anniversary of the 1967 Referendum when Australians voted to remove language from the Australian Constitution that discriminated against Aboriginal people. Entitled “Black and White Together, We Shall Overcome, Someday” Professor O'Donoghue's oration touched on the work of former South Australian Premier Don Dunstan's strong commitment to Aboriginal justice and compared his commitment to the efforts of current politicians. Professor O'Donoghue referred in her speech to the Australian Government's refusal to implement the recommendations of the 1997 report of the National Inquiry into Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children forcibly removed from their families. “Of the 54 recommendations of this report 35 have been ignored. That's 65%”, she told the audience. “There has been a failure of moral authority and ethical leadership in Australia over the last ten years,” said Professor O'Donoghue. “This country is in a position to be a world leader in human rights and social justice. Instead, it is, as Aboriginal people would say, ‘a shame job'. Painting a picture of government inaction and lost opportunities Professor O'Donoghue did, however, urge her listeners to “Celebrate your successes. Not only does this make you feel good but it also energises you for more work !” To read the inaugural Lowitja O'Donoghue Oration Click Here |
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The second paper published in the CRCAH Discussion Paper Series is a critical analysis of the concept of Aboriginal holistic health by CRCAH PhD student Mark Lock. In his paper, Aboriginal Holistic Health: A Critical Review, Mark Lock asks “What is the concept of Aboriginal health and how does it affect policies, programs and strategies?” To answer this question the author conducted a literature review which he writes “could not find a single or definitive written source to guide his understanding of, and engagement with, Aboriginal holistic health”. Mark suggests that advocates of Aboriginal concepts of health have not yet effectively articulated them in writing. He discusses the findings of his literature review through twelve engagement points and by drawing on ten themes from the literature. This is the first time that such a critical analysis has been conducted of Aboriginal holistic health by drawing on such a diverse range of publications. Mark argues that the literature review findings mean that he could not achieve a clear understanding of the concept. Additionally, he argues, its boundaries appear so diffuse and ethereal that any argument about the health system could be constructed as holistic. Further work, he writes, is needed to investigate the social context in which Aboriginal health concepts are put into practice. The CRCAH instituted the Discussion Paper Series to:
for revision or improvement.
To order Mark Lock's thought provoking work or a copy of the first CRCAH Discussion paper Series, A Longitudinal Data Resource on Key Influences on Health in the Northern Territory: Opportunities and Obstacles, by Frank Siciliano, Matthew Stevens, John Condon and Ross Bailie contact Cassandra.preece@crcah.org.au or Click Here to download a pdf version. |
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Wayne Quillam is a Melbourne-based Koori photographer who is seeking to organise a photographic exhibition showcasing some of the problems and some of the solutions in Aboriginal health. Wayne explains his idea and seeks support for the project below……..
My name is Wayne Quilliam a professional Indigenous photographer and I am contacting you in the hope you will be able to support a unique project that has been created to assist Indigenous Health projects throughout Australia. In partnership with ‘Art for a Cause' a non profit charitable organisation and W15 a prominent exhibition space in the centre of Melbourne's business centre, Wayne Quilliam Photography will create two unique series of images. The first will visualise the health problems Indigenous Australians face in a frank and honest manner while following appropriate cultural protocols. The second series will be shown simultaneously in the same space and will highlight proactive health and well being programs that are addressing the problems. As I am sure you are aware, health issues are having serious repercussions on both the Indigenous and Non-Indigenous community and after 20 years of working in communities throughout the country I believe it is time to present an accurate exhibition of photographs that dramatises the issues. To ensure an accurate representation, several Indigenous health organisations and experts have been consulted and will be an integral part of the project. It is anticipated the photographs will raise funds in a variety of ways. The photographs on display will be auctioned at the exhibition opening followed by the sale of limited edition series prints. I am also looking at printing 40 to 50 thousand postcards that will be sold and distributed prior to the exhibition and available to health organisations throughout the country. We have approached several high profile eminent people to support and attend the event and anticipate a large media contingent to attend. We also welcome sponsor involvement relating to promotion and marketing of the event. To develop such a diverse range of images support is required for travel, accommodation, equipment hire and printing/processing of the work, if you are able to support this important event please feel free to contact me at anytime. Yours Sincerely Wayne Quilliam For more information: www.waynequilliamphotography.com.au |
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Good Research in Indigenous Communities: a guide for building the capacity of supervisors and researchers |
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The last edition of Gwalwa-Gai carried news of a new CRCAH initiative to develop a handbook to help guide researchers and research supervisors who are working in Indigenous settings. The publication is intended to be a hands-on resource in the field and a resource to support training - an easy-to-use manual that presents useful information and practical advice in plain English. It will draw on and acknowledge other publications and work already done and use stories and examples to support advice offered in three areas of information:
The manual will also list useful resources, websites and relevant training institutions. Consultation and information gathering meetings for the project were organised by Diane Walker and the CRCAH's link people in the core partner venues during March and April 2007. People invited to the meetings represented a cross section of people involved in, or connected with, research including university teaching staff/academic supervisors, post-graduate students, research project workers, government and non-government workers including Aboriginal health services staff. Meetings were held in Darwin Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide. Overall the project information was very positively received. At each meeting participants reinforced the need for such a resource and in general expressed agreement with the proposed topics. None of the proposed topics was identified as unnecessary and a few additional topics were suggested, in particular the need to emphasise research transfer and to include a glossary of research terms. It was also generally agreed to be an opportunity for the CRCAH to describe the facilitated development approach to research. The plan to illustrate best practice research through case studies and real stories was widely endorsed and it was acknowledged that this is what will set the publication apart from other resources about doing health research in Indigenous settings. These consultation meetings have further reinforced our commitment to the project and given us the added confidence in our ability to develop a valuable publication that is going to be of use to building capacity in Aboriginal Health Research. For more information please contact Diane Walker on:
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The Heart Foundation is offering a postgraduate scholarship for:
The scholarship will only be awarded to a postgraduate student who is studying for a PhD and is enrolled at an Australian University or appropriate Institution. The value of the scholarships will be equivalent to that of the Heart Foundation Postgraduate Biomedical, Clinical or Public Health Research Scholarships (depending on the candidate s academic qualification) and will be payable for 3 years. A separate application is not required for this award. If you wish to be considered for this scholarship, please indicate this by ticking the box on the Postgraduate Research Scholarship Application form. Closing Date: 5.00pm, Friday 3 August 2007 For full award details, eligibility requirements, salary scales, information booklets and application forms; please visit the Heart Foundation's website at www.heartfoundation.com.au For further information, please call |
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| International Indigenous Program | |||||
| The CRCAH runs an International Program to enable Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and health researchers to attend overseas conferences to expand their experiences and allow them to share their stories with international colleagues. Funded by the Office of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health, the International Program recently supported Masters student and Taungurong Man from Victoria's Onemda VicHealth Koori Health Unit to attend the 3rd International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry where he presented for the first time at an international conference. Paul explains to Gwalwa-Gai readers the important benefits of attendance at such an international meeting…
Being given the opportunity to present at this Conference held at the University of Illinois gave me experience in abstract writing and preparing a good presentation to an audience who may know a little or a lot about your area of interest. Preparing and presenting is hard enough but then there is the daunting task of answering questions from the audience. Despite my initial nervousness, however, my confidence increased after I was into my presentation and throughout my question time. As well as presenting, I was chair of a session titled “Decolonising Methodologies' with three other presenters who I had to introduce. My chairing responsibilities also included keeping the presentations to time, directing the questions, summarise the session and thank everyone for their contributions. I was happy with the way my presentation went audience discussion and feedback gave me fresh ideas on how to improve and revitalise my teaching of the subject Koori Health: Past to Present. Attending the 3 rd International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry at the University of Illinois was an amazing experience for me on a number of levels. The experience was extremely important to me professionally as it provided me with the confidence to present at an international level. I also had the opportunity to hear and learn first hand of some of the work that is happening in other parts of the world. I have made some really good contacts in terms of how interactive and creative learning activities can be incorporated into a subject that I am helping to redesign and develop around Indigenous ethics. More importantly, since returning from this conference I am injecting some of the new philosophies and realms of qualitative research into my current research and teaching activities. I would like to sincerely thank the CRCAH, and in particular Diane Walker, for providing me with an opportunity to attend this conference. The experience will be long remembered and will also have an impact on work activities that I am currently undertaking. I believe that attending this conference has opened up some new and exciting initiatives that I hope to implement throughout my academic career. |
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Student Profile |
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A researcher at CRCAH partner Queensland Institute of Medical Research, Vanessa Clements had worked for many years in the Indigenous health sector for both government and non-government organisations before successfully applying to undertake a Masters in Applied Epidemiology. Supported by a CRCAH-Indigenous Professional Development Grant Vanessa is committed to applying her many skills to the challenge of improving the health outcomes of her people……. My early experience as an Aboriginal Health worker at a local Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service (AMS) from 1996 to 1999 underpinned my knowledge of Indigenous health issues and how they apply to my community. I was initially trained in the clinical area of the service before gaining further experience in the areas of Diabetes and Nutrition, Community Care and Hearing Health.
In 1999 I resigned from the AMS and secured a position at the Inala Community Health service (Queensland Health) as a Hearing Health worker and subsequently enrolled in the Associate Degree in Aboriginal Health at the Curtin University, Western Australia. After completing the third year of a Bachelor of Applied Science in Indigenous Community Health Care, I started work as a Project Officer at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research in the Indigenous Health Research program. Based in the Torres Strait I worked on a project called the “Asthma Education Intervention Study”, as well as providing support to the Coordinator of the Indigenous Health Research program on a range of research and education programs. It was these experiences that lead me to apply for the Masters in Applied Epidemiology (MAE) program at the Australian National University 's National Centre for Epidemiology & Population Health . This course is very hands on and so far the process has been very exciting with a mixture of coursework and practical experiences. The course is extremely challenging, providing thorough and in-depth practical skills that will assist in my current studies and future employment opportunities. Some of the projects that I have worked on while completing the MAE are: Healthy Skin project in Cairns , Asthma education intervention in the Torres Strait Region, Rubella in Queensland and a Salmonella outbreak of Typhimurium 197. I have experienced first hand a glimpse into the uniqueness of applied Epidemiology and how it plays an intricate role in the Australian health system. The course has already provided a wealth of knowledge that will certainly assist me in making informed decisions in the future. The complexities of integrating the MAE studies and family life with a newly wed husband and two young children together have certainly required a disciplined approach on my part. My future career aspirations after the MAE program include turning the experience I have gained over the past ten years into positive improvements to Indigenous health. On the completion of the MAE program, I feel, I will have the foundation set for improved skills in the area of health research and greater career opportunities for me to continue working to assist in making the much needed improvements in Indigenous Health at community, regional, state or national levels. |
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