The 4th National Indigenous Environmental Health Conference was held in Adelaide on November 6 and 7. The conference program included:
Since 1998, national Indigenous environmental health workshops and conferences have been held regularly to:
These forums seek to identify at a national level the concerns and issues facing environmental health workers and their communities. They provide an opportunity to share information on projects and techniques, facilitate national networks, and highlight common issues. Reflecting the conference’s emphasis on the development and sharing of information resources on Indigenous environmental health, staff from the HealthInfoNet and and the University of Western Sydney were given the opportunity to demonstrate their respective websites at a combined Internet café. Staff introduced conference delegates to the online information services offered through the ‘Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet‘ and ‘Indigenous communities environmental health’ websites. The café also offered an informal setting for further exchange of information on creative and innovative programs and projects currently being implemented across the nation. HealthInfoNet staff used the digital camera to take photos of conference delegates, all of whom are working to improve environmental health conditions in Indigenous communities. Click here to view our conference slideshow. The Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet would like to thank the conference organisers and delegates for their support of our initiative. |
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Category: Article type
NHMRC calls for submissions to revise guidelines for Indigenous health research
The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) is currently inviting submissions to comment on recently released draft guidelines for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research. When finalised, the draft guidelines will replace the existing NHMRC Guidelines on ethical matters in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research (1991).
Much has changed since the development of the 1991 Guidelines. New collaborative partnerships involving research institutes and the community, including the Indigenous community controlled health sector have emerged. There are now more Indigenous researchers and the level of interest in research as a way to contribute to the health of Indigenous peoples has grown.
In recent years, NHMRC has received strong feedback that Indigenous communities, researchers and health organisations see a clear need for a separate complementary set of guidelines covering research in Indigenous health. The feedback has urged the NHMRC to review and update the 1991 Guidelines. The NHMRC has responded by undertaking a three-year review of the guidelines. The three year term comes to an end in mid-2003.
The consultation paper for revision of the NHMRC’s Guidelines on ethical matters in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research (1991) was released on 13 November 2002. Titled Values and ethics in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research [1], the paper is different in its approach to the 1991 Guidelines, as the draft guidelines are written around a framework of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander values and principles.
The paper starts with a broad description of the present context in which research in Indigenous health occurs, and on that basis the paper describes the philosophical foundation of the approach taken to the guidelines. Finally the paper addresses the guidelines themselves – presenting the important considerations and processes that researchers, communities and health research ethics committees should address.
Public consultation on the draft guidelines will run until the beginning of January 2003. The draft will then be reviewed and revised in the light of the submissions received and the document recommended for endorsement by the NHMRC.
The draft consultation paper is available from the NHMRC website.
For detailed information regarding the call for submissions see the following documents:
- Newspaper advertisement (PDF – 13KB)
- Procedures for making submissions to the NHMRC (PDF – 54KB)
References
1. National Health and Medical Research Council (2002) Values and ethics in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research [consultation draft]. Canberra: National Health and Medical Research Council.
Excerpts from ‘Values and ethics in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research [consultation draft]’ reproduced with the permission of Sharon Hill, Assistant Director, Health Ethics Section, NHMRC.
The RACGP Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Project
Suggested citation: Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (2002, 1 October) The RACGP Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Project. Australian Indigenous HealthBulletin, 2(4), Brief report 2. Retrieved [access date] from http://www.healthinfonet.ecu.edu.au/html/html_bulletin/bull_24/bulletin_brief_reports_cervical.htm
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Project is about supporting general practitioners (GPs) to improve early detection and management of breast and cervical cancer in Indigenous women.
The objectives are: to identify barriers to the provision of effective screening and management of breast and cervical cancer in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women by GPs; to identify strategies which would enable GPs to overcome these barriers; and to develop and implement a plan which would incorporate potential strategies identified.
Why is this project needed? Screening programs for breast and cervical cancer have had considerable success in preventing deaths among women in the general Australian population. However, this success does not appear to have extended to the same degree to Indigenous women.
Although data on the incidence of breast and cervical cancer in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are limited, available evidence suggests that they suffer a disproportionate burden from cancer of the cervix. The incidence of cervical cancer in Aboriginal women has been reported as three times that of all Australian women and the mortality associated with it is up to twelve times higher.
While the incidence of breast cancer in Indigenous women may be lower than in non-Indigenous women, survival outcomes appear to be poorer, probably due to a lower participation rate in early detection programs and reduced access to services.
The project began in July 2000, with a grant from the Sylvia and Charles Viertel Charitable Foundation. Activities to date have included a review of the literature, consultation with Indigenous women and with GPs, discussion with national and state based cancer organisations, and identification of potential strategies to address the barriers to improving early detection and management.
The initial grant has since been supplemented with funds from the Rural Faculty of the RACGP through the General Practice Memorandum of Understanding, as one of a number of projects which support GPs working in remote and rural Indigenous communities.
GPs are seen as key primary health care providers who can improve screening rates for breast and cervical cancer in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, yet a number of barriers prevent them from maximising this potential. To date, the project has identified a range of barriers, and has developed a number of potential strategies to address those barriers.
These strategies are now being tested at the local level, with implementation at pilot sites in three states (Adelaide, Mackay and Coonamble).
Evaluation of the project will help suggest a national framework to support local interventions for improving GP screening and management of breast and cervical cancer in Indigenous women.
The project will run until the end of January 2003 and a report encompassing the findings will be widely distributed.
The initial literature review commissioned through the project is now available through the Rural Faculty Office of the RACGP, or from the Indigenous Health Studies website, James Cook University,Townsville.
For further information about the project, please contact Dr Marion Carey (marion.carey@racgp.org.au) or Dr Jenny Reath (jenny.reath@racgp.org.au).
‘Quick meals for Kooris’
Suggested citation: Leahy J (2002, 1 October) ‘Quick meals for Kooris’. Australian Indigenous HealthBulletin, 2(4), Brief report 1. Retrieved [access date] from http://www.healthinfonet.ecu.edu.au/html/html_bulletin/bull_24/bulletin_brief_reports_meals.htm
‘Quick meals for Kooris’ is a ‘hands-on’ cooking program that was designed to assist urban Aboriginal people to cook healthy meals for the family. It is delivered in two three-hour sessions and is very flexible and versatile. It can be used as a stand-alone activity or incorporated within larger programs.
The recipes used include ‘everyday’ foods, fresh, frozen and tinned, which are always the cheapest to buy and often in the cupboard. ‘Quick meals for Kooris’ is designed to be run by an Aboriginal health worker or a member of the Aboriginal community. The group leader does not need extensive nutrition knowledge just some basic home cooking skills and knowledge of their local community.
Why was it developed?
There is a need for urban Aboriginal people to have access to relevant food programs that promote healthy family eating. A program was needed that was ‘hands-on’ and enabled new food skills to be learnt in a friendly informal environment.
‘Quick meals for Kooris’ was designed to enable Aboriginal people to improve their health through gaining knowledge and developing skills to enable them to feed their families healthy food on a budget.
A resource was also needed that could be used to train Aboriginal health workers or interested members of the Aboriginal community to deliver the program thus ensuring sustainability.
How was it developed?
The Central Coast Aboriginal Health Strategic Plan 1997-2001 identified that the Aboriginal community wanted health education programs that focussed on healthy eating, diabetes, heart disease, obesity and healthy eating on a budget. A pilot-cooking program was conducted with members of the local community and a pilot training program was conducted with local Aboriginal health workers.
What is in the cooking program?
There are two three-hour sessions, which begin with a demonstration of aspects of each recipe; then the class is divided into groups to cook a recipe together; the meal is then shared and eaten with socialising and happy discussions taking place.
- Session 1 – ‘Family meals – fast and easy’; and
- Session 2 – ‘Feeding children and filling teenagers’
Each recipe has instructions on how to modify it for diabetes, for example: how to substitute ingredients depending on availability; and how to use leftovers.
What are participants involved in?
- discussion of nutrition issues related to diabetes and heart disease;
- preparation of low cost recipes;
- sharing ideas and preparing meals from ingredients that are ‘in the cupboard’;
- using a range of ingredients, modifying recipes or ‘extending meat’ to serve more people;
- learning how to adapt or choose recipes to suit cooking skills, utensils and equipment that they may have available;
- discussing food safety and hygiene (woven into the sessions);
- preparing meals and snacks suitable for the whole family.
What else is in the kit?
Simple nutrition related health information is included as background for the group leader. It briefly covers diabetes, heart disease, nutrition and drug and alcohol abuse issues, kidney problems, chewing and swallowing difficulties and food allergies and food intolerance.
Information and guidelines are also provided to train Aboriginal health workers and Aboriginal community members to conduct the ‘Quick meals for Kooris’ cooking program. This includes a timeframe (what to do 8 weeks before; 1 week before; what to do on the day) and covers such things as funding sources, equipment needed, shopping list for foods, recipes, transport, childcare, promotion and sample letters/flyers/posters/press releases.
How can it be delivered?
The cooking program can be run as a ‘stand alone’ program or included in larger programs, including those that address: diabetes; heart disease; living on a budget; working with youth; community gardens; vacation care etc. The kit is also designed to train Aboriginal health workers or Aboriginal community members to deliver the cooking program.
What do participants say?
Comments have included:
- ‘I am surprised at how easy the recipes were to cook and I’ll definitely make them for my family’ – Sonya, 37.
- ‘It was good to learn how to make the meal go further’ – Lisa, 28.
- ‘I didn’t know you could grate potato!’- John, 33.
Author:
Carolyn Bunney
Community/Public Health Nutritionist
Central Coast Area Health, NSW
Postal Address:
PO Box 361
Gosford NSW 2250
Tel: (02) 4320 3362
Fax: (02) 4320 2828
Email: cbunney@nsccahs.health.nsw.gov.au
Acknowledgments:
The Nutrition department of Central Coast Health NSW would like to thank the staff of the Nunyara Aboriginal Health Unit CCAHS; staff of the Eleanor Duncan Aboriginal Health Centre; NSW Aboriginal Health Branch for funding and the Aboriginal community of the Central coast for their involvement in the development of this resource.
The National Indigenous Family Violence Grants Programme
The National Indigenous Family Violence Grants Programme is funded by the Commonwealth Government under the Partnerships Against Domestic Violence (PADV) initiative.
PADV is a collaborative effort between the Commonwealth Government and the States and Territories and the community. Initially funded for $25 million, the PADV aims to achieve more effective ways of preventing and responding to domestic violence across Australia. A second $25 million provided in the 1999 Budget is being directed to key priority areas, including a national Indigenous family violence grants programme.
Over $10 million of the $50 million for PADV is being directed to initiatives specifically addressing Indigenous family violence, including $6 million under the National Indigenous Family Violence Grants Programme. This funding has been allocated to assist grass roots Indigenous organisations to develop culturally appropriate and innovative solutions to family violence. Under the programme sixty-six community organisations have been funded for projects to test and develop new or better ways of responding and preventing family violence.
The Programme’s focus on grass roots Indigenous solutions recognises the need for community ownership and direction of the tools to address family violence. It aims to assist local communities to identify factors which are contributing to family violence and to develop a community strategy to address this problem. The strategies developed will aim to include holistic, sustainable and culturally appropriate responses which strengthen the capacity of individuals, families and the local community to reduce the level of family violence.
In the year 2000, 30 Indigenous organisations from across Australia were funded with $2.2 million to run projects addressing family violence (to view a summary of the 31 projects – see the programme booklet).
Successful projects so far include:
- A national community awareness campaign on Indigenous family violence, called Walking Into Doors, to provide information, support and inspiration for Indigenous communities. This program, led by Archie Roach and Ruby Hunter, held community events in 10 Indigenous communities across Australia in 2001.
- A highly successful Rekindling Family Relationships forum on Indigenous family violence held in April 2001. It was attended by more than 400 Indigenous community leaders and service providers.
View details of projects (PDF – 121KB) funded by the National Indigenous Family Violence Grants Programme for the period 2000-02.
View details of PADV Commonwealth projects (PDF – 25KB) focusing on Indigenous family violence.
View details of PADV State and Territory projects (PDF – 41KB) focusing on Indigenous family violence.
A comprehensive evaluation of the first phase of PADV to June 2002 will soon be released. The six volumes of the evaluation will include one volume on what has been learned about addressing and preventing Indigenous family violence.
The findings of the evaluation in relation to addressing and preventing Indigenous family violence include:
- Any response to Indigenous family violence needs to take account of the social, cultural and historical context of a community.
- Community dialogue and encouraging the development of strong, proud communities is seen to be the most effective way of addressing family violence.
- Crisis responses such as safe areas and night patrols are important supports for individuals and families as part of a whole of community response.
- Programs need to provide a more holistic approach to violence which deals with personal, social and political factors; prevention; treatment and rehabilitation.
- Indigenous communities are identifying community ownership and control of the issue of family violence as imperative.
There is a Partnerships Against Domestic Violence web site on which you can find more information about the Partnerships Against Domestic Violence initiative, including its priority themes, taskforce, the projects it funds, and its national evaluation. You will also find facts about domestic violence in Australia, the Australian Domestic and Family Violence Clearinghouse, publications and reports, links and media information. There is a specific area of the site devoted to ‘Indigenous solutions for Indigenous lives’ where you will find more information on the ‘Walking into doors campaign’ and the ‘National Indigenous Family Violence Grants Programme’.
The information on this page has been reproduced with the permission of Rosemary Calder and Robyn Waddington from the Office for the Status of Women.
HealthInfoNet acknowledged with the Eberhard Wenzel Online Media Award
The Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet was announced at the Public Health Association of Australia’s 34th Annual Conference in Adelaide on 1 October 2002 as the inaugural winner of the Association’s Eberhard Wenzel Online Media Award.
In making the announcement, the Honourable Lea Stevens, South Australian Health Minister, said the mass media, of all forms, has a significant role to play in protecting and promoting the health of Australians. She commended the HealthInfoNet’s role in contributing to improving the health of Australia’s Indigenous people by facilitating the sharing and exchange of relevant, high-quality knowledge.
Ms Stevens noted that in the five years since HealthInfoNet was established in September 1997, it has emerged as the major source of knowledge and information about the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people for policy makers, health service providers, academics, researchers, students and the general community. The HealthInfoNet’s knowledge translation research, which focuses on the utilisation by potential users of the results of pure and applied research, was of particular value. She commented that the HealthInfoNet also facilitates knowledge sharing and exchange by publishing an electronic peer-reviewed journal, operating a list serve, providing an information service and including on its Internet site an electronic notice-board for details of courses and other pertinent information.
The award was accepted on behalf of Professor Thomson and the HealthInfoNet team by Associate Professor Sherry Saggers, a HealthInfoNet Consultant in the areas of Indigenous health policy and substance abuse.
View the HeathInfoNet application (PDF – 46KB)
View the Public Health Association of Australia Media Release (PDF – 21KB)
Editor’s note: The HealthInfoNet is particularly honoured to be the winner of the inaugural Eberhard Wenzel Online Media Award, which is named in recognition of Eberhard’s passion for information technology and Indigenous health improvement. He was an frequent user of the HealthInfoNet, and a very strong voice in support of our aims. We are very proud recipients of the award.
Developing a strategic framework for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research
| The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) has initiated a two-phase consultation process to determine a strategic framework for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research. The first stage involved the development of a draft document that is being circulated for written comment among a range of stakeholders.
In the second stage a series of four workshops, attended by researchers and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and their representatives, will be conducted to refine the research issues described in the consultation paper. The first of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research Agenda Working Group (RAWG) workshops was held at the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research in Perth on 29-30 July 2002. A final report will bring together the outcomes of this two-phase consultation process and will be presented back to the NHMRC to determine national research priorities. For further information contact the: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research Agenda Working Group (RAWG) |
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Western Australian Framework Agreement on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health
On the 5th of July, the Commonwealth Government, the West Australian Government, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) and the Western Australian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (WAACHO) signed an agreement of cooperation designed to lift the health status of Indigenous people living in Western Australia.
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The Agreement recognises the importance of a shared strategic agenda for improving the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Western Australia:
For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to achieve equitable health outcomes, a co-operative, co-ordinated and sustained effort is required from the Commonwealth and State Governments, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community, the Aboriginal community controlled primary health care sector represented by the Western Australian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (WAACCHO), Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) and the broader Australian community1.
The Agreement is based on four national key commitments from the 1996 Agreements on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health and six key domains of action articulated in the Western Australian Aboriginal Health Strategy (WAAHS).
The national key commitments call for:
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- increased level of resources allocated to reflect the level of need;
- joint planning;
- access to both general and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander specific health and health related services which reflect the higher level of need; and
- data collection and evaluation.
The WAAHS key domains of action call for:
- increasing access to health services;
- reforming the health system;
- reconciling community control and empowerment;
- improving health information management;
- strengthening intersectoral collaboration on health; and
- improving health financing.
Signatories to the Agreement – Commonwealth Minister for Health and Ageing, Senator Kay Patterson, West Australian Minister for Health, Bob Kucera, Chairperson of ATSIC, Geoff Clark, and Chairperson of WAACCHO, Henry Councillor highlighted the importance of the Agreement as a mechanism for: ensuring that priority health needs are met; facilitating joint responsibility and contributing to Indigenous self-determination.
The Western Australian Joint Planning Forum (JPF) and the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Council will be responsible for evaluating the implementation of the Agreement within their respective jurisdictions.
Full copies of the Agreement are available on request. Contact Ms Allison Bellottie, Joint Planning Forum Secretariat, ph: (08) 9222 4481, fax: (08) 9222 4378.
1Extracts from the Western Australian Framework Agreement on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health reproduced with permission.
14th Australian Health Promotion Association Annual Conference
The 14th Australian Health Promotion Association Annual Conference was held in Sydney from the 16 – 20 June. The conference theme, ‘Made in the future’, a conference on leadership, capacity building, evidence and advocacy, highlights factors that are vital to successful Indigenous health practice and policy at all levels.
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Of particular relevance to Indigenous health promotion practitioners was the National Indigenous Health Promotion Network Leadership Forum, titled Building vision and purpose: linking past events with present strategies to create a better future. The morning session enabled members to explore and discuss the development and focus of the Network: its activities, its directions and its purposes. The afternoon forum provided a structure for looking nationally at successes in Indigenous health promotion. Guest speakers provided examples of how strategic leadership and capacity building were working in their local areas.
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The conference also provided the HealthInfoNet with an opportunity to share its work with health promotion professionals from around Australia. An Internet café, along the lines of those conducted at earlier conferences, introduced conference delegates to the HealthInfoNet‘s online services and technology, and its role in empowering Indigenous people by providing them with access to relevant, high-quality information and knowledge on Indigenous health.
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The café, conducted by Bronwyn Gee and Sandy Angus from the HealthInfoNet, and Donna Daly from the Aboriginal and Islander Health Worker Journal, offered delegates the opportunity to explore the HealthInfoNet site. New users were guided through its major sections and offered assistance to seek out material pertaining to their specific health interests. The café also provided a forum to showcase the latest edition of the Indigenous health promotion resources publication produced by the Aboriginal and Islander Health Worker Journal. The publication was of particular interest to many health promotion practitioners attending the conference.
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Another positive aspect of the HealthInfoNet café was the opportunity it offered to exchange information on creative and innovative programs and projects currently being implemented across the nation. Staff used the digital camera to take photos of many people involved in these projects, some of which are displayed here.
The Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet would like to thank the Australian Health Promotion Association for their support of our initiative, and Hire Intelligence for the much appreciated sponsorship.
NAIDOC week, 7 July to 14 July 2002
The National Aboriginal Islander Day Observance Committee (NAIDOC) week is an annual event of national importance. It is the outcome of a long history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander efforts to bring issues of concern to the attention of governments and the general public. Comprehensive historical details about the origins of NAIDOC week are available on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSIC) website and the NAIDOC Victoria website.
NAIDOC week celebrates the diverse and unique traditions and culture of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and recognises their on-going fight for justice and equality. All Australians are invited to join in the 2002 NAIDOC celebrations to be held in Sydney from 7 July to 14 July.
The theme for NAIDOC Week 2002 is ‘recognition, rights and reform’. NAIDOC celebrations will commemorate the 10th anniversary of the historic High Court decision in Mabo and the gains that have flowed from it. For further information on the theme for 2002 (and themes from previous years), including the report Recognition, rights and reform: a report to Government on native title social justice measures visit the ATSIC website.
As the host city, Sydney will stage this year’s National NAIDOC Awards Ball on Friday, 12 July 2002. These national awards recognise the significant contributions that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people make within Australian communities in many diverse fields. Nominations for the 2002 National NAIDOC Awards close June 14 2002. Further infomation and nomination forms are available from ATSIC Regional or State Offices or from the ATSIC website. Award winners will be announced at the National NAIDOC Ball in Sydney on 12 July.
For great suggestions regarding how individuals and groups (including families, workplaces and schools) can celebrate NAIDOC week visit the ATSIC website and/or the NAIDOC Victoria website
