New resources for tackling Indigenous chronic disease and smoking

Two new resources have been produced to help workers tackle the high rates of chronic disease and smoking among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
The resources are:

• the Healthy, deadly and strong, Healthy Lifestyle Worker toolkit; and
• Medicines to help you stop smoking – a guide about nicotine replacement therapy (NRT).

The toolkit and the guide will soon be rolled out to a national network of Regional Tackling Smoking and Healthy Lifestyle teams. A key part of the work carried out by the teams is directly tackling some of the main causes of chronic disease and early death among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, including smoking, poor diet and lack of physical activity. The Minister for Indigenous Health, Mr Warren Snowdon, addressed a four day workshop for the teams in Canberra in December 2011 and said that their efforts were already having a strong and positive effect on the ground.

The Healthy, deadly and strong, Healthy Lifestyle Worker toolkit was produced by the Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet on behalf of the Department of Health and Ageing. The toolkit was launched by Mr Snowdon and he thanked Professor Neil Thomson for the ‘great work’ carried out on the toolkit by the HealthInfoNet. The toolkit takes a grass-roots approach, encouraging communities to develop their own healthy lifestyle activities and messages that target health priorities in individual communities.

• Further information:
  • Regional teams tackling Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander smoking and chronic disease
    View media release: The Hon Warren Snowdon, Department of Health and Ageing (13 December 2011)
  • View information: National action to reduce Indigenous smoking rate
  • View information: Indigenous Chronic Disease Package – Health Lifestyle Workers
  • View website: Indigenous Chronic Disease Package
  • View website: Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet