Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health is the focus of the September 2019 issue of Partyline.
Several articles address the workforce required to support health services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait people:
- Karl Briscoe from the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Worker Association (NATSIHWA) describes the unique and vital role of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Health Workers and Health Practitioners in supporting culturally safe services.
- Melanie Robinson from the Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses and Midwives (CATSINaM) addresses the importance of cultural safety in effective health services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
- The Australian Government Department of Health discusses the work now underway to develop a national plan for a strong and sustainable Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workforce.
Other articles cover a mentoring program for early career Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses and midwives and an Aboriginal-led national research project exploring how best to develop and maintain a strong Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workforce.
We learn about how the Royal Flying Doctor Service has brought a full-service dental clinic to the edge of the Gibson Desert and about a program bringing dental care and oral health education to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children attending a pre-school in Rockhampton. The Dhalayi (‘Young’) Doctors program for students at six primary schools in Kempsey NSW is designed and run by local Elders to boost young people’s cultural identity and enhance their access to health services pathways within their community. A program of camping on country is enabling Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men living in remote Australia to take the lead in their own health and wellbeing. We also learn about a community-led approach to prevent and eliminate rheumatic heart disease that has saved children’s lives.
You can read about the inspiring work of GP Jacinta Powell with the Townsville Aboriginal and Islander Health Service and of Leeona West, Director of Nursing on Mornington Island. Volunteering at Purple House, pharmacy student Emma Buttolph found not just a health care facility, but a welcoming home that supports a large Aboriginal community.
Other articles address:
- A course on ewe management, bringing farmers together to support one another;
- A new plan for action on pain management in rural and remote Australia;
- How protecting people from mosquito-borne diseases is all in a day’s work for Broome’s environment health officer, Andrew Waters;
- Research into the economic significance of the health care sector in Australia’s regions and the potential of health precincts in regional towns and cities; and
- The benefits for patients in rural and remote Australia of up-to-date electronic health information stored in their My Health Record.
News from the National Rural Health Alliance includes a report on the recent CouncilFest gathering of member organisations on the Alliance encompassing a visit to Parliament House to present to parliamentarians the Alliance’s priorities for rural and remote health. Jo Walker reflects on the World Conference on Health Promotion held in Rotorua New Zealand earlier this year, based on the theme of promoting planetary health and sustainable development for all. We also preview the 7th Rural and Remote Health Scientific Symposium coming up in May 2020.
For these stories and much, much more find the latest Partyline at ruralhealth.org.au/partyline.
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