more_vert
ON 10 February 2016, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders, organisations and representatives once again came together in Parliament House in Canberra to talk about progress of the Close the Gap campaign.
This year marks 10 years of targeted efforts, policy and programs designed to close the gap on the unacceptable disparity in health, life expectancy and education outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
The Australian Indigenous Doctors’ Association (AIDA) would like to recognise the tireless efforts of the Close the Gap Steering Committee (CTSG) who have worked to keep the purpose and message of Close the Gap at the forefront of political discourse with successive governments.
This is a long-term campaign and although we are heartened to see some progress on important indicators such as halving the gap in child mortality, and improvements for retention rates in Year 12 attainment for Indigenous students, AIDA notes there is still much work to do.
- Related: MJA — Indigenous health expenditure deficits obscured in Closing the Gap reports
- Related: MJA InSight – Jane McCredie: Closing the Gap life expectancy target a distraction
- Related: MJA — Traditional healers help close the gap
As the nations’ professional association representing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander doctors, AIDA is a strong advocate for culturally safe places of education, training and professional development across the health sector.
It is well known that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients are more likely to access health care and necessary follow-up when they feel culturally safe and are receiving appropriate care.
The launch of the Implementation Plan for the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Plan (2013-2023) in October 2015 was a significant milestone in engagement between the National Health Leadership Forum (NHLF) and the Commonwealth Government.
The Implementation Plan was successfully negotiated by the NHLF across successive governments and has bipartisan support.
AIDA calls upon the current government to continue this good work through adequate budget measures in 2016 and beyond, to support the necessary workforce requirements and funding models to implement the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Plan (2013-2023).
National campaigns such as Close the Gap and practical steps forward such as those articulated in the Implementation Plan are a reminder to governments on all sides of politics that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander owned and led approaches to health care service delivery are most likely to deliver the net gains we are all striving for.
Sustainable, long-term measures that are driven at the community level have long been recognised as the most appropriate for the diverse cultural and health needs of Indigenous Australians.
Too often these community-driven models are interrupted by changes of government policy, uncertain funding cycles and political ideology.
Aboriginal community controlled health organisations are most often best placed to deliver culturally and clinically appropriate health care to communities, and AIDA emphasises the importance of long-term funding certainty to enable these organisations to keep growing the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workforce and caring for community health.
It is timely to also note that improving health outcomes and enhancing wellbeing for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians should be undertaken with a coordinated national approach.
AIDA supports Indigenous-led models of service delivery but we also recognise the importance of partnership between and across governments and jurisdictions to achieve this.
It is in everyone’s interest to close the gap, and AIDA will continue to work to hold the government accountable to its commitment to support this.
We welcome the sentiments of Prime Minister Turnbull’s Close the Gap statement to Parliament in 2016 and recognise the underlying power and wisdom in a single sentence he shared: “Do things with us not to us.”
Dr Kali Hayward is President of the Australian Indigenous Doctors’ Association. She works as a GP at Nunkuwarrin Yunti, the largest Aboriginal community controlled health organisation, and as a Medical/Cultural Educator for Adelaide to Outback, a GP-training provider in SA.
Dr Hayward rightly points to the need for increased Indigenous involvement in efforts directed to reducing the serious inequities between health standards of Indigenous and other Australians. It is also correct to indicate that her people must feel more welcome and culturally comfortable in “education, training and professional development across the health sector”. She is also right to acknowledge that this (closing the gap) “is a long-term campaign” and … ”there is still much work to do”. In fact, if that had been recognised by government and their advisers a decade ago, the deep disappointments of the most recent annual Close the Gap Strategy reports might have been avoided. The eagerness of the Australian Indigenous Doctors’ Association (AIDA) to involve itself in this process should be recognised and encouraged. However, it must also be recognised that the national embarrassment and shame attached to the deplorable state of Australian Indigenous health cannot be removed until measurable outcomes in health and wellbeing, including life expectancy, mortality rates, disease and disability burdens, and incidence rates are expunged. Overseas comparisons demand that sort of clarity to show that Australia has, at last, got it right. This will require a monumental shift in government and bureaucratic responses to this challenge. It will also require a nationwide acceptance by the Indigenous community of the responsibilities that accompany this challenge and for both sides to meet “half-way”. This must be a two-way process that brings Australians together for our mutual good.
I’m heartened to hear that the infant mortality rate has been halved since the Closing he Gap campaing started.
But in 10 years – the identification of Chronic disease has increased 10 fold. Treaments iniated but still no reduction in Chronic diease – adherence to chronic disease meds leads much to be desired – The employment of Indigenous workers in the health system is still very minimal –
The availabiity of good reasonably priced food in remote communities, clean houses, 100% attendance at school an the dealing with the ongoing alcohol, unmployment and hopelessness issues stll need to be addressed urgently.
Remote communties need leadership in forming cleaning teams for all the houses, community kitchens, recreational, social and sporting activities oganised – Where are the leaders for these groups?
Early leaning centres for toddler and their mums should be in every community.
Billions of $ have been poured into this exercise – but all I see is increasing disempowerment and dependency!
It puzzles me why there are no measures of child abuse and family violence included in the CTG moniitoring statistics.
We know that the rates of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children entering out of home care are continuing to rise. We also know that the admission rates of Aboriginal women as a result of family violence are an order of magnitude greater than in non-Aboriginal women and this inevitably contributes to child abuse.
Why are we ignoring measuring progress in some of the toughest policy areas? Historical factors alone do not account for these differences.