Cultural competence: transforming policy, services, programs and practice
This chapter discusses some of the complex issues surrounding the notion of cultural competence—and the critical need for practitioners to develop knowledge, skills, understandings and attributes to be responsive in diverse cultural settings. The argument for culturally competent mental health practitioners and services is situated within a human rights framework which underpins the principles, standards […]
Working together: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health and wellbeing principles and practices.
The Working Together: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Mental Health and Wellbeing Principles and Practice had its origins in the Australian Government’s commitment to improve mental health services nationally. The book was a key strategy to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-specific initiatives of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) mental health reform over five […]
A history of Indigenous psychology
This chapter discusses how the discipline and practice of psychology has been part of the colonising process influencing the mental health of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It outlines events where the discipline of psychology has been supportive of, and responsive to, the Aboriginal mental health movement, heralding the empowerment and inclusion of […]
Statement of Intention to Improve Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health and Wellbeing
Twenty-four national allied health organisations became signatories to the Statement of Intention to Improve Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health and Wellbeing, at Parliament House in March 2014.
Shifting gears in careers: Identifying drivers of career development for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workers in the health sector
This paper explores how the Australian health sector might improve opportunities for career development for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workers. It considers the current evidence surrounding career development in the health sector, along with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander worker experiences, to develop a usable conceptual framework for change.
Aboriginal health promotion through addressing employment discrimination
The Localities Embracing and Accepting Diversity (LEAD) program aimed to improve the mental health of Aboriginal Victorians by addressing racial discrimination and facilitating social and economic participation. As part of LEAD, Whittlesea Council adopted the Aboriginal Employment Pathways Strategy (AEPS) to increase Aboriginal employment and retention within the organisation. The Aboriginal Cultural Awareness Training Program […]
Attraction, recruitment and distribution of health professionals in rural and remote Australia: early results of the Rural Health Professionals Program
Abstract Background: Australians living in rural and remote communities experience relatively poor health status in comparison to the wider Australian population (Med J Aust 185:37-38, 2006). This can be attributed in part to issues of access to health services arising from difficulties in recruiting and retaining health professionals in these areas. The Rural Health Professionals […]
Making Tracks: A Trauma-Informed Framework for Supporting Aboriginal Young People Leaving Care
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people leaving out-of-home care are even more likely to experience poor outcomes and with more serious consequences This framework is a trauma and attachment-informed approach embedded in a cultural, ecological and developmental perspective. It aims to help workers recognise and make sense of many of the young people’s behaviours, […]
Trauma-informed services and trauma-specific care for Indigenous Australian children
This report provides comprehensive information on trauma in Indigenous Australian children. It examines the effects of trauma while also providing an overview of recent government initiatives implemented to address the negative consequences of trauma exposure in childhood and adulthood. The report also describes the delivery of trauma-informed services and trauma-specific care. Complementing the information in […]
LIME Good Practice Case Studies Volume Two, 2013
Preparing Students for Cross-cultural Practice: Indigenous Australians as a case study
Do indigenous health curricula in health science education reduce disparities in health care outcomes?
LIME Good Practice Case Studies Volume One, 2012
Reducing the health disparities of Indigenous Australians: time to change focus
Background: Indigenous peoples have worse health than non-Indigenous, are over-represented amongst the poor and disadvantaged, have lower life expectancies, and success in improving disparities is limited. To address this, research usually focuses on disadvantaged and marginalised groups, offering only partial understanding of influences underpinning slow progress. Critical analysis is also required of those with the […]
Working in Indigenous contexts: self-reported experiences of non-Indigenous psychologists
Despite assertions in the literature that psychologists adopt culturally inappropriate strategies for working with Indigenous clients, there is little empirical evidence about this. The aim of this study was to document the self-reported experiences of non-Indigenous psychologists working with Indigenous clients, the factors that they felt constrain these interactions, and the clinical, assessment and communication […]
Changing the lens: Indigenous perspectives on psychological literacy
An essential form of psychological literacy that is required in all psychology courses is an understanding of and ability to work with the many cultural groups that make up a given society. Psychology as a profession is part of a society that is shaped and directed by the history, values, norms and biases that characterise […]
Indigenous cultural training for health workers in Australia
Purpose Culturally inappropriate health services contribute to persistent health inequalities. This article reviews approaches to indigenous cultural training for health workers and assesses how effectively they have been translated into training programmes within Australia. Data sources CINAHL PLUS, MEDLINE, Wiley InterScience, ATSIHealth and ProQuest. Study selection The review focuses on the conceptual and empirical literature […]
Turning the corner: assessment as a key strategy to enhance greater engagement and understanding in Indigenous health
Background: Developing a culturally competent health workforce is a key strategy in the struggle to provide quality healthcare services for Aboriginal people. Since 2000, the Centre for Aboriginal Medical and Dental Health has implemented a comprehensive vertically and horizontally integrated Aboriginal health curriculum across the 6 year MBBS program at the University of Western Australia. […]
Creating the NACCHO Cultural Safety Training Standards and Assessment Process: A background paper.
The purpose of this paper is to provide the CST Standards Committee and Industry Reference Group with an overview of issues relevant to Cultural Safety and Cultural Safety Training. This will help guide CST Standards Committee decisions on what the Standards and the CST training program assessment process should be, and the Industry Reference Group […]
Health Care and Indigenous Australians: Cultural Safety in Practice
Health Care and Indigenous Australians: Cultural safety in practice uses a cultural safety approach for undergraduate health students or professionals wanting to improve their practice in relation to Indigenous Australian clients. With fourteen chapters that include activities, critical thinking questions, poems, ‘making it local’ activities, and case scenarios, readers should find that the material challenges […]
Binan Goonj: bridging cultures in Aboriginal health
Despite years of research, policy changes and interventions, it is widely documented that the health status of many Aboriginal people remains the poorest in Australia. Binan Goonj, 3rd Edition: Bridging cultures in Aboriginal health explores the processes and practices underlying this situation, while providing practical strategies to work towards redressing it. Key Features · completely […]
Psychology and Indigenous Australians: Foundations of cultural competence
This book fills an important gap in understanding the psychological impact of colonization on Indigenous Australians. Using cultural competence as a theoretical framework, it starts with an exploration of the nature of culture and worldviews which permeates and integrates the book. It provides a convincing explanation of how colonization has affected Indigenous Australians, the role […]
The Boatshed Racism Roundtable Declaration
Over 40 leading researchers and academics from across Australia met at the University of Western Australia Boatshed in Perth, to discuss research concerning racism towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. The two-day meeting significantly advanced the themes of social justice and reconciliation in Australian society and has culminated in the production of a detailed […]
Finding our relatedness stories: Psychology and Indigenous Healing Practice
National Indigenous Public Health Curriculum Framework
The six core Indigenous public health competencies at the focus of this document are those required of every Master of Public Health (MPH) graduate. This curriculum guide provides suggestions about the integration of these competencies across both disciplinary and practice areas of public health rather than as a component of a specific Indigenous public health […]