Search

Background: Historical socio-political processes have produced gross inequity of health resource for Aboriginal Australians and New Zealand Māori. Objectives: This paper argues that socio-political factors resulting from the entrenchment of colonialism have produced significant personal and structural barriers to the utilisation of healthcare services and directly impact the health status of these two vulnerable groups. Design: Discussion Paper. Conclusions: Understanding the actual barriers preventing the utilisation of healthcare facilities, as perceived by Indigenous people, is essential in reducing the gross disparity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous morbidity and mortality in Australia and New Zealand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the strategies used by Aboriginal young people to build positive relationships and sexual wellbeing. It does so to counter the risk-focussed narratives present in much existing research and to showcase the resourcefulness of Aboriginal young people. We used peer-interview methods to collect qualitative data from 52 Aboriginal young people living in western Sydney, Australia. Participants reported a strong desire to stay safe and healthy in their sexual relationships and to achieve this they relied heavily on oral communication and yarning strategies. Participants viewed communication as a way to gain or give advice (about bodies, infections, pregnancy, relationships); to assess the acceptability and safety of potential partners; to negotiate consent with partners; to build positive relationships; and to get themselves out of unhealthy relationships. Participants also discussed 'self-talk' as a strategy for building sexual wellbeing, referring to narratives of self-respect and pride in culture as important in establishing Aboriginal young people's positive views of self and as deserving of respectful and safe sexual relationships. These findings suggest that future programmes and interventions based on yarning could be well-regarded, given it is a cultural form of pedagogy and a strategy Aboriginal young people already use to build positive relationships and identities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective/Aim: To examine the experiences of culturally safe mentoring programmes described by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses and midwives in Australia. Design: A systematic scoping review. Data Sources: The following databases were accessed: CINAHL Plus with Full Text (EBSCO), EMCARE (Ovid), MEDLINE (Ovid), INFORMIT (Health Collection/Indigenous Collection) and SCOPUS. Support relating to key words and appropriate databases was provided by a university librarian. Review Methods: Search terms across databases were sourced from 1997–2021, identifying a total of 161 papers. Title/abstract searches were screened against the inclusion/exclusion criteria, resulting in 18 papers reaching full-text review. Of the 18 full-text papers reviewed, six were eligible for inclusion in the final review. Results/Findings: Culturally safe mentorship was a positive experience for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses and midwives. Thematic discussion identified three key themes: Mentorship as a way forward, Culture in mentorship, and Cultural safety's role in mentorship. Discussion: Culturally safe mentoring has been a key recommendation in the nursing literature for over 20 years. There is limited knowledge on what constitutes an effective programme as mentoring programmes have not been empirically evaluated or reviewed. Conclusion: This review provides evidence that Cultural Safety and the exploration of culture impact culturally safe mentoring and can impact workforce cultural capability. Impact Statement: This review indicates that culturally safe mentoring has been a key recommendation in nursing literature for over 20 years. This review provides evidence that Cultural Safety and the exploration of culture impact culturally safe mentoring and can impact workforce cultural capability. However, there is limited knowledge of what constitutes an effective programme, as mentoring programmes have not been empirically evaluated or reviewed providing an opportunity for further research. Plain Language Summary: Little is known about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses' and midwives' perspectives of culturally safe mentoring programmes in Australia. However, mentoring programme are seen as a key workforce retention strategy. This scoping review aims to explore and interpret Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses' and midwives' perspectives of culturally safe mentoring programmes in Australia. This review concludes that mentoring programmes require content in Cultural Safety and that programmes need to be empirically evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This paper explores the principles of co‐design with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities by reflecting on the literature, learning from experiences of allied health professionals, and considering how co‐design can be applied in rural and remote allied health practice. Context: This paper has been authored by a working group from Services for Rural and Remote Allied Health (SARRAH). SARRAH is a member‐based allied health organisation, working to improve health outcomes for rural and remote Australians. SARRAH has been representing and supporting allied health professionals in rural and remote Australia for over 20 years, with a member base that includes students, practitioners, programme managers, policy makers and academics. As a non‐Indigenous organisation, SARRAH works in partnership and receives guidance from the peak organisation, Indigenous Allied Health Australia (IAHA). Approach: Over a period of 3 months, a group of eleven SARRAH members and staff came together to review available literature, seek member perspectives and share their experiences and understandings of co‐design. Working group discussions were grounded in the knowledge and experiences shared by two Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander group members. Conclusion: This paper proposes that successful co‐design with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities places legitimate value on different knowledge systems, is built on strong and trusting relationships, promotes inclusive involvement and requires authentic partnerships. Using these principles, SARRAH will engage with members and stakeholders to influence meaningful change in allied health practice in rural and remote Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the functions of interactional devices used by co-tellers in multiparty stories in Umpila and Kuuku Ya'u, two closely related dialects of a Paman language of Cape York Peninsula, Australia. Within the Umpila and Kuuku Ya'u speech community there is a strong cultural preference for multiparty storytelling – a preference which has been noted in a number of Aboriginal Australian contexts. This paper seeks to understand the mechanisms through which co-tellers in these multiparty narratives contribute to the story. It first discusses co-teller roles, and distinguishes three key narrator roles and orders of conduct associated with each. The analysis then focuses on the use of questions and evaluative comments used by one type of co-teller, supporting narrators. The following discussion demonstrates that questions and evaluative comments go beyond immediate functions of seeking information or spontaneous expressive reactions. They help to fulfil expectations on supporting narrators to engage actively in the talk. It is additionally shown that these devices have functions in highlighting key aspects of the story and developing stance in intricate ways that complement the main line of the storytelling. The analysis demonstrates the close coordination of co-tellers in constructing a story; piece-by-piece they collaboratively describe and evaluate the story events as a group, prioritizing a local and situated shared telling over other potential story goals like performance and progressivity of a plot. The analysis of Umpila and Kuuku Ya'u storytelling contributes to the field of interaction and narrative studies by furthering our understanding of the organization of storytelling in different cultures and languages contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1951, performers from Daly River and Tiwi Islands Aboriginal communities staged a corroboree strike. The musicians and dancers had routinely entertained visiting cruise ships in the Darwin Botanic Gardens, but now joined dockside workers to protest the jailing and exiling of two Aboriginal agitators Lawrence Wurrpen (Urban) and Fred (Nadpur) Waters. In Melbourne, the Australian Aborigines' League expressed solidarity with the Darwin strikes and protested the exclusion of Aboriginal voices from the Jubilee of Australian Federation. The League's leaders Doug Nicholls and Bill Onus produced a new work of musical theatre featuring east coast Aboriginal performers Fred Foster, Margaret Tucker, Georgia Lee, Harold Blair, and others in 'Out of the Dark — An Aboriginal Moomba'. In this paper we examine political uses of performance in Australia's assimilation era, and show how Aboriginal agitators used music and dance to connect struggles for rights across Australia, and to keep cultural identity alive. In doing so we show how performance operated both as work and as assertion of cultural sovereignty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, Aboriginal children are significantly over‐represented in the out‐of‐home‐care system. Drawing on Aboriginal trauma scholarship and decolonizing methodologies, this paper situates the contemporary state removal of Aboriginal children against the backdrop of historical policies that actively sought to disrupt Aboriginal kinship and communities. The paper draws on submissions to the 2018 Australian Senate Parliamentary Inquiry into Adoption Reform from Aboriginal community controlled organizations and highlights four common themes evident throughout these submissions: (i) the role of intergenerational trauma in high rates of Aboriginal child removal; (ii) the place of children within Aboriginal culture, kinship and identity; (iii) the centrality of the principles of self‐determination and autonomy for Aboriginal communities and (iv) Aboriginal community controlled alternatives to child removal. Acknowledging the failure of both federal and state reforms to address the issues raised in these submissions, the paper reflects on the marginalization of Aboriginal voices and solutions within contemporary efforts to address the multiple crises of the child protection system and the implications for the future of Aboriginal children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: From 2018, the Schools Up North (SUN) programme worked with three remote Australian schools to enhance their capability and resilience to support the wellbeing and mental health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and staff. This paper explores the implementation of SUN during the first two years of COVID-19 (2020–2021). Method: Using grounded theory methods, school staff, other service providers and SUN facilitators were interviewed, with transcripts and programme documents coded and interrelationships between codes identified. An implementation model was developed. Results: The SUN approach was place-based, locally informed and relational, fostering school resilience through staff reflection on and response to emerging contextual challenges. Challenges were the: community lockdowns and school closures; (un)availability of other services; community uncertainty and anxiety; school staff capability and wellbeing; and risk of educational slippage. SUN strategies were: enhancing teachers' capabilities and resources, facilitating public health discussions, and advocating at regional level. Outcomes were: enhanced capability of school staff; greater school-community engagement; student belonging and engagement; a voice for advocacy; and continuity of SUN's momentum. Conclusions: The resilience approach (rather than specific strategies) was critical for building schools' capabilities for promoting students and staff wellbeing and provides an exemplar for remote schools globally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The historical study of exemptions has focused on escape from protectionist policies designed to control and monitor Aboriginal people in Australia — restricting their freedom of movement, intruding into their family life, and reducing their ability to participate on equal terms in the labour force. In this paper, we consider a contemporary policy — income management — which primarily restricts the freedom to dispose of personal income and has targeted Aboriginal people and communities, both directly and indirectly. Provisions for individual exemptions have been incorporated inconsistently within the many iterations of income management, and Aboriginal people are significantly less likely than others to be granted an exit from this form of financial control. The study reported here is an example of mixed‐methods social research, rather than an historiography. We use techniques of historical comparison to illuminate contemporary practices and identify the ongoing influence of settler‐colonial governance in the lives of Aboriginal people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Boomerangs are among the most recognisable elements of Australian Aboriginal technology. In the popular mindset, the prevailing image of these wooden artefacts is that of thrown implements that return to the thrower, principally used for hunting animals. However, boomerangs have a deep multipurpose role in Indigenous societies, with just a few examples of their known functions, including fighting, digging, and making music (i.e., "clap sticks"). Recently, yet another function for boomerangs has been proposed (Martellotta et al., 2021): the functional modification of lithic tools (i.e., retouching)—a form of use that is almost unknown among non-Aboriginal researchers. Here, we provide the first comprehensive review of evidence for the use of boomerangs as lithic retouching tools (percussors). A detailed lexical analysis demonstrates similarities between Palaeolithic bone retouchers used for the same purposes as the Australian hardwood boomerangs, thus confirming our traceological hypothesis and the power of using a multidisciplinary approach in investigating Australia's deep past. This paper provides the foundation for discussions surrounding the multipurpose concept behind many Aboriginal tools by focusing on the most iconic item. We propose that, in future studies, the complex technological and functional features of boomerangs should take precedence over their famous "returning effect". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the strategies that speakers employ in response to children's crying in the remote Aboriginal community of Wadeye, in northern Australia. Drawing on spontaneous interactions amongst Murrinhpatha speaking families, we analyse instances of crying by children aged 0;6 to 8;11 years, and the ways in which they are responded to. Results indicate that adult Murrinhpatha speakers manage children's distress through a variety of verbal and non-verbal strategies, and multimodal combinations thereof. The selection of strategies directly relates to the developmental stage of the crier. Adult caregivers respond differently to the crying of infants, of children who can walk unaided but are producing little if any language, of children who can talk intelligibly, and children more advanced again who have a degree of social independence. In the particular strategies that caregivers apply, they guide children towards a developmentally appropriate self-sufficiency. Caregivers encourage autonomy in ways that reflect a child's current abilities, be it physical, linguistic, emotional, or social. By exploring responses to crying in an under-researched cultural and linguistic context, this paper offers a unique perspective on the pragmatics of managing distress and what this reveals about local constructions of personhood within the context of carer-child interaction. • Analysis examines responses to children's crying in a remote Australian Aboriginal community. • Methods utilize multimodal analysis of spontaneous crying events in early childhood. • Findings show how caregiver responses are situated in relation to local expectations of children across developmental stages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the strategies that speakers employ in response to children's crying in the remote Aboriginal community of Wadeye, in northern Australia. Drawing on spontaneous interactions amongst Murrinhpatha speaking families, we analyse instances of crying by children aged 0;6 to 8;11 years, and the ways in which they are responded to. Results indicate that adult Murrinhpatha speakers manage children's distress through a variety of verbal and non-verbal strategies, and multimodal combinations thereof. The selection of strategies directly relates to the developmental stage of the crier. Adult caregivers respond differently to the crying of infants, of children who can walk unaided but are producing little if any language, of children who can talk intelligibly, and children more advanced again who have a degree of social independence. In the particular strategies that caregivers apply, they guide children towards a developmentally appropriate self-sufficiency. Caregivers encourage autonomy in ways that reflect a child's current abilities, be it physical, linguistic, emotional, or social. By exploring responses to crying in an under-researched cultural and linguistic context, this paper offers a unique perspective on the pragmatics of managing distress and what this reveals about local constructions of personhood within the context of carer-child interaction. • Analysis examines responses to children's crying in a remote Australian Aboriginal community. • Methods utilize multimodal analysis of spontaneous crying events in early childhood. • Findings show how caregiver responses are situated in relation to local expectations of children across developmental stages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The dingo (Canis dingo) is a wild-living canid endemic to mainland Australia; the descendent of an early lineage of dog introduced thousands of years ago to the continent, where it was isolated from further introductions of domestic canines until European colonisation began in 1788. Dingoes are notoriously difficult to maintain in captivity and owing to their predatory nature it is also known that they can pose a serious risk to children. Yet, written records and oral histories indicate that Aboriginal people in mainland Australia routinely practiced the rearing and keeping of dingoes in a tame state within their home communities and domestic spaces. This paper reviews historical and archaeological evidence for the management of wild and captive dingoes by Indigenous communities, revealing a substantial divide between the nature and outcomes of these interactions between historical/pre-contact Aboriginal societies and those in contemporary Australia. It is concluded that this special human-wild canid relationship has implications for the understanding of the domestication of dogs from wolves during the Late Pleistocene. Historical sources and Indigenous oral traditions indicate that Australian Aboriginal people commonly reared and kept the wild-caught pups of dingoes (C. dingo) as tamed companion animals. A review of the available evidence suggests Indigenous communities employed an intense socialisation process that forged close personal bonds between humans and their tame dingoes from an early age. This was complemented by oral traditions which passed down awareness of the dangers to children posed by wild or unfamiliar dingoes, and which communicated the importance of treating dingoes with respect. Together, these practices resulted in what can be interpreted as substantially altered behaviours in tamed dingoes, which, despite their naturally high prey drive, were not considered a serious threat to children and were thus able to be maintained as companion animals in the long term. This relationship is of importance for understanding the original domestication of the dog, as it demonstrates a means by which careful and deliberate socialisation by foragers could both manage risks to children's safety posed by keeping wild canids in the domestic realm and retain them well into reproductive maturity—both issues which have been highlighted as obstacles to the domestication of dogs from wolves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Community rehabilitation is an essential health service that is often not available to remote Australians. This paper describes the first cycle of a collaborative project, between local community members, allied health professionals and a university, to co-design a community rehabilitation and lifestyle service to support adults and older people to stay strong and age well in place. An action research framework was used to develop the service for adults in two remote communities, one being a discrete Aboriginal community. The first cycle involved planning for, and trialling of a service, with observations, reflections and feedback from clients, community members, university students and health service providers, to inform the subsequent service. Over two years, stakeholders worked collaboratively to plan, trial, reflect and replan an allied health student-assisted community rehabilitation service. The trial identified the need for dedicated clinical and cultural supervision. During replanning, three key elements for culturally responsive care were embedded into the service: reciprocity and yarning; holistic community-wide service; and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mentorship. An action-research approach to co-design has led to the establishment of a unique community rehabilitation service to address disability and rehabilitation needs in two remote Australian communities. Co-design of community rehabilitation services between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members and the local allied health professionals can lead to development of an innovative service model for remote Aboriginal communities. Culturally responsive community rehabilitation services in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities requires holistic and community-wide perspectives of wellbeing. Incorporating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ways of engaging and communicating, and leadership and mentorship for non-Indigenous allied health professionals and students are essential components for students-assisted culturally responsive services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is based on fieldwork carried out in 1981–82 with the Warlpiri women in Willowra, Northern Territory. The basis of discussion is the documentation of women's ceremonies and the return of the data many years later to this community. My role as an ethnographer in the past, and the potential outcomes of the reintroduction of ethnographic data, indicates there is much of value in the documentation of Indigenous cultural and intellectual heritage. Documenting religious ceremonies reveals a variety of values: that of the ethnographer in the documentation of Indigenous cultural and intellectual property; the intrinsic value of these material renditions to the tradition-bearers themselves; and the value of these contributions in applied community contexts. In regard to the community benefits of research and documentation, the paper addresses archival documentation for revitalisation of culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disproportionately high numbers of Aboriginal young people access residential alcohol and other drug programs in Australia. While demand is high, these programs often have low numbers of Aboriginal staff. Residential programs, however, generally offer supports that reflect features of Aboriginal health care – holistic, group-based, connected to local communities, and addressing determinants of health. The qualitative research outlined in this paper was a collaboration between a mainstream residential therapeutic community program and two Aboriginal community-controlled organisations, and Aboriginal young people and researchers, with Aboriginal research leadership. It used an Aboriginal healing framework to understand the experiences of 12 young Aboriginal people in the program, triangulated with 19 key informant interviews. This provided an opportunity to understand how Indigenous knowledge about healing related to mainstream programs and the experiences of Aboriginal young people. This moves beyond individualist and deficit-focused conceptions of youth alcohol and drug use and centres Aboriginal cultures as healing. Findings point to the need for critically self-reflective mainstream organisations, a larger Aboriginal workforce with leadership roles, partnerships with Aboriginal Elders and organisations, and an investment in Aboriginal community-controlled alcohol and other drug services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Globally, Indigenous populations have higher rates of suicidal behavior and psychological distress compared to non-Indigenous populations. Indigenous populations also report high rates of exposure to discrimination, which could potentially contribute to poor mental health outcomes. The objectives of this paper were to estimate the prevalence of discrimination among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males in Australia and to examine the role of discrimination in the association between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status and suicidal thoughts and depressive symptoms. Methods: We used cross-sectional data on 13,697 males aged 18–55 years from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Male Health. We undertook a Poisson regression with robust standard error analyses to examine Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status and self-perceived exposure to discrimination in the past 2 years as correlates of recent suicidal ideation. We used zero-inflated negative binomial regression to assess Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status and self-perceived exposure to discrimination as correlates of recent depressive symptoms. Results: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males have a twofold higher prevalence of self-perceived discrimination (39.2% vs 19.3%, p < 0.001), suicidal ideation (21.8% vs 9.4%, p < 0.001) and moderate or worse depressive symptoms (24.0% vs 12.2%, p < 0.001) as compared to their non-Indigenous counterparts. After adjusting for sociodemographics and substance use, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status was significantly associated with suicidal thoughts (odds ratio = 1.49, p = 0.019) and depressive symptoms (prevalence rate ratio = 1.19, p = 0.018). About 15.3% and 28.7% of the association between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status and suicidal thoughts and depressive symptoms, respectively, was explained by discrimination. Conclusion: Our analyses add to evidence that discrimination is a contributor to mental health disparities between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous populations in Australia. Reducing discrimination ought to be considered as part of strategies to improve the social and emotional well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Screen-printed textiles from remote Australian Aboriginal communities are a widely acclaimed and celebrated form of cultural expression. They bring substantial benefits to artists and their communities. This paper describes research that examines ways in which textiles are understood and valued in the context of their collaborative intercultural development whilst also examining "cloth" as a unique creative medium for conveying cultural narratives. Australia's colonial past may cast subsequent intercultural collaboration in a negative light. However, this paper proposes the hypotheses that non-Indigenous collaborative contribution to textile creation does not diminish the power of this work for artists; nor does it lessen the cultural meaning and value of the ancestral stories portrayed. An additional inter-related hypothesis holds that cloth carries a cultural voice in a way that other forms of cultural production cannot. Yet the journey taken by these textiles is precarious. "Industry" can undervalue the cultural narratives and potentially expose Aboriginal screen-printed textiles to commercial misuse. A proposed qualitative research investigation will test the hypotheses, with a focus on how textiles are understood and valued by artists who create the work and by key participants along their journey. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last decade, the debate about Australia's relationship with Indigenous people has entered a new phase with the prospect of a referendum to amend the Constitution. In this paper we use a wide range of survey data going back to the 1970s to examine public opinion towards Indigenous issues and likely voting in any future referendum to recognise Indigenous Australians. Our results show a long-term liberalisation in public opinion which can be traced mainly to period effects within the electorate. This liberalisation in opinion is the major explanation for the large majority who would currently support a change in the Constitution to recognise Indigenous peoples. Our results have significant policy implications for how governments approach the inherent difficulties surrounding Indigenous recognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have been the longstanding targets of racism and discrimination in Australia. This paper presents the findings of a systematic literature review designed to identify and synthesise the available evidence exploring these intergroup attitudes, and the factors that correlate with them. Searches were conducted in Medline, Psychology and Behavioural Sciences Collection, ProQuest Psychology Database and PsycINFO databases. Eligible studies were required to measure attitudes of non-Indigenous Australians towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Twenty studies met the eligibility criteria (n = 2,958). The results outlined: (a) the prevalence of negative attitudes, (b) attitudes were most commonly conceptualised as modern racism, and (c) that there are a range of factors that are associated with negativity towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The review outlined the relationship between attitudes towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and demographic, ideological, individual differences, and intergroup factors. This review highlights the need for continued research in this domain to inform appropriate prejudice reduction strategies. KEY POINTS What is already known about this topic: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples face continued adversity, prejudice, and discrimination on their own land. This heightened propensity to be targeted for prejudice is a known social determinant of poorer health and wellbeing. Understanding racial attitudes towards this group is an imperative step in understanding and combating this health disparity. What this topic adds: There is a paucity of academic research exploring negativity towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples The limited quantity of evidence does establish a range of correlates with negative attitudes that can be clustered into four themes – demographic factors, ideological variables, individual differences factors, and intergroup factors. More research is warranted in this domain to further establish a body of evidence on intergroup attitudes towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, with a renewed focus needed on prejudice reduction techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Past histories charting interactions between British healthcare and Aboriginal Australians have tended to be dominated by broad histological themes such as invasion and colonization. While such descriptions have been vital to modernization and truth telling in Australian historical discourse, this paper investigates the nineteenth century through the modern cultural lens of mental health. We reviewed primary documents, including colonial diaries, church sermons, newspaper articles, medical and burial records, letters, government documents, conference speeches and anthropological journals. Findings revealed six overlapping fields which applied British ideas about mental health to Aboriginal Australians during the nineteenth century. They included military invasion, religion, law, psychological systems, lunatic asylums, and anthropology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on a commendation received by the paper titled "The Historic Importance of the Dingo in Aboriginal Society in Victoria (Australia): A Reconsideration of the Archival Record," by Fred Cahir and Ian Clark at the 2013 Victorian [Australia] Community History Awards.

Aim: To systematically review the literature to investigate the role of the hospital pharmacist and the services provided for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people. Methods: A systematic literature review was performed following a search from inception to present of MEDLINE, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts (IPA), EMBASE, Scopus and Pubmed, in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. All forms of published literature were included. Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people and hospital pharmacists/pharmacy department services in Australia were the populations included. Results: 1592 studies were identified. After removal of duplicates and application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, 16 papers underwent full text review, with 7 papers included in the final review. No high‐level evidence articles were found. Joanna Briggs Institute Levels of Evidence for meaningfulness were low. Settings were varied and included rural, remote and urban sites. Five articles were allocated a Donabedian Model level where the structure was described. Two papers described structure and process. None described outcomes. Hospital pharmacy services included development of models for patient care, partnerships and resource sharing in rural and remote areas and ensuring continuity of care. Conclusion: Systematic review of the literature to determine the role of hospital pharmacy services for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people produced limited publications for review. From these, roles identified included: development of models for patient care, partnerships and resource sharing in rural and remote areas and ensuring continuity of care. Future research and publication of work by hospital pharmacists nurturing and developing relationships in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities is encouraged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study investigated the delivery of guideline-recommended services for the management of acute rheumatic fever (ARF) and rheumatic heart disease (RHD) in Australian primary healthcare centres participating in the Audit and Best Practice for Chronic Disease (ABCD) National Research Partnership project. Methods: ARF and RHD clinical audit data were collected from 63 Aboriginal centres in four Australian jurisdictions using the ABCD ARF/RHD audit tool. Records of up to 30 patients treated for ARF and/or RHD were analysed per centre from the most recent audit conducted between 2009 and 2014. The main outcome measure was a quality of ARF and RHD care composite indicator consisting of nine best-practice service items. Results: Of 1081 patients, most were Indigenous (96%), female (61%), from the Northern Territory and Queensland (97%) and <25 years of age (49%). The composite indicator was highest in the 0–14 year age group (77% vs 65–67% in other age groups). Timely injections and provision of client education are important specific areas for improvement. Multiple regression showed age >15 years to be a significant negative factor for several care indicators, particularly for the delivery of long-acting antibiotic injections and specialist services in the 15–24 year age group. Conclusions: The results suggest that timely injection and patient education are priorities for managing ARF and RHD, particularly focusing on child-to-adult transition care. What is known about the topic?: The burden of rheumatic fever and RHD in some Aboriginal communities is among the highest documented globally. Guideline-adherent RHD prevention and management in primary health care (PHC) settings are critically important to reduce this burden. Continuous quality improvement (CQI) is a proven strategy to improve guideline adherence, using audit cycles and proactive engagement of PHC end users with their own data. Previously, such CQI strategies using a systems approach were shown to improve delivery of ARF and RHD care in six Aboriginal health services (three government and three community controlled). What does this paper add?: This paper focuses on the variation across age groups in the quality of ARF and/or RHD care according to nine quality of care indicators across 63 PHC centres serving the Aboriginal population in the Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia. These new findings provide insight into difference in quality of care by life stage, indicating particular areas for improvement of the management of ARF and RHD at the PHC level, and can act as a baseline for monitoring of care quality for ARF and RHD into the future. What are the implications for practitioners?: Management plans and innovative strategies or systems for improving adherence need to be developed as a matter of urgency. PHC professionals need to closely monitor adherence to secondary prophylaxis at both the clinic and individual level. RHD priority status needs to be assigned and recorded as a tool to guide management. Systems strengthening needs to particularly target child-to-adult transition care. Practitioners are urged to keep a quick link to the RHDAustralia website to access resources and guidelines pertaining to ARF and RHD (https://www.rhdaustralia.org.au/arf-rhd-guideline, accessed 3 October 2019). CQI strategies can assist PHC centres to improve the care they provide to patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Completion rates in vocational education are typically poor for Aboriginal students (<30%). A scholarship program was designed for Australian Aboriginal students using five enablers of success previously identified for Aboriginal preregistration tertiary nursing students. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the five enablers contributed to the success of Aboriginal students in vocational education and whether there were any other enablers. Methods: Semistructured interviews were conducted with two groups of Aboriginal students in Certificate III and IV Dental Assisting and Certificate IV in Allied Health Assistance, and their teaching and support staff. The data were initially coded inductively. Initial codes were then categorised according to the five enablers identified to contribute to the success of Bachelor of Nursing students. New categories were created for data not assigned to the enablers. Results: Twenty students (64.5% of the cohort) and six staff (75%) consented to participate. The five enablers were perceived to have contributed to the success of the scholarship recipients and two additional enablers were identified. A completion rate of 96.8% was achieved by the scholarship recipients (30 completions of 31 enrolments). Conclusions: In contrast with the state average, a completion rate of 96.8% was achieved using seven enablers in this study. To improve completion rates for Aboriginal students, vocational education programs need to be customised to cultural, family and community context. The seven enablers in this study should be subject to a larger study to inform policy, funding, design and delivery of vocational training for Aboriginal students. What is known about the topic?: It is well established in the literature that Aboriginal students have poorer educational outcomes than other students. What does this paper add?: This paper validates five previously identified enablers to improve outcomes for Aboriginal students and an additional two for vocational education. These enablers may also be applicable to other types of education. What are the implications for practitioners?: Practitioners can use the enablers in this study to design and implement vocational education programs and improve educational outcomes for Aboriginal students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on the findings from a study exploring the efficacy of a training program for child protection practitioners. The training aimed to improve understanding of the sociohistorical context that underpins interactions between the welfare system and Aboriginal communities, the impact of past and present child protection laws, and the importance of trauma theory to guide practice when working with Aboriginal families. A pre–post survey design study was conducted. Findings demonstrated the preferred theoretical approach to practice was guided by attachment theory. No participant listed trauma theory as guiding their work with Aboriginal families. The study found the lack of skills and knowledge deficit of trauma-informed principles and the limited understanding of trauma theories can be and should be addressed in vocational training. As a result of the training, participants' knowledge about trauma significantly improved, as did their understanding of key concepts such as the difference between past and current welfare laws, assimilation, intergenerational trauma and trauma-related behaviours. Findings point to the need for high quality training in entry-level and professional development for welfare practitioners to support best practice in working with Aboriginal families, and the importance of rigorous evaluation of training to ensure that it is impactful. IMPLICATIONS Welfare practitioners do not necessarily understand trauma theory and trauma-informed practice and do not understand the impact of trauma on Indigenous Australians. Mandatory in-service training about the past and ongoing traumatic impact of previous child welfare system laws, must be provided to welfare practitioners. Trauma theory needs to guide child protection practice when working with Aboriginal families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The aim of this paper is to describe the implementation and evaluation of the Growing Strong Brains® (GSB) toolkit in a remote Aboriginal community in Western Australia (WA) over a 2-year period, 2018–2019. Background: Ngala, a community service organisation in WA, developed the GSB toolkit in 2014, a culturally appropriate and interactive resource to build knowledge of early childhood development within Aboriginal communities. This was in response to evidence that a higher percentage of children in Aboriginal communities were developmentally vulnerable compared to the rest of the population. The GSB toolkit promotes awareness and understanding of early brain development pre-birth and in the early years of a child's life. Methods: The project was underpinned by participatory action research (PAR). Reflective PAR review cycles (n = 5) monitored local community engagement, navigated challenges and utilised community strengths. Fifty-nine local service providers attended a 2-day formal training. Data were collected by using various methods throughout the project, including feedback following training, focus groups, surveys, one-on-one interviews using yarning techniques and reflective feedback from the Project Lead. Findings: Establishing local Aboriginal project staff was pivotal to the success of the project. When delivering services for and with Aboriginal people, it is essential that cultural competence, safety and decision-making is carried through from planning to implementation and evaluation, and involves genuine, respectful and authentic relationships. Sufficient time allocation directed towards building relationships with other service providers and local community members needs to be considered and built into future projects. The Growing Strong Brains® project is embedded within the local community, and anticipated implementation outcomes were achieved. The support of the local people and service providers was beyond expectation, enabling the building of local capacity, and the development of a common understanding of the key messages from the GSB toolkit to allow integration throughout all levels of the community. This project has been important to build on the strategies necessary to introduce, implement and evaluate the GSB toolkit in other remote Aboriginal communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Uluru Climb, located within Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, Australia, was permanently closed to tourists on the 26 October 2019 after decades of controversy. Determined by a unanimous vote of the Anangu majority Board of Management, news of the Climb's closure quickly captured popular, political and media attention, not all of which was positive. Drawing on two periods of fieldwork – the first in November 2012 (n = 68 interviewees) and the second in May 2019 (n = 62 interviewees) – this paper discusses visitor responses to the Climb both in terms of the ongoing coloniality evident in discourses of nationalism and individual rights and the possibility of the transformation of such views via a range of emotional and affective engagements. We highlight the prevalence of feelings of ownership, empathy and shame in the deployment of a range of views on the Climb and other cultural restrictions, as well as their political implications in the context of contemporary Australian settler-colonialism. In so doing, we position an ethic of relationality as key to the mobilisation of feelings, emotions and affects necessary to transform the outlook of visitors in the context of ongoing reconciliation debates between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Yolŋu Aboriginal people's knowledge about water ("gapu") and its governance has strong cultural significance and meaning in East Arnhem Land Aboriginal worlds in northern Australia. This study used transdisciplinary research methods to explore the ways in which Yolŋu Aboriginal gapu and Western science hydrological knowledge can work together and contribute towards water management on Milingimbi Island, a small, resource-constrained, bedrock island. Transcending disciplinary boundaries is distinctly different to an interdisciplinary, socio-hydrological perspective, which can pose a risk to hybridizing Aboriginal knowledge and Western science. Community engagement activities and workshops were conducted as part of a three-year research project to bring together the incommensurable knowledge communities. A participatory three-dimensional mapping exercise created a shared space, facilitating an open-dialogue exchange of insight and knowledge among Aboriginal knowledge authorities, hydrologists, public servants, and academic researchers. This paper prompts readers to reconsider the ways water can be perceived and conserved in a decolonizing way. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Australia and internationally, Indigenous children are seriously overrepresented in the child welfare system. This article provides an overview of literature investigating the needs of Indigenous children in residential care facilities. The provision of culturally safe and trauma-informed therapeutic care to Indigenous children and young people in residential care recognizes that the trauma and violence that they have experienced is exacerbated by their Indigeneity due to the colonial histories presenting. Utilizing a systematic scoping review methodology, the study returned a total of 637 peer-reviewed articles that were identified and reviewed for inclusion. The process of exclusion resulted in the inclusion of eight peer-reviewed studies and 51 reports and discussion papers sourced from gray literature. Findings from this study, though dearth, indicate that trauma-informed and culturally safe interventions play a significant role in Indigenous children's health and well-being while in care. Their experiences of abuse and neglect transcend individual trauma and include intergenerational pain and suffering resulting from long-lasting impacts of colonization, displacement from culture and country, genocidal policies, racism, and the overall systemic disadvantage. As such, a therapeutic response, embedded within Indigenous cultural frameworks and knowledges of trauma, is not only important but absolutely necessary and aims to acknowledge the intersectionality between the needs of Indigenous children in care and the complex systemic disadvantage impacting them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the processes of assemblage as an important aspect in studies of contemporary Australian settler colonialism. I explore how, what I am calling the Indigenous development assemblage, is made up of various government policies, actors, discourse, knowledge, legal frameworks and institutions, intersect and cohere with each other. I also explore how this assemblage affects not only material outcomes but also generates an atmosphere that affects aspirations, hope and possibility for change. Through examining various processes of the assemblage underway in the town of Kununurra, I argue that settler colonialism is different to the totalitarian form it often is described as. Through understanding the processes of assemblage, incoherence, disruption and emergence was also observed which opens up possibilities of the destabilisation of the assemblage itself. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pandemics such as COVID-19 are a serious public health risk for Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, yet primary healthcare systems are not well resourced to respond to such urgent events. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, a federal government advisory group recommended a rapid, tailored Indigenous response to prevent predicted high morbidity and mortality rates. This paper examines the efforts of one ACCHO, which in the absence of dedicated funding, pivoted its operations in response to COVID-19. Gurriny Yealamucka Health Service (Gurriny) is the only primary healthcare service in the discrete Indigenous community of Yarrabah, Far North Queensland.Methods: The research was conducted at the request of the Chief Executive Officer of Gurriny. Using grounded theory methods, thirteen Gurriny staff and five Yarrabah and government leaders and community members were interviewed, transcripts of these interviews and 59 documents were imported into NVIVO-12 and coded, and key concepts were compared, organised into higher order constructs, then structured into a theoretical framework.Results: Gurriny responded to COVID-19 by leading with local solutions to keep Yarrabah safe. Four key strategies were implemented: managing the health service operations, realigning services, educating and supporting community, and working across agencies. These strategies were enabled or hindered by five conditions: the governance and leadership capacity of Gurriny, relying on the health taskforce, locking the door, "copping it", and (not) having resources. A year after the first case was experienced in Australia and on the eve of vaccine rollout to Indigenous communities, there have been no COVID-19 cases in Yarrabah.Discussion: The success of the locally led, holistic, comprehensive and culturally safe response of Gurriny suggests that such tailored place-based approaches to pandemics (and other health issues) are appropriate, but require dedicated resourcing. Key challenges were the fragmented and rapidly changing government processes, poorly coordinated communication and resource allocation channels, and bottlenecks in hierarchical funding approval processes.Conclusions: The COVID-19 response in Yarrabah demonstrates the need for governance reform towards greater resourcing and support for local decision making by Aboriginal community-controlled health organisations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aims of this study were to review the demographic details of those who have undergone lower limb amputation (LLA) surgery in Central Australia and determine the region-specific age-adjusted incidence rate of LLA. Methods: A retrospective audit of service users who underwent LLA in a Central Australian hospital from 2012 to 2017 was undertaken. Demographic, operative and postoperative outcomes data were collected. The age-adjusted incidence rate of LLA was determined using the direct method. Demographic data were analysed using descriptive parametric analysis. Results: In the period 2012–17, 166 service users underwent a total of 291 amputations in 231 episodes of care (hospital admissions). The age-adjusted incidence rate of LLA was 87.4 per 100 000 for females and 104.6 per 100 000 for males in this region. In total, 84% (n = 140) of those requiring amputation surgery identified as Aboriginal Australians (P < 0.001), 54% (n = 75) of whom were female. Aboriginal Australians who underwent LLA were, on average, 13 years younger and were more likely to have type 2 diabetes (P < 0.001) and require renal dialysis (P < 0.001) than the non-Aboriginal Australian cohort. Of the Aboriginal Australians who underwent LLA, 82% (n = 103) lived very remotely (>100 km from the central town's centre), compared with 23% of non-Aboriginal Australians (P < 0.001). In addition, 46% (n = 64) of Aboriginal Australians who underwent LLA required renal dialysis. Those requiring renal dialysis were more likely to require subsequent amputation (P = 0.014) and had a higher mortality rate following amputation (P = 0.031). Partial foot amputation was the most common level of amputation in Central Australia (38%). Conclusions: Central Australia appears to have the highest incidence rate of LLA for any region in Australia, with Aboriginal Australians, particularly females and those undergoing renal dialysis, being disproportionately represented. Further studies should aim to determine targeted, culturally safe and successful methods of diabetic foot ulcer prevention, early detection and management with a view to reducing the high amputation rates for these cohorts. What is known about the topic?: Large health inequalities between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians exist. Aboriginal Australians are currently fourfold as likely as non-Aboriginal Australians to have type 2 diabetes (T2D), increasing their risk of LLA. There is a geographical variance in the incidence of LLA in Australia; the Northern Territory is overrepresented, with rates two- to threefold higher than that of the national average. Regional incidence rates are not currently known. What does this paper add?: This study showed that the age-adjusted incidence rate for LLA in Central Australia is significantly higher than in other regions in Australia. Most LLA surgeries undertaken in Central Australia were performed for Aboriginal Australians who have T2D, with a disproportionate representation of females and those requiring renal dialysis. What are the implications for practitioners?: This study shows that there is a need for further research and preventative measures to address the high rates of LLA among Aboriginal Australians, particularly for females and those with renal impairment. These groups could benefit from targeted, culturally safe approaches to early identification, referral and management of lower limb ulceration by relevant service providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the English literacy outcomes of Aboriginal children are constantly measured and debated, attention falls away once they leave school, leading to limited data on English literacy rates among Australia's Aboriginal adults. This paper reports on an investigation into the prevalence of low literacy in adults in eight Aboriginal communities in NSW, Australia, drawing on both self-report data from household surveys and objective professional assessments using the Australian Core Skills Framework (ACSF). The research was conducted in partnership with a national Aboriginal organisation as part of a longitudinal study of the impact of improved adult literacy on the social determinants of health and social wellbeing. Of the participants who were measured to have low or very low English-language literacy level using ACSF, 51% had completed Year 10 or higher. This casts serious doubt on the value of school completion data which is used, for example, in Close the Gap reporting, as an accurate predictor of adult literacy rates. Results further show that while self-reported low literacy was prevalent in the population studied, there was also a significant overestimation, with adults who have completed years 10–11 nearly 30 times more likely to overestimate compared to people who only complete primary school. Given the well-known associations between adult literacy and a range of other outcomes including income, employment and health, national adult literacy surveys such as the Program for International Assessment of Adult Competencies should aim to produce more comprehensive national, regional and local data on Aboriginal adult English literacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alongside Toonooba (the Fitzroy River) in central Queensland, Australia, a series of flood markers are embedded within the earth, commanding attention to the river that flows on one side and the colonial infrastructure of Rockhampton on the other. Honouring Land Connections is an artwork that asserts Indigenous voices, marks Indigenous spaces, and encourages visitors to engage in conversation with Indigenous culture and art. This paper considers Indigenous art as a form of social action. Firstly, it discusses the value of such art projects, and presents an Indigenous perspective of their meaning, addresses their role in creating and embodying culture and identity, how they express and share culture, along with collaborative approaches, and the importance of learning on and from Country. It concludes with a discussion of the political and cultural meaning created through art, suggesting that it is impossible for a public artwork like Honouring Land Connections to not be political. This article explores how art facilitates an interactive social space through which Aboriginal artists affirm, negotiate and share their identities while challenging preconceptions of place and identities reminding us that Aboriginal presence outlasts the moment of its production and imprints itself on the landscape and people's consciousness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Delivering effective healthcare requires healthcare professionals to reflect on their own cultural background and their patient's cultural needs. Culture is a determinant of health and if not considered, negative health outcomes can result. This is of particular importance when working with Aboriginal communities and caring for Aboriginal people whose views have been excluded from healthcare models, funding, and policy. Non-indigenous healthcare professionals, such as pharmacy students, benefit from understanding Aboriginal peoples' healthcare needs and models of holistic healthcare, as well as reflecting on their own cultures, assumptions, and experiences on placement. This article explores students' views to inform the development of a Toolkit to support students' learning prior to engaging in placements in Aboriginal communities. The study involved collaboration with students, Aboriginal community members, educators experienced in Indigenous health and allied health education. This paper is within a series exploring the development and evaluation of the 'Working Respectfully with Aboriginal People (WRAP): Student Toolkit'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aboriginal people have lived in Australia, continuously, for tens of thousands of years. Over that time, they developed complex knowledge systems that were committed to memory and passed to successive generations through oral tradition. The length of time oral traditions can be passed down while maintaining vitality is a topic of ongoing debate in the social sciences. In recent years, scientists have weighed into the debate by studying traditions that describe natural events, such as volcanic eruptions and meteorite impacts, which can be dated using scientific techniques. Here, we bring together a trans-disciplinary team of scholars to apply this approach to Tasmanian Aboriginal (palawa) oral traditions that were recorded in the early nineteenth century. These traditions describe the flooding of the Bassian Land Bridge connecting Tasmania to mainland Australia and the presence of a culturally significant "Great South Star", identified as Canopus (α Carinae). Utilising bathymetric and topographic data of the land and sea floor in the Bass Strait, we estimate the Bassian Land Bridge was finally submerged approximately 12,000 years ago. We then calculate the declination of the star Canopus over the last precessional cycle (26,000 years) to show that it was at a far southerly declination (δ < −75°) between 16,300 and 11,800 years ago, reaching its minimum declination approximately 14,000 years ago. These lines of evidence provide a terminus ante quem of the Tasmanian traditions to the end of the Late Pleistocene. This paper supports arguments that the longevity of orality can exceed ten millennia, providing critical information essential to the further development of theoretical frameworks regarding the archaeology of orality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thinking about the governance of Indigenous poverty as an economic, social and racial project, the paper offers a way of understanding the dynamics of Indigenous policy formation in Australia in the neo-liberal age as what Howard Winant first coined a racial formation. In providing this analysis, this paper sits alongside a small, but growing body of work that reveals the racialized effects of governing through poverty in the neo-liberal age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how two Britons, working in Western Australia and Natal, respectively, engaged with ideas about the civilisation and education of Indigenous people. It is argued that concepts of civilisation were debated by missionaries, researchers and members of the public. Using the correspondence, publications and private journals of two educators, Dr Henry Callaway, Church of England missionary in Natal, and Ann Camfield, teacher in Western Australia, the paper draws attention to their respective approaches to education. Each contributed to broader imperial debates concerning the meaning of race in relation to educability. Education in both places, while connected to these global ideas, was also profoundly influenced by local context. 'Civilisation' and the 'civilising mission' may have been unifying goals for missionaries in different sites of Empire, but understandings of what civilisation should inculcate, or do, varied according to particular circumstances. These histories are best understood in transnational and comparative perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper I explore the kincentric ecologies that define sea country for Indigenous Australians, in particular the Yanyuwa of Northern Australia. Despite colonial alienation from their coastal territories, Yanyuwa have sustained a four-decade long legal fight for restitution. Using the framework of ‘urgent patience’ as resistance against ‘social death’, this paper tracks the historical legacy of legislative land rights for saltwater peoples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have increasingly come into contact with the mainstream Australian legal system, as offenders, litigants or victims of it, that system has not only had to confront its legacy of colonial violence, but it has been called to question first, the legitimacy of its own authority based upon that violence and, second, the limits of its ability to properly administer justice for First Nations Australians. This paper will address the question of “what does it mean to decolonise justice for First Nations Australians?” It argues that decolonising justice entails nurturing a “jurisprudence of hybridity” as a response to the imbalance whereupon colonial justice violated Indigenous Law. This process, the paper argues, entails three steps: decolonising the mind, listening and learning of Indigenous Law ways; destabilising colonial legal authority in order to examine its knowledge/power relations and shifting the paradigm of legal pluralism from monist-pluralism to pluralist-pluralism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over much of the nineteenth century, recurring problems of covert and opportunistic conflict between settlers and Indigenous peoples produced considerable debate across the British settler world about how frontier violence could be legally curbed. At the same time, the difficulty of imposing a rule of law on new frontiers was often seen by colonial states as justification for the imposition of order through force. Examining all the mainland Australian colonies from the 1830s to the end of the nineteenth century, this paper asks how this contradictory dilemma played out through deployment of ‘native police’ and the ‘civilising’ role of legalised violence as a strategy for managing the settler frontier. In light of wider debate about a humanely administered empire, Australia’s first native police force established in New South Wales in 1837 was conceived as a measure that would assist in the conciliation and ‘amelioration’ of Aboriginal people. In the coming decades, other Australian colonies employed native police either as dedicated forces or as individual assistants attached to mounted police detachments. Over time, the capacity they held to impose extreme violence on Aboriginal populations in the service of protecting pastoral investments came to reflect an implicit acceptance that punitive measures were required to bring order to disorderly frontiers. By tracing a gradual shift in the perceived role of native police from one of ‘civilising’ Aboriginal people to one of ‘civilising’ the settler state itself, this paper draws out some of the conditions under which state-sanctioned force became naturalised and legitimated. It concludes that, as an instrument of frontier management, native policing reflected an enduring problem for Australia’s colonial governments in reconciling a legal obligation to treat Aboriginal people as subjects of the crown with a perceived requirement to bring them under colonial authority through the ‘salutary lessons’ of legalised violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the potential for multiple co-benefits to arise through re-establishing the connection between Aboriginal people and their lands. The research project was participatory in its design and implementation, and centred on three short but intensive visits to the Kendall River over a period of 4 years. Interviews with and observations of Kendall River people on country provided qualitative information concerning their wish to reconnect with country, not only to transmit key cultural knowledge through the generations, re-socialise their lands and manage them appropriately but also to help them manage the negative consequences of Wik aggregation in the troubled community of Aurukun. Participants reported that returning to and carrying out activities on country, and the family and country planning resulting from those trips, provided a way to counter feelings of disempowerment and despondency arising from living solely in Aurukun. This paper concludes by arguing that activities that re-engage Aboriginal people with country (if not actually returning to live on country) can serve to build cultural resilience in the face of multiple economic, environmental and social challenges, including those arising from life lived largely in communities such as Aurukun, thereby also likely benefiting their physical and psychosocial health and well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

White ignorance has a critical impact on race relations and is implicated in the maintenance of Aboriginal disadvantage. Addressing this ignorance is a largely overlooked capacity‐building opportunity within Australia's non‐Aboriginal population. It warrants consideration as a key component of strategies targeting Aboriginal disadvantage. Despite the established links between race relations and Aboriginal well‐being, Aboriginal perspectives on non‐Aboriginal people rarely feature in public discourse on "Aboriginal problems." This paper draws on data from 180 in‐depth interviews with 44 Aboriginal people in Darwin on the topic of White Australian people, culture and race relations. It reports Aboriginal perceptions of White Australian ignorance across areas of great symbolic and practical significance to Aboriginal people's lives. Their experience is that most White Australians are ignorant of the history of colonisation and the complexities of its aftermath. They are ignorant of Aboriginal law, cultures and languages, and of the extent of their own ignorance. The call to address White ignorance subverts assumptions about whose ignorance and capacity must be dealt with in order to progress national goals of reconciliation, address Aboriginal disadvantage and achieve justice and equality for Aboriginal people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the strength of leadership statements in Australian state and territory policy documents supporting increased representation of Indigenous people in the health workforce. Methods: Document analysis of leadership statements, prefacing state and territory Indigenous health workforce plans, from a relevant Minister or Head of Department was undertaken to detect the presence and level of 'dependency messaging': did the leadership statement clearly state that an Indigenous health workforce was needed to improve Indigenous health outcomes? Results: Australian health leaders do not routinely use dependency messaging in state and territory Indigenous health workforce plans. Conclusion: Greater alignment of state and territory Indigenous health workforce plans with contemporary diversity management knowledge could improve recruitment and retention of Indigenous peoples and, ultimately, Indigenous health outcomes. What is known about the topic?: The diversity management and change management literature highlights the importance of demonstrated leadership. Dependency messaging is the clear articulation of the benefit that members of minority and diversity groups bring to an organisation's performance; this is regarded as highly influential for diversity recruitment and retention. What does this paper add?: Strong 'dependency messaging' in health policy leadership statements could increase the Indigenous health workforce, and ultimately improve health outcomes, but is currently not uniformly used across jurisdictions. State and territory Indigenous health workforce plans were analysed using the diverse literature of change management, diversity management and strength-based approaches to provide recommendations for policy improvement that could lead to better Indigenous healthcare outcomes. What are the implications for practitioners?: The use of dependency messaging by health leaders could enhance recruitment of an Indigenous health workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of this study was to identify the contribution of Aboriginal Health Workers and Liaison Officers (AHWLOs) to quality of care in the acute health care setting in Australia. Methods: A systematic review of peer-reviewed literature focused on the role of AHWLOs and quality processed and quality outcomes. Authors undertook study selection based on inclusion criteria and performed quality assessment using critical appraisal tools from the Joanna Briggs Institute. Results: The search revealed limited literature that met the inclusion criteria, namely four quantitative studies and one mixed-methods study. The settings of the included studies were mental health and cardiac care units within various hospitals. The studies indicated that AHWLOs may have a positive effect on communication between healthcare professionals and patients, rates of discharge against medical advice and continuity of care. Methodological constraints among the included studies made it difficult to establish specific contributions of AHWLOs to quality care markers across acute care units. Conclusions: The role of AHWLOs in providing quality care in the acute care setting has received minimal research. The limited existing research highlights the importance of the AHWLO role. For example, AHWLOs may influence patient communication, discharge against medical advice and continuity of care within mental health and cardiac care units. Further, because of methodological constraints among the limited studies, research into the role of AHWLOs in these and other acute care settings is needed to assess effects on a range of specific clinical quality markers. What is known about the topic?: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people experience unacceptable health inequities. AHWLOs are a unique workforce introduced to increase access to culturally safe care and, ultimately, help to address these inequities. What does this paper add?: This review explores the current evidence for the contribution of AHWLOs to quality care in the acute care setting. The findings suggest that these professionals may improve communication between patients and medical staff, improve continuity of care and reduce patient discharge against medical advice. However, these findings highlight that the use of quality care markers across acute care settings is needed to generate tangible evidence to help establish the legitimacy of these health professionals. What are the implications for practitioners?: AHWLOs have a place in the acute care team. Although further research is required to expand the preliminary evidence base of their effect on quality acute care, this workforce should be supported at the individual, organisational and policy levels to enhance the health and well-being of one the most vulnerable communities in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many Australians living with a disability find themselves recipients of Newstart Allowance when applying for the Disability Support Pension (DSP). Newstart Allowance is designed as a short-term payment for people looking for work, with a lower fortnightly payment and limited medical and transport subsidies compared to the DSP. This paper describes the financial challenges of living with a disability while on Newstart Allowance. With a focus on the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Indigenous) Australians from two regional towns, qualitative semistructured interviews and focus groups documented experiences of 39 community members and 21 medical and nonmedical service providers supporting clients living with a disability on Newstart Allowance. Four themes were identified: (i) living with severe financial hardship, (ii) challenges complying with the DSP application, (iii) being financially penalised for not complying with Newstart Allowance conditions, and (iv) supporting community members to manage severe financial stress. Although people living with a disability on Newstart were experiencing severe hardship and poverty, there was limited participation of Centrelink-employed social workers within their described experiences with Centrelink. We argue that social workers can work to humanise human service settings and potentially help to mitigate these financial challenges. IMPLICATIONS Indigenous Australians living with a disability experience severe disadvantage and poverty while living on Newstart Allowance. Social workers must be easily accessible at Centrelink customer service centres and to Newstart Allowance recipients to help coordinate service engagement. Newstart Allowance should be increased to ensure recipients can respond to cost of living pressures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The Northern Territory has the highest incidence of haemodialysis care for end-stage kidney disease in Australia. Although acute kidney injury (AKI) is a recognised risk for chronic kidney disease (CKD), the effect of AKI causing incident haemodialysis (iHD) is unknown. Audits identifying antecedents of iHD may inform health service planning. Thus, the aims of this study were to describe: (1) the development of an iHD recording system involving patients with AKI and CKD; and (2) the incidence, patient characteristics and mortality for patients with dialysis-requiring AKI. Methods: A retrospective data linkage study was conducted using eight clinical and administrative datasets of adults receiving iHD during the period from July 2011 to December 2012 within a major northern Australian hospital for AKI without CKD (AKI), AKI in people with pre-existing CKD (AKI/CKD) and CKD (without AKI). The time to death was identified by the Northern Territory Register of deaths. Results: In all, 121 iHD treatments were provided for the cohort, whose mean age was 51.5 years with 53.7% female, 68.6% Aboriginal ethnicity and 46.3% with diabetes. iHD was provided for AKI (23.1%), AKI/CKD (47.1%) and CKD (29.8%). The 90-day mortality rate was 25.6% (AKI 39.3%, AKI/CKD 22.8%, CKD 19.4%). The 3-year mortality rate was 45.5% (AKI 53.6%, AKI/CKD 22.8%, CKD 19.4%). The time between requesting data from custodians and receipt of data ranged from 15 to 1046 days. Conclusion: AKI in people with pre-existing CKD was a common cause of iHD. Health service planning and community health may benefit from AKI prevention strategies and the implementation of sustainable and permanent linkages with the datasets used to monitor prospective incident haemodialysis. What is known about the topic?: AKI is a risk factor for CKD. The Northern Territory has the highest national incidence rates of dialysis-dependent end-stage kidney disease, but has no audit tool describing outcomes of dialysis-requiring AKI. What does this paper add?: We audited all iHD and showed 25.6% mortality within the first 90 days of iHD and 45.5% overall mortality at 3 years. AKI in people with pre-existing CKD caused 47.1% of iHD. What are the implications for practitioners?: Health service planning and community health may benefit from AKI prevention strategies and the implementation of sustainable and permanent linkages with the datasets used to monitor prospective incident haemodialysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As incarceration rates rise worldwide, increasing numbers of parents are separated from their children. Researchers have studied the psychosocial impact on inmates and their families extensively. However, few researchers have examined how their own perspectives affect the collection and interpretation of data, specifically about parenting in correctional settings. This paper consider methodological implications of conducting research with incarcerated mothers and fathers, employing critical reflexivity to explore researchers' individual and collective experiences in a study in Australian correctional facilities. Using ourselves as informants, we examine how the context and life experiences of 'researcher' and 'researched' interact during interviews in a unique and emotionally charged environment. Correctional research requires careful adaptations to collect meaningful data from inmates and recognise their vulnerability as parents. The emotional content of interviews also has implications for analysing and interpreting research data. Our focus on interviewees as mothers and fathers, rather than as offenders, generated greater understanding of the needs of parents in custody. Recognising researchers' feelings, experiences and perspectives on parenthood can enrich research with families affected by the criminal justice and child protection systems. These insights can also inform the understanding and practice of social workers, health practitioners, educators and students who work with marginalised parents and children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aboriginal People have inhabited the Australian continent before time began, but archaeologists and anthropologists state there is evidence for approximately 51,000 to 71,000 years of continual habitation. During this time, the Australian continent has experienced many environmental and climatic changes, which have contributed to mass animal extinction. The skeletal remains of Aboriginal Australians were examined for evidence, which may be indicative of fast running which would assist survival. The skull and mandible bones of the Kaurna People were examined for signs evolutional traits related to survival. Aboriginal culture, knowledge of medical treatment and traditional medicines were also investigated. Oral storytelling of factual events, passed down unchanged for millennia, contributed to survival. The Kaurna People exhibited evolutionary facial features that would have assisted survival. Kaurna People had excellent knowledge of medicine and the capacity to heal their community members. The process of mobility and relocation may have embedded the need to be mobile in some Aboriginal Australian cultures, and why many Aboriginal tribes did not invest too much time and resources in building permanent structures and dwellings. Navigating these extremely harsh, rapidly changing conditions is an incredible story of survival of Aboriginal Australians. The findings of this investigation suggest that Aboriginal Australians' survival methods were complex and multi-faceted. Although this paper could not examine every survival method, perhaps Aboriginal Peoples' knowledge of flora and fauna, (for nourishment and medicine) living in clans, and avoiding mass cohabitation was paramount to our survival. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]