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Australian mining projects frequently undertake cultural salvage, involving archaeological consultants and Aboriginal Elders to identify important artefacts. However, the storage conditions within shipping containers present challenges, such as weather, insects, and limited access for Traditional Owners. The author, reflecting on his experience working as a project heritage advisor in Western Australia's Pilbara region, emphasises the need for collaborative engagement between the mining sector and Aboriginal communities to develop effective storage strategies that prioritise both scientific integrity and cultural significance. The author raises questions about the purpose and sustainability of storing cultural artefacts in containers, while highlighting the need to balance safeguarding heritage with the evolving needs of Indigenous communities. Ultimately, the author emphasises the importance of empowering Traditional Owners in decisions about artefact storage and engaging in meaningful consultation to preserve cultural heritage. The author suggests that the process should prioritise not just tangible artefacts but also intangible aspects like stories and songlines that make up the living Indigenous culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Otitis media is very common in Aboriginal children in Western Australia and chronic ear disease causes major problems in speech and language development and education. Up until recently, most programmes dealing with the problem of OM have focused on clinical interventions rather than prevention. The Enhanced Prevention Working Group was established as part of the WA Child Ear Health Strategy (2017–2021). The Group has worked collaboratively to develop a set of recommendations for prevention of OM in Aboriginal children. These recommendations were informed by WA-based health promotion interventions initiated by Aboriginal Health Practitioners at a community level. This paper provides a historical perspective of the current situation and discusses each of the recommendations from Aboriginal Health Practitioners working within their community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Archaeology in Oceania is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

To enhance the accessibility and acceptability of evidence-based parenting programs in Indigenous communities, there is a need to build a confident and skilled workforce within these diverse settings. For training to be effective, the complex histories, traditional values and practices of the communities in which a program will be delivered must be appreciated. In this paper, we investigate the efficacy of a community-adapted, professional training program to deliver the evidence-based Indigenous Triple P - Positive Parenting Program (Triple P) in remote Aboriginal communities in the Fitzroy Valley, Western Australia. Extensive consultation with community leaders, a project advisory group, and local Aboriginal organizations and service providers guided modifications to the program. Repeated measures analyses were used to assess parent coach (N = 38) knowledge and confidence prior to and immediately post training and at an accreditation workshop two months following training. Parent coaches who completed the tailored Triple P practitioner training reported high rates of satisfaction with the training, a significant increase in capacity to deliver parenting support, significantly increased confidence in their parent consultation skills, and significantly increased perceived empowerment within communities, the workplace and home. These results were maintained at two months post-training. Qualitative results indicate that training was well received and beneficial. Post-training support by an experienced Triple P practitioner residing in the community for an extended period was critical to supporting program implementation and sustainability. Highlights: Training in evidence-based parenting support programs for Indigenous Peoples. Program co-designed and implemented with community input, led to a high rate of accreditation in a cohort of local workers. Community-led program choice, training model and peer support increased empowerment of parent coaches. Collaborative and flexible approach informs best practice in bringing any evidence-based program to Indigenous communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the ontological differences between modern water, the dominant way of thinking about water in the industrialised West, and Living Waters, a concept used by Aboriginal Australians to talk about water(s) and water bodies. Working collaboratively with Aboriginal experts and state government water planners in the Kimberley region of Western Australia we developed two social-ecological conceptual models to compare propositions about the ontological character of water. One model represents a modern water paradigm, upon which state systems of water management are based, and the other represents a customary system of management: a Living Waters paradigm that depicts the relationships between people, other beings, and the waters of the Martuwarra/Fitzroy River catchment. The models are intended to inform water governance processes and influence negotiations between State and customary institutions. We use the models here to analyse water policy tools and their ability to support the relationships particular groups have with their waters. We identify gaps in existing policy for the sustainability of Living Waters. We discuss the implications of the differences between these two conceptual models for water justice, as well as for sustainability research and socio-ecological modelling as it applies to rivers and their waters in Australia and elsewhere, or to other human-environment relationships. [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]

The perspectives of the First Peoples of Australia are unravelling the dominant narratives of heroic European pioneers, peaceful settlement and accommodation. The debates about Australia's past as one of invasion and violent conflict, and often referred to as the 'history wars', have become part of a battle for the present. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Yamaji, from the mid-west of Western Australia, fought for country and family in a war of resistance against squatters, miners, settlers and police. The emotional responses of Yamaji to colonial violence and dispossession were deeply felt, but rarely acknowledged in what was then described in the press as a 'state of war' between blacks and whites.1 There are, however, numerous accounts of the fears and anxieties felt and expressed by colonial society at this time on the public record. But, although there are historical accounts of the physical impacts of the violence on Yamaji people, their emotional responses were either absent, dismissed, hinted at, or 'lost' in the translations of a form of Aboriginal English. The transgenerational effects of this historical trauma are still felt today by Yamaji. Its impacts on overall health and emotional well-being is now recognised so that processes of acknowledgement and healing may begin.2 This paper explores a history of Yamaji emotions in the context of a historical discourse on race war and the biopolitical and paramilitary responses of government towards Yamaji resistance that involved both discursive and physical violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Convicts were introduced to Western Australia in June 1850, in particular to provide labour for outlying settlements such as Toodyay and York. However, the first physical signs of projects using convict labour in Western Australia are not in those places but instead in the Swan district, the area between the present Upper Swan Bridge and south to Guildford. This area of land with its alluvial soils was the initial 'breadbasket' of the Swan River Colony, but, by the late 1840s, grain production from properties at York and Toodyay had overtaken output from the Swan district. This paper describes the archaeology of some of the first convict- related construction projects in Western Australia and what it suggests about the Swan district's continued importance to Western Australia during the middle colonial period. The research also shows that the earliest construction projects included labour from free settlers and Aboriginal prisoner road gangs, suggesting that a reassessment of sites containing 'convict' works is needed to include input from other groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Archaeology in Oceania is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: The high burden of infectious disease and associated antimicrobial use likely contribute to the emergence of antimicrobial resistance in remote Australian Aboriginal communities. We aimed to develop and apply context-specific tools to audit antimicrobial use in the remote primary healthcare setting. Methods: We adapted the General Practice version of the National Antimicrobial Prescribing Survey (GP NAPS) tool to audit antimicrobial use over 2-3 weeks in 15 remote primary healthcare clinics across the Kimberley region of Western Australia (03/2018-06/2018), Top End of the Northern Territory (08/2017-09/2017) and far north Queensland (05/2018-06/2018). At each clinic we reviewed consecutive clinic presentations until 30 presentations where antimicrobials had been used were included in the audit. Data recorded included the antimicrobials used, indications and treating health professional. We assessed the appropriateness of antimicrobial use and functionality of the tool. Results: We audited the use of 668 antimicrobials. Skin and soft tissue infections were the dominant treatment indications (WA: 35%; NT: 29%; QLD: 40%). Compared with other settings in Australia, narrow spectrum antimicrobials like benzathine benzylpenicillin were commonly given and the appropriateness of use was high (WA: 91%; NT: 82%; QLD: 65%). While the audit was informative, non-integration with practice software made the process manually intensive. Conclusions: Patterns of antimicrobial use in remote primary care are different from other settings in Australia. The adapted GP NAPS tool functioned well in this pilot study and has the potential for integration into clinical care. Regular stewardship audits would be facilitated by improved data extraction systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since British colonisation of Australia began, Aboriginal mobility practices have been poorly understood within the Anglo-Australian consciousnesses. This paper examines current discourses and conceptualisations of Aboriginal mobilities in Yamatji country, Western Australia. Finding none of these explanations and interpretations singularly sufficient to encompass the diverse spatial practices of Aboriginal people in the region, the paper proposes an alternative framework for interpreting and understanding these population dynamics. The central tenet of this reconceptualisation is that contemporary Aboriginal spatialities - including spatial distribution, movements, and immobility - are iteratively shaped by the processes of procuring, contesting, and cultivating security and belonging. In a conscious shift away from generalised and pejorative interpretations of Aboriginal mobility, this more holistic framework considers historical and geographical context, cultural identity, and individual aspirations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aboriginal Australians are at higher risk of developing certain types of cancer and, once diagnosed, they have poorer outcomes than their non-Aboriginal counterparts. Lower access to cancer screening programmes, deficiencies in treatment and cultural barriers contribute to poor outcomes. Additional logistical factors affecting those living in rural areas compound these barriers. Cancer support groups have positive effects on people affected by cancer; however, there is limited evidence on peer-support programmes for Aboriginal cancer patients in Australia. This paper explores the roles played by an Aboriginal women's cancer support network operating in a regional town in Western Australia. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 24 participants including Aboriginal and mainstream healthcare service providers, and network members and clients. Interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were subjected to inductive thematic analysis. Connecting and linking people and services was perceived as the main role of the network. This role had four distinct domains: (i) facilitating access to cancer services; (ii) fostering social interaction; (iii) providing a culturally safe space; and (iv) building relationships with other agencies. Other network roles included providing emotional and practical support, delivering health education and facilitating engagement in cancer screening initiatives. Despite the network's achievements, unresolved tensions around role definition negatively impacted on the working relationship between the network and mainstream service providers, and posed a threat to the network's sustainability. Different perspectives need to be acknowledged and addressed in order to build strong, effective partnerships between service providers and Aboriginal communities. Valuing and honouring the Aboriginal approaches and expertise, and adopting an intercultural approach are suggested as necessary to the way forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports findings of a qualitative study conducted in collaboration with Aboriginal people with disabilities and their carers residing in the rural and remote Kimberley region of Western Australia, specifically the impact of chronic food insecurity on their daily lives. Nutritious food is important to maintaining health, particularly for Aboriginal people with disabilities who are at the greatest risk of a range of chronic health conditions, illnesses and secondary disability. In the remote areas of the West Kimberley, the high cost of living, including food expenses and the generally low incomes of residents mean that food insecurity is common. A large portion of the population living in remote and rural areas of the Kimberley is Aboriginal, and chronic illness and disability are twice as likely among this group. Lack of access to nutritious food has a cyclical interaction with disability, resulting in secondary impairments and ill health, which leads to greater economic exclusion and further food insecurity. Participants in this research consistently reported that they coped with food insecurity by fishing and crabbing on their traditional lands, “in country”. This link between land sovereignty, food sovereignty and food security for Aboriginal Australians has echoes with global food sovereignty movements. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Australia. Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Indigenous) people have higher levels of CVD compared with non-Indigenous people. Cardiac Rehabilitation (CR) is an evidence-based intervention that can assist with reducing subsequent cardiovascular events and rehospitalisation. Unfortunately, attendance rates at traditional CR programs, both globally and in Australia, are estimated to be as low as 10-30 % and Indigenous people are known to be particularly under-represented. An in-depth assessment was undertaken to investigate the provision of CR and secondary preveniton services in Western Australia (WA) with a focus on rural, remote and Indigenous populations. This paper reports on the findings for Indigenous people.Methods: Cardiac rehabilitation and Aboriginal Medical Services (n = 38) were identified for interview through the Heart Foundation Directory of Western Australian Cardiac Rehabilitation and Secondary Prevention Services 2012. Semi-structured interviews with CR coordinators were conducted and included questions specific to Indigenous people.Results: Interviews with coordinators from 34 CR services (10 rural, 12 remote, 12 metropolitan) were conducted. Identification of Indigenous status was reported by 65 % of coordinators; referral and attendance rates of Indigenous patients differed greatly across WA. Efforts to meet the cultural needs of Indigenous patients varied and included case management (32 %), specific educational materials (35 %), use of a buddy or mentoring system (27 %), and access to an Aboriginal Health Worker (71 %). Staff cultural awareness training was available for 97 % and CR guidelines were utilised by 77 % of services.Conclusion: The under-representation of Indigenous Australians participating in CR, as reported in the literature and more specifically in this study, mandates a concerted effort to improve services to better meet the needs of Indigenous patients with CVD as part of closing the gap in life expectancy. Improving access to culturally appropriate CR and secondary prevention in WA must be an important component of this effort given the high rates of premature cardiovascular disease affecting Indigenous people. Our findings also highlight the importance of good systematic data collection across services. Health pathways that ensure continuity of care and alternative methods of CR delivery with dedicated resources are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Australian Aboriginal English (AAE) is an enregistered contact-based variety spoken by 80% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. This paper offers an overview of some of the features that characterise AAE as recorded in our corpus of naturally occurring interactions in Nyungar country, Southwest Western Australia. Led by Nyungar researcher Glenys Collard, our fieldwork rests on three pillars: (1) the data originate from group recording sessions, as culturally appropriate in the community; (2) speakers are recruited in venues such as medical centres and Perth city parks; (3) data collection is based on 'yarning': 'a process of [...] communicating and passing on history and knowledge' (Terszak, 2008, p. 90). Our approach is strongly grounded in indigenous knowledge-sharing practices. We discuss how the traditional underpinnings of yarning as a culturally entrenched modality have made it possible to tap into the community's vernacular and to capture the urgent concerns and silenced histories of Aboriginal English speakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Holocene is recognised as a period through which a number of climatic fluctuations and environmental stresses occur—associated with intensifying El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) climatic conditions from c. 5000 years—contemporaneous with technological and social changes in Australian Aboriginal lifeways. In the Kimberley region of northwest Western Australia, human responses to ENSO driven climate change are most evident archaeologically in technological transformations observed in lithic records, with little research on changes in plant use during this time. Using nine archaeological sites across the Kimberley, this paper synthesises previously published macrobotanical data (Carpenter's Gap 1, Moonggaroonggoo, Mount Behn, and Riwi), reports unpublished data (Brooking Gorge 1, Djuru, and Wandjina rockshelter), and presents results of sites reanalysed for this study (Widgingarri Shelters 1 and 2) to develop a picture of localised and regional patterns of plant use during the Holocene. We conclude that food plants associated with monsoon rainforest environments dominate both mid- and late Holocene macrobotanical records and, although monsoon rainforest likely retreated to some extent because of decreased precipitation during the late Holocene, no human responses associated with ENSO driven climate change occurred in relation to human uses of plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines some of the systemic issues which adversely affect access to justice by Aboriginal people in the East Kimberley. The author contends that little or no adjustment is made in law, policy or service delivery to take account of the circumstances of aboriginal people in the region. The high rate of recidivism and rate of aboriginal imprisonment suggest the current model has failed. The author analysizes why the model has failed and proposes solutions. The paper was originally delivered to the 29th Annual ANZAPPL Congress in November 2009 when the author was the resident magistrate in the East Kimberley. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the experience and reflections of a non-Indigenous clinician and researcher, Randolph Spargo, who has worked in remote Aboriginal Australia for more than 40 years, this paper tracks how those at the clinical coal-face thought and responded as cardiovascular and other chronic diseases emerged as new health concerns in the 1970s to become major contributors to the burden of excess ill health across Indigenous Australia. The paper cites research evidence that informed prevailing paradigms drawing primarily on work in which the clinician participated, which was undertaken in the remote Kimberley region in the north of Western Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Little is known about the use of bush medicine and traditional healing among Aboriginal Australians for their treatment of cancer and the meanings attached to it. A qualitative study that explored Aboriginal Australians' perspectives and experiences of cancer and cancer services in Western Australia provided an opportunity to analyse the contemporary meanings attached and use of bush medicine by Aboriginal people with cancer in Western Australia Methods: Data collection occurred in Perth, both rural and remote areas and included individual in-depth interviews, observations and field notes. Of the thirty-seven interviews with Aboriginal cancer patients, family members of people who died from cancer and some Aboriginal health care providers, 11 participants whose responses included substantial mention on the issue of bush medicine and traditional healing were selected for the analysis for this paper. Results: The study findings have shown that as part of their healing some Aboriginal Australians use traditional medicine for treating their cancer. Such healing processes and medicines were preferred by some because it helped reconnect them with their heritage, land, culture and the spirits of their ancestors, bringing peace of mind during their illness. Spiritual beliefs and holistic health approaches and practices play an important role in the treatment choices for some patients. Conclusions: Service providers need to acknowledge and understand the existence of Aboriginal knowledge (epistemology) and accept that traditional healing can be an important addition to an Aboriginal person's healing complementing Western medical treatment regimes. Allowing and supporting traditional approaches to treatment reflects a commitment by modern medical services to adopting an Aboriginal-friendly approach that is not only culturally appropriate but assists with the cultural security of the service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Kimberley coast in Australia's far northwest stretches from Broome, Western Australia, for over 3000 km to the Northern Territory border. The largely undeveloped and remote area has gained increasing popularity in recent years for its spectacular scenery, Aboriginal rock art and native wildlife that forms the platform for a strong and uniquely Australian ecotourism experience. This paper examines the cultural impacts of tourism on the area, with focus on the expedition cruise industry. Visitors to the area access many land-based attractions of significance to Traditional Owners. Unlike at other tourist destinations, non-indigenous cruise operators offer the indigenous experience, without any contact with the Traditional Owners of the areas visited. This project worked in close consultation with representatives from the four native title groups, expedition cruise operators and other stakeholders to assess cultural and environmental management practices and identification of current and potential impacts of ecotourism activities. The study found that the issue of cultural and spiritual impacts on sites of Aboriginal significance, coupled with issues of on-site visitor management, requires urgent attention. Impacts included lack of consultation with Traditional Owners, permission not being sought for access and cultural protocols not being followed resulting in a perceived lack of respect for traditional custodians. There are currently considerable variations in operational practices that should be addressed through the development and implementation of good practice guidelines and operational standards. There is also a need for an improved governance framework and the development of appropriate statutory and non-statutory mechanisms to facilitate sustainability in coastal planning and development of the Kimberley coastal area. The appointment of an adequately equipped body to oversee and drive the regional planning and development process, including the development of a coastal planning strategy, could provide the capacity for such a process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The incidence of end-stage renal failure (ESRF) in the Kimberley region at the top end of Western Australia far exceeds known national rates and trend analysis demonstrates a close parallel to what is occurring in the Northern Territory. Dialysis prevalence in the Kimberley has nearly tripled in the last decade and has increased at a much faster rate than the rest of Western Australia. Almost all of these people with ESRF are Aboriginal Australians living in remote communities.In January 2004, the Western Australia Country Health Service and Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Services’ Council, under the auspices of the Kimberley Aboriginal Health Planning Forum, embarked upon a review of renal disease in the Kimberley funded by the Western Australia Department of Health. The main purpose of the review was to identify the scope of the problem and make projections upon which to base programme and service development over the next 10 years.This paper outlines the findings of the Review of Renal Disease in the Kimberley and presents, for the first time, regional data analysis and comparisons. In addition, future projections on the impact of ESRF and recommendations for improving current service delivery are discussed. Given the challenges of remoteness and individuals’ desire to return home, this review recommends development of locally-based expertise capable of providing training and support to patients and their families, reinvigoration of community-based dialysis modalities, and the initiation of planning for a second satellite service in the Kimberley. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Discharge against medical advice (DAMA) is a priority issue for the health system. Little is known about the factors associated with DAMA for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander (Aboriginal) children in Australia. Objectives: Investigate the associations between DAMA for hospital admissions and emergency department (ED) presentations and: (i) child, family and episode of service characteristics and (ii) 30-day readmission/re-presentation. Methods: We conducted a cohort study of Aboriginal children born in Western Australia (2002-2013) who had =1 hospital admissions (n = 16,931) or ED presentations (n = 26,546) within the first 5 years of life. The outcome of interest was hospital and ED DAMA and adjusted odds ratio were derived using multilevel mixed-effects logistic regression. Results: In the Hospital Cohort, there were 43,149 hospitalisations for 16,931 children, with 684 hospitalisations (1.6%) recorded as DAMA. In the ED Cohort, there were 232,082 ED presentations in 26,546 children, with 10,918 ED presentations (4.7%) recorded as DAMA. DAMA occurring in hospitals between 2014 and 2018, the adjusted odds decreased by 75% compared to the period between 2002 and 2005. The adjusted odds of ED DAMA increased by 46% over the same period. Hospital admissions in regional and remote hospitals were almost seven times the adjusted odds of DAMA compared with hospital admissions in Perth metropolitan hospitals. The adjusted odds of ED DAMA decreased by 12% for ED presentations in regional and remote hospitals compared to those in Perth metropolitan hospitals. There was no evidence of hospital DAMA being associated with hospital readmission within 30 days and limited evidence of ED DAMA being associated with re-presenting to an ED within 30 days. Conclusions: The study identified several important determinants of DAMA, including admission status, triage status, location and calendar year. These findings could inform targeted measures to decrease DAMA, particularly in regional and remote communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on the prevalence of alcohol-related problems among drinkers in a stratified random sample of the adult Aboriginal population of the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Subjects were 265 current drinkers who were identified in the total sample of 516 Kimberley Aboriginal men and women over the age of 15 years. Participants' reports were obtained on their frequency and quantity of alcohol consumption, and their lifetime experience of 16 alcohol-related problems. The majority of Aboriginal drinkers in the Kimberley consumed harmful amounts of alcohol, and there was a high prevalence of the 16 alcohol-related problems which showed a high degree of internal coherence, with the first principal component accounting for 45% of the total variance. The number of alcohol-related problems which respondents reported was strongly related to the quantity and frequency of self-reported alcohol consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neurodevelopmental impairments resulting from Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) can increase the likelihood of justice system involvement. This study compared offence characteristics in young people with FASD to demographically matched controls (n = 500) in Western Australia. A novel approach (i.e. association rule mining) was adopted to uncover relationships between personal attributes and offence characteristics. For FASD participants (n = 100), file records were reviewed retrospectively. Mean age of the total sample was 15.60 years (range = 10–24), with 82% males and 88% Australian Aboriginal. After controlling for demographic factors, regression analyses showed FASD participants were more likely than controls to be charged with reckless driving (odds ratio, OR = 4.20), breach of bail/community orders (OR = 3.19), property damage (OR = 1.84), and disorderly behaviour (OR = 1.54). Overall, our findings suggest justice-involved individuals with FASD have unique offending profiles. These results have implications for sentencing, diversionary/crime prevention programs and interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the paucity of research pertaining to Indigenous vocal music in the south-west of Western Australia and the present endangered state of traditional music knowledge in the region, this paper discusses contemporary community-driven Noongar language revitalisation activities and explores relevant archival song texts. Oral accounts and archival records from the south-west of Western Australia highlight the centrality of vocal music in the local Aboriginal (Noongar) society. Accordingly, Noongar people composed songs in response to new experiences and phenomena as colonial influence extended across the south-west in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. These compositions experiment with point-of-view, vocabulary and metaphor, indicating the ability for Noongar singing traditions to maintain continuity and intergenerational transmission while demonstrating linguistic, thematic and semantic flexibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The criminal offense of stalking is somewhat different to other offenses due to the repetitive, innocuous, and often multifaceted nature of the crime. Given that stalking constitutes a number of different behaviors, such as violence and threats, research on stalking recidivism becomes difficult as recidivism can be defined in a number of ways. This study utilized a dataset of Western Australia Police Force incident reports, comprising a sample of 404 stalking offenders. Survival curves and a binomial logistic regression were used to determine time to recidivism and predictors of recidivism, using four different definitions of recidivism. Predictor variables included age of the offender, prior history of criminal charges, and offender ethnicity. The four definitions ranged from narrow (a new stalking charge) to broad (any new criminal charge). The results of the study show that stalkers reoffend quickly, however our understanding of how fast and which offender characteristics predict recidivism, is dependent on how we define recidivism. This highlights the importance of considering how stalking recidivism is defined in future works and may explain current differences in stalking recidivism findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The case for using culturally relevant values in restorative justice programming for Australian Aboriginal prisoners: Western Australia is experiencing high rates of recidivism among Aboriginal offenders. This challenge can be partly addressed by delivering culturally relevant programming. Its dearth, however, suggests two questions: what is culturally fit in the context of the prison, and how might such programming be constructed? This article responds to these questions by focusing on one element of culture, 'values', that is influential ideas that determine desirable courses of action in a culture. Firstly, a review of the literature and comparative analysis is given to the respective key values of Aboriginal culture and European and Anglo-Australian cultures. It also highlights the importance of repairing Aboriginal values with implications for providing culturally relevant prison programming. Secondly, a report is given on how an in-prison Aboriginal restorative justice programme (AIPRJP) was co-designed by Noongar Elders and prisoners and me, an Anglo-Australian restorativist. Using an ethnographic approach, the project identified a set of Aboriginal values for addressing the harms resulting from historical manifestations of wrongdoing by settler colonialism and contemporary crimes of Aboriginal offenders. Brief commentary is then given to the delivery of the AIPRJP, followed by a summary of findings and recommendations for using culturally relevant programming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A central question for the exploratory Aboriginal and LGBTQ+ researcher led project 'Breaking the Silence: Being Indigenous and identifying LGBTQ+' (Breaking the Silence) is how provision of genuinely inclusive service responses for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people identifying as LGBTQ+ can be developed. This article presents the qualitative findings of this mixed-methods research project to show how organizational staff working in health, education and social support services in Western Australia consider the Aboriginal LGBTQ+ identity/experience. Analysis of the written, interview and focus group responses to a question about the relevance of LGBTQ+ identity show that these questions need to be considered and evaluated within diverse service cultures and philosophies of services. Staff views are diverse and organizational consensus on the relevance (or not) of LGBTQ+ identity needs to be the precursor before the development or consideration of changes to service delivery and models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The delivery of effective oral health promotion strategies is essential to improving oral health outcomes among remote Aboriginal communities. This study aimed to explore the perceptions and attitudes of Aboriginal Australians living in remote Kimberley communities towards oral health education and disease prevention. Methods: Semi‐structured interviews and yarning circles were carried out following purposive sampling of Aboriginal adults living in the East Kimberley region of Western Australia. Results: A total of 80 community members participated in the yarning process. School‐based oral health promotion and community‐driven restrictions on the sale of sugary food and drink were seen as positive strategies in improving oral health. Lifestyle changes brought about by modernity, internet availability and fixed community stores were perceived to create new challenges and shift the priorities for those living in remote communities. Conclusions: Community‐based yarning may better inform future oral health strategies in the Kimberley. A neoliberal approach of shifting responsibility onto the individual ignores the complex social inequities faced by Aboriginal people living in remote communities where macro‐level determinants such as remoteness, food security and education significantly influence decisions around diet and oral health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Issues addressed: Despite the startling age specific rate ratio for amputations in 25-49 year olds of, 41.25 for knee amputations and 27.5 for toe/foot amputations for Aboriginal/non-Aboriginal people, there are no diabetes foot care education brochures or health promotion media available free of charge for Aboriginal people. This study consulted Aboriginal people about existing and potential resources for education on foot care. Method: An Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal interviewer conducted six focus group discussions with a total of 60 Aboriginal people including Elders, community members, health workers, students and nurses. Focus groups discussed which materials, media and foot care messages worked best to communicate diabetes foot care messages. Results: Participants were unequivocal in their preference for real pictures of foot problems rather than cartoons, clearly identifying a superior existing educational resource from the Indigenous Diabetic Foot Program. There was minimal support for many existing media and foot care messages. Participants preferred to develop their own messages and selected utilitarian media that would be used by all members of the Aboriginal community. Conclusions: We recommend the delivery of the Indigenous Diabetic Foot Program in Western Australia. Consultation and involvement of Aboriginal people was consistent with Aboriginal peoples' preferred style of conversation and inclusion and allowed the target audience to determine the end product for use in education and health promotion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fifty years of institutional mission activity on the seven Protestant missions in Western Australia's Western Desert converted few Aborigines. The harsh, isolated environment, unremitting toil and realities of unresponsive children and adults made mission work a real challenge for even the most dedicated missionaries. During most of this period white communities fringing the Western Desert had a hostile attitude toward Aboriginal people, wanting them kept out of sight and out of mind. Missionaries struggled to balance government expectations to 'feed, clothe… and generally care for… inmates' on minimal funding, and their constituency's expectation of conversions. So, why, in the face of such criticism, stress and privation would missionaries want to 'swim against the tide' by ministering to such marginalized and despised people? This paper correlates motivations and achievements of Adventist, Apostolic and non-denominational "faith" missionaries who worked on the Protestant institutional missions in the Western Desert in the period 1921-1973. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Participatory scenario planning (PSP) has mainly concerned scenario development and outreach, with less emphasis on scenario assessment. However, eliciting stakeholder responses to scenarios, focusing on subjective wellbeing, can increase the legitimacy, relevance, and applicability of PSP. We developed a PSP exercise with a multi-stakeholder, cross-cultural group in the Fitzroy River (Martuwarra) basin in Western Australia. Four scenarios were developed collaboratively, each describing alternative development pathways in the basin by 2050. We held two scenario assessment workshops: a multi-stakeholder workshop and a workshop with Traditional Owners (Aboriginal Australians) only. We first asked participants to consider and discuss the current situation in the basin regarding how well nine categories of wellbeing were satisfied. Then, for each scenario, participants assessed and scored the change in each wellbeing category relative to the current situation. Participants' ratings followed a similar pattern in both workshops, except for the scenario with strong policy and increased large-scale irrigation, which was scored mostly positively by the multi-stakeholder group, and mostly negatively by Traditional Owners. We identified different discourses that help to explain these results: (a) scenarios with large-scale agriculture, or with poorly regulated development, would increase the money circulating in the region, and benefits would trickle down to local communities through employment, enhancing most wellbeing categories; and (b) such modes of development might create jobs but could negatively impact other areas of wellbeing, potentially affecting culturally or environmentally significant places and increasing social inequities. We discuss how these results can support planning in the region, and how trade-offs were approached. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To determine demographic and clinical characteristics of youth diagnosed with type 1 (T1D) or type 2 (T2D) diabetes aged ≤15 years from 1999 to 2019 in Western Australia, and examine time to first diagnosis of diabetes complications. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted of patients identified from the population‐based, prospective Western Australian Children's Diabetes Database and longitudinal data extracted for available demographic and clinical variables. Patients were followed from diagnosis to transition to adult services, death, or December 31, 2019. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to analyse time to first diagnosis of hypertension, high cholesterol or microalbuminuria, after adjusting for sex, age at diagnosis, time period of diagnosis, hemoglobin A1c, and body max index Z‐score. Results: 2438 eligible patients were identified (2209 [91%] T1D: 229 [9%] T2D). The mean age at diagnosis was lower in patients with T1D (8.5 [±4.0] vs. 12.7 [±2.0] years). A higher proportion of patients with T2D were female (58% vs. 47%) and of Aboriginal ethnicity (59% vs. 2%). The median HbA1c (interquartile range) at diagnosis was lower 8.9% [6.7, 11.5] (74 mmol/mol [50, 102]) versus 11.6% [10.1, 13.3] (103 mmol/mol [87, 122]) and mean body max index Z‐score higher (2.05 [±0.66] vs. 0.37 [±0.95]), in patients with T2D compared to T1D. Patients with T2D had a higher risk of hypertension, high cholesterol, and microalbuminuria (aHR 3.39 [95%CI:2.04, 5.63], 2.69 [95%CI:1.21, 5.98], and 19.79 [95%CI:10.99, 35.64] respectively). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Between 1988 and 1993 the International Union of Nutritional Sciences Committee 'Nutrition and Ageing' established the international 'Food Habits in Later Life' (FHILL) Program.1,2 The FHILL program documented current and distant past food habits of more than 2000 Caucasian and Asian elderly people, which also included 54 older Aboriginal Australians in a community called Junjuwa in the Fitzroy Valley, Kimberley region, Western Australia. The program primarily used a quantitative food frequency questionnaire to collect food intake data. However, in some communities this was neither practical nor feasible due to differences in cultural interpretation of questions relating to 'time', 'frequency' and 'quantity'. To overcome this hurdle, FHILL was coupled to a qualitative socioanthropological methodolgy known as RAP 'Rapid Assessment Procedures'. This paper reviews published qualitative data using RAP to describe distant past food intake on cattle stations prior to the 1960s 1 and food intake of Aborigines aged 50 years and over in 1988 in Junjuwa.4 Aboriginal food habits on cattle stations prior to the 1960s appeared to be more nutrient dense, due to greater food variety and higher intakes of lean fresh and salted buffalo meat (probably high in omega-3 fatty acids), offal, vegetables and bush foods; buffalo fat was rationed and used in meat stews. High intakes of tea and sugar appears to have remained unchanged. Food intake was more or less constant from day to day in contrast to the 'feast' and 'famine' days observed in the community studied in 1988, which was related to the pension cycle. In contrast to the more varied cattle station diet, the community-dwelling older Aborigines in 1988 consumed more than 50% of their total energy intake from three foods: sugar, fatty beef/lamb and white flour (damper). Exploring distant past food intake on cattle stations has helped explain desirable and undesirable food preferences of the older Aborigines in 1988. For example, the desire for stewed fatty meat, salty preserved meat, onions, potatoes, white leavened and unleavened bread (damper), rice, oats, salty sauces/curry, sugar and tea, but a lack of desirable oils, leafy greens, yoghurt, legumes and nuts is partly a reflection of the food habits and preferences of Anglo- Australians in the bush more than 50 years ago. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Use of Indigenous divers on nineteenth-century northwest Australian pearling luggers gave rise to a transregional apparatus of coercion, physical mistreatment, and arguably, slavery. Where accounts of conditions experienced by divers are limited to the documents of contemporary colonial men, our contribution explores a rare archaeological perspective. Zooarchaeological and taphonomic analysis of the Bandicoot Bay campsite, Barrow Island, evokes an exploitative labor relationship inherited from a wider colonial process yet actively renegotiated by its participants through subsistence practices. The operation's pearlers selected a camp that advantaged concerns for labor organization and resource management while their divers seized opportunities for self-directed subsistence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Screening for communication disorders in a cross-cultural context presents numerous challenges, especially when the screening tool has been designed for use in one specific cultural and linguistic context. Translation enables it to be administered to speakers of a variety of languages, but does not account for the effects of worldview nor the linguistic and cultural context that motivated the original version. Clients assessed with tools not appropriate for their culture may be at a disadvantage in completing the assessment. Furthermore, this may influence diagnostic/screening judgements and decision-making related to access to relevant services. Aims: To describe the piloting of a screening tool developed to detect acquired communication disorders in Aboriginal Australians after stroke and traumatic brain injury – the Aboriginal Communication Assessment After Brain Injury (ACAABI). The study aims to i) assess whether a non-speech pathologist (e.g., Aboriginal Health Practitioner) can easily and accurately administer the tool, ii) determine whether the tool can identify acquired communication disorders of any type, and iii) describe a series of practical challenges encountered. Methods and procedures: Aboriginal Research Assistants (ARAs) reflected the role of the Aboriginal Health Practitioner. ARAs administered the tool to 38 Aboriginal brain injury survivors across Western Australia. A Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) observed the assessments to evaluate test administration. Another SLP undertook an independent communication assessment to provide information to an expert panel who produced a consensus diagnosis with which to compare the tool results. Sensitivity and specificity analyses were undertaken in terms of the total score and individual section scores. Field notes captured challenges encountered. Outcomes and results: Aboriginal Research Assistants could administer the tool effectively for the majority of participants, with some variations occurring. The tool appeared to be sensitive to detection of acquired communication disorders but had a high false-positive rate. However, small sample size and lack of comparative groups of non-brain-damaged individuals and those without communication disorders limits interpretation at this time. Challenges included participant recruitment, scheduling of appointments across large geographical distances, and availability of Aboriginal Research Assistants. Conclusions: The ACAABI looks promising in its ability to provide a culturally appropriate and secure way to screen for acquired communication disorders in Aboriginal people after brain injury for the purpose of referring onwards for further investigation. However, numerous challenges were encountered in the piloting and further work is needed to adjust the tool, enabling reliability, sensitivity and specificity analyses to be conclusive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An Australian Aboriginal in-prison restorative justice process: a worldview explanation As a response to the over-representation of Australian Aboriginal offenders in Western Australian prisons and high rates of reoffending, this article presents a sketch of Western and Australian Aboriginal worldviews and core symbols as a basis for understanding the rehabilitative-restorative needs of this prisoner cohort. The work first reviews and argues that the Western-informed Risk-Need-Responsivity model of programming for Australian Aboriginal prisoners has limited value for preventing reoffending. An introduction and description are then given to an Aboriginal in-prison restorative justice process (AIPRJP) which is delivered in a regional Western Australian prison. The process is largely undergirded by an Australian Aboriginal worldview and directed to delivering a culturally constructive and corrective intervention. The AIPRJP uses a range of symbolic forms (i.e. ritual, myth, play, art, information), which are adapted to the prison context to bring about the aims of restorative justice. The article contends that culturally informed restorative justice processes can produce intermediate outcomes that can directly or indirectly be associated with reductions in reoffending. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When speaking of the convicts who built Western Australia (WA), most people refer to the 10,000 British and Irish convicts transported to the colony between 1850 and 1868. The economic contribution of Aboriginal prisoners who built essential infrastructure, including a lighthouse, bridges and roads, and provided essential services--as stockmen, mail carriers and telegraph assistants, among other roles--has been rendered largely invisible. This article examines the management of Aboriginal prison labour, primarily Nyoongar men from south-west WA, from the 1840s to the 1880s. These men laboured either on Wadjemup (Rottnest Island) or on the mainland. It argues that the colonial government adapted its penal labour management strategies from the wider British imperial convict system, particularly from the methods applied to British and Irish convicts transported to Australia's eastern colonies, and, from 1850, to WA. The article traces entanglements between the Aboriginal and white convict systems in WA, alongside the racial ideologies that segregated and 'Othered' the Aboriginal convict workers. In doing so, it challenges narratives that render invisible the important contribution of convicted Aboriginal people as 'builders' of the colony. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Executive functioning and self-regulation influence a range of outcomes across the life course including physical and mental health, educational success, and employment. Children prenatally exposed to alcohol or early life trauma (ELT) are at higher risk of impairment of these skills and may require intervention to address self-regulation deficits. Researchers partnered with the local Aboriginal health organization and schools to develop and pilot a manualized version of the Alert Program® in the Fitzroy Valley, north Western Australia, a region with documented high rates of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and ELT. This self-controlled cluster randomized trial evaluated the effect of an 8-week Alert Program® intervention on children's executive functioning and self-regulation skills. Following parent or caregiver consent (referred to hereafter as parent), 271 students were enrolled in the study. This reflects a 75% participation rate and indicates the strong community support that exists for the study. Teachers from 26 primary school classrooms across eight Fitzroy Valley schools received training to deliver eight, one-hour Alert Program® lessons over eight-weeks to students. Student outcomes were measured by parent and teacher ratings of children's behavioral, emotional, and cognitive regulation. The mean number of lessons attended by children was 4.2. Although no significant improvements to children's executive functioning skills or behavior were detected via the teacher-rated measures as hypothesized, statistically significant improvements were noted on parent-rated measures of executive functioning and behavior. The effectiveness of future self-regulation programs may be enhanced through multimodal delivery through home, school and community based settings to maximize children's exposure to the intervention. Despite mixed findings of effect, this study was an important first step in adapting and evaluating the Alert Program® for use in remote Australian Aboriginal community schools, where access to self-regulation interventions is limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Little is known about urinary incontinence in older Aboriginal Australians. Aim: To describe urinary incontinence assessment, prevalence, incidence and associated conditions in older Aboriginal Australians. Methods: Wave 1 consisted of 363 Aboriginal participants aged ≥45 years from Western Australia; 289 participants participated in Wave 2, with 184 included at both time points. Urinary incontinence was assessed by self‐report, family report and the modified International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire (ICIQ). We investigated factors associated with incontinence with binary logistic regression. Sensitivity and specificity analyses of incontinence measures were undertaken using the ICIQ score ≥2 as the reference standard. Results: Participant mean age was 61.2 ± 11.2 years. Prevalence of incontinence at Wave 2 (n = 289) using self‐report was 24.6%; using ICIQ ≥2 was 22.5%; and family report 14.2%. Incidence after follow‐up of 6.7 years was 33 (23.6%), higher than estimates of 5–20% in other populations. Cross‐sectional associations with incontinence include female sex (odds ratio (OR) = 6.82; 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.98–15.57), stroke (OR = 3.55; 95% CI 1.43–8.77), head injury (OR = 3.15; 95% CI 1.54–6.45) and depressive symptoms (OR = 1.07; 95% CI 1.01–1.14). Longitudinal associations were age (OR = 1.05; 95% CI 1.01–1.09) and female sex (OR = 2.37; 95% CI 0.99–5.67). Sensitivity (81.5%) and specificity (93.5%) of self‐report were high. Conclusion: The prevalence and incidence of urinary incontinence in Aboriginal Australians is high with risk factors of older age and female sex. The modified ICIQ and self‐report appear to be appropriate incontinence screens. Further research to understand causes and treatments within this population is urgently required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to ascertain whether a simplified screening algorithm incorporating glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) tests increases type 2 diabetes (T2D) screening in 10- to 14-year-old Aboriginal Australians presenting to primary healthcare (PHC) services. The study involved a 6-month pilot of a locally developed evidence-based screening algorithm in a remote Western Australian Kimberley town. A retrospective audit of electronic health records for the pilot period (27 June–26 December 2016) and a 6-month period before the screening algorithm was introduced (1 October 2015–31 March 2016) was conducted. Interviews were held with 30 PHC staff at participating PHC services, an Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service (ACCHS) and a hospital-based general practice service. During the pilot, significantly more patients received an initial T2D screening test at the ACCHS (28/130 (22%) v. 50/139 (36%), P = 0.011), but there was no change at the hospital (0.02% v. 0.02%, P = 0.615). Staff feedback suggested measures to improve screening; these include simple guidelines, targeted screening, patient and staff education, point-of-care HbA1c tests and a whole-of-clinic approach to implementation. Implementing a screening algorithm for young-onset diabetes in Aboriginal Australians is challenging, but practical measures can be taken to improve screening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Chronic respiratory disease is common among Aboriginal Australians. Chronic wet cough is an early marker of chronic disease in children but often goes undetected due, in part, to delayed health seeking by families. Currently, no studies have examined the reasons for delayed health seeking for children's chronic cough. To identify the barriers to, and enablers for, seeking medical help for chronic wet cough in Aboriginal children.Methods: This was a qualitative study, gathering data through individual semi-structured, in-depth interviews and focus groups to ascertain Aboriginal family knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about seeking health care for chronic wet cough in children in a regional Kimberley town, Western Australia between October 2017 and March 2018.Results: Forty Aboriginal community members participated. The three key barriers identified were: 'Cough normalisation', that is, 70% of participants considered chronic cough normal (with 53% of participants' previous interactions with doctors informing their understanding of chronic cough); the lack of health literacy information; and a sense of disempowerment (belief that no medical action would be taken and inability to challenge doctors). The key expressed enablers were provision of health literacy information and health practitioner training to assess and treat chronic wet cough in children. All participants reported that they would seek help for chronic wet cough once they were informed that it could signify underlying disease.Conclusion: Results highlight the need for a culturally appropriate information and education to inform Aboriginal families and their health practitioners of the importance of chronic wet cough in children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a consensus in the literature that hunger and community violence inaugurates adverse health impacts for survivors and for their descendants. The studied cohorts do not include Western Australian Aboriginal people, although many experienced violence and famine conditions as late as the 1970s. This article describes the pathways and intergenerational impacts of studied cohorts and applies these to the contemporary Western Australian context. The authors found that the intergenerational impacts, compounded by linguistic trauma, may be a contributor to current health issues experienced by Aboriginal people, but these are also contributing to the resurgence in population numbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This participatory action research study was situated within a larger research study, which investigated the development of a peer-led Aboriginal parent support program in the remote setting of Halls Creek in Western Australia. The aim of this smaller research component was to explore the self-perceived role of home visiting peer support workers in this remote area. Participatory Action Research methodology was employed, within which eleven Action Learning Sets were used to facilitate participant collaboration (n = 8). All participant data was collected in focus groups during the Action Learning Sets where culturally appropriate home visiting parent support strategies were developed and examined in partnership with a child health nurse researcher. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis with three themes relating to the peer support workers’ self-perceived role being identified: Helping parents be strong for their children; Strengthening culture; and Facilitating effective communication. These elements support peer support worker activities, helping parents to enhance their children’s physical and psychosocial developmental environment. This research highlights the critical emerging role of peer support workers in home visiting family support in a remote area of Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]