In the Australian Aboriginal community, poverty causes mental health problems particularly in remote and rural regions. Bowers (2013) emphasised that there are three types of poverty associated with the Aboriginal community such as economical, spiritual and emotional poverty. Poverty is influenced by low employment, location, lack of education and culture (Lahn, 2012). Australian Bureau of Statistics (2012) found that there are high rate of unemployment of indigenous people (33, 800) than non-indigenous people living in remote regions. Werner, (2012) exemplified that Individuals who suffer from mental illness may not be able to work and or manage their income adequately. To keep away from poverty, individuals may turn to drugs or Alcohol to …show more content…
Thus equitable access to health care system, community participation, health promotion and Intersectoral collaboration is lacking in Aboriginal society in rural and remote areas, therefore leading to a high rate of poverty and mental illness. Hence, it is important to promote primary health care principles and practices in rural and remote areas to prevent and cure diseases and help reduce poverty rate in Aboriginal society and diminish mental health problems. McMurray and Clendon (2014) emphasised that culture brings people together and “cultural exclusiveness divides citizens by race… affiliation” (pg398). Bowers (2013) emphasised that spiritual and emotional poverty gets passed on through “generations and affects entire communities.” Losing spiritual connection can make individuals weak where they can get stressed, feel isolated and not belong in their …show more content…
Some techniques used by this initiative are yarning and change management skills. Yarning is an explicit tool that is used by individuals to express their thoughts and stories without getting judged or insulted (Geia et al., 2013). The Aboriginal people, prior the British settlements, always consulted with their Elders when dealing with issues as they were more experienced and provided guidance and advice to individuals. Similarly, Deadly Thinking aims to bring back the Aboriginal culture where individuals will share their yarning’s with their community and natural helpers as this will aid their mental health and wellbeing as they will receive guidance in dealing with explicit matters For example, males tend to keep quiet compared to females due to their egotistic nature (Bowers, 2013). Due to this, their mental health may deteriorate and hence they will relieve their pain through illicit substances and Alcohol. Thus Deadly Thinking promotes mental health and wellbeing through yarning where individuals will be encouraged to voice out their thoughts and stories and receive professional guidance from the initiative. Another technique that promotes mental health and wellbeing is change management skills. This skill enables individuals to recognise their faults and addictions and educates them on changing their behaviours, lifestyles
Ed. Shelagh Rogers, Mike DeGagné, Jonathan Dewar, and Glen Lowry. Ottawa, Ont.: Aboriginal Healing Foundation, 2006. Print.
In Canada, access to health care is ‘universal’ to its citizens under the Canadian Health Care Act and this system is considered to the one of the best in the world (Laurel & Richard, 2002). Access to health care is assumed on the strong social value of equality and is defined as the distribution of services to all those in need and for the common good and health of all residents (Fierlbeck, 2011). Equitable access to health care does not mean that all citizens are subjected to receive the same number of services but rather that wherever the service is provided it is based on need. Therefore, not all Canadians have equal access to health services. The Aboriginal peoples in Canada in particular are a population that is overlooked and underserved
Definition: Mental health has become a pressing issue in Indigenous communities. Often, a combination of trauma, a lack of accessible health resources, substance abuse, violence, and socioeconomic situations lead to high rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidality in Indigenous Peoples. This crisis is especially apparent in Indigenous youth, where there is a growing suicide epidemic but little mental health support and resources are provided. The increase in stigmatized and untreated mental illness has continued as trauma and systemic injustices remain unaddressed. Indigenous groups, governmental parties, and health organizations are involved.
There are significant health disparities that exist between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Australians. Being an Indigenous Australian means the person is and identifies as an Indigenous Australian, acknowledges their Indigenous heritage and is accepted as such in the community they live in (Daly, Speedy, & Jackson, 2010). Compared with Non-Indigenous Australians, Aboriginal people die at much younger ages, have more disability and experience a reduced quality of life because of ill health. This difference in health status is why Indigenous Australians health is often described as “Third World health in a First World nation” (Carson, Dunbar, Chenhall, & Bailie, 2007, p.xxi). Aboriginal health care in the present and future should encompass a holistic approach which includes social, emotional, spiritual and cultural wellbeing in order to be culturally suitable to improve Indigenous Health. There are three dimensions of health- physical, social and mental- that all interrelate to determine an individual’s overall health. If one of these dimensions is compromised, it affects how the other two dimensions function, and overall affects an individual’s health status. The social determinants of health are conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age which includes education, economics, social gradient, stress, early life, social inclusion, employment, transport, food, and social supports (Gruis, 2014). The social determinants that are specifically negatively impacting on Indigenous Australians health include poverty, social class, racism, education, employment, country/land and housing (Isaacs, 2014). If these social determinants inequalities are remedied, Indigenous Australians will have the same opportunities as Non-Ind...
Walter, M. (2007). Aboriginality, poverty and health-exploring the connections. Beyond bandaids: exploring the underlying social determinants of aboriginal health. [online] Retrieved from: http://www.lowitja.org.au/sites/default/files/docs/Beyond-Bandaids-CH5.pdf/ [Accessed 10 Apr 2014]
Poor living conditions are a major health determinant throughout the indigenous population. Most Indigenous Australians are known to live in rural parts of Australia which are commonly not close to major cities and services. People living in these areas generally have poorer health than others living in the cities and other parts of Australia. These individuals do not have as much access to health services and good quality housing. In 2006 roughly 14% of indigenous households in Australia were overcrowded unlike 5% of other households (AIHW, 2009a). Overcrowded and poor quality houses are commonly associated with poor physical and mental health between the people living in them. The indigenous are n...
Since colonialism after the invasion, Australia indigenous peoples have experienced a great deal of loss of identity, loss, disempowerment, cultural alienation, grief. Many indigenous people's mental and physical health impaired. Suicide, family violence, drug abuse and unemployment rates is higher than the Australian average(Berry et al. 2012). That is complicated to contributing to develop and support sustainable mental health and social wellbeing for Australian aboriginals staying in rural areas ,related to much diversity involved in and between individuals and communities (Guerin & Guerin 2012).
The first factor that has an impact on the health of Indigenous people is their access to health services. Health services include health care provided by general medical practitioners, nurses, and allied health professionals. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2008), Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have lower level of access to health services compared to other Australians. Distance may be one of the reasons that Indigenous Australian have difficulties to get to the facilities they want. Compared to the general population, the percentage of having medical facilities, including hospital, Aboriginal primary health care and other community health center, located in the discrete indigenous communities was only 7%, while in general population, the percentage was 35% (ABS 2006). Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities face many different kinds of transport challenges as well. In 2008, 43% of Indigenous adults lived in an area in which the local transport was not available (HAMAC 2012, p. 99). That affects people’s access to health facilities as well. People may not get the treatment they need when take location and tra...
The Stolen Generation has left devastating impacts upon the Aboriginal culture and heritage, Australian history and the presence of equality experienced today. The ‘Stolen Generation’ refers to the children of Aboriginal descent being forcefully abducted by government officials of Australia and placed within institutions and catholic orphanages, being forced to assimilate into ‘white society’. These dehumanising acts placed these stolen children to experience desecration of culture, loss of identity and the extinction of their race. The destructive consequences that followed were effects of corruption including attempted suicide, depression and drug and alcohol abuse. The indigenous peoples affected by this have endured solitude for many years, this has only been expressed to the public recently and a proper apology has been issued, for the years of ignorance to the implementation of destruction of culture. The Stolen Generation has dramatically shaped Australian history and culture.
While delivering health care services, nurses usually engage peacefully and collaboratively with the local community, (CARRN, 2005). Recent research shows that the rural nursing practice in Aboriginal communities in affected by the current and projected insufficiency of nursing staff since because the Aboriginal practice is remote and covers the whole of Canada. However, it is noted that this challenge is influenced by the decision to educate Aboriginal Canadian nurses. The Aboriginal nurses acquire nursing educational services through the support of the integration of traditional healing mechanisms and the transmission of health care services to tribal
This study investigated how the cultural practices of Indigenous Australian ad Torres Strait Islander people impact the perception of their health. The discrepancy between the health status of Indigenous and non-Indigenous people reveals different health needs for each group. The results of this study suggest that increased engagement with cultural practices, including a firm commitment to cultural continuity as well as creating a better future, reduces trauma among Indigenous Australian and Torres Strait Islander people. Thus failure to consider how people relate with their environment, including land, sea and family can create a gap in the delivery of health care. Key Findings 1 Indigenous Australian people’s perception of healthcare
Australia has long been called the lucky country. With beautiful beaches, a life expectancy of 82 years and great benefits, life sounds pretty good. However, this is not the case for over 700 000 Indigenous Australians today. In all social indicators, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples rate as the most disadvantaged people in Australia, despite “efforts” by the government.
This was due to the spiritual gap between patients and mental health professionals. Mental health professionals were less spiritual as compared to the general population at that time. In the past two decades there has been enormous research on spirituality and mental health. David B Larson and Jeffrey S Levin were the instigators to who explored spirituality in medical field.
Every individuals or group of subcultures are mainly effect or treated fairly with the relation to their values and beliefs or their class in the society. It is important to also note the fact that the breaking of laws and committing crime can lead to greater risks and impact both the lives of individuals creating social disadvantage. Social disadvantage is portrayed as not being able to be treated same as others, not being able to have access to the services or resources provided which is very common amongst the Indigenous Australians and those from lower socio-economic areas. Also, it can be noted that people within these groups have greater chance or higher risk initiating and committing crimes (Australian Institute of Criminology, 2012).
Achieving better health for indigenous people is a challenge throughout the world. Indigenous population have poor health condition than rest of the population in most of the country. This gap in health is larger in develop country than developing county. Many governmental, non-governmental as well as international organizations like WHO, works to improve indigenous health but these effort and work still lacks to meet the gap. One’s health is not about living rather it is a resource which assures normal living (WHO 2014).