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Australia does not have a national strategy for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adolescent health and as a result, policy and programming actions are fragmented and may not be responsive to needs. Efforts to date have also rarely engaged Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in co-designing solutions. The Roadmap Project aims to work in partnership with young people to define priority areas of health and well-being need and establish the corresponding developmentally appropriate, evidence-based actions.
Ensuring that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children removed from their families by child protection services remain connected to their kin, Country and culture is a priority to begin to redress the intergenerational trauma and harm caused by colonisation. This article describes the views of staff working in three mainstream out-of-home care organisations, where children are cared for by non-Indigenous foster carers.
Skin concerns are frequent among urban-living Aboriginal children, yet specialist dermatology consultations are limited with studies highlighting the need for improved cultural security. Through newly established paediatric dermatology clinics at two urban Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs), we aimed to describe clinic and patient data, including disease frequencies and associations, to inform dermatology service provision and advocacy.
First Nations Peoples endure disproportionate rates of stillbirth compared with non-First Nations Peoples. Previous interventions have aimed at reducing stillbirth in First Nations Peoples and providing better bereavement care without necessarily understanding the perceptions, knowledge and beliefs that could influence the design of the intervention and implementation.
Improving the health of Indigenous adolescents is central to addressing the health inequities faced by Indigenous peoples. To achieve this, it is critical to understand what is needed from the perspectives of Indigenous adolescents themselves. There have been many qualitative studies that capture the perspectives of Indigenous young people, but synthesis of these has been limited to date.
Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women with diabetes in pregnancy (DIP) are more likely to have glycaemic levels above the target range, and their babies are thus at higher risk of excessive fetal growth. Shoulder dystocia, defined by failure of spontaneous birth of fetal shoulder after birth of the head requiring obstetric maneuvers, is an obstetric emergency that is strongly associated with DIP and fetal size.
The early years are critical for lifelong wellbeing, with transition to formal school a key period for development. For Indigenous children, this transition provides opportunities to build on cultural strengths and belonging. However, many children face systemic barriers that impact their transition experiences, highlighting a need for culturally safe programs that support Indigenous families during this significant time.
Extreme heat exposure is a major global public health threat that is affecting people across the life course, including the pregnancy period. Studies have linked extreme heat with adverse pregnancy and newborn health outcomes globally.
First Nations women in Australia continue to experience disproportionately adverse maternal and infant outcomes. The ongoing legacy of colonisation and systemic racism shapes these outcomes. In the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), maternity services remain dominated by Western biomedical approaches that fail to deliver culturally safe and anti-racist care despite national standards that mandate such practices.
Youth-onset type 2 diabetes is an emerging condition impacting Indigenous populations worldwide. Schools have an important role in supporting students to manage their health. We undertook a qualitative study to (i) explore the lived experience of type 2 diabetes, diabetes management and support in school environments and (ii) co-design recommendations for age-appropriate, culturally safe school-based strategies and supports. Interviews and focus groups were undertaken with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth, caregivers, health professionals and school-based staff. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth were involved in determining the research topic.