Aboriginal Health Case Study

Social factors that impact on the health of a person of Aboriginal or

As health professionals, we must look beyond individual attributes of Indigenous Australians to gain a greater understanding and a possible explanation of why there are such high rates of ill health issues such as alcoholism, depression, abuse, shorter life expectancy and higher prevalence of diseases including diabetes, heart disease and obesity in our indigenous population. Looking at just the individual aspects and the biomedical health model, we don’t get the context of Aboriginal health. This is why we need to explore in further detail what events could have created such inequities in Aboriginal health. Other details that we should consider are the historical and cultural factors such as, ‘terra nullius’, dispossession and social

In Australia, the health of indigenous peoples has been a long-standing concern for the government and the United Nations (U.N.) (Calma, 2007). Data from The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) indicates that indigenous Australians continue to live in conditions of enormous social and economic disadvantages which is reflected in the fact that there is gap in the life expectancy between Indigenous and non-indigenous a 17-year

There is a clear relationship between the social disadvantages experienced by Indigenous people and their current health status. These social disadvantages lead to a number of critical health issues. In Australia 2.5 per cent of the population is made up of Indigenous people. Within this population only 3% are 65 years of age or older, whereas 16.3% of the Australian population is over 65. (Australian Bureau of Statistics. 2012).

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population across different parts of Australia have lower life expectancy than mainstream Australians (approximately 10 years difference in lifespan between indigenous and non-indigenous people). Late diagnosis of disease is the most prominent, with many indigenous people entering the end or terminal phase of illness before it is diagnosed (Williams, 2016). The colonisation of Australia had a catastrophic effect on Torres islander or Aboriginal people. Behrendt, L, (2012) states that in 1788, Captain Arthur Phillip and other 1500 civilians, marines and crew arrived at Sydney. After 10 years of their arrival, Australia’s indigenous population reduced by 90 percent.

The health of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population is far below the standard for other Australians. General health levels and life expectancy are poor and they are higher than the average levels of psychiatric illness. Life expectancy is less for Indigenous people in Australia. Indigenous people are more than twice as likely to die in any age group, than non-Aboriginal people. In the 25 to 44 year age bracket, death is five times higher.

As an example, the life expectancy at birth for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males was 69.1 years, and 73.7 years for females in 2010-2012 and it was lower than the non-Indigenous Australians. In 2008-2012 the infant mortality represented 4% when compared to 1% of non-Indigenous deaths (AIHW 2104). Completing higher education among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples represent 30% when compared with non-Indigenous students (Sue and Stephen 2011). The national Close the Gap Campaign, enhances the ongoing advocacy from ACCHS and others to address poor Aboriginal health outcomes (Internal Medicine Journal, 2008). Australian Human Rights (2018) states the campaign allows Aboriginal peoples to participate in decision making on their health and wellbeing.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders are the Indigenous people of Australia who have lived on this land for thousands of years. They have a strong spiritual belief that closely ties them to their homeland of Australia. As Europeans settled in Australia and started to gain control over the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, they started to view the Indigenous through the lense of scientific racism and Social Darwinism, which gathered an opinion for them to either accustom in the white community or to die out. This outlook towards the Indigenous communities resulted in families being torn apart as children were taken away and put into missions that would teach them behaviours acceptable in the white society which had a great impact on

“The status of Indigenous health in contemporary Australia is a result of historic factors as well as contemporary socio-economic issues” (Hampton & Toombs, 2013, p. 1).

Among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people there are a number of negative health trends that have been entrenched into their culture. These include high rates of chronic disease (renal failure, cardio-vascular diseases and diabetes), otitis media, eye conditions, sexually transmitted infections, high rates of HIV/ AIDS and also high rates of unhealthy an risky behaviours (substance abuse, alcohol and tobacco use). Between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and non- indigenous Australians substantial inequalities exist, particularly in relation to chronic and communicable disease, infant health and mental health and life expectation. Despite the government’s commitments to address this situation, data suggests that there have only been slow improvements, in some areas of health station and no progress in others over the course of a decade. From the little improvements made they are generally not of the same magnitude that of the gains experienced by the non- indigenous

It is well established that Indigenous Australian’s have a lower state of health and wellbeing than non-Indigenous people (Paradies, Harries, and Anderson, 2008). Aboriginal people have a diverse culture with a rich and compelling history and the impact of colonisation, legislation and the stolen generation has created significant hardships for Indigenous Australians, putting them as the most disadvantaged group (Paradies, Harries, and Anderson, 2008). It is known that their life expectancy is seventeen years less than other Australians.

The social determinants of health are described as the condition of daily living in which determines the individual’s chances of maintaining optimum health (Department of Health and Human Services 2015). In Australia, the health inequality between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians is noted by the World Health Organization (WHO) to have the largest disparity in the world (Markwick et al. 2014). Statistically, the life expectancy for indigenous Australians who are born in 2010-2012 is estimated to be 10.6 years lower when compared to non-indigenous Australians (Markwick et al. 2014). Social determinants such as employment and social exclusion may contribute to the major difference in the health status between the indigenous and non-indigenous Australians (Markwick et al. 2014). This essay will focus on discussing how having employment and social exclusion has led to the health inequalities between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians, and how indigenous healthcare nurses can address these determinants in the care they provide in the indigenous community setting.

Indigenous Australians experience a much lower life-expectancy than the national average, and are substantially more prone to developing diseases and long-term disability leading to a reduced quality of life. One of the most significant contributors to the ATSI population’s health and wellbeing is their geographical location, in particular, looking at their access to health services and adequate nutrition.

As stated in the 2015 report ‘The health and welfare of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’, Indigenous Australians were twice as likely as non-Indigenous Australians to have severe or profound disability and their life expectancies were significantly lower in 2010-2012. The life expectancy was 69.1 years for Indigenous males, which is 10.6 years lower than for non-Indigenous males (79.7 years) and 73.7 years for Indigenous females, which is 9.5 years lower than for non-Indigenous females (83.1 years). In 2014, the leading causes of death for Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders were diseases of the circulatory system, cancer, diabetes, respiratory diseases, diseases of the liver, external causes, such as accidents and self harm, and infant mortality (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2016). Indigenous Australians and Torres Strait Islanders suffer from a disadvantage for many reasons, some of them being due to their historical legacy and generational transfer of disadvantage, apathy and persistent discrimination shown by non-Indigenous Australians and Government policies, lack of funding and lack of services. As a result of lack of services, such as schools and hospitals, many Indigenous Australians fail to understand the risk factors

Aboriginal health standards are so low today that all most half aboriginal men and a third of the women die before they are 45. Aboriginal people can expect to live 20 years less than non-indigenous Australians. Aboriginals generally suffer from more health problem and are more likely to suffer from diabetes, liver disease and glaucoma. The causes of their poor health and low life expectancy are poverty, poor nutrition, poor housing, dispossession of their traditional land, low education level, high unemployment, drug and substance use, unsafe sex, limited health care and diseases.