Alcohol management plans in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Indigenous) Australian communities in Queensland: community residents have experienced favourable impacts but also suffered unfavourable ones

Abstract Background Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health professionals often juggle the challenges of working and living in the same community in ways that are positive for both themselves and their clients. This study specifically examines the strategies Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health professionals have developed to enable them to feel empowered by the sense of being always visible or perceived as being always available. Findings provide examples of how participants (Team Members) established a seamless working self, including how they often held different perspectives to many work colleagues, how Team Members were always visible to community and how Team Members were comfortable to be seen as working when not at work. Methods This qualitative study engages an Indigenous research methodology and uses an Indigenous method, PhotoYarning, to explore lived experiences of a group (n = 15) of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers as they worked in the Australian health sector. Results The analysis presented here comes from data generated through PhotoYarning sessions. Team Members in this study all work in health care settings in the communities in which they also live, they manage an extremely complex network of interactions and relationships in their daily working lives. They occupy an ambivalent, and sometimes ambiguous, position as representing both their health profession and their community. This article explores examples of what working with seamlessness involved, with findings citing four main themes: (1) Being fellow members of their cultural community, (2) the feeling of always being visible to community as a health worker, (3) the feeling of always being available as a health worker to community even when not at work and (4) the need to set an example. Conclusions While creating the seamlessness of working and living in the same community was not easy, Team Members considered it an important feature of the work they did and vital if they were to be able to provide quality health service to their community. However, they reported that the seamless working self was at odds with the way many of their non-Indigenous Australian colleagues worked and it was not well understood.

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The Indigenous Australian Malnutrition Project: the burden and impact of malnutrition in Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander hospital inpatients, and validation of a malnutrition screening tool for use in hospitals—study rationale and protocol

SpringerPlus ◽

10.1186/s40064-016-2943-5 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Natasha F. Morris ◽

Simon Stewart ◽

Malcolm D. Riley ◽

Graeme P. Maguire

Keyword(s):

Torres Strait Islander ◽

Screening Tool ◽

Indigenous Australian ◽

Torres Strait ◽

Hospital Inpatients

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Listening to and learning from the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to facilitate success

Student Success ◽

10.5204/ssj.v7i1.317 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

pp. 1-11 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Katelyn Barney

Keyword(s):

Undergraduate Students ◽

Torres Strait Islander ◽

Success Factors ◽

Indigenous Australian ◽

Indigenous Students ◽

Future Developments ◽

Torres Strait ◽

The University ◽

Tertiary Study

Drawing on interviews with current and past Indigenous undergraduate students at the University of Queensland (UQ), this paper reports on findings from a project that explored the experiences of Indigenous Australian students and identified inhibitors and success factors for students. It also discusses one of the outcomes of the project and planned future developments that aim to provide better support for Indigenous Australian students at UQ. By knowing and acting upon the kinds of mechanisms that can assist Indigenous students, their experiences of tertiary study can be enhanced, leading to more students enrolling in and completing university study.

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Grounded Theory and Focus Groups: Reconciling Methodologies in Indigenous Australian Education Research

The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education ◽

10.1017/s1326011100004671 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 36 (S1) ◽

pp. 32-37 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Jan Stewart

Keyword(s):

Grounded Theory ◽

Focus Groups ◽

Torres Strait Islander ◽

Methodological Approach ◽

Theory Development ◽

Indigenous Australian ◽

Generative Process ◽

Dialogic Relationships ◽

Group Identities ◽

Torres Strait

AbstractThis paper captures an ideological moment in time in which I contemplated the methodological approach I was embarking upon. In my search for a more appropriate approach for conducting research with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander tertiary students at the University of Queensland, I chose focus groups set within the qualitative process of grounded theory. This paper explores the meaning, usefulness and persistence of grounded theory, how it juxtaposes with focus groups, and the implications for the reciprocal integrity of the research for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and me. Within this context and the tenets of grounded theory I ask questions such as, “For how long in the process can your research texts (linking data and theory) about field texts (participants’ narratives) remain purely inductive?” And, “How does the movement between inductive theory development and deductive assumptions fit widi issues of power and authority in an Australian Indigenous context?”I see possibility in the complementary use of grounded theory and focus groups that creates dialogic relationships between the students as both narrators and audience. Through the interaction of retelling, reliving and recreating life experiences in conversations, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander tertiary students conceptualise their individual subjectivities in a process of self-construction. How perceptive I am in “seeing” developing concepts within the students’ testimonies, and how I interpret those concepts in relation to existing theoretical content, may lead to new theory that influences the ongoing deconstruction of grand narratives often assigned to group identities. Co-research among the participants can provide the opportunity for monitoring the generative process.

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Yarning about oral health: perceptions of urban Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women

10.21203/rs.2.14247/v3 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Kaley Butten ◽

Newell W. Johnson ◽

Kerry K. Hall ◽

Maree Toombs ◽

Neil King ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Oral Health ◽

Life Course ◽

Torres Strait Islander ◽

Personal Narratives ◽

Health Behaviours ◽

Indigenous Australian ◽

Oral Health Behaviours ◽

Torres Strait ◽

Important Time ◽

The Impact

Abstract Background: Many factors influence how a person experiences oral health and how such experiences may facilitate supportive oral health behaviours. Women in particular face different challenges due to their environment, responsibilities and physiological differences to men. Within Australia, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are reported to have poorer oral health and are faced with additional barriers to supporting their oral health compared with non-Indigenous women. The objective of this paper is to report the experiences and perceptions of oral health from the perspective of urban, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women. Methods: The present data derive from a descriptive study that used yarning circles and face-to-face interviews with women who were mothers/carers of urban, Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children. This was a qualitative study to investigate the impact of child oral health on families. Participants used the opportunity to share their own personal experiences of oral health as women, thus providing data for the present analyses. Information collected was transcribed and analysed thematically Results: 20 women shared their personal narratives on the topic of oral health which were reflective of different time points in their life: growing up, as an adult and as a mother/carer. Although women are trying to support their oral health across their life-course, they face a number of barriers, including a lack of information and the costs of accessing dental care. The teenage years and pregnancy were reported as important time periods for oral health support. Conclusions: To improve the oral health of Indigenous Australian women, policymakers must consider the barriers reported by women and critically review current oral health information and services. Current oral health services are financially out of reach for Indigenous Australian women and there is not sufficient or appropriate, oral information across the life-course.

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Does attending Work It Out – a chronic disease self-management program – affect the use of other health services by urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with or at risk of chronic disease? A comparison between program participants and non-participants

Australian Journal of Primary Health ◽

10.1071/py18089 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 25 (5) ◽

pp. 464

Author(s):

Jie Hu ◽

Tabinda Basit ◽

Alison Nelson ◽

Emma Crawford ◽

Lyle Turner

Keyword(s):

Chronic Disease ◽

Health Services ◽

Torres Strait Islander ◽

Healthcare Services ◽

Management Program ◽

Torres Strait Islander People ◽

Team Care ◽

Management Plans ◽

Torres Strait ◽

Services Use

Work It Out is a holistic chronic disease self-management program for urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Queensland, which is part of an integrated and comprehensive system of care for chronic disease management. This study examines differences in primary healthcare services use between Work It Out participants and non-participants. This retrospective observational study of services use, analysed data extracted from the clinical medical records system and Work It Out program assessments. General practitioner and allied health services use were compared among the participants and non-participants using logistic regression models and zero-truncated Poisson and negative binomial regression models. Compared with non-participants, Work It Out participants were more likely to use GP management plans, GP team care arrangements, GP mental health consultation and subsequent allied health services. Among those who used the services more than once, Work It Out participants had higher service use rates than non-participants for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health assessments, GP management plans, team care arrangements and podiatry, physiotherapy and dietetic services. Engagement in Work It Out can facilitate the use of primary healthcare services, which are important for chronic disease management for urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

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Introduction

The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education ◽

10.1017/jie.2012.2 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 41 (1) ◽

pp. 1-9

Author(s):

Elizabeth Mackinlay ◽

Katelyn Barney

Keyword(s):

Cultural Heritage ◽

Teaching And Learning ◽

Torres Strait Islander ◽

Indigenous Australians ◽

Working Relationships ◽

Colonial History ◽

Indigenous Australian ◽

Indigenous Students ◽

Torres Strait ◽

Pedagogical Approaches

Indigenous Australian studies, also called Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander studies, is an expanding discipline in universities across Australia (Nakata, 2004). As a discipline in its own right, Indigenous Australian studies plays an important role in teaching students about Australia's colonial history and benefits both non-Indigenous and Indigenous students by teaching them about Australia's rich and shared cultural heritage (Craven, 1999, pp. 23–25). Such teaching and learning seeks to actively discuss and deconstruct historical and contemporary entanglements between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians and, in doing so, help build better working relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. As educators in this discipline, it is important for us to find pedagogical approaches which make space for these topics to be accessed, understood, discussed and engaged with in meaningful ways.

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Understanding Social and Legal Justice Issues for Aboriginal Women within the Context of an Indigenous Australian Studies Classroom: a Problem-based Learning Approach

The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education ◽

10.1017/s1326011100600832 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 33 ◽

pp. 23-30 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Elizabeth Mackinlay ◽

Kristy Thatcher ◽

Camille Seldon

Keyword(s):

Torres Strait Islander ◽

Problem Based Learning ◽

Learning Approach ◽

Active Process ◽

Pedagogical Approach ◽

Indigenous Australian ◽

Aboriginal Women ◽

Contemporary Perspective ◽

Torres Strait ◽

The University

AbstractProblem-based learning (PBL) is a pedagogical approach in which students encounter a problem and systematically set about finding ways to understand the problem through dialogue and research. PBL is an active process where students take responsibility for their learning by asking their own questions about the problem and in this paper we explore the potential of PBL as a “location of possibility” (hooks, 1994, p. 207) for an engaged, dialogic, reflective and critical classroom. Our discussion centres on a course called ABTS2010 Aboriginal Women, taught by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Unit at the University of Queensland where PBL is used frequently, and a specific PBL package entitled Kina v R aimed at exploring social and legal justice issues for Indigenous Australian women. From both a historical and contemporary perspective, we consider the types of understandings made possible about justice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women for students in the course through the use of a PBL approach.

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Another Country: Non-Aboriginal Tertiary Students' Perceptions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples

The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education ◽

10.1017/s1326011100002568 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 25 (1) ◽

pp. 18-22 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Josephine Ryan

Keyword(s):

Torres Strait Islander ◽

English Language ◽

Aboriginal People ◽

Indigenous Australians ◽

Indigenous Australian ◽

Bachelor Of Arts ◽

Indigenous Perspectives ◽

Torres Strait ◽

Teaching Learning ◽

The University

Even though Aboriginal people are from Australia it does not mean they speak the English language (non-Aboriginal tertiary student).Jo Lampert's (1996) research discussed in her articleIndigenous Australian perspectives in teaching at the University of Queenslandspeaks volumes about the challenges of attempting to make university curricula inclusive of Indigenous Australian perspectives. She documents the often ambivalent attitudes of academics towards opening up the curriculum to Indigenous Australians. The research discussed here seeks to add to our understanding of this process, focussing this time on the response of students to the introduction of Australian Indigenous perspectives into a single unit within a Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Teaching program. The impetus to reflect on the process came with the shock of reading student papers, written at the end of the unit, and finding that effective communication about the educational needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples did not seem to have taken place, making a closer analysis of the teaching/learning process imperative. This investigation will address questions abouthowuniversities can communicate effectively about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

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Interventions to improve health literacy among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples: a systematic review

BMC Public Health ◽

10.1186/s12889-021-10278-x ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Simone Nash ◽

Amit Arora

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Health Literacy ◽

Health Outcomes ◽

Torres Strait Islander ◽

Cochrane Library ◽

Indigenous Australians ◽

Community Members ◽

Indigenous Australian ◽

Torres Strait ◽

Improve Health

Abstract Background Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples continue to experience poorer health outcomes than other population groups. While data specific to Indigenous Australians are scarce, a known social health literacy gradient exists linking low health literacy and poor health outcomes within many minority populations. Improving health literacy among Indigenous Australians is an important way to support self-determination and autonomy in both individuals and communities, by enhancing knowledge and improving health outcomes. This review aims to rigorously examine the effectiveness of health literacy interventions targeting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Methods A systematic review across six databases (The Cochrane Library, PubMed, Embase, SCOPUS, ProQuest Dissertation and Thesis and Web of Science) was performed for publications evaluating interventions to improve health literacy among Indigenous Australian adults using search terms identifying a range of related outcomes. Results Of 824 articles retrieved, a total of five studies met the eligibility criteria and were included in this review. The included studies evaluated the implementation of workshops, structured exercise classes and the provision of discounted fruit and vegetables to improve nutrition, modify risk factors for chronic diseases, and improve oral health literacy. All interventions reported statistically significant improvement in at least one measured outcome. However, there was limited involvement of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members in the research process and participant retention rates were sub-optimal. Conclusion There is limited evidence on interventions to improve health literacy in Indigenous Australian adults. Participation in interventions was often suboptimal and loss to follow-up was high. Future studies co-designed with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members are needed to improve health literacy in this population.

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