Aboriginal Health Flagship
MCRI established the Aboriginal Health Program to address gaps in evidence by working with Aboriginal communities to co-design, implement and evaluate strategies to promote health, wellbeing and equity for Aboriginal children, young people and families.
Image: "Jillay Wannik - Healthy pathway" By Dixon Patten, Yorta Yorta and Gunnai artist - Bayila Creative
Health, wellbeing and equity
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities have occupied the continent now known as Australia for over 60,000 years. Today, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue connections to culture, identity, knowledge, place and relationships to Country.
Despite this, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families experience the legacy and ongoing impact of colonisation, loss of land and decimation of culture, language and community, and experiences of racism and discrimination. While there have been significant gains in some domains of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander child health, there are still many areas where improvements need to be made.
Strong leadership by, and collaboration with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are key to effective research responses to the adversity faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people.
Our vision
Health, wellbeing and equity for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, young people and families.
Our mission
- To establish a community-driven research program that will lead to sustainable, long-term improvement in the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal children, young people and families.
- To work in partnership with Aboriginal organisations and communities to co-design, implement and evaluate strategies to improve the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal children, young people and families.
- To work in partnership with Aboriginal communities to co-design, implement and evaluate strategies to reverse the upward trends in mental health disorders, self-harm and suicide in children and young people.
Full image: "Jillay Wannik - Healthy pathway" By Dixon Patten, Yorta Yorta and Gunnai artist - Bayila Creative
Aboriginal Health Program
We established the Aboriginal Health Program to address gaps in evidence by working with Aboriginal communities to co-design, implement and evaluate strategies to promote health, wellbeing and equity for Aboriginal children, young people and families.
Our first priority is to prevent and reduce the impacts of intergenerational trauma and reverse upward trends in rates of mental health disorders, self-harm, and suicide among Aboriginal children and young people.
The Aboriginal Health Program also aims to build capacity and capability at the Murdoch Children's Research Institute and the Melbourne Children’s campus, supporting the expansion of collaborative research working with Aboriginal communities. Historically, Aboriginal health research has largely focused on people living in remote communities. There are major gaps in knowledge and understanding of factors influencing the health of Aboriginal children living in urban environments and the southern states.
To address these gaps, the Aboriginal Health Program is spearheading a range of initiatives to expand the number of Aboriginal researchers on campus and foster stronger, collaborative engagement with Aboriginal communities in Victoria and South Australia.
Building on existing relationships with Aboriginal community organisations and communities, the Intergenerational Health team is taking a lead role in this initiative. Leveraging the multidisciplinary expertise on campus and the support of the Royal Children’s Foundation, and working in partnership with Aboriginal communities, we are building the expertise needed to break intergenerational cycles of trauma and social adversity and ultimately reduce health disparities.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Reference Group
This group provides strategic guidance and cultural advice to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Research Leadership Team, the Institute Director and Institute Executive.
Specifically, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Reference Group will:
- Support us to develop a positive profile in Victorian Aboriginal communities
- Set directions to guide engagement with Victorian Aboriginal communities and community organisations
- Provide advice to guide the development of research priorities and partnerships to benefit Victorian Aboriginal children, young people and families
- Support the Murdoch Children's to expand and empower its Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workforce and create career opportunities and pathways for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in research
- Support the Murdoch Children's to advocate for a health system and broader social change to benefit Aboriginal children, young people and families based on research evidence. This includes advice about knowledge translation to ensure research has tangible benefits for Aboriginal communities.
- Advocate and advise us about how to actively embed the ethos of Victorian Aboriginal self-determination in all aspects of Aboriginal health research.
Our group members
| Member | Details |
|---|---|
| Justin Mohamed (Co-chair) | Ambassador for First Nations People, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade |
| Helen Kennedy (Co-chair) | Senior Research Advisor, Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency |
| Aunty Di Kerr | Wurundjeri Elder |
| N’arweet Carolyn Briggs | Boon Wurrung Elder |
| Andrew Jackomos | Member of Victoria’s Treaty Authority |
| Bonnie Dukakis | Executive Officer, Koorie Youth Council |
| Indi Clarke | Consultant, ABSTARR Consulting Former Executive Officer of Koorie Youth Council |
| Selena White | Manager, Wadja Aboriginal Family Place, RCH |
| Shawana Andrews | Director, Melbourne Poche Centre for Indigenous Health |
| Dr Graham Gee (Navigator) | Team Leader/Principal Research Fellow, Intergenerational Health |
Resources
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultural Protocols in Victoria - Murdoch Children's Research Institute Guide for Researchers (PDF2.49 MB)
On behalf of the Murdoch Children's Aboriginal Reference group, it is with great pleasure that we share this important guide for Murdoch Children's researchers with respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural protocols in Victoria.