Aboriginal health

Aboriginal Program Facilitator at Plenty Valley Community Health

Jacqui Burns describes her role as the only Aboriginal staffperson at Plenty Valley Community Health and the range of programs the organisation has developed to support the local Aboriginal community.

Video Transcript

Hi! My name is Jacqui Burns. I’m from far North Queensland and I grew up on Palm Island and Ingham which is 47 kilometres of the coast of Townsville. I belong to the salt water people.

I’m an Aboriginal Program Facilitator working at Plenty Valley Community Health. I coordinate four programs in my role. These are healthy weight, mental health, Saturday dental and Playgroup Victoria.

It is important to have an Aboriginal Program Facilitator to voice cultural awareness and strengthen the community’s needs for a best start in life.

The majority referrals is to physio, diabetes, paediatrician and dentist.

The dental service is a first point of contact for all clients. The dental clinic has become an important place to connect with clients and establish trust so they can talk about other issues, whether it’s about their health or other areas of their life, and this is how first point of contact is established to refer clients on to specialist.

With the Saturday Dental, I provide a healthy breakfast program because many clients skip breakfast just so they can make it to their appointment.

Another part of my job is coordinating a weekly playgroup which has become an important part of the community. 

Children are like sponges and absorb so much each week from these programs. By imitating the environment around them, they learn emotional and cognition skills from their elders.  We provide a hearty warm meal and cater each session a healthy choice menu each week. By doing this, mothers and children can bond, engage and socialise with other mothers having a woman to woman talk.

Between the dental and the playgroup, that’s where it all blossoms.

It is at the dental that the conversation will tell me where the problems are. I can refer people on.

It is important to strengthen and bridge the gap to improve Indigenous people with chronic diseases to improve Indigenous life expectancy in every community.