Key Result Area Guideline 2:

Raising cultural awareness across the health service

Health Services can increase knowledge and awareness of Aboriginal culture for staff, visitors and patients in inexpensive but effective ways that show Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people that you support their rights, needs and culture.

Good ideas

Ask VACCHO for health posters (free or minimal cost; pay for postage) to hang in areas where, patients and visitors are likely to go, especially in entries, foyers and waiting rooms, and in staff areas.
For more information contact:
Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO)
Phone: (03) 9419 3350 www.vaccho.org.au

Increase library resources , by purchasing videos, subscribing to journals and adding to the library's catalogue of books about Aboriginal health
For more information contact:

Australian Indigenous Health Info Net
www.healthinfonet.ecu.edu.au

Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
www.aiatsis.gov.au

Aboriginal and Islander Health Worker Journal
www.aihwj.com.au/index.html

The Koorie Heritage Trust also sells books and other educational resources.

Think about providing wall space for a creation of a mural , using a local Aboriginal artist. For more information contact your local Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation.

Consider establishing Aboriginal art projects with children and other projects with members of the community, such as an Aboriginal garden.

Establish a permanent Aboriginal display in consultation with the local Aboriginal community, with flags, posters, photographs, historical items, artefacts and artwork, for general viewing.

Encourage Aboriginal secondary school students to undertake work experience in various departments of the health service, and with the Aboriginal Hospital Liaison Officer or other Aboriginal staff. For assistance in organising work experience for Aboriginal students, contact the Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Inc. Contact 03 9416 3833 www.vaeai.org.au/

Invite Aboriginal people as guest and keynote speakers for Annual General Meetings, conferences, education sessions, openings and other significant events.

For education and training activities in the health service, always use examples from Aboriginal health to raise awareness, and invite local Aboriginal health workers to assist in the training.

Call for volunteers from each section of the health service to train as Cultural or Health Associates , so that they can take responsibility for raising cultural awareness amongst their colleagues. The Royal Women's Hospital has done this successfully - About the Health Associates Program (Word File 26KB).

Obtain a copy of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission's (ATSIC) publication As a Matter of Fact, Answering the myths and misconceptions about Indigenous Australians (1999).

Subscribe to the Koori Mail newspaper and place copies in waiting areas and staff rooms. One-year subscription (25 copies) costs $65:00 www.koorimail.com/index.php

Join the Koorie Heritage Trust Inc, for a range of services including use of an Australian Indigenous subject-specific library that concentrates on Victorian Aboriginal history and contemporary issues.
For more information contact:
Phone: (03) 8622 2600
www.koorieheritagetrust.com/shop

Approach a local Aboriginal person who is a role model or achiever to be an Ambassador or Patron for your service.

Appropriate language is important in terms of potential impact on health outcomes for people who are not able to communicate in English. The community boundaries for contemporary Victorian Indigenous Organisations do not follow the traditional language boundaries, so there is a need to identify traditional language boundaries to recognise which community organisation is custodian for which language.

For Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages (VACL) Aboriginal language areas in Victoria, maps produced by Ian Clark 1996 go to:
http://www.vaclang.org.au/maps.aspx

For more information contact:
Phone: (03) 9600 3811 www.vaclang.org.au

Participate in NAIDOC Week as a way of celebrating and promoting a greater understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and their culture. To learn more go to:
http://www.naidoc.org.au/
For some great ideas how your office can celebrate NAIDOC week go to:
http://www.naidoc.org.au/what_is/celebrate.aspx

Conduct a Cultural Diversity Project to help raise awareness of the needs of Aboriginal patients. The story of a successful project at Echuca Regional Health and other good examples can be found in the Wur-cum barra booklet Good Ideas for Managing People

The Wur-cum barra website has many good ideas for raising cultural awareness of Aboriginal issues in mainstream organisations.

The Wur-cum barra Toolkit Homepage shows the range of information available on the website.

Contact: Koori Human Services Unit, Department of Human Services, 20/50 Lonsdale St, Melbourne 3000
Telephone (03) 9096 7032
Email: koori@dhs.vic.gov.au