INTRODUCTION
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are the native Australians who reside on the mainland and are recognized as the First People of Australia. This document examines the impact of colonization on the relationships and mentality of Indigenous Australians (Hussain et al., 2018). The report will focus on the Closing the Gap policy, which was developed to address the disparities between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, with particular attention to the higher mortality rates from cardiac diseases among Indigenous populations. Key aspects of the policy will be analyzed, and its effectiveness in addressing cardiac health issues will be assessed. Additionally, the report will explore the impact of political and historical factors on the current relationships of Aboriginal people and suggest strength-based approaches to address these challenges.
MAIN BODY
Key themes within this policy.
Aboriginals and Torres Islander people have long been left on the sidelines creating lack of adequate awarenesses, lack of knowledge and lack of initiative to lead a better and healthier life. Closing the Gap policy was a major initiative by the Australian which aimed to bridge the gap between the indigenous Australians and the access they have to the healthcare services and the programme basically concentrated on the life expectancy, the educational level, employment and the awareness level of the indigenous Australians addressing the underlying social determinants. There were some major themes that were addressed in Closing the Gap Policy:
Distribution of resources: The theme highlighted that the aboriginals and people of Torres Island must also have adequate access to the medical resources and the theme encourages establishment of healthcare service institutes along with properly trained medical professionals even in the distant locations. In the remote communities of northern and central Australia, the death rate amongst Aboriginals due to heart problems is very high irrespective of the age. When the aboriginals would be able to access a healthcare facility quicker and the resources would also be more efficiently trained, than the problem can be effectively addressed. Therefore, it is necessary that the access to healthcare resources of such aboriginal Australians is increased in order to maximize the prevention rate and get primary care immediately (Alvstam, Kettunen and Ström, 2017). Funds need to be developed specifically for this purpose of increasing the access of indigenous Australians based in distant places to suffice the services that are given by the medical professionals.
Safety training and educational programmes: Since the cardiac diseases is the highest and most common reason of death amongst the Aboriginals and people of Torres Island, therefore it becomes necessary to train the people about the use of different medicines and the precautionary measures that they can take. When they would have adequate and regular access to the healthcare facilities, then it will automatically become easier for them to get knowledge about what are the causes behind such increase cardiac diseases and how it could be minimized. Giving them pharmaceutical benefits, developing medical programmes are some of the best strategies that can be used to increase the safety measures and therefore the life expectancy of the people living in the Australian mainlands.
Employment of the Aboriginals: This policy also focuses on increasing the chances of employment for the aboriginals and integrating their contribution in the economy (Estermann and Kupriyanova, 2018). This is the major these that will ensure that the aboriginals are not left on sidelines and when these iondigie4nousso people will be employed in the healthcare sector, it will not only minimize the education gap that exists, but it will also reduce the stigma that these aboriginals have regarding the access to healthcare services in a modern way i.e. the use of machineries. When there will be availability of medical practitioners within the local communities and amongst their own kind, then their trust will increase and the increased access to heath care services will automatically lead to a decline in the rate of cardiovascular diseases amongst the aboriginals.
Impact of chosen policy on the chosen health outcome.
Closing the gap policy was an overall policy focusing on the improvement of health in an overall manner for the aboriginals and Torres Islanders (Altman, 2018). This policy however specifically addresses the problem of cardiac diseases and increasing rate of people suffering from this problem. As per the journals and articles published by Medical Journal of Australia, through various sources, it has been stated that the Implementation of this policy has significantly improved the life expectancy rate of the Aboriginals in the Australia.
The reports stated that in 2012, around 70% of Indigenous Australians were dying from cardiovascular disease or other heart-related illnesses. However, when the National Report on Indigenous Healthcare was published in 2016, it concluded that the rate of deaths due to heart-related diseases had significantly reduced among Aboriginals, thanks to the implementation of the Closing the Gap Policy (Closing the gap in cardiovascular risk for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 2018). The policy involved developing adequate plans to address the unique and complex needs of Aboriginal Australians. This policy notably increased access to healthcare services for Indigenous people, with reports showing that 42% of those at risk for cardiovascular disease could easily access lipid-lowering therapy, which reduces the risk associated with cardiovascular diseases (Closing the gap in cardiovascular risk for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 2018). The policy also enhanced public knowledge about the causes of cardiac diseases, and measures to prevent them were identified and addressed by the Closing the Gap Policy (Sahle et al., 2016). Although this policy has effectively reduced the number of deaths from cardiac diseases, certain aspects still hinder the full potential of the Closing the Gap strategy. For students looking to analyze such policies, using an essay typer can be helpful in generating well-structured essays on complex topics like this.
Controversially, there are certain aspects that this policy fairlead to address adequately and left them sidelined while addressing the issue of reducing life expectancy amongst the Aboriginals (.Failure to close the gap is proof of need for Indigenous voice, 2019). It can be adequately argued that though this policy was developed for the indigenous people and the healthcare problems that they face but it itself did not take into consideration the opinion of such indigenous people for whom policy was being made. These people were not included on any of the advisory board or councils and thus despite it being made for them, it was not effectively recognizing and addressing the problem that they were facing. Therefore, it can be recommended that the pace of success can be quickened if appropriate consultation authorities and means are set up with the indigenous people involving them on the decision board of the policy, then, this will assist in developing those policies that will assist in further integrating and developing the process of decision-making (Hussain And et.al., 2018). When their will be genuine engagement with aboriginals and the people of Torres Island by working along with them, then it will lead to development of better strategies that will assist in meeting the social determinants of health thus addressing multi-faceted needs of the aboriginal healthcare.
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Impact of determinants on the relationships
The basic purpose of the developing closing the gap policy was to encourage the equity perspective between the indigenous and non-indigenous people of Australia. However, these determinants or factors have never been fully analysed and their impact has always been under- interpreted. Although, the factor are often considered to be personal that affect the relationship and trust amongst the indigenous people but there are certain historical as well as political factors that have affected the relationship and has shaped the behaviour of indigenous Australians towards health the way it is today.
Colonization in Australia: When the Europeans came and occupied the Australian land, the racism and oppression that they faced was insufferable (Factors Influencing the Health Behaviour of Indigenous Australians: Perspectives from Support People, 2019). They were no longer allowed to hunt freely or to have social gatherings and ceremonies and even marriages were restricted. The loss of freedom to live has altered their beliefs and behaviour irrevocably thus restricting the co0ntact that they have with the people apart from their communities today. They cannot be blamed if they refuse to let people from other culture and communities in but the decision to refuse adopting and upgrading the practises with changing times is bound to affect their beliefs related to healthcare.
Atrocities and continued discrimination: When they were regularly oppressed, earlier by the Europeans as colonizers and later by their own people where they were left devoid of all the policies that were developed and the welfare schemes that were developed for non-indigenous people, the psychological as well as physical effect was ravaging. It is still prevalent currently and different statistics can prove the disparity that still persists such as the employment rate of indigenous Australians or the healthcare facilities that have actual medical professionals willing to serve in those areas (Moussouami And et.al., 2016). Therefore, this has again led to the development of healthcare traditions that are solely based on use of natural medicines if they are available and if not, the aboriginal is willing which is the case in maximum cardiac diseases.
Sociological and Psychological Perspectives: The influence of the society, culture, traditions, close friends and connections and what is preferable referred amongst them as kinship is the major factor where they have common health related behaviour. For instance, the aboriginal women generationally tend to continue their smoking habits even while they are pregnant and the factors such as alcohol consumption, lack of parenting skills, increased anxiety and suicidal tendencies etc. can also be concluded as identical. It can be argued that they are not ready to accept the exposure that they are receiving form external sources.
Socio- political aspects: The loss of their culture has led them to believe that they have lost their value and the strength of stating their opinion. Lack of any importance, privilege or priority in the initial years of political environment in Australia made them lose their voice in their own country (Del Brutto And et.al., 2019). When left to their own mechanisms they developed their own healing medicines and despite some of them being extremely effective, the fact that there is no immediate treatment available for the diseases whose impact is more instantaneous is a major factor is developing the healthcare policies and implementing them effectively.
Strength based approaches
It can be evidently stated that culture, family community etc. are some key factors for aboriginals, and they cannot operate without their communities. Based on this, and the factors associated with the CVD disease that was identified, it can be effectively recommended that strength based approaches will be most apt:
- Active engagement of the representatives of aboriginal communities on the decision-making panel of different advisory boards will assist in identifying what are the areas in which the policies need to be implemented and how they can be actually implemented i.e. what strategies are to be effectively incorporated (Stein, 2018). This coalition will encourage cohesive development reducing inequities between communities.
- Since culture cannot be left behind, its integration with the modern outlook without compromising on their beliefs is the major strategy. Thee need to be educated about the harm of certain practices such as smoking etc. needs to be minimized and their trust and reliability for using modern methods needs to be developed.
Collectively, this will help in giving better care and developing correct healthcare practices for such aboriginals thus integrating them in the care plan.
CONCLUSION
The research above helps conclude that the regular oppression and racism faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have led them to shun modern and technological advancements in the field of cardiac diseases. This report identified the effectiveness of the Closing the Gap policy in controlling the rising rate of cardiac disease among Aboriginals. It concluded that various determinants, such as culture, racism, and oppression, have impacted the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Ultimately, strength-based approaches related to cultural sensitivity and active engagement were identified and suggested in the report as strategies that healthcare organizations in Australia could adopt. For students needing assistance with such complex analyses, an essay writing service can provide valuable support in crafting well-researched and structured essays on topics like this.
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