The Status And Wellbeing Of The Indigenous People Of Australia

Before the 1953 European settlement, Indigenous Australians have been lived for 50,000 years in Victoria. They were free and had their own cultural identity, speaks many languages, had a very strong connection to their culture and their land. Their lifestyle was healthy which was based on the hunter-gatherer culture, which consists of physical activity and their diet was fresh foods. Even if there was some sort of illnesses in the Indigenous community, their traditional remedy used to be advantageous to control illnesses.

After colonization, the Indigenous population in Victoria reduces from 60,000 to 2000 due to battles with settlers, lack of resistance to European illnesses, lack of freedom and loss of identity, dispossession from their lands and forced to relocate to bad land, loss of sense of Identity and sudden change in their way of life. The indigenous community was devastated and emotionally depressed because of the massacres, their spiritual belief has taken away and set in Christian mission and as a result of initial violence, poor diet, lack of physical exercise, drug use, alcohol misuses, and smoking started to increase among the Indigenous community.

The removal of children from their families as the Government Assimilation policy (1951-1962) left lifetime effects on the health of Stolen Generations of Indigenous Australians. At present, the children forcefully separated from their families weakened the sense of Indigenous identity and Indigenous cultural traditions.

The education level of the Indigenous community was low compare to the non-Indigenous community, and which is related to a low rate of employment and a low level of income. The education, employment, and income gaps between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians result in poor health, high stress and lower self-confidence among Indigenous Australians.

Access to health care facilities is vital mainly for the larger need of Indigenous community than the non-Indigenous community. Though, researches show that in 2008, only around 26% of Aboriginal Australians aged 15 and over reported having illnesses were access to health facilities.

Housing is the key issue of the poor health of Indigenous community. There is a two-way relationship between housing and health, and approximately 28 per cent of Indigenous Australians live in below-average housing. (AIHW, 2014a).

The health inequality between the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal community result due to the past physical and psychological trauma and ongoing racism and race discrimination towards Indigenous Australians, various solutions have been implemented by the Aboriginal community to closing the health gaps, which includes the establishment of Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health organization (VACCHO) and community healing centres run by the Healing Foundation. VACCHO is a member of the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organization (NACCHO) and which represents 100 per cent Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organizations. And To address the health needs of each Aboriginal community its function is community-based, locally owned, culturally safe and sufficiently resourced primary health care facilities. Based on that currently, 25 Aboriginal Community controlled Health Organizations set across Victoria. The community healing centres also providing health services to the Aboriginal community particularly to those of individuals of the Stolen Generations and their families aims to help spirituality their mind and emotions and healing through times.

Aboriginal-led health organizations such as the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organization and Healing centres run by the Healing foundation are very significant to close the health gaps between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal population. The culturally safe health care services provided by Aboriginal people to Aboriginal people play an important role on decolonisation of the mainstream health sector by increasing their self-determination, as they are Aboriginal-owned health organizations advocates for Aboriginal right and equal opportunities and benefices by building Aboriginal people capacity in the health sector through education and creating job opportunity to Aboriginal people and work for the Aboriginal community which gives confidence to Aborigines and brings trust in the health services and increases access to the health services and creating strong connections among the Aboriginal community, as they all affected by the past trauma and ongoing racism and race discrimination, the healing centres help to the Intergenerational healing process as it focuses mainly on the healing needs of individuals and family or community.