An electronic publication from the Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet
Issue 9, November 2000 - February 2001 : ISSN 1329-3362
Conference abstracts and papers
12th National Health Promotion Conference: Inequalities in health
- reflecting back, stepping forward.
29 October - 1 November 2000, Hotel Sofitel, Melbourne, Victoria.
Clive Walley
Partnerships: they
can work.
Will working in partnership with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community, government and non-government organisations and Aboriginal agencies be effective in bridging the gap to reduce inequalities in the health and social well-being of Indigenous people?
In February 1998, a group of concerned workers in the suburb of Midland, 20kms east of Perth, met to discuss a number of issues affecting the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal community and the problems their organisations were experiencing in overcoming these issues.
The group shared two common characteristics. They are employees of government and non-government agencies, and they provide services to the Aboriginal community in and around the Midland region. Meeting weekly and using practical approaches to solving problems, the group began to achieve slow success in reaching Aboriginal families to become more aware of the services provided and their responsibilities as clients when accessing these services.
The formation of the Midland Aboriginal Advisory Group (MAAG) began to make a mark, forming strong partnerships with agencies to assist in enhancing their roles and responsibilities and to breakdown common barriers that were encountered whilst working with the Aboriginal community. The group's clear agenda was to support Aboriginal families and enhance people's status in the wider community. MAAG's achievements so far: MAAG have been involved in a number of community initiatives in the Midland area. They have significantly assisted in reducing petty crime and alleviated family suffering by working in partnership with key agencies to set up truancy patrols.
Mediation between families and the closure of a nightspot that caused concern for both the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal community was also a success and the Midland and surrounding suburbs benefited. Poverty and low self-esteem in a number of families were areas of concern. MAAG has been successful in generating funding for ongoing community projects.
