Health Care Accessibility a Challenge for Aboriginal People The health of Aboriginal people in Canada is both a tragedy and a crisis (Aboriginal Affairs and North Development Canada, 2010). Aboriginals have a higher rate of death among aboriginal babies, twice the national average, higher rate of Infectious diseases example gastrointestinal infections to tuberculosis, and chronic and degenerative diseases such as cancer and heart disease are affecting more aboriginal people than they once did (AANDC, 2010). Availability of important medical facility is not enough to accommodate the growing medical needs of Aboriginals. A socioeconomic and cultural issue also hinders the access of aboriginals to access health care in the community. Availability of health care providers and specialist are inadequate to provide Aboriginals proper health promotion and prevention. These factors signify Aboriginal people have inadequate access to quality health care in Canada. There is inadequate medical facility to accommodate the health care needs of Aboriginal people. First, due to increasing in numbers of Aboriginal older adults, there is a need to increase seniors’ facilities. In the 2006 census, nearly 5% of Aboriginal people were aged 65 and older. This data is expected to increase to 6.5% of the total Aboriginal population by 2017 (Health Council of Canada, 2013). Although the start of the senior year is 65 years old, organization starts to cater Aboriginals from 55 years old due to high prevalence rate of chronic diseases. Seniors home is one of the most important facility Aboriginals need today along with medical emergency facilities and primary care facilities. First Nations seniors on reserve are not receiving the home care and continuing ... ... middle of paper ... ...cy, high infant mortality rate than non aboriginal Canadians, this signifies that access to quality health care system is better in the non Aboriginal community. Thus access to quality of health care of Aboriginals is inadequate. In conclusion, Aboriginals have inadequate access to quality health care in Canada. Health care facilities are limited and not enough to accommodate the growing numbers of seniors (age above 55) and population in general. Health professional has been limited in numbers not enough to give quality care to Aboriginals. Lastly, socioeconomic status hinders aboriginals to avail quality care. When there is increase in demand for health care Government organization should compensate to accommodate every citizens need for health care. Unable to do so, health care delivery is compromise and it shows that there is a significant failure of the system.
Healthcare systems are microcosms of the larger society in which they exist. Where there is structural violence or cultural violence in the larger society, so will there be evidence of systematic inequities in the institutions of these societies. The healthcare system in Australia is one example—from a plethora of similarly situated healthcare systems—in which the color of a patient’s skin or the race of his parents may determine the quality of medical received. Life expectancy and infant mortality rates are vastly different for non-Aboriginal, Aboriginal, and Torres Strait Islanders residing in Australia. The life expectancy of Aboriginal men is 21 years shorter than for non-Aboriginal men in Australia. For women, the difference is 19 years. The infant mortality rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander male infants is 6.8% and the infant mortality rate for female infants is 6.7%. For non-Aboriginal infants, the infant mortality rates are 1% for male infants and 0.8% for female infants. Further, the Aboriginal population is subject to a wide-range of diseases that do not exhibit comparatively high incidence rates in non-Aboriginal Australians.
0.8% of the overall Federal health expenditure in 2009 which was spent on Aboriginal health. The overall wellbeing of an individual is more than just being free from disease. It is about their social, emotional, spiritual, physiological as well as the physical prosperity. Indigenous health issues are all around us, but we don’t recognise because it doesn’t affect us, but this issue is a concern to Indigenous Australia and also to modern day Catholics in Australia The statistics relating to Indigenous health is inexcusable, life expectancy is at an all time low, higher hospilatisation for avoidable diseases, alerting rates of deaths from diabetes and kidney disease. This issue is bigger than we all think, for example 13% of Indigenous homes
The Canadian population is composed of people with different cultural background that consist of different communities of immigrants and natives. The Aboriginal community is one of the native community living in Canada holding 4.3% of total population as per National Household Survey 2011 (Statistics Canada, 2011).The Aboriginal people are culturally diverse in Canada having unique historical, linguistic and social contexts. Distinct cultural background of the Aboriginal communities is one of the reason they are experiencing inequities and disparities in health status compared to the non-aboriginal people. In this regard, Canadian nurses are expected to learn about cultural diversity, knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide culturally
Aboriginal health is majorly determined by several social factors that are related to their cultural beliefs. Health professionals regularly find it difficult to provide health care to aboriginal people due to the cultural disparity that exists between the conventional and aboriginal cultures, predominantly with regard to systems of health belief (Carson, Dunbar, & Chenhall, 2007). The discrepancy between the aboriginal culture and typical Western customs seems to amplify the difficulties experienced in every cross-cultural setting of health service delivery (Selin & Shapiro, 2003). Most of the social determinants of the aboriginal health are due to their strict belief in superstition and divine intervention.
Ed. Shelagh Rogers, Mike DeGagné, Jonathan Dewar, and Glen Lowry. Ottawa, Ont.: Aboriginal Healing Foundation, 2006. Print.
The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and its deriving acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) are devastating conditions that currently affect approximately 35.3 million individuals globally (WHO, 2012). In the Canadian context, the prevalence of HIV/AIDS ascended to 71,300 cases in 2011, with 8.9% of the affected individuals being aboriginal peoples (PHAC, 2011). This number not only indicates an overrepresentation of the aboriginal population among the totality of HIV/AIDS cases in the country, but it also illustrates an elevated incidence of 17.3% from the numbers reported in 2008 (PHAC, 2011). The aforementioned statistics were here exposed with the intent of recognizing the incidence and prevalence of HIV/AIDS, as alarming public health issues superimposed on the already vulnerable segment of the Canadian population that is the aboriginal community. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to gradually examine the multiple determinants and factors contributing to such problem as well as some of the possible actions that can ameliorate it.
In 1968 the Commonwealth Office of Aboriginal Affairs was established and acknowledged health as a major area for development and therefore started providing grants for health programs (NACCHO, History in health from 1967, online, 29/8/15). The office was later named the Department of Aboriginal Affairs in 1972, and it began making direct grants to the new aboriginal medical services opening around the nation (NACCHO, History in health from 1967, online, 29/8/15). In 1973 the Commonwealth Department of Health established an Aboriginal Health Branch in order to provide professional advice to the government (NACCHO, History in health from 1967, online, 29/8/15). Throughout the next several years indigenous health was on the radar of importance in the Government, in 1981 the Commonwealth Government initiated a $50 million five year Aboriginal Public Health Improvement plan (NACCHO, History in health from 1967, online, 29/8/15). Clearly more progress was achieved in the issue of health in the years after the referendum than those between colonisations and
...fficient training for health workers, communication barriers, a general mistrust in the health care system and culture shock has contributed to issues in delivering services to many Indigenous communities. The reason to why these issues have emerged is a result of two main factors, the lack of health services that are needed to address the issue and the silence of Indigenous communities which leads to misunderstanding between the government and Indigenous communities. Indigenous Australian’s experience this major disadvantage and neglect in the Australian society due to the poor healthcare system and policies that haven’t had a positive effect on the issue. For the issue of Indigenous health to be resolved, the Government and social policies need to address and meet the need of Indigenous people to overcome the poor health conditions that these communities suffer.
In conclusion the colonisation of Australia and the adoption of discriminatory policies eroded Aboriginal culture and tradition affecting their sense of well-being and thus deteriorated their health. Today these policies are reflected in the social determinants of health as socio-economic disadvantages. They continue to impact contemporary Aboriginal people. In order to improve Aboriginal health outcomes; the impacts of these policies need to be overturned. This can be done by assisting them with improving their socio-economic status in the light of their needs and traditions.
Health care inequities can be elucidated by the research that identifies the social, economic and political ideologies that reflect aspects of cultural safety (Crandon, 1986; O’Neil, 1989 as cited in Browne & Fiske, 2001). There are various factors that affect the mistreatment of aboriginal peoples as they access health care in local health care facilities such as hospitals and clinics. Aboriginal women face many barriers and are discriminated against as a result based on their visible minority status such as race, gender and class (Gerber, 1990; Dion Stout, 1996; Voyageur, 1996 as cited in Browne & Fiske, 2001). A study done on Aboriginal peoples in Northern B.C. showed high rates of unemployment, underemployment and dependency on social welfare monies (Browne & Fiske, 2001). This continued political economic marginalisation of aboriginal peoples widens the gap between the colonizers and the colonized. The existence of racial profiling of aboriginal peoples by “Indian status” often fuels more stigmatization of these people because other Canadians who do not see the benefits of compensations received with having this status often can be resentful in what they may perceive is another compensation to aboriginal peoples. The re...
Thank you for taking time to read my letter. As a nursing student of University of Technology Sydney, I studied contemporary indigenous subject this semester. In this letter I want to illustrate 3 main social determinants of health that impact indigenous Australian health which I found and analysed during my recently study. And also offer some suggestion that could help the government improve aboriginal Australian mental health conditions in the future.
The over-representation of Aboriginal children in the Canadian Child Welfare system is a growing and multifaceted issue rooted in a pervasive history of racism and colonization in Canada. Residential schools were established with the intent to force assimilation of Aboriginal people in Canada into European-Canadian society (Reimer, 2010, p. 22). Many Aboriginal children’s lives have been changed adversely by the development of residential schools, even for those who did not attend them. It is estimated that Aboriginal children “are 6-8 times more likely to be placed in foster care than non-Aboriginal children (Saskatchewan Child Welfare Review Panel, 2010, p. 2).” Reports have also indicated that First Nations registered Indian children make up the largest proportion of Aboriginal children entering child welfare care across Canada (Saskatchewan Child Welfare Review Panel, p. 2). Consequently, this has negatively impacted Aboriginal communities experience of and relationship with child welfare services across the country. It is visible that the over-representation of Aboriginal children in the child welfare system in Canada lies in the impact of the Canadian policy for Indian residential schools, which will be described throughout this paper.
As we learned throughout the duration of the course through lecture, readings and discussions, Indigenous Canadians are faced with many determinants of health.
Walter, M. (2007). Aboriginality, poverty and health-exploring the connections. Beyond bandaids: exploring the underlying social determinants of aboriginal health. [online] Retrieved from: http://www.lowitja.org.au/sites/default/files/docs/Beyond-Bandaids-CH5.pdf/ [Accessed 10 Apr 2014]
Poor living conditions are a major health determinant throughout the indigenous population. Most Indigenous Australians are known to live in rural parts of Australia which are commonly not close to major cities and services. People living in these areas generally have poorer health than others living in the cities and other parts of Australia. These individuals do not have as much access to health services and good quality housing. In 2006 roughly 14% of indigenous households in Australia were overcrowded unlike 5% of other households (AIHW, 2009a). Overcrowded and poor quality houses are commonly associated with poor physical and mental health between the people living in them. The indigenous are n...