IAD annual report

The Institute for Aboriginal Development Incorporated (IAD) was established by the Uniting Church in 1969 to assist community development for Aboriginal people and provide cross-cultural education between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal society. It is now an independent Aboriginal community-controlled language resource centre and adult education centre serving the Aboriginal community of Central Australia. General IAD activities include: * education programs which range from literacy and numeracy to vocational and higher education level courses; * an Aboriginal language and culture centre specialising in language cross-culture and cultural maintenance programs, as well as providing interpreter services and language research * a publishing arm, IAD Press, which produces material on the Aboriginal people, language and culture of Central Australia

Stores healthy options project in remote indigenous communities (SHOP@RIC): a protocol of a randomised trial promoting healthy food and beverage purchases through price discounts and in-store nutrition education

BackgroundIndigenous Australians suffer a disproportionate burden of preventable chronic disease compared to their non-Indigenous counterparts – much of it diet-related. Increasing fruit and vegetable intakes and reducing sugar-sweetened soft-drink consumption can reduce the risk of preventable chronic disease. There is evidence from some general population studies that subsidising healthier foods can modify dietary behaviour. There is little such evidence relating specifically to socio-economically disadvantaged populations, even though dietary behaviour in such populations is arguably more likely to be susceptible to such interventions.This study aims to assess the impact and cost-effectiveness of a price discount intervention with or without an in-store nutrition education intervention on purchases of fruit, vegetables, water and diet soft-drinks among remote Indigenous communities.Methods/DesignWe will utilise a randomised multiple baseline (stepped wedge) design involving 20 communities in remote Indigenous Australia. The study will be conducted in partnership with two store associations and twenty Indigenous store boards. Communities will be randomised to either i) a 20% price discount on fruit, vegetables, water and diet soft-drinks; or ii) a combined price discount and in-store nutrition education strategy. These interventions will be initiated, at one of five possible time-points, spaced two-months apart. Weekly point-of-sale data will be collected from each community store before, during, and for six months after the six-month intervention period to measure impact on purchasing of discounted food and drinks. Data on physical, social and economic factors influencing weekly store sales will be collected in order to identify important covariates. Intervention fidelity and mediators of behaviour change will also be assessed.DiscussionThis study will provide original evidence on the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of price discounts with or without an in-store nutrition education intervention on food and drink purchasing among a socio-economically disadvantaged population in a real-life setting

A case study of physical and social barriers to hygiene and child growth in remote Australian Aboriginal communities

Background\ud Despite Australia's wealth, poor growth is common among Aboriginal children living in remote communities. An important underlying factor for poor growth is the unhygienic state of the living environment in these communities. This study explores the physical and social barriers to achieving safe levels of hygiene for these children.\ud \ud Methods\ud A mixed qualitative and quantitative approach included a community level cross-sectional housing infrastructure survey, focus groups, case studies and key informant interviews in one community.\ud \ud Results\ud We found that a combination of crowding, non-functioning essential housing infrastructure and poor standards of personal and domestic hygiene underlie the high burden of infection experienced by children in this remote community.\ud \ud Conclusion\ud There is a need to address policy and the management of infrastructure, as well as key parenting and childcare practices that allow the high burden of infection among children to persist. The common characteristics of many remote Aboriginal communities in Australia suggest that these findings may be more widely applicable

Measuring emotional and social wellbeing in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations: an analysis of a Negative Life Events Scale

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians experience widespread socioeconomic disadvantage and health inequality. In an attempt to make Indigenous health research more culturally-appropriate, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians have called for more attention to the concept of emotional and social wellbeing (ESWB). Although it has been widely recognised that ESWB is of crucial importance to the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, there is little consensus on how to measure in Indigenous populations, hampering efforts to better understand and improve the psychosocial determinants of health. This paper explores the policy and political context to this situation, and suggests ways to move forward. The second part of the paper explores how scales can be evaluated in a health research setting, including assessments of endorsement, discrimination, internal and external reliability

Special schools curriculum : pre-school

Made available by the Northern Territory Library via the Publications (Legal Deposit) Act 2004 (NT).Introduction -- Pre-school Education -- Programmes and Timetables -- English as a second Language --- music for pre-school children -- indoor activties -- outdoor activities -- Nature Experiences -- hygiene -- Enrichment groups -- discupline -- helpers in the pre-school -- bibliography -- Appendex.Includes bibliographical references (page 109)

A proposed emergency response and development plan to protect Aboriginal children in the Northern Territory

A preliminary response to the Australian Government\u27s proposals Report summary The following proposals to protect children in Northern Territory Aboriginal communities have been developed by the Combined Aboriginal Organisations (representing Aboriginal organisations in Darwin, Alice Springs, Tennant Creek and Katherine) and community sector organisations from across the country. A comprehensive approach to child protection in an emergency context gives priority to protection from immediate physical or emotional harm, but must go further. It should also address community safety and access to essential services including housing, health care and education. A failure to also commit to addressing these underlying issues will ensure the current risk factors contributing to existing child abuse and neglect will remain. We propose a two stage response to the problems of child abuse in remote Aboriginal communities: 1. An emergency response over the next 3-6 months, on which agreement can be reached quickly between Governments and community leaders. 2. A more comprehensive plan and costed financial commitment that addresses the underlying issues within specific timeframes and has bi partisan political support. This plan would include specific objectives, timeframes and mechanisms that ensure transparency and ongoing independent rigorous evaluation. The performance of both governments and Aboriginal organisations would be included. This would also involve thorough planning and negotiation to ensure that the correct strategies are adopted, the substantial resources required are efficiently used, and funding is stable and predictable over the longer term. This plan should be developed and negotiated under a partnership approach with the targeted communities during the current emergency response phase and be implemented as soon as is practicable. These stages are not mutually exclusive. During the emergency response phase, the emphasis must shift from immediate child endangerment goals to the underlying and wider child protection goals of health, housing, education and ongoing community safety. Funding must be organised so that short term needs are met and long term development funding is also available. In these ways the emergency measures provide a foundation for stable long term investment that results in longer term solutions. Otherwise it is likely that the emergency measures will have little or no long term impact. The response must be informed and led by local Aboriginal communities. It is only by strengthening the capacity of families and communities to protect and nurture children that the problems will be resolved. Aboriginal ownership and control of land and access to communities are important in this regard. The response should build on the knowledge base already available to Government, starting with the recommendations of the Little children are sacre