Moving Forward Together in Aboriginal Women's Health: - Theses ...

Moving Forward TogetherJanet Kellycommunity members, health managers and staff members in respectfulknowledge sharing.In 2002 the Aboriginal Mothers Group ended due to health service policy andfunding changes and as a result, partnerships between the community womenand health professionals decreased. In 2003/4 the four women becameinvolved in the Family Well Being Course with an external facilitator, wherethey again experienced being included and working collaboratively. They wereencouraged to complete train the trainer component and help co-facilitatefuture courses, a move that raised expectations of future collaboration.However, the course finished, the facilitator moved on, and the AboriginalNeighbourhood House was still not open. The women fell into a gap in serviceprovision. Becoming frustrated, two of the women became involved incommunity activism and writing a letter of complaint, a move that led them tobeing firmly placed in the position of being disruptive and ‘the Other’ byAboriginal heath services and managers. In research interviews I was warnedby three Aboriginal managers about working with those women, who had ahistory of being disruptive and not following the proper channels of directnegotiation (Mg I1, 2, 3). This negative attitude toward the women filtereddown to health professionals in the newly developing health service, and wasfurther inflamed by the angry responses of the community women themselves.During interviews and discussions with health professionals at the AboriginalOutreach Health Service, the four Aboriginal women from Collaboration AreaOne were repeatedly referred to as ‘those women’. Using PAR strategies, Isought to unpack this situation by asking what exactly those women did thatwas so problematic, and whether it happened all of the time, or only in specificcircumstances. Some health professionals identified that those womenmonopolised services, and were non-compliant and aggressive. Furtherdiscussion and analysis enabled a deeper exploration of the situation. I hadidentified from the themes emerging from Collaboration Area One that theAboriginal community women were seeking ongoing support and connectionwith health professionals. The women attended the clinics regularly becausethey were the only programs available. In the comprehensive primary healthcare programs they had previously attended, regular contact was expected and255