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

Moving Forward TogetherJanet Kellywomen have actively worked in collaboration with mainstream, community healthand feminist organisations to conduct research, increase services and lobby forchanges.The impact of colonisation, discrimination and exclusion onhealthPut simply, for most of the last two centuries, white Australia has been bad forIndigenous Australian’s health (Mitchell 2007)Despite possible gains, repeated colonisation, discriminating and exclusionarypractices over the last two hundred years have had a very damaging effect on mostAboriginal women’s health and well-being (Eckermann et al. 2006). As well aschallenges to physical health, there have been many challenges to Aboriginalpeople’s mental, emotional, spiritual, cultural, social and economic health(Atkinson 2002; Mowbray 2007). High levels of grief and loss, and frustration withcontinual and new colonising practices, discrimination and oppression, furtherimpacts on their health and well-being. Fighting for improvements over manydecades has been exhausting for Aboriginal peoples (Aboriginal Women'sReference Group 2005; Atkinson 2002; Community consultations 2005).Throughout most of Australia’s colonial history, Western health provision forAboriginal people has been second class, closely reflecting the colonial anddiscriminating attitudes of mainstream white society. Segregation was held firmlyin place until the 1960s with many public hospitals maintaining segregated servicesfor Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people. Health care for Aboriginal people wasoften provided in a substandard tin annex separate to the main hospital building.Older Aboriginal women discuss birthing their babies on the side of road afterbeing turned away by a local hospital. The justification for such actions was ‘thehygiene risks’ to white patients (Curthoys 2002; Mattingley & Hampton 1998;Mitchell 2007).An increased awareness of the severity of health issues for Aboriginal peoples wastriggered by a public campaign launched by Aboriginal organisations in the 1960s.Prior to this little attention was paid to Aboriginal health with many Aboriginalpeople living segregated lives from the rest of society in fringe areas and slums and55