Needs Assessment

Running head: Needs Assessment
NEEDS ASSESSMENT

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Needs Assessment
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Target group.....................................................................................................................................3
Different types of needs and needs assessment...............................................................................3
Existing programs for the target group............................................................................................4
Prioritized needs..............................................................................................................................4
Issues and recommendations...........................................................................................................5
SWOT analysis of recommended programs....................................................................................5
Program priorities and prioritized population..................................................................................6
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................6
Reference List..................................................................................................................................7

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Needs Assessment
Introduction
This study has revolved around various aspects of a needs assessment in the context of
finding a service based solution for the indigenous community in Australia suffering from mental
health issues from a very long time. For that reason, the target group for the need assessment has
been discussed along with a discussion about the different kinds of needs they have regarding
their mental wellbeing. Moreover, some needs have been prioritized that will be the main focus
while coming up with the appropriate public health programs for them. Furthermore, a SWOT
analysis of the suggested services has been included in this study.
Target group
The target group for this study is the indigenous communities, especially those who live
in rural areas and the communities who live in Torres Strait Islands in Australia for several
decades. Apart from the poor physical health conditions of these communities, their mental
health issue has been one of the most neglected issues in Australia (Nasir et al. 2019). One of the
reasons behind this is that there are inadequate data regarding their needs and the real condition
of their mental health because of not considering the vastness of this population which comprises
of almost 3% of total Australian population and because of neglecting the cultural, social and
economic diversity among these indigenous communities in Australia.
Different types of needs and needs assessment
According to some reports, the overall living standard of the indigenous communities in
Australia is much lower than the general population of Australia as a result of which there is a
gap of 10 years in the context of life expectancy between the general population and these
communities (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2019). Moreover, the indigenous people living in
remote locations live under a risk of higher suicide rates, psychological stress rates and so on
(Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2019). Due to lack of enough mental health services
for them and lack of enough educational opportunities, very few authentic data could have been
collected that can be used in the favour of treating their mental health issues.