Cultural Safety Essay: Racism, Nursing, and ATSI Health in Australia

This essay examines cultural safety within the context of Australian nursing, specifically focusing on the health and well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) peoples. The paper begins by defining personal and systemic racism, highlighting how 'whiteness' in nursing contributes to disparities. It then explores cultural safety and cultural awareness training, contrasting them and emphasizing the importance of cultural understanding. The essay analyzes the 'Closing the Gap' policy and its aims to improve ATSI lives, discussing the significant health inequalities faced by this population, including lower life expectancy and higher rates of disease. It then examines various approaches to healthcare for ATSI communities, including cultural safety, cultural awareness, and cultural sensitivity, highlighting the limitations of individual professional abilities in addressing systemic issues. The essay concludes by emphasizing the nurse's role in ensuring culturally safe care and advocating for systemic changes to address racism and improve ATSI health outcomes. References include sources such as Bell et al., Best, Clifford et al., and Durey and Thompson.

Running Head: CULTURAL SAFETY 1
Cultural Safety Essay
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Date Submitted

CULTURAL SAFETY 2
Cultural Safety Essay
Step 1
a. Personal racism and systemic/institutional racism.
Personal Racism happens when people (or little gatherings of people) hold states of mind
of preference as well as participate in unfair or comparable conduct. (Best, 2014). Among the
appearances of personal racism are stereotyping people based on asserted racial contrasts, the
utilization of deprecatory names and references, biased treatment over the span of interpersonal
contacts, and dangers and demonstrations of brutality against individuals from a minority
aggregate that is claimed to be the racially second rate. (Bell et al., 2016). For instance utilization
of expressions like colored individuals or those individuals, to show off White Power, guard
stickers or the southern confederate banner.
Institutional racism is a case of social foundations, for instance, administrative
affiliations, banks, schools, government, and authority courts providing unfriendly conduct to a
get-together of people in light of their racial ethnicity. (Best, 2014). It stimulates uniqueness;
sociological scholars use the plan to illuminate why a couple of individuals go up against uneven
treatment or include uneven standings. (Chime et al., 2016). One essential instance of
institutional racism is the prohibition of Black American students from learning in certain
publicly financed schools, which confined the open places and shielded them from achieving a
rank comparable to that of others which is not incredible.

CULTURAL SAFETY 3
b. The whiteness of nursing.
"Whiteness" alludes to the measurements of racism that serve to lift white individuals
over ethnic minorities. Since the mid-90s, nursing has been tested to uncover and change
standardized frameworks of white benefit and strength, and to incorporate antiracist training in
nursing educational modules and decent variety work. (Schroeder & DiAngelo, 2010). In any
case, rather than antiracist instruction, training and course content concentrating on "social skill"
are the standard in nursing, an approach that for the most part leaves in place standardized
structures of white benefit and racism. (Best, 2014). White individuals are conjectured as
effectively formed, characterized, and hoisted through their racialization. White racial solace and
feeling of racial harmony are established in standards and customs that maintain relations of
racial disparity.
c. Cultural safety and cultural awareness training
Apparently, cultural safety is a way to deal with nursing practice created in New Zealand
that perceives the significance of cultural comprehension and tries to rehearse it in a way that
gives cultural administration. (Best, 2014). According to Ramsden's procedure of cultural safety
in nursing and birthing assistance rehearse, cultural safety is a result of nursing and maternity
care instruction that authorizes safe governance to be distinguished by the personalities who got
the government. (Best, 2014). Cultural safety gives a situation that is profound, socially and
sincerely safe, and additionally physically safe for individuals, upgrades Personal Empowerment
and it is about shared regard, shared importance, and shared information.

CULTURAL SAFETY 4
Cultural awareness is the opening advance towards comprehending that there is the
distinction. Many persons have the capability of doing course work whose aim is to improve
them to proper practice as divergent to the enthusiastic, communal, financial, and dogmatic
setting in which people are. (Best, 2014). Cultural awareness preparing is normal in Australian
health mind settings. Strangely, most cultural preparing centers around finding out about
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) individuals. It urges medical attendants to consider
nursing culture, for example, the whiteness of nursing. (Best, 2014). It is an awareness of various
cultural gatherings, including distinguishing proof of possess cultural esteems, practices, and
character.
Step 2
My report is based on the assumption of the ‘Closing the Gap’ Policy implemented by
the Council of Australian Governments (COAG). (Pmc.gov.au. 2018). In response, I believe that
it aimed at improving the lives of the non-aboriginal and aboriginal lives. This is about the ATSI
Australian lives. My reasoning on this is that they advocated for different factors such as the
infancy mortality rate, life expectancy rate, literacy levels, and unemployment rate among others.
My reconstruction is that with a well-structured plan, closing the gaps based on the laid out
factors would be possible.

CULTURAL SAFETY 5
Step 3
The status of health of Australia's ATSI people groups is poor in contrary to what is left
of the population in Australia. There is still a huge imbalance gap between the Australian
population over all measurements. (Best, 2014). For example, there is an expected gap of about
seventeen years amongst Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal life desire in Australia. For all age
bunches beneath sixty five years, the age-particular demise rates for Aboriginal Australians are
no less than twice those accomplished by the non-Aboriginal populace.
Aboriginal social orders don't have reasonable chance to be as strong as non-Aboriginal
Australians. 'The relative money related bother experienced by ATSI people contrasted and non-
Aboriginal people places them at more risk of introduction to environmental and behavioral
health peril segments' as does the more prominent degree of Aboriginal families that 'live in
statuses that don't reinforce awesome health.' (Best, 2014). Aboriginal social orders in like
manner loathe earn back the original investment with access to basic human administrations and
health establishment.
There has been next to no advance in lessening this imbalance gap amongst ATSI and
non-Aboriginal Australians over the previous decade, for instance in connection to long-haul
measures, for example, life desire. (Best, 2014). Whereas there have been enhancements on a
few measures of ATSI health status, they have not coordinated the fast health increases made in
the overall public in Australia. For instance, passing rates from cardiovascular infection in the
overall public have fallen thirty percent since 91, and seventy percent in the last thirty five years
while Aboriginal individuals don't seem to have made any diminishment in rates of death from
circulatory malady over this period.

CULTURAL SAFETY 6
The youthful age organization of the ATSI populace implies that the extent of the issues
as of now being confronted is relied upon to increment in the coming decades. (Forsyth, 2007).
The expansion in supreme terms of the measure of the ATSI youth populace will require critical
increments in administrations and projects basically to keep pace with request and keep up
business as usual, let alone to accomplish a diminishment in existing health disparity. (Best,
2014).
The irregularity in health status experienced by ATSI social orders is associated with key
detachment. Undeniably, ATSI social orders have not had an indistinct opportunity to be from
strong as non-Aboriginal people. (Best, 2014). This occurs through the unit of standard
organizations and lower access to health organizations, including basic restorative
administrations, and lacking course of action of health establishment in some ATSI social order.
Step 4
There are various structures for health watch over ATSI people groups. (Best, 2014).
Some of these ideas, for example, cultural safety, cultural awareness, and cultural sensitivity,
center around the learning, mentalities, as well as abilities of individual experts. While it is
imperative to give a lecture on specialist capacities, given the degree of racism experienced by
ATSI people groups getting to health mind, the capacity of individual professionals to guarantee
value in access and health results for ATSI people groups is restricted by authoritative,
framework, financing and approach factors. (Freeman et al., 2014). In acknowledgment of this,
ideas, for example, cultural security, cultural ability, and cultural regard additionally look at
health administration and health framework methodologies.

CULTURAL SAFETY 7
Writing on these develops tends to float towards the preparation of specialists. This is
reflected in Aotearoa, where cultural safety has been to a great extent conceptualized at the level
of individual specialists. (Clifford, McCalman, Bainbridge, & Tsey, 2015) The idea and
standards of 'cultural safety' were created by Ramsden Irihapeti to regard Maori culture and
feature the negative consequences for health results of colonization and discriminatory authority
associations in standard health benefits that oppressed Maori. (Durey, and Thompson, 2018). The
present spotlight in Australia on confirming based conclusion and treatment of indications
represses a more profound, more perplexing, nuanced comprehension of Aboriginal health.
For instance, how well, in a psychological well-being setting, does an exactly based,
similar tactic effort for evaluating Aboriginal patients? The overwhelming dependence on
western mental builds chances improperly favoring western identifications of psychological issue
that are recognizable to western professionals yet need significance to those from culturally and
etymologically different foundations where nearby understandings are more applicable.
(Mja.com.au, 2018). A more comprehensive approach finds malady etiology in a more extensive
financial and notable setting and fuses culturally and phonetically proper health advancement,
training, aversion to sickness and also clear clarifications of treatment.
Step 5
ATSI health and well-being
I am reporting by ATSI health and well-being. It is true that even though it is imperative
to address specialist capacities, given the degree of racism that is being experienced by ATSI
people groups getting to health care, the capacity of individual professionals to guarantee value
in access and health results for ATSI people groups is restricted by authoritative, framework,

CULTURAL SAFETY 8
financing and approach factors. In response to this, I agree with the fact that Some of these ideas,
for example, cultural safety, cultural awareness, and cultural sensitivity, center around the
learning, mentalities, as well as abilities of individual experts. I also agree with the fact that
cultural safety will bring about change when it comes to the health and well-being of the people
in Australia.
This is a relation to the to the ATSI Australian lives where I believe that the infancy
mortality rate, life expectancy rate, literacy levels, and the unemployment rate among others can
be changed to close the gap in Australia and bring about some uniformity. (Ryan, & Ryan,
2015). My reconstruction is that with a well-structured plan, the ATSI health and well-being can
be changed for the better if all the required resources are well implemented for the good of the
community. Cultural awareness training among the community members may also be of great
help.
Nurses role in ensuring cultural safe nursing care for ATSI peoples
My report is based on Nurse's role in ensuring cultural safe nursing care for ATSI
peoples. It is to my knowledge that as a future nurse I must ensure that the patients have a
cultural safety. My response to this is that I believe that culture should not be seen as healthcare
barrier but as an opportunity for improved and understanding personal care, and increased
awareness of the patients in the health system. For example, this is in relation the fact that
Aboriginal ladies have assumed an imperative part of the nursing calling in Australia throughout
the decades-and their essence has been as vocations, as well as activists. On International
Women's Day, we get notification from Odette Best, a prepared attendant, and a partner teacher
in the school of nursing and maternity care at the University of Southern Queensland who has
long had an enthusiasm for the historical backdrop of Aboriginal medical attendants in this

CULTURAL SAFETY 9
nation. (Radio National. 2018).What's more, Flow, Dulcie is quite a while dissident and
attendant who was one of those engaged with the foundation of the Aboriginal Medical Service
in Redfern in the 70s. (Radio National. 2018).
My reasoning on this is based on Marmot's evidence-based idealism for instance from
around the world, of activities that have any effect to health imbalances. My reconstructing is
that we require government activity, however, activity by groups, as well. We ought to try to
make the conditions for people to take control over their lives. The point is an all the more just
society that empowers social thriving of every one of its individuals.

CULTURAL SAFETY 10
References
Bell, L. A., Funk, M. S., Joshi, K. Y., & Valdivia, M. (2016). Racism and white
privilege. Teaching for diversity and social justice, 397-418.
Best, O. (2014). The cultural safety journey: an Australian nursing context. In Yatdjuligin
aboriginal and Torres Strait islander nursing and midwifery care (pp. 51-73).
Cambridge, Melbourne, Australia.
Clifford, A., McCalman, J., Bainbridge, R., & Tsey, K. (2015). Interventions to improve
cultural competency in health care for Aboriginal peoples of Australia, New Zealand,
Canada and the USA: a systematic review. International Journal for Quality in
Health Care, 27(2), 89-98.
Durey, A. and Thompson, S. (2018). Reducing the health disparities of Aboriginal
Australians: time to change focus.
Forsyth, S. (2007). Telling stories: nurses, politics, and Aboriginal Australians, circa 1900-
1980s. Contemporary Nurse: A Journal for the Australian Nursing Profession, 24(1),
33–44. Retrieved from
https://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=640179661322132;res=IELHE
A
Freeman, T., Edwards, T., Baum, F., Lawless, A., Jolley, G., Javanparast, S., & Francis, T.
(2014). Cultural respect strategies in Australian Aboriginal primary health care
services: beyond education and training of practitioners. Australian and New Zealand
journal of public health, 38(4), 355-361.

CULTURAL SAFETY 11
Pmc.gov.au. (2018). Closing the Gap | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.
[online] Available at: https://www.pmc.gov.au/aboriginal-affairs/closing-gap
[Accessed 22 Mar. 2018].
Radio National. (2018). The rich history of Aboriginal nurses as carers and activists. [online]
Available at: http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/lifematters/the-rich-
history-of-aboriginal-nurses/9519250 [Accessed 22 Mar. 2018].
Ryan, M., & Ryan, M. (2015). A model for reflection in the pedagogic field of higher
education. In Teaching Reflective Learning in Higher Education (pp. 15-27).
Springer, Cham.
Schroeder, C., & DiAngelo, R. (2010). Addressing whiteness in nursing education: The
sociopolitical climate project at the University of Washington School of
Nursing. Advances in Nursing Science, 33(3), 244-255.
Social determinants and the health of Aboriginal Australians | Medical Journal of Australia.
(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2011/194/10/social-
determinants-and-health-aboriginal-australians?0=ip_login_no_cache
%3D445d54c198f57279e4a46f2103058166
Social determinants of health. The solid facts. Second edition. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.euro.who.int/en/publications/abstracts/social-determinants-of-health.-the-
solid-facts
Social justice and health: making a difference [Radio Broadcast]. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/boyerlectures/social-justice-and-
health-making-a-difference/7804552

CULTURAL SAFETY 12
The rich history of Aboriginal nurses as carers and activists. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/lifematters/the-rich-history-of-
aboriginal-nurses/9519250