Health and Well-Being of Aborginals

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Health and Well-Being of Aborginals
Student’s name
Institution

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Health and Well-Being of Aborginals
Introduction
The health of Aboriginal or the Torres Strait Islander has been of grave concern for long, due to
various reasons. The fact that they are living in the same condition as they were, decades earlier,
or in even poorer conditions due to non-availability of land or no great faith in the health care
system gives enough proof about their health conditions. Although a few aboriginals still live as
‘Bush Tucker’, many have originated in cities and farmlands for employment. This essay is an
effort to discuss the four determinants of health in aboriginals and Torrer Strait Islanders living
in cities, farmlands or along the coast. The determinants that are to be discussed include:
a. Education
b. Employment and income
c. Housing
d. Racism and Racial Discrimination
Determinants of Health in Aboriginals, and Torres Strait Islanders (Body of the Essay)
There are several determinants which govern the health of an aboriginal in Australia, and the
primary among them are as follows:
a. Education
The study conducted by Lowell and his colleagues concluded that western education, or a formal
education is as much essential as the traditional one that aboriginals gain from their elders, to
focus on health (Lowell, 2003). Education, therefore, becomes a mandatory requirement for
recognizing the health factors, and the problems related to unhealthy living.

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Although Aboriginals have shifted towards urban areas and have moved to cities for
employment, the lack of education has seen as a serious factor that affects their health. Every
year, children of aboriginal are admitted for lung diseases, which usually turns out to be a serious
case of bronchitis, and malnutrition due to lack of sufficient funds, and knowledge about the
seriousness of the illness (Brown, N.J, 2011). Although there have been sufficient steps taken to
educate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, the fact that there has been a innumerable
drop-out every year, does not show favorable towards the issue. Every year, the percentage of
dropouts among indigenous children far exceed the average of non-indigenous dropouts. Hence,
education posses a major threat towards maintenance of health and nutrition among the
indigenous community.
The lack of education and sufficient knowledge about the ‘food to eat’ or treatments to be
provided for a particular illness makes health care a serious issue. The experts believe that
‘education leads to empowerment, and also a medium to enlighten the indigenous children’ about
the important facts of life, such as hygiene and nutrition. Since children are future citizens,
tapping this potential can lead to a major improvement in health of indigenous people.
However, the lack of funds or enough people to feed make indigenous people take out the
children from western education, and put them to work as laborers at an early age. The circle
continues, since without sufficient education, all the work that the indigenous children (or
youngsters) are able to find is those in farmlands or those jobs which pay less.
Thus, education is a main instigator, which can bring in changes in the lives of indigenous
people, both living in urban and rural areas. Education not only can make the aboriginals view
health care system positively, and bring their children for treatment with greater faith, but it can

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also provide them with an opportunity to earn well. A well-educated person can look into better
jobs, and thereby provide good living conditions for his/her family. As living conditions are one
of the significant issues which leads to
Health conditions, unless the indigenous people are brought to the western education system,
which can help them in finding good employment, it is difficult to focus on health concerns that
are rising at an alarming rate among Aboriginals due to lack of fund and knowledge.
b. Employment and Income
As per an estimation done in 2011, about half of the indigenous population, above the age of 15
earned $362 per week, as compared to $582 earned by the non-indigenous crowd (Anon, 2016).
Although the estimate is done six years before, the difference today is still considerable.
Employment, and income, therefore, remains a vital issue among the Aboriginals and Torres
Strait Islanders, and thereby affects their health.
It is often noted that despite a considerable increase in the minimum education status of the
Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders, there remains a steep gap between their income and
those of non-indigenous population. This is, attributed to either:
1. Lack of formal education
2. Lack of higher education
3. Laziness and lack of enthusiasm to find jobs
4. Substance abuse and drinking issues
5. Not finding fitting jobs due to several issues, such as discrimination