Critical Review on Health Care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People

Running head: CRITICAL REVIEW
Critical Review
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1CRITICAL REVIEW
Introduction
There are various frameworks for health care for the aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
people.Concepts such as the cultural awareness, safety, and sensitivity of the culture, attitudes,
and skills of the individual practitioners in the community are some of the important factors that
need to be addressed (Lindstedt et al., 2017). It is important and interesting to evaluate the
attitudes towards the cultural safety in the provision of health care for the Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander people since it is a long-neglected topic.This critical review will explain the
personal reflection and perception of the development of the cultural competence and cultural
safety related to the Aboriginal and Torres Islander community.
Summary
There is a considerable low number of research studies and literature in the strategies
related to health services for the culturally respectful care to the Aboriginal and Torrs Strait
Islander community (Parnell, Morris & Jacobs, 2017).The concept of aboriginal health is not
confined to the physical well-being of an individual, it refers to the cultural, social and emotional
wellbeing of the people of the entire community.This report is the personal insight of the case
studies which I have conducted on one aboriginal community controlled health care services and
their community health care services to evaluate and examine the strategies related to culture,
experiences of the client and the barriers to the cultural respect.While conducting my study, I
have observed that it is essential to address the capabilities of the practitioner given the limit of
racism that is experienced by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people for accessing the
health care.I have further noticed that the ability of the individual practitioner for ensuring equity

2CRITICAL REVIEW
in access and outcomes in healthcare for the group of people belonging to the Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander community is restricted and limited by the system, policy and the fundings
of the organizations.My social view of the health explains that economic, social and cultural
factors influence the health of the community people.Some of the notable social determinants
which I observed are the background or the circumstances where the community people grow up,
work, live and age by time.The 1973 Federal Community Health Program initiated the
development of the community health services which faces certain barriers to provide healthcare
services to the community people due to the social and cultural stigmas (Freeman et al.,
2014).While cultural respect defines the recognition and protection of the inherent rights,
traditions, cultures of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, I observed the lack of
service level strategies among the healthcare practitioners and institutions to achieve cultural
respect.One of the major issues that I observed in the community is the existence of racism.Many
of the community people get discriminated and marginalized and do not receive effective and
needful health care services due to this particular concept among the community.
Critical evaluation
Description: Throughout the study, I learned that the holistic understanding of the
wellbeing and health includes the entire community of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander.It includes some of the broad issues like social justice, rights, equity, traditional
knowledge and connection to the country.The traditional medical practice in the culture of the
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander group encircles a holistic view of the world ("Indigenous
Australians: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people", 2018). I learned from the community