Contemporary Indigenous Health: Evaluating the Closing the Gap Policy and its Benefits for a Case Study on Type 2 Diabetes Management

Running head: CONTEMPORARY INDIGENOUS HEALTH
Contemporary indigenous health
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CONTEMPORARY INDIGENOUS HEALTH
Aboriginal health and wellbeing had been a sector that has been neglected for a long
period of time after the European colonization in the late 18th century. However the revolutionary
advocacy by the activists and social welfare agencies has been successful in implementing a
number of key changes in the social privileges rights that the aboriginals are deserving of (Alford
2015, p. 403). The Government reforms and funding for Aboriginals and Torres Strait islanders
have given rise to a number of different policies, especially in health care, in order to address the
health disparities or inequities present in the health care delivery. One prime example if such a
policy movement which has considerably reinvented health care service delivery for the ATSI
communities in the closing the gap initiative (Bové et al. 2018, p. 106852C). This assignment
will attempt to explore and evaluate aspects of this policy, its history and benefits provided with
respect to a case study.
Closing the gap can be defined as the strategic action taken by the Australian government
in the year of 2008 that aimed to reduce the disparities and inequalities present among the ATSI
people. On a more elaborative note, the initiation of closing the gap Policy was the formal
commitment made to the people to establish health equality within the coming 25 years in the
nation for all members. Tom Calma, ATSI Social Justice commissioner released the Social
Justice report in the year of 2005 which elaborated statistical data points indicating at the gaming
inequalities and disparities present for indigenous and non-indigenous Australian (Boyle, Zhang
& Chan, 2014, pp. 217-222). The start differences and disadvantages faced by the first people of
Australia was sufficient for the strain in government to finally make a formal commitment to
facilitate equality in all aspects of social privilege including healthcare and living conditions
within the next 25 years. The next year National Indigenous Health equity campaign began, a

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CONTEMPORARY INDIGENOUS HEALTH
social justice campaign which aimed to eradicate the inequalities present in healthcare within
2030 with the power of coalition of more than 40 ATSI and non-indigenous health organizations
and human rights entities launched in Sydney on 2007. The cumulative efforts taken by these
government and non-government bodies finally resulted in establishment of National Indigenous
Reform Agreement which was later named closing the gap by Council of Australian
governments in March 2008 (Chan 2014, p. 217).
In 2011 National Health leadership forum was established as a steering committee for the
policy. It acted as a national representative body for ATSI organizations and working with
Australian government in order to improve the ATSI health outcomes set forth in the close the
gap policy. A remarkable achievement for the closing the gap policy had been in July 2013 when
Australian government introduced National aboriginal and Torres strait islander health plan; a
ten year health policy plan focusing on the government role in ensuring the flexibility of the
health system to the different needs expressed by this minority community so that they can make
healthy choices and have culturally safe and equal access to quality care. In the 10 years that
closing the gap policy has been established and implemented, there have been various
improvements made in the health status in life expectancy of the ATSI people. For instance, the
mortality rates for the aboriginal population has decreased by 14% since the last 10 years
especially for the people dying of chronic circulatory disorders. A progress has been reported in
management of chronic respiratory disorders and reduction of smoking in the aboriginal
population although there is still a significant gets left behind that are needed to be addressed. On
a similar note a few challenges that are contributed to the inability of this revolutionary policy to
achieve all of its 7 outcomes includes financial burden, lack of adequate funding, scarce
resources including transport and lacking time management. Moreover the lack of cultural safety