Understanding Indigenous Health Perspectives: Alcoholism, Risks, and Impacts in Australia

Running head: INDIGENIOUS HEALTH PERSPECTIVE
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Indigenous Health Perspectives
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Indigenous Health Perspectives
High level of alcohol usage across Australia has shown vast increase over the past
decade. Statistics reveal that around 1 in 10 Australians jeopardizes their long-term health
through excessive drinking. Circumstantially, twice that number put their short-term health at
risk through the intake of alcohol. On one occasion five to six drinks are considered to be
harmful to women. In 2007, 30.5 percent of Australian women aged 14 and over drank at a level
found to be risky for short-term alcohol-related harms. However, in general, men are more likely
to consume alcohol at high-risk levels as compared to women. Almost all the age groups in this
gender subject themselves to long term harms. Just a little exception of 14 to 19 years, where 3 in
10 young women put themselves in short term alcohol-related harm (Department of Health,
2011).
Only a few people comprehend what goes on in the lives of alcohol addicts. Paul Ekman
struggle with alcohol addiction began after he got employed to work in a marketing company.
During work off time, he started going to drinking spree with his new friends. Ekman’s new
behavior came along with incredible changes in his lifestyle. For example, sometimes he would
fail to show up at work on time and he would also be irresponsible for his family affairs. After
spending all his income on drinking alcohol, Ekman had nothing remained to meet even basic
needs for his nuclear family members. Considering he had been morally brought up, and he was
not a person who had experienced a lot to do with risky behaviors like smoking and drinking, he
developed a feeling of being uneasy about his life. Paul found himself in alcoholism, and it
affected his work and the relationships he had with other people such as friends, relatives, and

INDIGENOUS HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 3
employers. Serious health problems started disturbing him and with time he was admitted to a
rehab center.
From the above story, it can be concluded that irresponsibleness amongst individuals
addicted to alcohol has increased immensely. Aspects of drinking behavior such as the level of
drinking, the characteristics of heavy drinking, drinking companions, and the drinking norms,
have profoundly increased. Broadly, apart from just the individuals' health, the entire society and
close associates of the addict are also negatively affected (Stark, 2009.). In Ekman’s case, for
instance, the society lost a skilled person who, through his contribution, would have brought a
change in the community.
Alcoholism in Australia is more prevalent amongst the indigenous people than the non-
indigenous individuals. This phenomenon can be affirmed from a survey which proved that more
Australian native offenders and prisoners face their execution because of alcoholic-related
offences (Dearden & Payne, 2009). The study also showed that there is a higher level of alcohol
consumption amongst indigenous Australians than the general population of the country. Non-
indigenous people in Australia seem to have emigrated from other places. Statistics prove that
the reasons for their migration were related to the abuse of alcohol some of which include
domestic violence, lack of basic needs, and rampant unemployment (Ramamoorthi, Jayaraj,
Notaras, & Thomas, 2014).
Non-natives bring bad habits to the natives. They come along with gross behaviors like
alcoholism and gradually influence lifestyles of the native Australians (Korff, 2019). Some of
them establish opening drinking pubs which sell out alcohol and other strong drinks to
everybody including the underage teenagers. Other than that they as well as act as drinking