Analysing Social Determinants: Colonisation and Health Outcomes

This essay examines the impact of colonisation on health disparities, using the example of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations in Australia. It highlights how colonisation deprived indigenous communities of essential resources, disrupted their cultural practices, and led to health inequalities and inaccessibility. The essay also addresses the role of legislative bodies in perpetuating these disparities by focusing on individual-level behavior change rather than addressing underlying power inequalities rooted in colonialism. It concludes by emphasizing the need for national bodies to actively work towards eradicating these health inequalities to improve the health and socioeconomic outcomes for colonised populations.

Running head: SOCIAL DETERMINANTS: COLONISATION
SOCIAL DETERMINANTS: COLONISATION
Name of the Student:
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1SOCIAL DETERMINANTS: COLONISATION
Introduction
The following paper will demonstrate an example which will highlight the existence of
health disparities among a community or population group after colonization. Colonisation refers
to the practice with which a absolute or partial control is established over a nation followed by its
occupancy with settlers and its resultant economic exploitation (Paradies, 2016). Indigenous
populations residing in Australia, is a key example reflecting the effects of colonization which
will be addressed in the following sections.
Discussion
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations of Australia are considered as the first
people of the nation, who possess a rich cultural history and engage in a variety of religious,
healthcare and spiritual practices. Further such populations were heavily dependent on the
natural resources of the nation for their lifestyle, food and housing needs (Azzopardi et al.,
2018). Upon colonization, not only were such populations deprived of these essential resources
but were also forced to alter their intrinsic ethnic practices and follow those exerted by
mainstream colonial populations (Walter, 2016). Further present day non-Indigenous populations
are unaware of the unique cultural and linguistic practices followed by these communities further
resulting in increased health inaccessibility, health inequality and high levels of morbidity,
mortality and disease occurrences among Indigenous communities. Further, such communities,
due to their strong ties to their native lands, reside in remote locations which have negligible
accessibility or available healthcare services (Priest et al., 2016). The role of the existing

2SOCIAL DETERMINANTS: COLONISATION
legislative bodies in contributing to such disparities due to colonization has been reflected by
Axelsson, Kukutai & Kippen (2016):
“In more recent times governments in the CANZUS states have invested substantial time
and resources in monitoring the wellbeing outcomes of Indigenous peoples vis-a-vis ‘Closing the
gaps’. Critics argue that this form of ‘postcolonial demography’ has largely been geared towards
meeting the needs of government rather than the needs of Indigenous peoples and communities.
By focusing policy interventions solely on individual-level behaviour change rather than
underlying power inequalities, contemporary forms of inequality are decoupled from the unequal
institutional arrangements that structure the relationship between Indigenous peoples and the
State, itself a product of colonialism”
Conclusion
Hence, to conclude, it can be observed that colonization yields detrimental health and
socioeconomic impacts on the population being colonized. A significant example reflecting such
effects is the present health status of Indigenous populations in Australia. to mitigate the same,
he need of the hour is for national bodies to work actively in eradicating such health inequalities.

3SOCIAL DETERMINANTS: COLONISATION
References
Axelsson, P., Kukutai, T., & Kippen, R. (2016). The field of Indigenous health and the role of
colonisation and history. Journal of Population Research, 33(1), 1-7.
Azzopardi, P. S., Sawyer, S. M., Carlin, J. B., Degenhardt, L., Brown, N., Brown, A. D., &
Patton, G. C. (2018). Health and wellbeing of Indigenous adolescents in Australia: a
systematic synthesis of population data. The Lancet, 391(10122), 766-782.
Paradies, Y. (2016). Colonisation, racism and indigenous health. Journal of Population
Research, 33(1), 83-96.
Priest, N., Thompson, L., Mackean, T., Baker, A., & Waters, E. (2017). ‘Yarning up with Koori
kids’–hearing the voices of Australian urban Indigenous children about their health and
well-being. Ethnicity & health, 22(6), 631-647.
Walter, M. (2016). Data politics and Indigenous representation in Australian
statistics. Indigenous data sovereignty: Toward an agenda, 38, 79-98.