Analyzing Social and Emotional Wellbeing in Aboriginal Healthcare

This report examines the concept of Social and Emotional Wellbeing (SEWB) in relation to mental health, particularly within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Australia. It contrasts SEWB with the Western concept of mental health, highlighting the importance of culture, ancestry, and identity in the Indigenous understanding of wellbeing. The report traces the evolution of Aboriginal Medical Services (AMS) and Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services (ACCHS), emphasizing their alignment with the principles of primary healthcare as outlined by the World Health Organization (WHO), including universal access, health equity, community participation, and interdisciplinary approaches. It details how ACCHSs address the gaps in mainstream healthcare for Indigenous Australians, focusing on cultural appropriateness and accessibility. The report further explores the application of SEWB principles within ACCHSs, emphasizing community involvement, cultural safety, and addressing social determinants of health. It also acknowledges the challenges faced by these services, such as funding and staffing, while underscoring their critical role in improving the health and wellbeing of Indigenous Australians by providing accessible, accommodative, and culturally sensitive care. This document is available on Desklib, a platform offering a variety of study tools and resources for students.

Running head: MENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 1
Mental Health Perspectives
Name
Institutional Affiliation

MENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 2
Social and Emotional Wellbeing (SEWB) Vs Mental Health
Social and Emotional Wellbeing (SEWB) refers to the view of health in a
multidimensional perspective that includes mental health , and various health and well-being
domains linked to the country or land, spirituality, culture, ancestry, community and family.
Lack of SEWB results in various negative aspects such as depression, stress and distress,
anxiety, suicide and use of drugs for recreational purposes (Langham et al., 2017). On the
other hand, the World Health Organization (WHO) refers to the wellbeing that enables an
individual to work successfully and productively, cope with stress that occurs in the daily
lives of individuals, realize individual abilities and significantly contribute to the community.
Generally, the outcome of mental health is positive emotions and functioning (Galderisi,
Heinz, Kastrup, Beezhold, & Sartorius, 2015). Mental health is also associated with the
social, psychological and biological factors that significantly contribute to the mental
abilities, environmental state and function (Manwell et al., 2015). Therefore, SEWB differs
with mental health as SEWB is significantly connected to the ancestry, culture and identity,
while mental health is associated with the context of the social and psychological issues
within an individual’s environment.
Mental health is a unique concept among Aboriginal Australians. Aboriginal
Australians and Torres Strait Islander have a strong attachment to their land, culture and
identity. They are also a disadvantaged community based on the the increased occupation of
their indigenous lands and prejudice by more dominant societies. In Australia, the Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander communities describe SEWB to conceptualize mental health.
Social and emotional wellbeing is a terminology that has culturally been accepted to address
the holistic health-related philosophy of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
communities. Social and emotional wellbeing is characterized by various experiences that can
affect the well-being of an individual that are familiar to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait

MENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 3
Islander backgrounds such as emotional grief and trauma, environmental deprivation, family
breakdowns, racism, removal from a family setting, cultural disconnection, substance abuse,
domestic violence, discrimination and other social challenges (Day & Francisco, 2013).
According to Gee, Dudgeon, Schultz, Hart, and Kelly (2014), the term SEWB is an
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander concept of different from the Western concept of mental
health. The concept of SEWB is commonly used by Aboriginal Australians to refer to the
concept of mental health in the perspective of a state of wellbeing in relation to an
individual’s awareness of his or her capabilities to cope with the stressors that occur in the
daily lives and to work productively with the aim of contributing positively to the society.
The personal well-being is described in the context of social influences such as the levels of
social support and emotional states. In the concept of mental health, personal well-being
entails a wide spectrum of issues such as personal values and choices, culture, language,
socio-historical factors, and social values that may result in distress (Day & Francisco, 2013).
Evolution of Aboriginal Medical Services How They Align With the Principles of
Primary Healthcare As Outlined By WHO
The first Aboriginal primary healthcare services in Australia was established in 1971
in Sidney, and currently there are over 150 health services controlled by Aboriginal
communities. Until about 1981, the Aboriginal services and other Aboriginal community
controlled health service (ACCHS) was funded through donations since the governments
were reluctant to to support the initiatives, based on the argument that the indigenous people
were able to access the mainstream health services (Baba, Brolan, & Hill, 2014). Prior to the
introduction of ACCHS, Aboriginal medical services (AMS) provided healthcare services to
indigenous Australians. The ACCHS provided a better option for Aboriginal Australians
were able to access autonomous and culturally appropriate primary health services. Currently,
ACCHS is funded through Medicare, and the funding is supplemented by short-term grants.

MENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 4
The major challenge affecting the operations of ACCHS is funding, sustainability and
staffing (Baba et al., 2014).
The AMS Redfern was established in 1971 was the first ACCHS in Australia that was
established by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community activists. Initially, the
hospital was staffed with non-indigenous nurses, doctors and students. The AMS comprised
of aboriginal Australians. By the end of 1971, the service has gained popularity dis not have
the capacity to meet the increasing healthcare demands. The federal government provided
funding after a year and since then, the service has significantly grown to comprise of a
variety of services and clinics which offer public health, medical, dental and outreach
services (Marles, Frame, & Royce, 2012). In 1984, the Aboriginal health workers (AHWs)
course was introduced to offer the much needed education as an important part of the
indigenous healthcare. The course was followed by a postgraduate program that involved
training mental healthcare. Over the years, the aboriginal training of healthcare workers his
offered in tertiary settings (Marles et al., 2012).
The principles of primary healthcare include universal access to healthcare, and
coverage based on the consumer needs, the call for commitment to support health equity as a
major aspect of social justice, participation of the community in the articulation and
definition of health-related agenda, and establishment of inter-industrial and interdisciplinary
approaches to health (World Health Organization, 2003). Australian indigenous populations
in Australia have poorer health as compared to their non-indigenous counterparts. The poor
health outcomes resulted from the long-term outcomes of colonization, which affected the
inequalities in the social, physical and mental health and wellbeing of indigenous population.
The need for aboriginal medical services was a result of the gaps in the delivery of healthcare
services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians by mainstream health services.
The Aboriginal medical services were also implemented to address the challenges associated

MENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 5
with the exclusion and marginalization of the indigenous communities in the mainstream
health services (Harfield, Davy, McArthur, Munn, Brown, & Brown, 2018). The reality of
marginalization and cultural disparities meant that indigenous people experienced significant
challenges accessing health services. Therefore, the introduction of ACCHS plays a critical
role in the realization of the principles of primary healthcare by ensuring that the Aboriginal
communities are able to access culturally friendly healthcare.
Application of Social and Emotional Wellbeing in Aboriginal Community Controlled
Health Service Today
The social and emotional well-being in the aboriginal community controlled health
service plays an essential role in maintaining the ethics and values. The actions performed by
the services include the involvement go indigenous community organizations and community
representatives; hence promoting protection, survival, integrity, spirit, equality,
responsibility, respect, reciprocity and integrity of the community (Farnbach, Eades, Gwynn,
Glozier, & Hackett, 2018).
The aboriginal community controlled health service facilitate the access to healthcare
by the indigenous populations. The Aboriginal healthcare facilities play an important role in
ensuring that indigenous peoples who experience various social and mental challenges can
access requisite medical support. The facilities are vital in ensuring that the people secure
access to healthcare in communities that are faced with a wide range of healthcare needs and
societal challenges and complexities such as racism and discrimination (Davy, Harfield,
McArthur, Munn, & Brown, 2016).
The aboriginal community controlled health service also demonstrate a high degree of
approachability as the communities are aware that the services exist and are comfortable to
seek healthcare service. The facilities are also characterized by acceptability whereby the
aboriginal peoples are willing to seek the services freely and access the appropriate

MENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 6
healthcare services based on the cultural and social values, beliefs and norms of the
community. Despite the challenges associated with funding, the Indigenous healthcare
services often offer quality services to the indigenous population at a subsidized cost.
Additionally, the aboriginal community controlled health service hence accommodation and
availability of healthcare services by making it easier for the aboriginal communities to
access healthcare and ensure the efficiency of service and that they are achieved within a
timely manner. The aboriginal community controlled health service offer services that are
cognizant of the social determinants of health within the Aboriginal community; hence
ensuring the the communities are comfortable and can access healthcare. Additionally, the
appropriateness of the healthcare services is achieved as the people ate able to engage with
the healthcare system. The indigenous health services align with the social and cultural
challenges that indigenous populations experience (Davy et al., 2016).
The ACCHSs also play a critical role in the training and recruitment of Aboriginal
workforce. Aboriginal community controlled health service play a critical role in employing
a significant portion of the Aboriginal communities (Panaretto, Wenitong, Button, & Ring,
2014). Therefore, the facilities are important contributors to the enlightenment of the
aboriginal populations on various issues. In conclusion, ACCHSs are an important contribute
to the social and emotional wellbeing of Indigenous Australians. They play a critical role in
ensuring that the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians are able to access
accommodative, accessible and easily available care that could not otherwise be provided by
the mainstream healthcare services.

MENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 7
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