Cultural Sensitivities
Source: NSW Department of Community Services , Working with Aboriginal People and Communities. A practice resource 2009
Staff in health settings may sometimes find it difficult to build open and trusting relationships with Aboriginal people and vice versa. This can often be attributed to a lack of cultural understanding and lack of awareness of effective techniques. This resource aims to assist staff to break down these barriers by offering practical advice and solutions.
Many cultural and historical factors need to be acknowledged in working with Aboriginal people. Aboriginal culture and communities are diverse and "a one size fits all" approach will not work to meet the health needs of the individuals and communities that we are assisting.
Historically the words protection and intervention have not been associated with positive outcomes for Aboriginal people, even where the actions of individuals offering these services may have been well intended. There is an understandable mistrust of people who offer services based on these concepts.
Grief and Loss
Grief and loss issues are prevalent in many Aboriginal families and communities and continue to adversely impact the lives of many people. These grief and loss issues have historical and current relevance. The stolen generation and removal from land are some of the incidents which have not yet been resolved for aboriginal people. Socio-economic factors also exacerbate grief and loss for many aboriginal people.
T
Grief and loss issues can result in:
- mental health issues
- self harm and intentional injury
- suicide - particularly with youth
- drug and alcohol misuse and addiction
- over-representation in the juvenile and criminal justice systems
- over representation in welfare systems
- homelessness
- family and domestic violence
- general feeling of hopelessness
- relationship/connection breakdown
- loss of country
- loss of identity
It is useful to increase our awareness of these issues and learn how to work more effectively with Aboriginal communities. Improving our ability to better identify culturally appropriate pathways will help us to address some of these issues in a sensitive and respectful manner.
The video lectures below features Laurie Crawford. Laurie has a long history as an academic and is currently the Greater Western Area Health Service (GWAHS) Eastern Cluster Aboriginal Health Coordinator. Laurie discusses some of the issues faced by Aboriginal people and provides some valuable tips for health workers to improve their interactions with aboriginal patients.
Respect
Respect is very important in every social structure in Aboriginal communities. Respect for Elders, the land, animals and ancestors are fundamental aspects of Aboriginal culture.
Following a death in some communities, people may find it disrespectful to say the deceased person's name or to refer to the deceased person in general conversation. A familiar term used by many Aboriginal people is 'Sorry Business' which indicates that there has been a death within a community.
Aboriginal concept of family and community
Understanding structures and concepts that exist in Aboriginal families and communities is important in building relationships.
Aboriginal people have strong family values and the family system has an extended family structure. This means that children are not just the concern of biological parents, but of the entire community - the raising, care, education and discipline of children are the responsibility of everyone.
Men's and Women's Business
In Aboriginal culture certain customs and practices are performed by men and women separately, often referred to Men's and Women's business. These practices have very strict regulations attached and penalties for breaking these rules can be severe.
Where possible it is preferable for men to speak to men and for women to speak to women, especially if you are not well known by the person or community.
Language and communication
There is no universal Aboriginal language and there are various different languages and dialects.
There are slight differences in pronunciation and grammatical structure in some Aboriginal English. The use and meaning of Aboriginal English also varies according to geographic location. Below are some common words that you may hear used:
|
Aboriginal English
|
Standard Australian English
|
|
mob
|
family, kin, group of people
|
|
shame
|
embarrass, humiliate
|
|
sista/sister girl
|
female friend, cousin, peer
|
|
brotha/brother boy
|
male friend, cousin, peer
|
|
gunja, yaandii
|
marijuana
|
|
goom
|
alcohol
|
|
gungi, gungy
|
police
|
|
durri (durry)
|
cigarette, smoke
|
|
boori
|
baby
|
Some key tips for communication
- Do not imitate Aboriginal speech patterns or assume Aborginal people will be more open with you by attempting to speak Aboriginal English with them.
- Respect the use of silence and don't mistake it for misunderstanding a topic or issue.
- Be sensitive to the use of non-verbal communication (hand and facial gestures).
- Make your practice a welcoming environment by displaying Aboriginal visual and written material where possible.
- Skin colour does not reflect whether people identify as being Aboriginal or not. Do not make assumptions - ask everyone.
You have now reached the end of topic 1. When you are ready please proceed to topic 2.