3. Placement Details Dates – 8 April 2011 – 14 October 2011 Schedule – Fridays 8.30am – 4pm
4. Indigenous Health The Indigenous Health Program provides a culturally appropriate range of health related services to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community of the Sunshine Coast within the Sunshine Coast – Health Service District.  They undertake liaison and advocacy roles which provide a link for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to a range of government and non-government services. In particular, there are formal partnership Agreements with the North Coast Aboriginal Corporation for Community Health and the Division of General Practice, to enhance collaborative and effective service delivery of Indigenous Health Programs. Â
5. Project Name – Indigenous Breast Screening Background - : Indigenous Health, in conjunction with Breast Screen Queensland and North Coast Aboriginal Corporation for Community Health, has been breast screening Indigenous women on the Sunshine Coast for the past three years. This process is relatively new for the Indigenous population as they have only started to be screened within the last ten years, unlike the Non-Indigenous population who have been screened for over twenty years.
6. Continued... Because of the recency of screening Indigenous women, a lot are still unsure of the procedure and find it intrusive and embarrassing. However, this program aims to dissolve these barriers and provide Indigenous women with the same level of primary care that the Non-Indigenous population receive, and to educate these women about the importance of early detection.
7. Duties For this placement I will be - contacting and booking clients sending letters and contacting people as reminders undertaking paperwork and most importantly, participating in creating procedures and guidelines for the general running of the program from engaging the client till the end of their visit.
8. Other programs Eye Health Ear Health Sexual Health Women’s Health Ante-natal Care Healthy Lifestyle & Weight Programs Oral Health Chronic Health Management Exposure Types Collaborators What’s involved
9. Learning Goal To gain awareness of how the local Indigenous population obtains and perceives primary healthcare.
10. Objectives Objective 1: Increase my knowledge in the area of Indigenous health. Objective 2: Gain an understanding of Indigenous attitudes towards primary health care. Objective 3: Develop skills to help encourage the Indigenous population to obtain primary healthcare. Objective 4: Further develop my written and oral communication skills.
14. On Completion... Improved cultural awareness and sensitivity in service delivery Provision of a culturally appropriate annual program and screening as required Improved culturally appropriate access to services
15. Conclusion Indigenous Health Involved in several programs Working primarily with Breast Screen Qld Learning goal & objectives Health Promotion project Blog – healthplacement. wordpress.com