New guide supports Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workforce

A new RACGP-endorsed guide to support general practices to understand the ‘extremely crucial’ role of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Health Workers and Health Practitioners is now available.
 
The Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Health Workers and Health Practitioners in Primary Health Care: A guide for general practice was officially launched to mark National Reconciliation Week.
 
Effectively embedding these roles into models of care is ‘a cost-effective and sustainable way of ensuring healthcare services are culturally safe and responsive to the needs of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people’, according to the National Association of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Workers and Practitioners (NAATSIHWP).
 
But these critical roles remain underutilised in general practice settings. In response, NAATSIHWP developed the comprehensive guide to support general practices, recruit, effectively use, and retain these professionals as integral members of their healthcare teams.
 
The guide was officially launched on 24 May at the RACGP’s Practice Owners Conference in Melbourne, on Wurundjeri Country, by NAATSIHWP Chief Executive Karl Briscoe, a Kuku Yalanji man.
 
‘We are extremely excited to launch the guide and for the RACGP endorsing it,’ he told newsGP.
 
‘And there’s been a real interest in it here [at the conference] … with this audience, it is just so timely because it’s for practice owners.
 
‘It’s a really valuable resource for practice owners to look at and to employ an Aboriginal Health Worker or Practitioner within their services.
 
‘It gives them all the information they require, especially when they have Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients or are employing one of our workforce.’
 
NAATSIHWP has an important partnership with the RACGP which aligns with the objectives of the college’s Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP).
 
The RACGP says it is committed to deepening cultural knowledge and strengthening relationships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and its RAP commitment is to an organisation and GP profession free from racism, where all GPs can – and do – provide culturally safe healthcare, grounded in mutual respect and trust.
 
The new guide provides information on the role, skills and qualifications of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Health Workers and Practitioners. It includes strategies for supporting this workforce in general practice settings.
 
Additionally, it demonstrates how the profession can be integrated into models of care by supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Checks, GP Management Plans, team care arrangements and provision of follow-up care.
 
It also clarifies the range of MBS item numbers applicable to the Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander health workforce, which will be reviewed annually when indexation changes may occur.
 
Danielle Beezley is a Wulli Wulli woman, Aboriginal Health Practitioner and practice manager at the Theodore Medical Centre in rural Queensland. She told newsGP that Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioners are invaluable in the healthcare setting.
 
‘They are not just healthcare workers or liaison officers – they are cultural custodians, educators, and essential connectors and healers between systems and communities,’ she said.
 
‘Their presence is extremely crucial to achieving equity in health outcomes and delivering care that truly respects the cultural identity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
 
‘Strengthening and expanding their role is a key step toward a more inclusive and effective Australian healthcare system.’
 
Having worked in general practice for 11 years, Ms Beezley is ‘very happy’ to see the launch of the guide to support Aboriginal Health Practitioners, practice owners, doctors and nursing staff.
 
‘We have been learning together on how to grow the role in general practice and how to create successful model of care,’ she said.
 
‘This guide is great to give other general practices a chance to see what is possible and how they can support and provide continuous quality care to all people, but especially First Nations mob.’
 
For Ms Beezley, who, alongside her Aboriginal health team knows her patients well, building trust has come naturally.
 
‘Making the most of Medicare and focusing on delivering quality care has been a learning journey for all of us,’ she said.
 
‘Figuring out what works and what doesn’t has helped us shape a pretty deadly model that suits us and our mob. It didn’t come without challenges, but like all challenges you learn and grow from them all.
 
‘I’m grateful for the opportunity to be part of this journey and to keep striving for excellence – so we can all live the healthy, happy lives we deserve.’

NAATSIHWP CEO Karl Briscoe launching the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Workers and Health Practitioners in primary healthcare guide. (Image: Jake Pinskier)
 
RACGP President Dr Michael Wright was also at the launch to welcome the guide for GPs.
 
‘These are workers who provide clinical skills, invaluable cultural knowledge and patient care with a focus on culturally safe practice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people,’ he said.
 
‘They play a vital role every day ensuring Australia’s healthcare system meets the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. 
 
‘We are endorsing this guide to increase awareness and engagement, promote culturally safe multidisciplinary care, and support superior health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients across Australia.’
 
The release of the guide comes as the number of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioners working across Australia reached a recent milestone.
 
Mr Briscoe says the new guide helps to bring the importance of this workforce into the spotlight.
 
‘When I started [at NAATSIHWP] eight years ago, these health workers weren’t very well known right across the health sector,’ he said.
 
‘We’ve helped to increase visibility of the profession and there’s more acceptance, because they understand what they can and can’t do. But also helped create career structures and pipelines and pathways in different states and territories.
 
‘We have seen practice owners employ our workforce and the success of that. But then we also realise that 50% of our people don’t attend community controlled health services, so there was an unmet need there, and that’s why we developed the guide.’
 
National Reconciliation Week runs 27 May to 3 June, under this year’s theme, ‘Bridging Now to Next’.
 
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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioner general practice guide NAATSIHWP National Reconciliation Week Practice Owners Conference