‘Trailblazer in Aboriginal health’ wins top NAIDOC honour

For West Australian GP Dr Daniel Hunt, being named NAIDOC Person of the Year on the 50th anniversary of NAIDOC Week is particularly special.
 
Jaru and Indjibarndi man Dr Hunt is a GP, a dentist, and has extensive experience in the Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (ACCHO) sector, where he served as Deputy Medical Director and Acting Chief Executive Officer.
 
He is also the Deputy Chair of the Blood Borne Viruses and Sexual Transmitted Infection Advisory Committee for Western Australia, stemming from his work and leadership managing the Australian syphilis epidemic.
 
Described by his peers as a ‘trailblazer in Aboriginal health’, Dr Hunt’s dedication to patients and passion for priority populations was celebrated at the National NAIDOC Awards Ceremony in Perth.
 
Dr Hunt said he feels ‘very proud and honoured to receive this acknowledgement’, particularly as NAIDOC Week marks its 50-year milestone of celebrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and culture in 2025.
 
And while the award is very much his own, Dr Hunt views it in the context of the excellent people he has worked alongside.
 
‘It recognises work that has been done, not by myself particularly, but all those around me, because I think these kinds of awards aren’t an individual effort,’ he told newsGP.
 
‘They’re a culmination of the people around you and the people who have allowed you to grow, progress into this space.’
 
A passionate GP working on Whadjuk Noongar Country (Perth), Dr Hunt has been able to work across a broad spectrum of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health.
 
‘It’s the generalist nature of general practice that I find rewarding. You wear many hats as a GP and your depth and breadth of knowledge and advocacy is broad,’ he says.
 
‘When I was working at the ACHHO, we advocated for everything from environmental health to rheumatic heart disease to developmental paediatrics to STIs.
 
‘It’s that incredibly broad reach that general practice brings, and it’s what attracted me [to the profession].’
 
Celebrating Dr Hunt’s achievement on social media, the Australian Indigenous Doctors Association praised his dedication and expertise.
 
‘His leadership in the Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation sector has been nothing short of extraordinary. Dr Hunt is a role model in providing deep expertise in culturally safe care and commitment to Community.’
 
Dr Hunt’s NAIDOC honour follows on from being named 2024 Indigenous Doctor of the Year and 2022 General Practitioner in Training of the Year for WA.
 
And he says he will use his Person of the Year Award as a platform to better advocate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health.
 
‘The closing of the gap reforms exist and they provide a great framework for closing the gap in Indigenous health, but we need to have greater investment in the area,’ Dr Hunt says.
 
‘It’s about wanting the states and Federal Government to recognise that whilst there are divisions in who looks after Aboriginal health, it is everybody’s ultimate responsibility.
 
‘Whilst investment in the sector is okay, it can be greatly improved.
 
‘We are a very wealthy country. There’s no reason why Aboriginal people should be living in the conditions they are in the 21st Century and have to worry about access to healthcare, access to dental care, access to housing.
 
‘It should not be as difficult as is, and we need to focus on reducing those barriers that exist to people accessing healthcare.’
 
Federal Minister for Indigenous Australians Senator Malarndirri McCarthy offered her congratulations to the 2025 award winners.
 
‘This year’s NAIDOC celebrations mark an incredible achievement – 50 years of celebrating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and culture through a week of activities,’ she said.
 
‘There is no better way to recognise the strength, vision and enduring legacy of past generations than by celebrating the achievements of exceptional individuals at the NAIDOC Awards.
 
‘I congratulate the finalists and winners for their remarkable achievements and for exemplifying the true essence of NAIDOC Week.’
 
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