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NAIDOC Week is an opportunity for all Australians to learn about First Nations cultures and histories and participate in celebrations of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth.

This year’s theme for NAIDOC Week is Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!

Our office stands on the lands of the Gadigal People of the Eora Nation. We recognise the importance of their connection to place and community on these lands and pay our respects to Elders, past, present, and emerging and extend that acknowledgment to all First Nations People. As part of NAIDOC Week, we celebrate the history, culture, and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples throughout NSW and Australia.

It is important that health professionals have an understanding culturally appropriate care, especially in the end-of-life space. There are some fantastic resources which have been created by or in collaboration with First Nations peoples available online which address this.

The Gwandalan National Palliative Care Project have created a suite of tailored information and training materials. Look in their Gwandalan Dillybag to find an interactive toolkit aimed at providing frontline staff with appropriate tools to support the delivery of more impactful, meaningful, culturally safe and responsive palliative and end-of-life care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities.

They also have a fantastic set of online eLearning modules to explore:

• Introduction to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Palliative Care and Cultural Practice: exploring the aspects of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander history and culture relevant to the palliative and end-of-life care journey, and the commonly practiced cultural protocols associated with returning to spirit (death and dying).
• Safe Communication: exploring the cultural safety and strategies to support implementation in the workplace. Techniques and best practices for communicating in ways that respect cultural differences are discussed. The impact of personal beliefs and unconscious biases on health service delivery are considered.
• Supporting Choices at End-of-Life: exploring advance care planning and advance care yarning. It also considers funeral planning, and end-of-life care choices for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients.
• Strengthening Partnerships: exploring the aspects of working in partnership to support culturally responsive care, multi-disciplinary team-based care, and care coordination.

Palliative Care Australia has collaborated with the Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses and Midwives, Australian Indigenous Doctor’s Association and Indigenous Allied Health Australia and others to develop resources for health professionals working within communities which ensure approaches and practises are culturally safe and respectful. To access these resources, please click here.

This free Discussion Starter and Card Pack Kit is designed to start conversations with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who are approaching end of life and need to begin thinking about what’s important to them and planning accordingly. It is available to download, or you can order hard copies from their website.

The Department of Health have developed this Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Palliative Care Resource Kit to support staff in mainstream health services to provide culturally appropriate palliative care to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

At base of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander societies is the concept of community rather than individual. This means that an experience of loss impacts on and changes whole communities as much as individuals within them. Learn about Sorry Business on the Common Ground website.

We encourage health care providers and palliative care staff members, carers, and families to get involved and celebrate NAIDOC Week. You can find resources and information on events happening near you on the NAIDOC Week website.

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