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National Reconciliation Week (NRW) is held every year from 27 May to 3 June and serves as an opportunity for every Australian to delve into our collective histories, cultures, and accomplishments, while contemplating our individual roles in fostering reconciliation across the nation.

The week commemorates two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey— the successful 1967 referendum, and the High Court Mabo decision respectively.

This year, NRW theme Now More Than Ever serves as a reminder that the struggle for justice and the preservation of the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples remains imperative and ongoing.

We all have a role to play nurturing a nation enriched by mutual respect between the wider Australian society and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

PCNSW and its Volunteer Support Services Programme acknowledge the significant work being done to raise awareness and implement culturally appropriate models of care in palliative and end-of-life care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. We also acknowledge the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander healthcare professionals and their colleagues who are leading this awareness and change.

We remain committed to walking with and learning from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people on their care journey. Last year PCNSW was pleased to offer an additional free membership besides the Volunteer one: the professional memberships for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers, indigenous liaison officers and indigenous community workers. This ensures that the voices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are represented in our advocacy and policy work and encourages knowledge sharing, connections and networking across the sector as we work towards access to, and equity of, quality palliative care for everyone.

Reakeeta Smallwood, a proud Gamilaroi calala murri yinarr (woman), registered nurse and a keynote speaker at the Palliative Care NSW 2024 State Conference in November, has shared her thoughts on National Reconciliation Week.

“National Reconciliation Week is about coming together and yarning, finding space for silence and reflection, so that when we are ready to be heard – in policy, practice, and research – good things happen. This is needed ‘Now More Than Ever’,” she says.

“As health professionals and educators, we need to continue to amplify the voices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and find ways to decolonise through connection to Country, community and kin.”

You can read more about Reakeeta and what this year’s theme of National Reconciliation Week, ‘Now More Than Ever’ means to her as a proud Gamilaroi Calala murri yinarr (woman) by clicking HERE.

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