Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Peoples Rights and Issues

I was asked a question about Closing the Gap and support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island trainees during a GPs Down Under Facebook debate on 17 August. My answer is below (copy of the original question at the end):

I have no special credentials to answer this question and would defer to our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander colleagues and colleagues-to-be about ideas to address these problems. Coloniser-imposed solutions seem to repeatedly fail and the message I am getting is that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have enough knowledge, strength and deep connection to Country to propose ways forward which might just work. I suspect this will involve dealing with the legacy of an attempted erasure of those who have been here about 50,00 years longer than me, may require more money allocated to the causes of the Gap we are trying to close, and much more support and mentoring for those young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders who are courageous enough to take on training as a GP.

As a simple and doable practical step, I would like to see the College expand its support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to include support for early years education and cultural literacy. I support Children’s Ground and the Indigenous Literacy Foundation, having come across them via reading and recommendations – plug for them here - but the College should be guided by others on final choices.

As a more solid step, the College could adopt a “red-line” policy clearly stating its recognition that we live and work on unceded land and that committing to support Voice, Treaty and Truth is just the starting point for addressing wider issues of sovereignty.

The original question reads:

“How will each of you strive to close the gap in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health inequities presented to everyday GPs and advocate for programs and policies to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander trainee exam and training pathways. How will you support the goal of timely fellowship especially in urban areas where my peers are often not provided with adequate culturally safe training practices and learning opportunities? I welcome the opportunity to engage with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander members who may not have a voice as loud as mine.”