Children the key to breaking the cycle of disadvantage

Children the key to breaking the cycle of disadvantage

A national strategy that focuses on early child development is the key to breaking the cycle of Aboriginal poor health and disadvantage.

The recommendation results from the first volume of findings of the landmark Western Australian Aboriginal Child Health Survey, officially launched in Perth today.

The report is the most comprehensive survey ever undertaken of Aboriginal children and has detailed the complexity of factors that contribute to significantly higher rates of death, illness and disability in comparison with other Australians.

The Western Australian Aboriginal Child Health Survey was made possible by funding from Healthway, Lotterywest, Rio Tinto Aboriginal Foundation and the State and Commonwealth Governments.

Chairman of the survey Steering Committee, Associate Professor Ted Wilkes, said Aboriginal health was too often portrayed as a problem that was simply too hard to fix.

"This document means there can be no more excuses," Mr Wilkes said.

"Aboriginal people have heard the alarm bells ringing for years - this survey gives us the hard evidence we need for new strategies that look at the issue from a different direction. We have to break the cycle of  poor health - and that means we have to find ways to give our children a better start in life.

"We must have resources focused in areas that are going to produce real results. That has to be done in partnership with Aboriginal people - we have the most at stake in this and are the ones who have watched our children and families suffer.

Mr Wilkes said the report showed that there has been little progress in improving outcomes for Aboriginal people over the past 30 years. While Canada, New Zealand and the United States had narrowed the disparity between indigenous people and the rest of the population, Australia had failed.

"While a lot has been tried over the years to improve things, the data in this report shows that much of it hasn't worked. What's clear from these findings is that most of the solutions are outside the health care system.

"This data is now our baseline - we have to see real improvement from here."

The report has called for a national strategy to break the cycle of Aboriginal poor health that looks beyond health to the resources needed for healthy child development.

These include:

• The physical environment (ie housing, clean water, sanitation and nutrition)
• The levels of family income available to support children
• The creation of human and psychological capital within the family (ie education and parenting skills)
• The social capital available to individuals (cultural heritage and traditions, safer communities).

Action within the health care system to improve outcomes would include:

• Improving nutritional knowledge and access to affordable nutritious food
• Improving rates of contact of Aboriginal families and children with health services
• Improving the availability of maternal health services and supports
• Reducing the rates of pre-term and low birthweight babies
• Reducing the  rate of early teenage pregnancy
• Reducing rates of tobacco, alcohol and other drug use - particularly in pregnant women
• Reducing the rates of childhood infectious diseases

"Many of the problems faced by our children can have life long consequences, yet a lot of these problems are preventable," Mr Wilkes said.

"We need to look at all the things it takes for children to grow healthy and happy. It's not a quick medical fix but means looking at their total environment and experiences so that they can have a fair start to life."

The survey was conducted over three years and involved more than 5000 Aboriginal children and their families.

Four more volumes of findings will be released over the next 18 months. The data will be used nationally to develop strategies to improve outcomes for Aboriginal families.