A new podcast released this week explores the hospital experience for Aboriginal patients in the Top End of the Northern Territory, and offers ideas to improve the delivery of culturally respectful care. Created on Larrakia country by Menzies School of Health Research with Aboriginal community leaders and Royal Darwin Hospital staff, the seven-episode series answers doctors’ questions about working with Aboriginal patients. Questions range from the practical: “Is it ok to make eye contact?” to issues at the heart of social justice: “I want to know what Aboriginal people feel like when we talk to them, what makes them think that we’re racist?”.
The Specialists are Larrakia, Tiwi and Yolŋu leaders: Aunty Bilawara Lee, Pirrawayingi Puruntatameri, Rarrtjiwuy Melanie Herdman and Stuart Yiwarr McGrath. They share personal experiences as patients, professional experiences as health workers and cultural knowledge. The Specialists hope their stories, which elevate the Aboriginal patient’s perspective and challenge negative stereotypes that fuel racism, inspire health workers to reflect on their beliefs so they can deliver culturally safe care.
The series is available to download on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
200629 MEDIA RELEASE Ask the Specialist Larrakia Tiwi and Yolngu stories