APA | First Nations

First Nations

INMOTION 01 Mar, 2022

Pursuit of equality is worth the effort

Few things in society are as important as the pursuit of equality and the closing of gaps that persist around us.

I am proud of the APA’s many efforts to level the proverbial playing field.

The APA recently submitted its third Reconciliation Action Plan to Reconciliation Australia for approval.

I hope we will have received their endorsement by the time we go to print with this issue of InMotion.

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INMOTION 01 Mar, 2022

Artwork represents APA’s vision

Aboriginal artist Jakeob Watson has created a unique artwork for the APA’s third Reconciliation Action Plan, drawing on elements of the plan for the design.

The cover of this month’s InMotion features artwork created especially to represent the APA’s vision statement, by New South Wales-based Aboriginal artist Jakeob Watson.

It was commissioned by the APA for use with the new Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP), which will be launched next month.

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INMOTION 01 Mar, 2022

2 deadly to miss

Season 2 of The Deadly Physios podcast is about to launch. A discussion about the upcoming season and what makes it deadly.

To mark National Close the Gap Day on 17 March, the APA will launch season 2 of The Deadly Physios podcast series.

Join proud Kamilaroi man and APA member Cameron Edwards as he has a yarn with six deadly Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander physiotherapists from around Australia.

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INMOTION 01 Mar, 2022

Change is crucial, but it’s no walk in the park

As National Close the Gap Day is marked around the country on 18 March, Associate Director of the Poche Centre for Indigenous Health and Palawa woman Shawana Andrews discusses change in the tertiary healthcare system and in the higher education and academic sectors.

After 15 years working to effect change in the healthcare system for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, Shawana Andrews felt burnt out.

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INMOTION 01 Mar, 2022

Racism stops with you

Ray Gates, a Bundjalung man and physiotherapist of more than 18 years calls for national action on the global impact of systemic racism in physiotherapy.

Note: For the purpose of this article, the term ‘Indigenous’ is used to refer to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples collectively, unless otherwise specified. However, it should be recognised that Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islander peoples are separate, distinct, cultural groups.

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INMOTION 01 Mar, 2022

Closing the Gap begins with you

As the very first Indigenous president of the APA, I feel very honored, privileged and humbled to reflect on National Close the Gap Day (18 March).

Over recent years, I have started to see a positive journey by many of us that acknowledges the contribution of our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to this country.

This is highlighted by having our national anthem amended by the federal government to state we are ‘one and free’.

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INMOTION 31 Dec, 2021

Tackling racism is always the message

In recognition that First Nations people have occupied and cared for Australia for more than 65,000 years, the theme of this year’s delayed NAIDOC Week (8–15 November) is ‘Always Was, Always Will Be’.

It’s a theme very close to the heart of Professor Marcia Langton, a face familiar to many physiotherapists.

Professor Dr Marcia Langton AO, a proud Yiman woman from Queensland, is an anthropologist and historian well known throughout Australia as an advocate for Aboriginal rights.

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INMOTION 31 Dec, 2021

A culture of care in the Red Centre

The importance of cultural awareness training has very practical implications for Sara Kirwan. As the only pain physiotherapist servicing Alice Springs Hospital and the many surrounding remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory, Sara draws on her cultural awareness training daily in both her work and personal life.

Sara Kirwan, APAM, chuckles a little at the strange happenstance that has led her to no longer consider Alice Springs a ‘remote town’.

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INMOTION 31 Dec, 2021

This conversation matters

In the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests across Australia calling for racial equality and highlighting deaths of Indigenous people in police custody, physiotherapist Cameron Edwards shares his perspective on the importance of the truth around the issue and discusses why we all should take steps to Close the Gap in healthcare.

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INMOTION 31 Dec, 2021

Doing the right thing is never wrong

July is upon us, putting the first half of the year behind us. In July, we would have celebrated the achievements, culture and history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people during NAIDOC Week, had this year unfolded differently.

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