Social determinants of health, rural Indigenous men and participatory action research

Male Aboriginal health is of great concern in Australia and differs immensely from other Australian cultures. Research shows that the current mortality and morbidity data indicates that the health of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander male population is the worst of any population in Australia.

The purpose of this paper was to analyses participatory action research (PAR) process. This process aspires to engage and support the members of a rural Aboriginal men’s health group, in particular the Yarrabah community in north Queensland, and is encouraging them to ‘take their rightful place in society’ by developing empowerment strategies. This includes a men’s support group and encouraging them to engage in structural determinants such as employment, education and access to traditional cultural practices.

It is believed that there are a number of reasons that contribute to the current low levels of mortality and morbidity. These include low socioeconomic status, poor living conditions, poor nutrition, high rates of tobacco use, and the harmful use of substances, unemployment, low levels of education, violence and crime.

Indigenous men are not considered to be a homogeneous group. The health requirements differ in both rural and urban settings. It is thought that  traditional men in remote areas may require more strict gender-specific health services is sometime referred to as “men’s business”, and it is known that in urban areas, issues such as illicit substance misuse can be more prevalent. Therefore a gendered approach to health may lead to better health access and outcomes for Indigenous males.

The participatory action research (PAR) has been widely promoted as a potentially effective tool for working with Indigenous Australians in order to achieve better health outcomes in the male population. This paper highlights the importance of allowing Aboriginal men to develop a common understanding of their social circumstances as a basis for taking action to improve their situation.

By Ranveen Takhar (135561)

Wenitong , M, Baird ,L, Tsey, K, McCalman, J, Patterson, D, Baird, B, Whiteside, M, Fagan, R, Cadet James, Y, Wilson, A “Social determinants of health, rural Indigenous men and participatory action research” World Congress for Rural Sociology, Trondheim, Norway, 2004; July 25-30