Why we were established “Joining the dots”

The South Australian Aboriginal Chronic Disease Consortium has been established to improve the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal South Australians by working to prevent and detect early heart, stroke, cancer and diabetes as well as support those who are living with these chronic diseases. It is well documented that the stark disparities in these chronic diseases form the daily reality for many Aboriginal people in SA. We know that with concerted effort across the health sector, working in partnership with the Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services and other services, we have the potential to improve prevention activities and enhance access to health care services for Aboriginal people.

The Consortium has been set up to improve services and care for heart disease and stroke, cancer and diabetes and is being guided by:

• the South Australian Aboriginal Heart and Stroke Plan 2017-2021,
• the South Australian Aboriginal Diabetes Strategy 2017-2021, and
• the South Australian Aboriginal Cancer Control Plan 2016-2021.

These three plans, finalised in June 2016. Their development was funded by SA Health and included an extensive review of the evidence including available health system data, consultation and engagement with service providers and community members, consideration of current services and recommendations to improve service provision.

The South Australian Aboriginal Health Partnership (SAAHP) supported the translation of these three plans into action at a high level through the establishment of the SA Aboriginal Chronic Disease Consortium in early 2017. SAAHP is an executive level, cross-sector committee which brings together the State and Commonwealth Governments and the Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Sector to improve Aboriginal health and wellbeing outcomes in South Australia.

The South Australian Aboriginal Chronic Disease Consortium (the Consortium) sits within the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) accredited SA Academic Health Science and Translation Centre and while it is a virtual Centre the Consortium Coordinating Centre is located at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute.

There are a range of reasons why setting up the SA Aboriginal Chronic Disease Consortium is a valuable strategic approach to enable the implementation of the three plans.

These include:

• An integrated approach can improve outcomes that resonate with all the conditions.
• A focused effort can link a wide range of providers across the continuum of care and reduce duplication.
• Health system improvements can benefit people that have all of these conditions.
• A joined up approach resonates and aligns with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people worldviews and definition of health being a holistic view where physical, spiritual and environment are interconnected and not segmented into body parts.
• Community members carry a high burden of comorbidities with many families dealing with heart, stroke, diabetes, chronic kidney disease and cancer.
• These conditions have common behavioural factors including smoking, low intake of fruit and vegetables, being overweight, lack of exercise and unhealthy levels of alcohol or drug use.
• All of these chronic diseases are largely preventable especially when we consider the impact of the social determinants of heath including poverty, income, housing and education.

Our Vision

To reduce the impact of chronic disease experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in South Australia through the delivery of collaborative, appropriate, well-coordinated and evidence based strategies.

The Consortium will work in close partnerships with both Aboriginal community leaders and health leaders who share our vision. Partnerships is the only way we can achieve a ‘Healthier future together’ and achieve health equity for Aboriginal communities across South Australia.

Our Goal

To drive, coordinate and sustain the implementation of the South Australian Aboriginal Heart and Stroke Plan 2017-2021, the South Australian Aboriginal Diabetes Strategy 2017-2021 and the South Australian Aboriginal Cancer Control Plan 2016-2021. The implementation will address priorities specific to each plan, as well as priorities that span across the three plans.