- NACCHO members vote in new Constitution
- Sleep program aims to boost mental health of Indigenous kids
- Hoops 4 Health: A new way forward for youth justice in the Northern Territory
- Victorian Aboriginal-led disaster recovery given additional support under latest grants
- National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Measures Survey
- Sector Jobs
- Events and training
The NACCHO Sector News is a platform we use to showcase the important work being done in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, focusing on the work of NACCHO, NACCHO members and NACCHO affiliates.
We also share a curated selection of news stories that are of likely interest to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, broadly.
NACCHO members vote in new Constitution
Members of the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO) have voted in favour of adopting a new constitution at a meeting held yesterday in Adelaide on Kaurna Country.
The members overwhelmingly endorsed the new model with a vote of 80.3%.
NACCHO Chair Donnella Mills highlighted the significance of this outcome, saying:
“Today’s vote reflects the strength and unity of our membership and our commitment to community control. We appreciate everyone who contributed to the consultations and voting process. A constitution should be dynamic, but most importantly, I am pleased that we now have a modern constitution that will equip us to meet current challenges more effectively.”
Read the full article here.
NACCHO members have voted in favour of adopting a new constitution.
Sleep program aims to boost mental health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander kids
A five-year national project is aiming to improve the mental health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander children through better sleep habits.
Led by the University of the Sunshine Coast, the initiative will be co-designed with Elders and delivered across 18 rural and remote communities in Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory.
Kalkadoon Elder Aunty Joan Marshall OAM said proper sleep was essential for cultural and emotional wellbeing. “If our kids don’t get proper sleep, then they are walking on thin air; it turns them into zombies because it messes up with their heads,” Aunty Joan said. “We need to start early to help our children develop good sleep habits, so they don’t end up with mental health problems or be at risk of self-harm.”
The program is being led by University of the Sunshine Coast sleep scientist Professor Fatima Yaqoot, who has received a $5 million Childhood Mental Health Research Plan
Read the full article here.
A new program is linking better sleep to the improved mental health of Indigenous children.
Hoops 4 Health: A new way forward for youth justice in the Northern Territory
Ellen Thomas, Principal Research Investigator and Social Work Lecturer at Charles Darwin University (CDU), shares her findings with National Indigenous Times. She highlights the need for basic brain education to cultivate empathy, shifting from blaming “bad” kids to understanding their support needs due to hardship. This is critical in the NT, where Aboriginal youth are disproportionately in the justice system due to intergenerational trauma and systemic issues. Ineffective punitive measures require community-led, culturally grounded healing approaches.
CDU’s partnership with Hoops 4 Health uses the Gnama methodology, integrating Western and Aboriginal knowledge through deep listening. Their research, involving interviews with locals connected to Hoops 4 Health, aims to evaluate impact and amplify community voices driving change.
Read the full article here.
NT Parliament House. Image: KGBO / Human Rights Law Centre.
Victorian Aboriginal-led disaster recovery given additional support under latest grants
The Victorian government has announced more support for Aboriginal communities and Traditional Owner groups who suffered in the October 2022 floods.
Flooding across the state displaced thousands of residents and destroyed hundreds of homes, with damage estimated at over $400 million.
On Wednesday, the state government announced ten Aboriginal organisations had been granted up to $160,000 under the second round of the Aboriginal Culture and Healing Flood Recovery Grant Program.
In partnership between Emergency Recovery Victoria (ERV) and the Federation of Victorian Traditional Owner Corporations (Federation), the projects will support psychological and wellbeing needs for people impacted by the floods, mapping and restoring damaged Country, and workshops and cultural storytelling to help people reconnect with Country.
The program seeks to recognise the disproportionate impact natural disasters have on First Nations communities, as well as the vital role they play in leading recovery efforts.
Read the full article here.
The Victorian government has announced more support for Aboriginal communities and Traditional Owner groups who suffered in the October 2022 floods. (Image: Reuters)
National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Measures Survey
The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Measures Survey (NATSIHMS) 2022–24 was conducted from August 2022 to April 2024. The survey measured specific biomarkers of chronic disease and nutrition in urine and/or blood samples that were voluntarily provided by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander participants aged 5 years and over across Australia, including very remote areas and discrete Indigenous communities. People who usually lived in non-private dwellings, including hospitals and nursing homes, were not in scope of the survey.
Access the full survey here.
Sector Jobs – you can see sector job listings on the NACCHO website here.
Advertising Jobs – to advertise a job vacancy click here to go to the NACCHO website current job listings webpage. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find a Post A Job form. You can complete this form with your job vacancy details – it will then be approved for posting and go live on the NACCHO website.
