Oral Presentation Lowitja Institute International Indigenous Health and Wellbeing Conference 2016

An integrated modelĀ of child and family services as a core part of comprehensive primary health care (#101)

Donna Ms Ah Chee 1
  1. Central Australian Aboriginal Congress Aboriginal Corporation, Alice Springs, NT, Australia

Since the Central Australian Aboriginal Congress began in 1973 the infant mortality rate for Aboriginal children in Alice Springs has declined from more than 120 deaths per 1000 live births to around 10. This partly reflects the success of Congress and the hospital system in improving maternal and child health over the years. The challenge has moved to promoting healthy development of children so that each child has the opportunities needed to develop their full potential and be able to live the rich, cultural life that they have reason to value. Aboriginal community controlled primary health care services have a special relationship with families in pregnancy and in the early years up to Pre-school. We see these children and their families many times each year and are a trusted source of support, information and care. We have a responsibility to make sure we are providing the best possible services and program to families and children in these critical years. This paper will describe a holistic integrated model for child and family services from within an Aboriginal community controlled health service. Services and programs will be classified in accordance to whether they are primary or secondary prevention, primarily targeting the parents or the child and finally whether they are centre based or outreach. Using this typology we will outline a comprehensive range of services and programs including the Nurse Family Partnership Program and Abecedarian Educational Day care.