Current estimates from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show the life expectancy of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians remains approximately 7-8 years lower than for the non-Indigenous population.
March 16 is National Close the Gap Day; the day used to reflect on—and bring attention to—the problem of low life expectancy among indigenous groups. The main objective of the day is not only to raise awareness of this issue but to help work towards finding ways to reduce and ultimately close the gap.
Griffith prides itself on having the largest First Peoples student population of any university in Queensland and actively promotes resources and services for First Nations students. The First Peoples Health Unit is influencing the future health and wellbeing outcomes, and closing the gap, for Indigenous people in two ways:
- Implementation of the Griffith Health First Peoples Health Plan
- developing the Yuwahn Wupin, an e-learning initiative around the provision of culturally safe health services to First Peoples.
For more on this subject, check out some of Griffith’s open access research:
- Building bridges to implement successful life promotion and suicide prevention expertise across Aboriginal communities: Evaluation Report
- Bronchiectasis among Australian Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal patients in the regional and remote population of the Northern Territory of Australia
- Challenges in identifying indigenous peoples in population oral health surveys: a commentary
- Cancer survival for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians: a national study of survival rates and excess mortality
- Review of respiratory disease among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.
Find more research on Indigenous health on Griffith Research Online.
