5.Effective and safe communication with
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consumers

The National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards require health serviceorganisations to provide consumers with appropriate information about their health care needs. Partnering withAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consumers inthedevelopment of these information materials will ensurethey are tailored for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanderconsumers.

In Australia, about 60% of adults do not have the level of healthliteracy needed to understand and follow health messages, or make choices based on understanding their health issue. This problem is exacerbated for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people when:

  • English is not their first language
  • cultural bias is evident in a health service organisation
  • partnering with the consumer, family or carers is limited
  • clinicians are time-poor.

This should be considered when designing information materials for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consumers toensure that they are appropriate and understandable.

There is considerable evidence that partnering withconsumers about their care is associated with betterhealthoutcomes, higher levels of acceptance ofrecommended prevention and treatment plans, a morepositive consumer experience of care, and better consumersafety.1

For many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, healthisa matter of the wellbeing of the community and extended family, which is as important, if not more so, than thewellbeing of the individual.2 Therefore, effective clinical communication should involve partnerships and ongoing communication with consumers and their families and carers.

Key tasks

The health service organisation should:

  • provide information about health/disease processes and health care that is tailored to the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consumers and their communities
  • support clinicians to identify consumers who have limitedcapacity to make decisions about their own care
  • support clinicians to work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consumers and carers to plan, communicate, set treatment goals and make decisions about their care.

Suggested strategies

Health service organisations can ensure effective communication by:

  • involving consumers in the development of resources, including information about treatment and options, risks andbenefits, the care plan and discharge arrangements covering medication and self-care management, and followingup with health professionals and other support networks
  • developing or adapting decisionsupport tools to assist in communication with consumers
  • involving, as required, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health practitioners, liaison officers and interpreters in conversations with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consumers about care
  • engaging consumers, families and carers in decision making
  • routinely evaluating consumers’ experiences to identify lessons learned and potential improvements.

Below are links to some useful examples of communication strategies to improve crosscultural communication. These should be considered when communicating with Aboriginal andTorres Strait Islander consumers. It is important to ensure that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consumers can be fully informed about their health, and make decisions about their care.

Queensland Health

communicating.pdf

care_guideline.pdf

NSW DoCS

documents/working_with_aboriginal.pdf

Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet

resources/practice-resources/guidelines

Examples of evidence that the NSQHS Standards are being implemented:

  • copies of resources tailored to the needs of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people
  • program of communication training of clinicians
  • shared decisionmaking tools available to clinicians
  • information on collaboration with Aboriginal or Torres StraitIslander people on the development or review of information resources
  • existence of implementation policies, procedures and protocols for engaging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consumers and their families in their care.

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This resource has been developed with the support of the National Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander Health Standing Committee (NATSIHSC)

October 2016