#indigenous health and wellbeing | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

mahinee · 1 month

Text

Nurturing the Heart: Understanding the Social and Emotional Well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities

Welcome to my Blog series on PSYCHOLOGY, WELL-BEING, AND RESILIENCE Where I will highlight 5 interesting topics. Read to explore!

In the rich tapestry of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, the essence of well-being lies in the social and emotional interconnectedness. As highlighted by the Commonwealth of Australia in 2017, this delicate balance serves as the cornerstone upon which both physical and mental health are built.

It's important to recognize that the concept of social and emotional well-being transcends individual experiences, encompassing a web of relationships that extend from the individual to the family and community. As noted by Brown et al. (2023), the nuances of well-being vary across Indigenous communities, shaped by diverse cultural perspectives and historical contexts. The notion of social and emotional well-being acknowledges that a person's well-being is also impacted by the social determinants of health. Indigenous Australians define health as the "social, emotional, and cultural well-being of the whole community" in addition to an individual's physical well-being (Fatima et al., 2023, p.31). This definition is based on a person's relationships to their country, culture, family, spirit, and physical and mental health.

Additionally, the National Agreement acknowledges that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures are essential to better life outcomes for Indigenous Australians. All initiatives carried out by the Agreement must uphold, protect, and enhance these cultures. The following goals have been specifically set by the agreement to promote the cultural wellness of Indigenous Australians as shown in Figure 1 below (indigenoushpf.gov.au, 2024).

Figure 1: Targets to support cultural well-being

(Source: indigenoushpf.gov.au, 2024)

This particular group is marked with suicides and attempts to death based on different stress in life and stress factors. In the words of Smallwood et al., (2023, p.2088), the Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders had been facing severe issues over time in search of good living and livelihood. Owing to this there had been intervention which was developed for the betterment of indigenous people living in Australia. Figure 2 below shows the rate of suicide attempts which had been caused by the people of this indigenous group (indigenoushpf.gov.au, 2024). Thus, the intervention of the Mental Health Agreement was formulated to secure sustainability and improve the services provided by the Australian mental health and suicide prevention system. It also aimed to improve the mental health of all Australians and governments have come together to establish the Mental Health Agreement (Masotti et al., 2023, p.741).

Figure 2: Suicide attempts by Aboriginals

(Source: indigenoushpf.gov.au, 2024)

In addition to responding to the Productivity Commission Inquiry into Mental Health, the National Suicide Prevention Adviser's Final Advice, the Mental Health Agreement pledges to carry out work under the Fifth Plan going forward (indigenoushpf.gov.au, 2024). Regional planning and commissioning, priority populations, stigma reduction, safety and quality, gaps in the system of care and suicide prevention are the main areas of attention. On the other hand, psycho-social supports outside the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), workforce, and national consistency for initial assessment and referral are among the priority areas covered by the Mental Health Agreement.

References

Brown, A., Haregu, T., Gee, G., Mensah, F., Waters, L., Brown, S. J., ... & Armstrong, G. (2023). Social and emotional well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Aboriginal-controlled social housing. BMC public health, 23(1), 1935. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12889-023-16817-y

Fatima, Y., Liu, Y., Cleary, A., Dean, J., Smith, V., King, S., & Solomon, S. (2023). Connecting the health of country with the health of people: application of" caring for country" in improving the social and emotional well-being of Indigenous people in Australia and New Zealand. The Lancet Regional Health–Western Pacific, 31. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanwpc/article/PIIS2666-6065(22)00263-2/fulltext

indigenoushpf.gov.au (2024) Social and emotional wellbeing Retrived on 9 May 2024 from: https://www.indigenoushpf.gov.au/measures/1-18-social-emotional-wellbeing

Masotti, P., Dennem, J., Bañuelos, K., Seneca, C., Valerio-Leonce, G., Inong, C. T., & King, J. (2023). The Culture is Prevention Project: measuring cultural connectedness and providing evidence that culture is a social determinant of health for Native Americans. BMC Public Health, 23(1), 741. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12889-023-15587-x

Smallwood, R., Usher, K., Woods, C., Sampson, N., & Jackson, D. (2023). De‐problematising Aboriginal young peoples’ health and well‐being through their voice: An Indigenous scoping review. Journal of clinical nursing, 32(9-10), 2086-2101. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/jocn.16308

#psychology #wellbeing and resilience #aboriginal australian #indigenous issues #first nations #indigenous rights #indigenous health and wellbeing

7 notes · View notes

indizombie · 2 years

Quote

Tiffany Petre is the director of The Obesity Collective — the peak body for obesity prevention in Australia. She says the health system has spent too long telling people that "if you're fat, it's your fault". Weight stigma, Ms Petre says, can have a greater impact on people with a disability, who for a range of reasons, already find the health system difficult to access and navigate. And when considering higher rates of obesity in regional and remote areas, Indigenous communities and for people trying to make ends meet, she says it's clear there are other factors at play. "Some of the people who would particularly benefit from treatment to help manage obesity and health may be least able to afford weight management support. Of course, we all have a major role to play in our own health and wellbeing, but we have set people up to fail and then blamed them for it ," she says. No matter your size, eating healthy food, managing stress, getting enough sleep and keeping active by doing something you love are key factors for long-term health, she adds.

‘Have you experienced weight stigma? Body shame and blame highlights a problem in our health system’, ABC

#ABC #Tiffany Petre #The Obesity Collective #Australia #obesity prevention #Weight stigma #people with disabilities #health system #rates of obesity #remote areas #Indigenous communities #working poor #obesity #weight management support #health and wellbeing #stress #sleep #healthy food #keeping active

2 notes · View notes

unwhitewashthebadbatch · 2 years

Text

Ways for #UnwhitewashTBB supporters to aid Māori causes:

Petitions

Change official name from New Zealand to Aotearoa

Remove British Royal Family as Head of State in Aotearoa

Tell Chief Custodial Officer of Corrections Neil Beales #StopCorrectionsCensorship

Fundraising

Māori Indigenous Education Fund

MāoriLanguage.net

PuraPura Whetu, a charitable trust that provides social services to support Māori health and wellbeing

Kākāpō Recovery (Mauri Ora Kākāpō Trust)

Articles

14 Anti-Māori Themes to Watch out for In News and Media

Māori are trying to save their language from Big Tech

#māori #aotearoa #new zealand #unwhitewashtbb

805 notes · View notes

historysideblog · 1 year

Text

Online History Short-Courses offered by Universities Masterpost

Categories: Classical Studies, Egyptology, Medieval, Renaissance, The Americas, Asia, Other, Linguistics, Archaeology

How to get Coursera courses for free: There are several types of courses on Coursera, some will allow you to study the full course and only charge for the optional-certificate, for others you will need to audit it and you may have limited access (usually just to assignments), and thirdly some courses charge a monthly subscription in this case a 7 day free trial is available.

Classical Studies 🏛️🏺

At the Origins of the Mediterranean Civilization: Archeology of the City from the Levant to the West 3rd-1st millennium BC - Sapienza University of Rome

Greek and Roman Mythology - University of Pennsylvania

Health and Wellbeing in the Ancient World - Open University

Roman Architecture - Yale

Roman Art and Archeology - University of Arizona

Rome: A Virtual Tour of the Ancient City - University of Reading

The Ancient Greeks - Wesleyan University

The Changing Landscape of Ancient Rome. Archeology and History of Palatine Hill - Sapienza University of Rome

Uncovering Roman Britain in Old Museum Collections - University of Reading

Egyptology 𓂀⚱️

Egypt before and after pharaohs - Sapienza University of Rome

Introduction to Ancient Egypt and Its Civilization - University of Pennsylvania

Wonders of Ancient Egypt - University of Pennsylvania

Medieval 🗡️🏰

Age of Cathedrals - Yale

Coexistence in Medieval Spain: Jews, Christians, and Muslims - University of Colorado

Deciphering Secrets: The Illuminated Manuscripts of Medieval Europe - University of Colorado

Enlightening the Dark Ages: Early Medieval Archaeology in Italy - University of Padova

Lancaster Castle and Northern English History: The View from the Stronghold - Lancaster University

Magic in the Middle Ages - University of Barcelona

Old Norse Mythology in the Sources - University of Colorado Bolder

Preserving Norwegian Stave Churches - Norwegian University of Science and Technology

The Book of Kells: Exploring an Irish Medieval Masterpiece - Trinity College Dublin

The Cosmopolitan Medival Arabic World - University of Leiden

Renaissance ⚜️🃏

Black Tudors: The Untold Story

European Empires: An Introduction, 1400–1522 - University of Newcastle

The Mediterranean, a Space of Exchange (from Renaissance to Enlightenment) - University of Barcelona

The Life and Afterlife of Mary Queen of Scots - University of Glasgow

The Tudors - University of Roehampton London

The Americas 🪶🦙🛖

History of Slavery in the British Caribbean - University of Glasgow

Indigeneity as a Global Concept - University of Newcastle

Indigenous Canada - University of Alberta

Indigenous Religions & Ecology - Yale

Asia 🏯🛕

Contemporary India - University of Melbourne

Introduction to Korean Philosophy - Sung Kyun Kwan University

Japanese Culture Through Rare Books - University of Keio

Sino-Japanese Interactions Through Rare Books - University of Keio

The History and Culture of Chinese Silk - University for the Creative Arts

Travelling Books: History in Europe and Japan - University of Keio

Other

A Global History of Sex and Gender: Bodies and Power in the Modern World - University of Glasgow

A History of Royal Fashion - University of Glasgow

Anarchy in the UK: A History of Punk from 1976-78 - University of Reading

Biodiversity, Guardianship, and the Natural History of New Zealand: A Museum Perspective - Te Papa

Empire: the Controversies of British Imperialism - University of Exeter

Great South Land: Introducing Australian History - University of Newcastle

Indigeneity as a Global Concept - University of Newcastle

New Zealand History, Culture and Conflict: A Museum Perspective - Te Papa

Organising an Empire: The Assyrian Way - LMU Munich

Plagues, Witches, and War: The Worlds of Historical Fiction - University of Virginia

Russian History: from Lenin to Putin - University of California Santa Cruz

Linguistics 🗣️

Introduction to Comparative Indo-European Linguistics - University of Leiden - Coursera version

Miracles of Human Language: An Introduction to Linguistics - University of Leiden

Archeology 💀

Archeoastronomy - University of Milan

Archaeology and the Battle of Dunbar 1650 - Durham University

Archaeology: from Dig to Lab and Beyond - University of Reading

Archeology: Recovering the Humankind's Past and Saving the Universal Heritage - Sapienza University of Rome

Change of Era: The Origins of Christian Culture through the Lens of Archaeology - University of Padova

Endangered Archaeology: Using Remote Sensing to Protect Cultural Heritage - Universities of Durham, Leicester & Oxford

Enlightening the Dark Ages: Early Medieval Archaeology in Italy - University of Padova

Exploring Stone Age Archaeology: The Mysteries of Star Carr - University of York

Forensic Archaeology and Anthropology - Durham University

Roman Art and Archeology - University of Arizona

The Changing Landscape of Ancient Rome. Archeology and History of Palatine Hill - Sapienza University of Rome

167 notes · View notes

grainelevator · 18 days

Note

I’m so so sorry this is going to be a really long rant but !!!! FUCK !!!! I’ve been desperate for this conversation.

We had a dinner guest very confidently say, word for word, that health is a colonial concept. Queue a chorus of tongue to the top-teeth disapproving *clicks* and the sound of my grandmother decisively putting her fork down. The questions started coming with an underlying tone of absolute distain. “What is health?” “Do you mean the healthcare system?” “Do you see an alternative here?” “Do you know why there isn’t one?” “Are you aware we fight tooth and nail for access to this so-called colonial concept and the system that facilitates it?”

Immediately this white girl is shaking in her boots (I don’t blame her, my grandma is 58, capable of lifting a car, and probably of scalping a dinner guest if the need ever arose). But it became so obviously clear over the course of her attempt to explain that what she meant is “native culture is unhealthy, health is a deviation from and erasure of native culture” which is, uhhhh, bullshit. I feel like so many people (liberal and upper class white women in particular) see a facet of colonial society that isn’t equally represented in minority communities and then interpret it as being a colonial invention as opposed to a colonial privilege. The same goes for “settled dwelling is a colonial concept” no it isn’t, lots of us did that for centuries, it just sucks now because a colonial system got dropped on top of the practice. Saying health, housing, parenting, etc are Colonial Concepts is saying outright that you cannot envision indigenous people as presently or historically capable of upholding those ideals in an equal capacity.

Progressive language does not negate the inherent infantilisation or racism of that belief. Furthermore, treating liberation from the material and social suffering of our condition as a deviation from our culture betrays the fact that you understand it exclusively from the perspective of colonial power and abuse. Thus, native culture (and african american culture) becomes, in the eyes of white liberals, synonymous with what was inflicted upon us as opposed to who we are. How dare we aspire towards health when to do so is a betrayal of our culture? Our culture being traumatisation, grief, victimhood, and above all else, a necessary social technology of both white guilt and white liberal saviourship.

Wow. Do NOT apologize for this! You are a great writer and your arguments are excellent.

I’ve been thinking about these connections a lot too. A very strong example of how consumption impacts health (I can’t believe I actually have to say that) and how these health conditions (including how these problems are managed) affect different groups in different ways are food swamps. Food swamps are areas that have little access to nutritious food, caused by factors such as cost and physical availability. In North America, native people and black people are significantly more likely to live in food swamps. These populations are less valued and seen as expendable.

It is well established that consumption of highly-processed food leads to negative health outcomes. However, the people who follow the rhetoric of positions such as “health is a colonial construct” (It’s not - health exists as a spectrum, and the delineation of healthy and unhealthy may be highly variable. This is not the same thing as non-existence) are also the ones who deny the cause and effect nature of health. This misinformation is especially harmful in places with a high population of people who are already marginalized. No one benefits from the insistence that diet does not influence disease…except for the corporations making people sick.

Food companies are not your friends. Pharmaceutical companies are not your friends. Preventative diseases line their pockets. Your wellbeing and that of others needs to come before their profit.

#thank you for this awesome ask!#food industry #colonialism #race #fatphobia #health #analysis

10 notes · View notes

rockislandadultreads · 2 years

Photo

One with Nature: Connecting with the Natural World

Losing Eden: Why Our Minds Need the Wild by Lucy Jones

Today many of us live indoor lives, disconnected from the natural world as never before. And yet nature remains deeply ingrained in our language, culture and consciousness. For centuries, we have acted on an intuitive sense that we need communion with the wild to feel well. Now, in the moment of our great migration away from the rest of nature, more and more scientific evidence is emerging to confirm its place at the heart of our psychological wellbeing. So what happens, asks acclaimed journalist Lucy Jones, as we lose our bond with the natural world--might we also be losing part of ourselves? Delicately observed and rigorously researched, Losing Eden is an enthralling journey through this new research, exploring how and why connecting with the living world can so drastically affect our health. Travelling from forest schools in East London, to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, via Poland's primeval woodlands, Californian laboratories and ecotherapists' couches, Jones takes us to the cutting edge of human biology, neuroscience and psychology, and discovers new ways of understanding our increasingly dysfunctional relationship with the earth. Urgent and uplifting, Losing Eden is a rallying cry for a wilder way of life - for finding asylum in the soil and joy in the trees - which might just help us to save the living planet, as well as ourselves, from a future of ecological grief.

Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer

As a botanist, Robin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she embraces the notion that plants and animals are our oldest teachers. In Braiding Sweetgrass, Kimmerer brings these lenses of knowledge together to show that the awakening of a wider ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgment and celebration of our reciprocal relationship with the rest of the living world. For only when we can hear the languages of other beings are we capable of understanding the generosity of the earth, and learning to give our own gifts in return.

Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest by Suzanne Simard

From the world's leading forest ecologist who forever changed how people view trees and their connections to one another and to other living things in the forest--a moving, deeply personal journey of discovery. Suzanne Simard is a pioneer on the frontier of plant communication and intelligence; she's been compared to Rachel Carson, hailed as a scientist who conveys complex, technical ideas in a way that is dazzling and profound. Her work has influenced filmmakers (the Tree of Souls of James Cameron's Avatar) and her TED talks have been viewed by more than 10 million people worldwide. Now, in her first book, Simard brings us into her world, the intimate world of the trees, in which she brilliantly illuminates the fascinating and vital truths--that trees are not simply the source of timber or pulp, but are a complex, interdependent circle of life; that forests are social, cooperative creatures connected through underground networks by which trees communicate their vitality and vulnerabilities with communal lives not that different from our own.

The Vanishing Face of Gaia: A Final Warning by James E. Lovelock

Celebrities drive hybrids, Al Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize, and supermarkets carry no end of so-called “green” products. And yet the environmental crisis is only getting worse. In The Vanishing Face of Gaia, the eminent scientist James Lovelock argues that the earth is lurching ever closer to a permanent “hot state” – and much more quickly than most specialists think. There is nothing humans can do to reverse the process; the planet is simply too overpopulated to halt its own destruction by greenhouse gases.In order to survive, mankind must start preparing now for life on a radically changed planet. The meliorist approach outlined in the Kyoto Treaty must be abandoned in favor of nuclear energy and aggressive agricultural development on the small areas of earth that will remain arable. A reluctant jeremiad from one of the environmental movement’s elder statesmen, The Vanishing Face of Gaia offers an essential wake-up call for the human race.

216 notes · View notes

submalevolentgrace · 8 months

Text

This latest spike in reported racism and poor mental health exacerbates an already existing concern for Indigenous peoples in Australia. Colonised by the British in 1788, Indigenous peoples from more than 300 diverse nations were initially subject to genocidal massacres and forced land clearances, before punitive assimilation policies were enacted in the 20th century. Known as the Stolen Generations, these policies saw Indigenous children removed from their families and cultural practices to be re-educated with British ideals, often in abusive institutions. Such policies – which only [officially] ended in the 1970s – have led to what Indigenous experts, such as the Healing Foundation, define as intergenerational trauma, leading to poor mental health outcomes exacerbated by daily experiences of racism and underscored by ongoing social inequalities. In 2022, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reported that 42 percent of Indigenous adults surveyed experienced racial discrimination on a daily basis, while more than 30 percent experienced high levels of psychological distress, more than twice the rate of non-Indigenous Australians. Such impacts on health and wellbeing also mean that suicide rates for Indigenous peoples sit well above the national average. In 2020, suicide was the fifth leading cause of death among Indigenous Australians, making up 5.5 percent of all deaths, compared with 1.9 percent for the overall Australian population. Suicide was the leading cause of death for Indigenous children aged 5-17 in that same year.

#auspol #the voice

16 notes · View notes

lifebuoyjournals · 2 years

Text

Australia's environment is greatly deteriorating - this includes native vegetation, soils, coastal areas etc.

Climate change compounds ongoing and past damages from pollution, land clearing etc to affect every ecosystem in Australia

Indigenous knowledge and management has helped to bring about positive changes, but Indigenous communities need to be further empowered

Environmental management isn't well managed - we are increasing land clearing of native habits etc while relying more on costly ways to save biodiversity, such as habitat restoration, translocation/reintroduction and ex-situ conservation (e.g zoos)

Environmental destruction harms our wellbeing

Climate change is affecting ecosystems severely - including 'unprecedented' and severe floods, droughts, heatwaves, storms and fires. These extreme events are detrimental to ecosystems, such as mass die-offs of spectacled flying foxes and coral bleaching

Indigenous voices must be included and nature and culture cannot be managed as separate entities

Better and novel approaches to environmental management is required, as climate stress, habitat loss and habitat degradation continue to affect Australian biodiversity

Individuals, businesses and private entities are increasingly taking action to protect our ecosystems and such efforts can be leveraged upon. Private-government collaborations can be augmented

#aslzoology #asl zoology #zoology articles #studyblr #australia #australian biodiversity #australian wildlife #wildlife #animals #plants #environment #sustainability #cottagecore #zoology #stemblr

59 notes · View notes

duskandherembracex · 7 months

Text

Te Reo Māori vocab list part 2

part 1 here

🖤❤️🤍🖤❤️🤍

Arohanui - much love (used to sign off letters/messages)

Hoki whenua mai - the concept of land back “as land was taken then land should be given back”

Kaitiakitanga - the Māori concept of guardianship and protection, for the sky, the sea, and the land

Mana Motuhake - self determination (the concept of mana motuhake is often seen in indigenous rights movements and has a long political history in AO/NZ)

Mānawatia - to honour, acknowledge and welcome, commonly in the phrase “Mānawatia a Matariki” which welcomes the Māori new year

Papatūānuku - the land, the earth mother

Rangatahi - young people / the younger generation

Taonga - something that is treasured (although it’s translated as treasure in English, not usually of economic value rather something treasured like culture or natural resources)

Taiao - the natural environment

Te Ao Māori - the Māori world (encompasses culture, values, language, spirituality etc)

Wairua - soul/spirit, literally meaning two waters, sometimes used in exchange for mental health/wellbeing (eg. spending time in taiao can have a positive effect on your wairua)

#langblr #Māori langblr

3 notes · View notes

roserumbles · 1 year

Text

Invisible No More: Bringing Attention to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women & Girls in the U.S.

The disappearance and murder of Native American females in the United States is a complex and ongoing issue that has received increased attention in recent years. According to data from the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), Native American women and girls are disproportionately affected by violent crime, including homicide and abduction.

The exact number of missing and murdered Native American women and girls is difficult to determine, as many cases go unreported or are not properly documented. However, a study by the Urban Indian Health Institute found that in 2016, there were 5,712 cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls reported in the United States. Additionally, a report from the National Institute of Justice found that Native American women are 2.5 times more likely to experience sexual assault and rape compared to other women in the United States.

There are several contributing factors to the disappearance of Native American females, including poverty, lack of access to resources, and systemic racism. Many Native American communities are located in remote or rural areas with limited resources and law enforcement presence. This can make it difficult to investigate and solve cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

Additionally, there is a long history of systemic racism and discrimination against Native Americans in the United States, which has led to distrust of law enforcement and government institutions. This can make it difficult for Native American women and girls to come forward and report crimes, and can also result in cases being mishandled or ignored.

Efforts are being made to address the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, including increased funding for law enforcement and victim services, as well as community-led initiatives aimed at raising awareness and preventing violence. However, there is still much work to be done to ensure the safety and wellbeing of Native American females in the United States.

#missinginamerica #silentnomore #missing #indigineouspeople #stop the violence #stop the hate #stand with her #violence against women #violence against children #true crime community #truecrime

9 notes · View notes

unwhitewashthebadbatch · 2 years

Text

#UnwhitewashTBB Awareness Booster

A tweet storm/social media flood is happening June 30th, 2022, at 9 AM EDT. We encourage supporters to post information about #UnwhitewashTBB, but most importantly, we would like to raise awareness about various Māori donations and petitions that need support! Every one of the links posted below can be located on the front page of the carrd. Please boost!

PETITION: AID DECOLONISATION, CHANGE THE NAME OF NEW ZEALAND TO AOTEAROA

PETITION FOR NZ #StopCorrectionsCensorship

Donate to MāoriLanguage.net, a language learning site that hopes to teach people how to speak Māori

DONATE: MĀORI INDIGENOUS EDUCATION FUND

Support PuraPura Whetu, a charitable trust that provides social services to support Māori health and wellbeing Donate to Kākāpō Recovery

Various funding opportunities for Māori organisations

#mod ch #star wars #the bad batch #the clone wars #hunter tbb #wrecker tbb #tech tbb #echo tbb #omega tbb #crosshair tbb #swtbb #tbb #bad batch #hunter bad batch #echo bad batch #wrecker bad batch #maaori #Māori #support

696 notes · View notes

beardedmrbean · 7 months

Text

New Zealand's new government says it plans to scrap the nation's world-leading smoking ban to fund tax cuts.

The legislation, introduced under the previous Jacinda Ardern-led government, would have banned cigarette sales next year to anyone born after 2008.

Smoking is the leading cause of preventable deaths in New Zealand, and the policy had aimed to stop young generations from picking up the habit.

Health experts have strongly criticised the sudden reversal.

"We are appalled and disgusted... this is an incredibly retrograde step on world-leading, absolutely excellent health measures," said Prof Richard Edwards, a tobacco control researcher and public health expert at the University of Otago.

"Most health groups in New Zealand are appalled by what the government's done and are calling on them to backtrack," he told the BBC.

The legislation passed last year had been acclaimed internationally with research models backing the key reforms.

Measures included restricting the number of tobacco retailers, and reducing the level of nicotine in cigarettes.

Modelling had suggested the Smokefree laws could save up to 5,000 lives each year.

New Zealand's laws were believed to have inspired the UK government in September to announce a similar smoking ban for young people. A spokeswoman said Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's position remained unchanged after New Zealand's reversal.

While it has been praised as a public health policy, the Smokefree measures drew opposition from some business groups in New Zealand. Owners of newsagents and corner shops criticised the loss of revenue - even with government subsidies.

Some lawmakers - including the new Prime Minister Chris Luxon - also argued a ban would lead to a black market for tobacco.

However his National party, which won 38% of the vote in the 14 October election, hadn't mentioned the Smokefree laws during election campaigning. The announcement by the new finance minister Nicola Willis on Saturday that the government would repeal the laws shocked health experts who believed the policy would be untouched.

But Ms Willis said National's partners in the governing coalition- the populist New Zealand First and libertarian Act - had been "insistent" on reversing the laws.

Despite election victory, the centre-right National party has struggled for weeks in policy negotiations to form a government with the two minor parties.

A deal was only agreed to on Friday, six weeks after the election, allowing the new government to be sworn in on Monday. New Zealand First - which won 6% of the vote - had been the only party to campaign on repealing the smoking laws.

Both minor parties blocked a flagship National policy to open up foreign property ownership - which the party had been relying on to fund tax cuts for middle and higher-income earners. Ms Willis said on Saturday that had led to the party looking elsewhere.

"We have to remember that the changes to the Smokefree legislation had a significant impact on the government books, with about a billion dollars there," she told New Zealand broadcaster TV3's Newshub Nation.

The laws still need to be actively repealed through parliament, where the government has a majority.

"The suggestion that tax cuts would be paid by people who continue to smoke is absolutely shocking," Emeritus Prof Robert Beaglehole, chair of New Zealand's Action for Smokefree 2025 committee told Pacific Media Network.

A national Māori health organisation, Hāpai Te Hauora, called it an "unconscionable blow to the health and wellbeing of all New Zealanders".

Smoking rates, and associated disease and health issues, are highest among New Zealand's indigenous Māori population, for whom experts had said the policy would have the most positive impact.

"The government is flying in the face of public opinion and obviously in the face of the vast majority of people who work in this field, health professionals, doctors, nurses," said Prof Edwards.

Public health modelling conducted in 2022 had shown the Smokefree policy would have saved New Zealand's health system about NZ$1.3bn (£630m; $790m) over the next 20 years.

New Zealand still aims to reduce its national smoking rate to 5% by 2025, with the aim of eventually eliminating it altogether.

More than 80,000 adults have quit in the past year, its national data shows. Currently, about 8% of its adult population smokes.

#nunyas news

3 notes · View notes

noseblxxd · 1 year

Text

[ in addition to the million other things i'm working on, i did some thinking about the NCR's med corp. there's quite a bit of lore for other branches (ie; first recon, rangers) but there's virtually nothing for the medical division. so here's what i got- ]

[ the design comes from the caduceus used by different medical and humanitarian organizations, but to fit with the aesthetic the NCR flag (two-headed bear) the med corp caduceus has a two-headed rattlesnake.

"tending the flame" is in homage to the Indigenous and tribal peoples throughout the Mojave, and comes from the importance of firekeepers. cross-culturally this role differs from nation to nation, but typically firekeepers are community members who tend to sacred fires, and support and facilitate health, growth, and wellbeing curing ceremony. fire can also be symbolic of protection (ie; fire providing warmth), so it felt like a fitting motto for this particular group. also credit where credit is due, @that-kid-from-vault-101 totally came up with the phrase so ty ty for the help

the official insignia is primarily used for documentation and labeling of spaces and materials (offices and facilities, armour and uniform), while the modified version can be found on beret patches.

on the topic of berets, major branches have specific colours for identification purposes (green for generals, red for first recon, etc.) so i'm headcanon-ing that medical staff wear navy blue.

last bit of lore has to do with the roles and responsibilities of the medical branch. when the Followers of the Apocalypse cut ties with the NCR, med corp stepped in to fill the gap and are the primary humanitarian branch of the Republic. while this is a good faith effort, compared to other divisions, med corp is relatively small and stretched extremely thin. having to juggle aiding NCR military personnel and civilians with limited resources is going as well as it could under those conditions.

#x; ooc #x; headcanon #x; You & What Army [Fallout: New Vegas]#[another project off my list #now I have to put together the med office haha]

12 notes · View notes

allthebrazilianpolitics · 2 years

Text

Indigenous health in Brazil: from vulnerable to protagonists

Indigenous peoples usually have worse social and health conditions than their non-Indigenous counterparts. The worse health of Indigenous populations stems from the processes of colonisation that caused ruptures in traditional ways of life, loss of territories, environmental degradation, racial discrimination, and socioeconomic and political marginalisation. Migration and urbanisation result in housing instability and affect the wellbeing and health of Indigenous populations through weakening social cohesion and networks, loss of identity, and spiritual and emotional bonds.

In Brazil, slavery, genocide, and violence perpetrated during colonial history, as well as successive epidemics, contributed to a substantial reduction in the population of the country's Indigenous peoples. As of July 1, 2010, Indigenous peoples comprised only 0·4% of the national population, although they exhibit significant diversity, with 305 ethnicities with 274 languages. Indigenous lands officially recognised by the Brazilian Government comprise approximately 13% of the national territory. In 1990, the Brazilian Unified Health System implemented an Indigenous Health Care Subsystem to provide culturally sensitive access to health care, mainly to those living in villages.

Despite this initiative, substantial health inequities are still enhanced by the intersection with the effects of environmental degradation and territorial conflicts that have worsened in the past 6 years. The health profile among Indigenous peoples in Brazil reflects a polarised health transition with the coexistence of high mortality; increased rates of malnutrition, pneumonia, and hospitalisations for preventable causes; and a gradual increase in chronic non-communicable diseases.

#brazil #politics #environmental justice #indigenous #brazilian politics #healthcare #mod nise da silveira #image description in alt

14 notes · View notes

robinpronto · 1 year

Photo

"When we follow our traditional diets, we’re healthier people. Our immune systems can stand up to the seasons. One hundred years ago, diabetes and heart disease were nonexistent in our communities . . . Preventable diseases rise when we don’t have access to traditional foods” (as quoted in Hoover, 2019, p. 64). Somehow I don't think this only applies to indigenous peoples... Excerpt and figures from "Kincentricity and Indigenous Wellbeing Food(ways) and/as Holistic Health in the Native Medicine Wheel," by Rachel Presley as published in Rhetoric of Health and Medicine, Vol. 4, No. 2, pp. 126–157, DOI: 10.5744/rhm.2021.2002. #health #food #foods #diet #traditional #traditionalfood #kincentric #wholefood #seasonal #seasonalfood #foodsystems #foodsupply #medicine #medicinewheel #foodasmedicine #colonial #colonialism #decolonize #decolonizeyourmind #decolonizeyourdiet #beinghuman #humanfood #foodforhumans https://www.instagram.com/p/CqZEAwjPSsx/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

7 notes · View notes

submalevolentgrace · 2 years

Text

"It’s that hard-won safety Smith feels is now at risk, as Australians prepare to vote on an Indigenous voice to parliament. Already divisions within the parliament are showing and there are growing concerns the referendum could stir up racist vitriol, triggering trauma for vulnerable Indigenous people, similar to the homophobic ugliness during the same sex marriage plebiscite.

“I think for Aboriginal people it is going to be 10 times worse, just given the history of colonisation or continual colonisation in this country,” Smith says.

“We should be getting ahead of this and starting now by identifying the risks associated with the campaign coming up for our mental health and wellbeing.”

Professor of Indigenous Studies at Macquarie University, Sandy O’Sullivan, says the 2017 marriage equality plebiscite offers some ugly lessons for the nation’s future referendum.

“It split up families, it affected people in their workplaces. There was this absolutely toxic, nasty rhetoric that we could easily see happen in exactly the same way,” the Wiradjuri person says.

They say for queer First Nations people, who have already been part of a national debate with painful homophobic and hate speech, disagreements and harmful comments take a big toll."

#auspol

14 notes · View notes