Decolonising primary health care practice: a definition and its importance

Tamara J. Mackean; Kim O'Donnell; Juanita Sherwood; Shane D'Angelo; Madison Shakespeare; Cleone Wellington; Toby Freeman; Anna M. Ziersch; Matt Fisher; Deborah A. Askew; Judith M. Dwyer; Annette J. Browne; Fran Baum AO

doi:10.5694/mja2.52683

Decolonising primary health care practice: a definition and its importance

Tamara J. Mackean, Kim O'Donnell, Juanita Sherwood, Shane D'Angelo, Madison Shakespeare, Cleone Wellington, Toby Freeman, Anna M. Ziersch, Matt Fisher, Deborah A. Askew, Judith M. Dwyer, Annette J. Browne, Fran Baum AO

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

Abstract

Decolonising primary health care (PHC) is essential to improving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ health and wellbeing. Having a definition of decolonising PHC provides a valuable resource for creating and maintaining culturally safe practices within health policy and health services. We developed such a definition through collaboration between Aboriginal researchers, non-Indigenous researchers, PHC services, health professionals and sector stakeholders. Our definition provides a robust basis for (re)building trust with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through explicit acknowledgement of colonising harms and explicit ways in which these harms can be mitigated.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	9-12
Number of pages	4
Journal	Medical Journal of Australia
Volume	223
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.5694/mja2.52683
Publication status	Published - 7 Jul 2025
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Community health services
Delivery of healthcare
Health services
Indigenous health
Primary health care
Social determinants of health

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10.5694/mja2.52683Licence: CC BY

Full textFinal published version, 265 KBLicence: CC BY

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AU - Wellington, Cleone

AU - Freeman, Toby

AU - Ziersch, Anna M.

AU - Fisher, Matt

AU - Askew, Deborah A.

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Decolonising primary health care practice: a definition and its importance

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Keywords

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