"I don’t think it’s on anyone’s radar" : the workforce and system barriers to healthcare for Indigenous women following a traumatic brain injury acquired through violence in remote Australia

Michelle S. Fitts, Jennifer Cullen, Gail Kingston, Elaine Wills, Karen Soldatic

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

9 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women experience high rates of traumatic brain injury (TBI) as a result of violence. While healthcare access is critical for women who have experienced a TBI as it can support pre-screening, comprehensive diagnostic assessment, and referral pathways, little is known about the barriers for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women in remote areas to access healthcare. To address this gap, this study focuses on the workforce barriers in one remote region in Australia. Semi-structured interviews and focus groups were conducted with 38 professionals from various sectors including health, crisis accommodation and support, disability, family violence, and legal services. Interviews and focus groups were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim and were analysed using thematic analysis. The results highlighted various workforce barriers that affected pre-screening and diagnostic assessment including limited access to specialist neuropsychology services and stable remote primary healthcare professionals with remote expertise. There were also low levels of TBI training and knowledge among community-based professionals. The addition of pre-screening questions together with professional training on TBI may improve how remote service systems respond to women with potential TBI. Further research to understand the perspectives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women living with TBI is needed.
Original languageEnglish
Article number14744
Number of pages13
JournalInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Volume19
Issue number22
Publication statusPublished - 2022

Open Access - Access Right Statement

© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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