Culturally Appropriate Support
Indigenous Australians: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people:
MSMW acknowledges that the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people are the original custodians of the land on which we work and live. We recognise and respect their continuing connection to land, water, and community, and we pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.
Statistics demonstrate that Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islanders have higher disability rates than non-Indigenous people, across all ages. Children under the age of 14 are more than twice as likely to have a disability, and Indigenous people in the ages 35-54 years are 2.7 times more likely to have a disability than their non-Indigenous counterparts. These numbers reflect the greater need for culturally appropriate support for Indigenous Australians and the urgency of addressing the multiple barriers that prevent them from meaningful participation in the wider community.
Our Approach:
- Training staff to be culturally aware with respect to diverse population groups, particularly Indigenous people.
- Recognising the complex social health challenges and disadvantages experienced by Aboriginal people, to better provide Aboriginal disability support.
- Delivering our services through collaborations with Aboriginal communities and organisations.
- Consulting Indigenous people with a disability in the decision-making process of our support plans.
- Promoting the least intrusive and early effective support to maximise the quality of life and reduce secondary impacts.
As your top disability support provider, we acknowledge that one size does not fit all. The needs of every individual vary and must be culturally aligned for the best outcome. With Australia being one of the most ethnically diverse societies globally (with more than 25% Australians born overseas, and about 15% born in non-English speaking countries), we fully incorporate support for culturally and linguistically diverse groups. We take pride in being culturally appropriate disability service providers and continue to train all our staff for the same.
As an organisation, we promote fairness in the recruitment process, and hire workforce based on their capacity and compassion. We owe our flourishing success to our diverse workforce. After all, we are all more alike than we are different.
