After attending a Cultural Awareness and Appreciation Workshop in early 2021, Jos was left feeling invigorated – eager to put her learnings into practice and share the knowledge she gained with her colleagues.
Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) Manager Mental Health Far North Jos Middleton has worked in the mental health field for 20+ years and is passionate about providing culturally appropriate mental health services to rural and remote Indigenous communities.
Jos and her team deliver psychological therapies across Cape York communities to those presenting with mild to moderate mental health needs.
The informative, interactive, and culturally safe workshop she attended was fully funded by Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN) and delivered by local Indigenous Cultural Facilitator Nerelle Nicol.
Nerelle said the workshop is intended to encourage participants to set out on a journey of learning by offering participants a safe and engaging environment to have open conversations and share their experiences.
“The mainstream primary care and allied health service providers who attend the workshop gain greater insight into the issues that contribute to the health disparities of First Nations Peoples,” said Nerelle.
“Participants learn new ideas for improving engagement and communication that help build trusting relationships to assist in addressing health needs in a culturally safe and appropriate way.
“The aim of the workshop is to build capacity and support the service providers to develop and deliver culturally appropriate services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in our region.”
Jos said the Cultural Awareness and Appreciation Workshop was one of the most powerful, overwhelming, and educational cultural training days she has attended.
“It was great to have local Indigenous facilitators bring local knowledge and culture to the day to assist with relevance,” said Jos.
“The workshop facilitated by Nerelle reinforced a lot of existing knowledge I had previously learnt about working with Indigenous clients.
“The training highlighted how everything is interconnected and the importance of addressing the social determinants of health.
“I strongly believe that the most important thing in a person’s life is their mental wellbeing – and the way we engage with others to ensure they feel safe is fundamental.”
Jos described the workshop as exceptional and believes it should be mandatory for anyone working with Indigenous clients to ensure they receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time.
Following this workshop, the RFDS Mental Health Team partnered with headspace Cairns to arrange a Cultural Awareness and Appreciation Workshop for 25 staff members from both services to attend.
“I have told so many people about this training as I think everyone should have to attend,” said Jos.
“I’m confident everyone who attends will be able to take something away from it.
“I’ve already started putting my learnings into place to reduce stigma around mental health care in Indigenous clients and increase awareness so, hopefully, people ask for help sooner rather than later.”