After years of widening health gaps, a remote Gulf community has taken control of its own health care in an Australian-first move designed to improve lives and stem mounting youth suicides.
Data released by Mornington Island Council shows nearly 40 per cent of the 1,200 residents in the Gulf of Carpentaria community of Mornington Island are living with one or more chronic diseases.
Mornington Island is located off the coast of the Gulf of Carpentaria, and is only accessible via plane or ferry. (ABC Northwest: Antoinette Raffau)
With more than 80 per cent of the population being Indigenous, the data also reveals the community's death rate remains significantly higher than the rest of Queensland, at more than 40 per cent.
In a push to buck the trend, community advocacy group the Ngarnal Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service took over primary healthcare delivery on the Island last month, with clinical care to be delivered through the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS).
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Ngarnal Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service opened its doors in July. (Supplied: Ngarnal Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service)
Ngarnal chair Susan Sewter said, in previous decades, health care on the island, more than 1,860 kilometres north-west of Brisbane, had consistently failed residents.
"We need to be able to be in control of our health,"
Ms Sewter said.
"We've got to be healthy to be able to participate in education, employment and training in the community in general.
"We've relied on everyone else up until now. It's time for us to step up and make this work for us."
The delivery model, split between the two organisations, will be the first of its kind in Australia.
Ms Sewter said previous providers relied on locums and offered limited services, meaning residents were less willing to seek health care.
She said the new system promised permanent, long-term staff on the island.
A rotating team of RFDS doctors and nurses provide healthcare, with the Ngarnal Community Clinic team. (Supplied: Yvonne Doveren)
"One of the major things that we looked at is we needed to have consistency in the medical service," Ms Sewter said.
"That means the same doctors, the same nurses so our community can build a relationship with a medical team."
The model would see RFDS deliver clinical care on the island for the next two years, when the parties could renegotiate.
'Unique' model has replication potential
RFDS Primary Healthcare Medical Lead Yvonne Doveren said staff would work on rotating five-day rosters to ensure one doctor, two nurses and an Aboriginal health practitioner were on the island each week.
"It's unique in that we have this partnership with an Aboriginal community-controlled health service," Dr Doveren said.
Yvonne Doveren says rotating staff will fly into Mornington Island ensuring consistent care each week. (ABC News: Abbey Halter)
"The people of Mornington Island are slowly coming into the clinic, and we are still building connections … which is, of course, always the most important part of primary health care.
"We hope that with this new clinic, we can welcome the people of Mornington Island, share a cup of tea while they wait to see the doctors and the nurses, and basically provide really solid, good primary health care."
Dr Doveren said this style of health care was critical for remote parts of the state.
Yvonne Doveren says the collaboration aims to improve the overall wellbeing of residents. (ABC News: Abbey Halter)
"We provide primary health care in a lot of Queensland health facilities but, in this case, it's a new model of care," she said.
"I think it's a model that could be applied in lots of areas in Queensland."
Community-led importance
University of Queensland senior research fellow at the Poche Centre for Indigenous Health, and a Narungga and Ngarrindjeri man, Stephen Harfield said community-led care provided better health outcomes for mob.
"We know that culture is really central to that component of delivering care," Dr Harfield said.
Stephen Harfield says community led care in remote Aboriginal regions can improve health outcomes. (Supplied: Dr Stephen Harfield)
"Being able to receive care from your local community, from people who know your community and understand the impacts of living in such a remote community and understand the broader context in terms of health and wellbeing needs."
He said the walk-in aspect of the clinic, allowing accessible care for the community, could positively impact how residents engaged with their health and wellbeing.
"If this partnership between RFDS and Ngarnal is successful, then I think there's definitely benefit for other, particularly remote, communities," Dr Harfield said.
"Local, community controlled health services understand their communities better than anyone else."
