AN Orange Aboriginal health spokesman is hoping funding will come through for a centre to help the Aboriginal community break away from negative national trends.
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The federal government’s recently-released Closing the Gap Report on Aboriginal social trends found across Australia, adult imprisonment rates had worsened, self-harm hospitalisations had increased, literacy and numeracy had not improved and there was little change in domestic and community violence.
Orange Aboriginal Medical Service chief executive Jamie Newman said the same issues continued to apply in Orange, but so did positive trends highlighted in the report, including improvements in child mortality rates and the gap in life expectancy between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people.
Mr Newman said a community approach with a focus on antenatal and postnatal treatment for mothers and babies at the Orange Aboriginal Medical Service and follow-up dental care had contributed to the improvements locally.
He said a similar community approach through an Aboriginal Men’s Healing and Wellness Centre would help overcome the other social issues, if funding was approved.
Mr Newman said, with four jails nearby at Lithgow, Bathurst, Oberon and Wellington, men often came to Orange after release and if the centre was in place, it could give support and help them reintegrate into the community.
He said many of the problems were due to men who felt they had lost their identity, were unemployed or had family disorder.
“Rather than men leaving the house to get drunk and have affairs, they could go to the Men’s Healing and Wellness Centre,” Mr Newman said.
He said programs would also be rolled out for literacy and numeracy, including services for youth who left school early.
There would also be a provision for emergency accommodation, which he said could help prevent domestic violence by giving men a safe, quiet place to stay while they worked through their problems before they escalated.
“He needs to know he will be safe, people around him will be safe, and the partner needs to know where he is,” Mr Newman said.
tanya.marschke@fairfaxmedia.com.au