A clever project led by Yorke and Northern Local Health Network Incorporated (YNLHN) has improved health and wellbeing outcomes for Aboriginal people living in rural and remote regions in South Australia. The campaign involved offering a free shirt, featuring First Nations art, to connect community members to a vital health check program.
YNLHN recognises that an Aboriginal-specific health service is crucial for the delivery of culturally appropriate care. It encourages community members to interact with clinical staff in a comfortable environment, provides valuable opportunities for Aboriginal health professionals to practice their clinical skills and helps to give Aboriginal people autonomy over their health.
The 715 Aboriginal Health Checks are an opportunity for early detection and prevention of a range of health issues through treatment, education and support. YNLHN data showed that only 21.17% of their regular clients were up to date with their 715 checks. Incentives have been proven to increase the number of Aboriginal people seeking these assessments, which aid in closing the gap in health inequalities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.
The YNLHN Aboriginal Health Team was conscious of engaging the beneficiaries in every step of the project. They called for expressions of interest from community members to develop artwork that focussed on place, community, health and wellbeing. This was an opportunity for local artists to showcase their abilities and connect to culture through artwork and storytelling. The successful submission received overwhelming support from community voters and was used for the final shirt design.
The slogan was the only point of contention. Originally it was ‘Stay alive, have your 715’. However, the artist workshopped it with her high school art class to find a culturally relevant alternative. They chose ‘715 Deadly Unna’ which, roughly translated, reads ‘having your 715 is good yes?’ This meant that the project’s reach extended to young people in high school, a notoriously difficult age group to engage with.
A $10,000 Strengthening Rural Communities grant funded the printing of the shirts, which was executed by Aboriginal-owned and operated printing company We Create Print Deliver.
The shirts were officially launched at a health and cultural event, Tarpari Wellbeing Day in Port Pirie in April 2024. This was fantastic exposure for the project, with 66 agencies and more than 3,000 community members in attendance.
The project has been a huge success: there has been a significant uptake in MBS 715 health checks since its launch. The Aboriginal Health Team was even required to develop a new schedule to manage the influx, and additional funding has been sourced for a further 250 polo shirts to accommodate their popularity. In addition, the artist has had an increase of commissioned artwork; discussions have opened between healthcare professionals and the Aboriginal community; and the wider community is more open to discussing the discrepancies in health outcomes for Aboriginal people.
YNLHN representative Kit Prior said, “We are so proud of this project and what it has achieved. People from all walks of life love these shirts and we have had numerous requests to purchase them.”
Health outcomes in the Yorke and Northern region have improved considerably because of this project, a fantastic example of how targeted small grants can have a profound impact.
