Unions
Inaugural NSWNMA Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander members’ meeting a huge success
A path towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice, representation and leadership within the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association (NSWNMA).
The first Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander NSWNMA members’ meeting held in February was a great success in our path towards increasing voice, representation and leadership of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses and midwives within the union.
Following the Welcome to Country by Uncle Allen Murray, an Elder from Gadigal Land, the meeting opened with a listening session where Shaye Candish, NSWNMA General Secretary, and Michael Whaites, NSWNMA Assistant General Secretary, acknowledged the Association’s systemic and structural failures in not addressing representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander members sooner.
During the listening session, co-facilitated by Sye Hodgman, First Nations Strategy, Policy and Research Officer for the Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union (QNMU), members engaged in robust and productive discussions about issues of importance to them, such as:
- cultural safety;
- creating opportunities for members to identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander;
- empowering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander members;
- advocating for better health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients;
- staffing issues;
- industrial entitlements around culturally specific issues like “sorry business”, and the Yes for Voice campaign.
Members then grappled with questions around representation and leadership within the union, proposing several initiatives which include:
- Forming a statewide Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander NSWNMA Branch;
- Creating two dedicated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander positions on NSWNMA Council, one each for a nurse and a midwife.
Council supported both proposals which will be put to NSWNMA Annual Conference in August this year. In the meantime, meetings will continue to be held on a monthly basis.
All Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander NSWNMA members will receive an invite to this meeting, keep an eye on your emails!
Mark Quealy says
So good to have Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Nurses and Midwives up front to advocate for better health outcomes for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people. I’m sure this initiative will lead to a more welcoming environment in our hospitals. I recently heard about the planting of trees for smoking ceremony at Darwin Hospital. It would be great to see what other initiatives this new group can propose. Best of luck with the group.
Jo Burton Henderson says
Thank you Mark for your support.
While agreeing with you regarding our group being a valuable advocate for better health outcomes for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people, I believe we must focus on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses and Midwives’ well-being so that we create a platform that increases our mob joining the health workforce as a starting point.
Systemic racism and structural obstacles result in too few Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander young people entering our workforce. Until we address this system racism, the health and well-being of our community will not be addressed.