Month: October 2016

IUIH has partnered with the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages to launch two commemorative birth certificates reflecting the hugely popular Deadly Choices brand.

The two designs pay homage to Deadly Choices program partners the Brisbane Broncos and Gold Coast Titans NRL clubs and feature the work of local artists Charlie Chambers and Christine Slabb.

They are available IUIH’s member network of 18 community health services in South East Queensland. Children aged up to five years old who are patients at one of clinics and who are up-to-date with their health checks and vaccinations will be offered the commemorative package (including a standard/legal birth certificate plus a commemorative certificate – valued at $59) along with a limited edition onesie.

Launching the certificates, Queensland Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Yvette D’Ath said she hoped birth registrations would increase as a result of the initiative.

“By tapping into the hugely successful Deadly Choices campaign and making it available to children up to five years old, we are hoping to pick up children who may not yet have had their birth registered, and make sure they have a birth certificate available to use in time for them to enrol in school,” she said.

“Even if a child’s birth has been registered, it can sometimes still be hard to get a birth certificate down the track.

“We know parents will be excited about these designs and hope they will take advantage of this opportunity to celebrate their child’s arrival with one of these limited edition certificates.”

IUIH chief executive officer Adrian Carson said that making the birth certificates available through its member clinics would add to the Institute’s comprehensive, evidence-based and integrated approach to meeting the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders living in South East Queensland.

“South East Queensland is home to the fastest growing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population in Australia,” Mr Carson said.

“Offering these birth certificates will increase our engagement with families of new bubs, making it easier for families to access services including health care and education – services that are essential to closing the gap in life expectancy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations.”

New mums Amanda and Kiara attended the launch with babies Rebekah (11 weeks) and Harper (17 weeks).

“I love the Deadly Choices shirts, I make sure I get my health check every year so I can get the new designs,” Kiara said.

“I can’t wait for Rebekah to get her onesie, and I’m really looking forward to seeing the design on her certificate.”

Community Liaison Officer at the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Victoria Belle-Locke, will be available to help families complete the paperwork required to access the certificates. Victoria will make personal visits to IUIH member clinics and be available via email and telephone for families.

About the artists

Charlie Chambers
Charlie Chambers was born and raised in Cherbourg, Queensland and has been painting most of his life. His heritage is Kiullill and Kookimijii. His art is inspired by the country where he grew up and the stories passed on to him by the elders of the Cherbourg community.
He uses techniques of dot work and cross hatching in his painting. The dot style is from his mother’s tribe who came from Western Queensland and the cross hatch style is from his father’s people who were from north Queensland.
Charlies’ art tells the story of his culture and tribal dreaming. His work also takes on an additional dimension of reawakening his people and broader society to the depth and value of Aboriginal traditions. As well as painting, Charlie spends time in schools and prisons teaching stories of the Dreamtime and the importance of cultural maintenance. He has exhibited extensively both nationally and overseas and received numerous awards for his artwork.

Christine Slabb
Christine Slabb is an Indigenous artist and graphic designer. Christine‘s love for her culture and coastal lifestyle inspires and strengthens her with everyday moments in everyday life.
Christine’s paintings can be found throughout Australian as well as in Japan, the United States, South Africa and Denmark.
Her talent has been recognised with multiple Aboriginal art awards, she was named North Coast TAFE Indigenous Student of the Year 2014.
Christine says of her work, “Designing for myself, mainstream or for my Indigenous Community, I love the creative process from simple sketches to watching them develop to seeing the final outcome.”

About Deadly Choices
Deadly Choices in an initiative of the Institute for Urban Indigenous Health (IUIH) in South East Queensland and is funded by Queensland Health.

Deadly Choices aims to empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to make healthy choices for themselves and their families – to stop smoking, to eat good food and exercise daily. Deadly Choices also encourages our people to access their local Community-Controlled Health Service and complete an annual health check.

Governments have committed to ‘Closing the Gap’ in Indigenous Health, but only our communities can make this happen.

www.deadlychoices.com.au

IUIH and The Fred Hollows Foundation have partnered to launch a new campaign at IUIH member clinics that will increase the number of eye health checks being performed and reduce rates of eye disease in community.

The Deadly Urban Eyes campaign encourages Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members to have a yearly eye health check at their local Aboriginal Medical Service.

Regular eye health checks play an important role in reducing the rate of untreated eye diseases such as cataract, glaucoma, trachoma, diabetic retinopathy and macular degeneration.

The campaign is being implemented by the Institute for Urban Indigenous Health (IUIH) with funding from The Fred Hollows Foundation, and builds on their existing partnership across the region.

It adds a new dimension to the hugely successful Deadly Choices social marketing campaign which has seen an average 50% year-on-year increase in the number of preventative health checks performed at IUIH’s 18 member clinics across South East Queensland.

IUIH Chief Executive Officer Adrian Carson says that the program will improve access to preventative eye health services and reduce rates of eye disease.

“Both IUIH and The Fred Hollows Foundation are committed to ensuring that all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples can access quality eye health services,” he said.

“We know that untreated eye disease is a key contributor to preventable blindness among our community and is often caused by other diseases that affect our people such as diabetes and hypertension.

“This campaign will see more people checking in with our optometrists on a regular basis, so we can pick up and treat these diseases early, and close the gap in health outcomes in our community.

“We have significantly expanded our frontline eye health services over the past year so that they are now fully integrated across our 18 IUIH member clinics across South East Queensland. Integration of these services into the IUIH Model of Care means we are connected to community and able to refer quickly to specialist services if and when they are needed,” Mr Carson said.

People who have their eyes checked will receive a Deadly Eyes gift pack, including sunglasses, lens cloth and spray, as an incentive.

Gabi Hollows said the partnership was a successful model for bringing eye health care to communities in South East Queensland. “The Deadly Urban Eyes campaign is a great program that will make a difference in the vital eye health care sector,” she said.

The Foundation’s Indigenous Australia Program Manager Jaki Adams-Barton, said the Deadly Choices Eye Check for South East Queensland was an important component of the work The Fred Hollows Foundation is doing Australia-wide.

“Our program focuses on reducing rates of cataract, diabetic retinopathy uncorrected refractive error and trachoma in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Getting your eyes checked regularly is key given 94% of vision loss for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders is preventable or treatable if caught early,” she said.