Cultural competence and engagement plan

Building Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural competence and engagement plan 2019-23

Strategies

Identify and remove potential barriers to accessing OHO services

• Develop and maintain stakeholder/community relationships to identify actual and potential barriers.
• Develop and implement strategies to remove barriers and create pathways to access and engage with OHO services and staff.
• Utilise learnings developed from state-wide consultation with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities undertaken in 2018–19.
• Raise awareness among OHO staff of actual and potential barriers and their impacts on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and review organisational processes and practices to identify potential barriers to accessing and engaging with the OHO services and staff.
• Raise awareness among OHO staff of actual and potential barriers and their impacts on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Improve awareness of and accessibility to OHO services by Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander people

• Develop and disseminate tailored resources to improve awareness of OHO services.
• Partner with external stakeholders to provide information and support to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to access and engage with OHO services and staff.
• Ensure engagement strategies undertaken by the OHO are culturally appropriate and consider the unique requirements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
• Review outward facing OHO correspondence to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who engage with the OHO to ensure it is culturally appropriate and accessible.

Improve organisational cultural competence to enable staff to respond to Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander complainants in an effective and culturally appropriate way

• Develop OHO staff knowledge and confidence in communicating appropriately and effectively with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people by providing cultural competence training, coaching and support.
• Develop OHO staff knowledge about issues affecting and impacting on the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and their ability to access culturally appropriate and safe health services.
• Consider issues unique to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people when determining appropriate actions to take on matters received by the OHO.
• Consider cultural competence and appreciation during staff recruitment processes.

Download the Building Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural competence and engagement plan 2019-23.