Introduction/Background
Diabetes is one of the chronic diseases faced by Australia in recent years. The disease has again started to increase since the last decade that is an alarming aspect of it. Diabetes is one of the most prevalent diseases claiming deaths across the globe, and Australia is no exception. This paper is going to reflect on this health issue because it has been hampering the health department of Australia badly. Australia has some other health issues as well, where cardiovascular diseases and cancer are the notable ones. However, this paper has chosen diabetes. The selection has two basic reasons. First, diabetes has started growing in recent years, and there is a need to look into it. Second, it has different figures in different segments of society. Mainly, the Australian population has an indigenous population and a non-indigenous population. There are differences in the rate of diabetes in these two different segments. The paper has also had the purpose of noting differences in both of these populations; therefore, taking them in this paper would serve this purpose as well.
Impact of the Health issue on the Individual, Family, and Community
The impact of diabetes is high on the individual, family, and community life of Australians. It ranks 12th for causes of deaths in Australia in 2011. It is responsible for 2.3 percent of the burden of disease and injury in the country. In 2016, 4770, individuals died due to the disease with the underlying cause of death was diabetes. However, it was also part of the reason of 16,450 deaths in the same year. Age is also a vital factor of the disease where deaths are higher among Australians age less than 45 and with diabetes 1. It is also increasing the burden on the national health system along with pressurizing families having patients with diabetes 2. For instance, 10 percent of hospitalizations in 2015-16 had a link with diabetes. It made 1 million hospitalizations in Australia. There is a disparity among indigenous and non-indigenous segments of society that is going to be highlighted in the following section (Ashadhana, et al. 2020).
Statement of Purpose
The above scale and extent of diabetes note that diabetes 2 has multiple aspects. It is more prevalent than diabetes 1 in the country. Diabetes is one of the leading causes of death and leading burdens on the health system of Australia. Research suggests that diabetes among indigenous Australians is higher than non-indigenous Australians that raise concerns. It can be an informative source to look into its causes. One of the reasons might be a low level of awareness and education among indigenous Australians. Therefore, this paper has the purpose of running the campaign for educating and spreading awareness among them.
Health Discrepancies between Indigenous and Non-indigenous Australians
Diabetes is one of the most chronic and widely prevalent diseases among all segments in Australia. It is one of the most serious diseases with which many Australians are affected. According to the National Health Survey that was conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the situation of diabetes in the country is grave. Approximately 1.2 million Australians are diagnosed with the disease. It makes up 5.1 percent of the total population, and it is a high ratio. The surprising aspect of the disease is that it is present even among children. Children aged two and over have this disease. Diabetes Mellitus or Type 2 Diabetes is more prevalent than other types of diabetes. The survey finds that 85 percent of diabetic patients have type-2 diabetes. Taking things into perspective, it is worth mentioning that Type 1 diabetic patients make 13.5 percent. In terms of numbers, Type 2 diabetic patients in Australia are 1,002,000. In relation to the age group, 6,091 children have been diagnosed with the disease (Health.gov, 2016).
Historically, the diabetes rate in Australia has increased in recent years. It increased steadily between 1989 and 2005 when the number of patients doubled in Australia. The rate stabilized in the period from 2007 to 2012 that started rising in 2014-15. It is worrying to note that the number of diabetic patients among indigenous Australians is overrepresented. This fact has been recognized, according to many reports those have emphasized this fact (Chamberlain, et al., 2016). In contract to 5.1 national rates of diabetes, there are 12.8 percent indigenous people diagnosed with diabetes. The data show that the affected age group within the indigenous Australian consists of 15 or over. Putting things into context, other forms of diabetes are also prevalent; for instance, gestational diabetes among women giving birth. There are 37,877 women with this type of diabetes, and it makes 6 percent of the total women in Australia (Aihw, 2018).
Indigenous Australians are overrepresented among diabetic patients. Why?
The above figures show that indigenous Australians are more significant in number when it comes to diabetes. It becomes strange because they are known for having a healthy lifestyle. Their traditional lifestyle ensures to have food with rich nutrients and low in fat and sugar. These are reasons for diabetes that do not exist among indigenous people (Colagiuri, 2017). However, research suggests that it is no more a reality because a large number of indigenous people have adopted a westernized lifestyle. It also shows that the genetic make-up of Indigenous people has become the weakness that had been surviving them at the time of scarcity of food. It shows that the westernized lifestyle has become a weakness for indigenous people as they are exposed more to obesity and heart disease. Diabetes is also one of the prevalent diseases because of this reason (Burrow & Ride, 2016).
Another reason for the high rate of diabetes among indigenous Australians may relate to inequalities. Generally, indigenous people in Australia have to face disparities in different walks of life. Health is one of the areas that have prevalent and visible inequality. Low level of awareness regarding health also makes the issue severer because literacy among indigenous people is low. However, it might not be the sole reason for the high rate of diabetes among indigenous people because the main reason is the lack of adjustment to the westernized lifestyle. However, the segment requires an awareness campaign so that they can understand the need for health (Mydr, 2013).
Health Promotion Campaign
Brief Description of the Campaign
The above analysis and discussion show that indigenous people require a health promotion campaign. It suggests that this segment of society lacks awareness and education that should be a serious reason for concern. The key message of the campaign is there should be equality among all segments. The message could spread the message that indigenous people have specific solid reasons why they have a high ratio of diabetes. Generally, the campaign would be for all Australians, but the prime target would be indigenous Australians. The message would educate and make them aware of how they can eradicate the reasons leading to diabetes. For instance, some reasons are part of the genetic make-up of indigenous people that should be in their knowledge. The campaign would abide by principles of Health Promotion from the Ottawa Charter. The charter has three fundamental strategies, including advocating, enabling, and mediating.
It advocates how indigenous people can maintain good health. The campaign would advocate them adopting the best practices for their health. Taking them at the center would help keep equity in health. Moreover, the campaign would work with the community health system, and other departments aimed at improvement in the health of indigenous people (Betterhealth, 2011).
Short Description of the Target Audience
The target audience of the campaign is indigenous people in Australia. Indigenous Australians are not in the majority, but some states have high proportions of the segment. Therefore, the campaign would target indigenous Australians where they are in large numbers. It is because of the higher risk hovering over the community. However, it is not the matter that other segments of Australians are not part of this campaign. The comprehensiveness of the campaign is possible; it covers every segment vulnerable to diabetes. But it is the reality that indigenous Australians have higher risks of it, and they are the key audience for this campaign. The campaign can help them adapt to the changing situation and the context because indigenous Australians need education and awareness. They have to adjust to a westernized environment that is increasing health risks for them. The message would target them that they can change their lifestyle by making it healthier and responsive to the changing social environment. Overall, the campaign aims to affect the segment affected or vulnerable to diabetes.
Explanation of how the campaign would address the Chosen Issue
The campaign has the purpose of ending diabetes, especially among the indigenous people of Australia. The chosen issue is vital because the selected segment has shown an increasing level of vulnerabilities. The campaign is not going to provide them with health assistance or medicines. It would spread awareness so that they can adopt a healthy lifestyle. This component is important because a high prevalence of diabetes among indigenous Australians is because of a lack of knowledge. They also have to face a lack of equality in the health sector, and they need equity in the sector. The goal of the campaign is also aimed at targeting the reason for spreading the disease. It is essential because it is one of the lasting ways to eradicate it. However, other segments of the Australian society would also be addressed because diabetes is one of the leading causes of death in Australia. However, the focus would be on indigenous people.
References
Aihw. (2018). Australia’s Health 2018. Retrieved April 21, 2020, from https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/7c42913d-295f-4bc9-9c24-4e44eff4a04a/aihw-aus-221.pdf
Ashadhana, A., Fields, T., Blitner, G., Stanley, R., & Zwi, A. B. (2020). Trust, culture and communication: determinants of eye health and care among Indigenous people with diabetes in Australia. MJ Global Health, 5(1), 1-9.
Betterhealth. (2011). Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion. Retrieved April 21, 2020, from https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/ServicesAndSupport/ottawa-charter-for-health-promotion
Burrow, S., & Ride, K. (2016). Review of diabetes among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Retrieved April 21, 2020, from https://healthinfonet.ecu.edu.au/healthinfonet/getContent.php?linkid=590810&title=Review+of+diabetes+among+Aboriginal+and+Torres+Strait+Islander+people
Chamberlain, C. R., Oldenburg, B., Wilson, A. N., Eades, S. J., O’Dea, K., Oats, J. J., & Wolfe, R. (2016). Type 2 diabetes after gestational diabetes: greater than fourfold risk among Indigenous compared with non‐Indigenous Australian women. Diabetes/metabolism research and reviews, 32(2), 217-227.
Colagiuri, S. (2017). Diabetes in Indigenous Australians and other underserved communities in Australia. Diabetes mellitus in developing countries and underserved communities, 151-163.
Health.gov. (2016). Diabetes. Retrieved April 21, 2020, from https://www1.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/chronic-diabetes
Mydr. (2013). Diabetes in Indigenous Australians. Retrieved April 21, 2020, from https://www.mydr.com.au/diabetes/diabetes-in-indigenous-australians
