Welcome to the Lowitja Institute Repository

This institutional research repository is for the work of the Lowitja Institute, Australia’s national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Research Institute. Our work focuses on the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and Indigenous peoples across the globe. This Repository tracks the research outputs of Lowitja Institute employees, funded researchers and scholars as well as showcases community-led Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research.

Lowitja Funded Research

Lowitja Associated Research

Lowitja Funded Scholars

Communities in the repository

Select a community to browse its collections.

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1

Lowitja Institute Repository

Recent Submissions

Establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander advisory panel to guide teaching, research and collaborations in the tertiary setting: our school's reflections
(2026-03-04) Thompson K.; Jauncey-Cooke J.
This discussion paper outlines the process undertaken by the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Social Work to establish an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander advisory panel (AP). Guided by the School’s strategic commitment to fostering two-way learning between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and non-Indigenous staff, students and community members, the initiative explored the potential of an Elder in Residence role. Strategic funding enabled a roundtable discussion with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses, midwives and social work practitioners, who provided critical insights into the preferred structure and purpose of such a role. Participants advocated for an AP, rather than a single Elder in Residence, to reflect the diversity of disciplines within the School. The formation of the AP represents a meaningful step towards decolonising education and research. It embeds First Nations authority, supports ethical research practices and reorients the epistemological foundations of nursing, midwifery and social work to honour Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ways of knowing, being and doing.
Principles and practices of communicating with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples accessing mental health services: a systematic review
(2026-03-18) Roman J.; Hoberg H.L.N.; Ekberg S.; Rogers J.; Combo M.; Henaway C.; Mushin I.; Meuter R.; Burke K.; Spinks J.; Bernardes C.M.; Alchin D.; Surijah E.A.; Farag I.
Purpose: Communication between mental health professionals and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is critical for culturally safe care. Although the importance of communication is well recognised, genuinely supporting culturally safe communication necessitates moving beyond challenges to identify solutions. Using a strengths-based approach, this study aimed to identify principles and practices for communicating with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples accessing mental health services. Methods: This study was conducted at the interface of Indigenous and Western knowledge using theories and tools developed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander scholars and integrating these with systematic review methods. A systematic search for qualitative and quantitative evidence was conducted across databases including peer-reviewed and other (‘grey’) literature. Search results were independently screened by an Aboriginal researcher and a non-Indigenous clinician researcher. Following screening, additional searches were conducted (e.g. of reference lists in systematic reviews). The quality of literature sources meeting inclusion criteria was appraised by the same researchers using Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and Western tools. Informed by Indigenous research methodology, thematic synthesis was used to identify principles and practices for communication. Main findings: The search strategies identified 2,504 unique literature sources. Following screening, 57 sources were deemed to meet inclusion criteria. Critical appraisal identified that most sources were produced by reputable organisations and authors, who provided accurate information based on evidence, although fewer sources incorporated Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander leadership, governance and authorship. Thematic synthesis identified three high-level principles for communication that could be understood from the standpoints of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and other people living in Australia: 1) Knowing Our Stories: Professional requirements of knowledge and understanding to support culturally safe communication; 2) Being With Us: Preparing for culturally safe communication; and 3) Doing Things Our Way: Practices for culturally safe communication. Principal conclusions: The sizable body of literature synthesised in this review identifies both high-level and detailed principles and practices that mental health professionals should employ to promote culturally safe communication with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples accessing mental health services.
Child development interventions among Indigenous peoples in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States: a scoping review.
(2026-02-11) Adane A.A.; Reibel T.; Munns A.; Shepherd C.C.J.; Bailey H.D.; Stanley F.; Marriott R.
Background: Children's development is dependent on a range of factors influencing their life course outcomes. Protective and challenging social and cultural determinants impact how Indigenous families support their children's developmental foundations. However, there is a lack of international evidence investigating Indigenous child development interventions. To gain a perspective across nations with comparable settler-colonial histories, this scoping review summarised studies on family and community-centred approaches among Indigenous populations in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States, focusing on outcomes and evidence gaps. Methods: A scoping review followed PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Medline, CINAHL, and PsycINFO (Ovid) were searched from their inception to October 2025, including grey literature sources from Aboriginal HealthInfoNet, the Lowitja Institute and the Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care. Empirical studies, including quantitative, mixed-methods, evaluation studies, and descriptive or case-study designs, were included provided they reported empirical data on intervention outcomes. Due to study heterogeneity, data were synthesised narratively. Results: Following screening of 2355 records, eight from 2013 to 2020 met the inclusion criteria. These were mostly small-scale, non-randomising designs evaluating different interventions, with the behavioural and emotional domain being the most frequently assessed outcome, alongside developmental vulnerability and academic/educational areas. There was limited consideration of protective cultural determinants of health in the study design and implementation. Six studies reported positive associations between interventions or programmes and early childhood development outcomes. Conclusions: While the number and rigour of identified interventions were limited, several demonstrated potential benefits for Indigenous children's early childhood development. However, strengthening the evidence base requires culturally grounded, adequately powered evaluations using rigorous study designs that include culturally co-designed adaptations conducted with Indigenous families and communities. Support is recommended for capacity building and funding.
The Aboriginal community experience of the virtual rural generalist service in western New South Wales: a yarning study.
(2026-03-19) Thompson A.; Carroll A.; Kenna D.; Kennedy-Williams E.; Merritt S.; Skinner J.; Luscombe G.; Saurman E.
Purpose: The Virtual Rural Generalist Service (VRGS) is an innovative hybrid medical model providing 24/7 medical support to rural public hospitals in Western New South Wales (NSW) where local doctors need additional support or where there is no local doctor available. A key component of the evaluation was to understand the impact of VRGS on access to healthcare for Aboriginal people1 living in rural NSW and their experiences and views of virtual care provided by VRGS. Methods: Nine Aboriginal health workers from five VRGS sites were recruited and trained as Aboriginal community researchers (ACRs). The ACRs led the qualitative part of the Aboriginal community experiences component, including conducting all yarns, participating in the interpretation of findings, and formulating recommendations for ongoing service improvement. Main findings: Virtual healthcare delivered by VRGS was acceptable to some Aboriginal people but not others. VRGS improved access to a doctor afterhours or when a patient could not get an appointment. The connection and engagement with the VRGS doctor varied and many of the participants would have liked to have had someone they trust with them during a VRGS consultation, to help them communicate with the doctor and explain things after the consultation. Education, Adequacy of care, Trust and rapport, and Communication were four important themes for informing continuing engagement and improved provision of care with VRGS for Aboriginal people living in rural NSW. Principal conclusions: There is clear variability in the experience of VRGS for Aboriginal patients and their carers across rural sites. While there is more work to do, the VRGS model can provide quality, culturally acceptable, remote healthcare when a doctor is not available locally.
Acceptability of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander co-designed resources to increase awareness of complex trauma during the perinatal period: Perspectives of parents, service providers and pilot implementation stakeholders.
(2026-02-28) Bartlett G.E.; Henderson H.; Fiolet R.; Bowman D.; Stubbs E.; Jones K.A.; Clark Y.; Elliott A.; Chamberlain C.
Purpose: The Aboriginal-led Healing the Past by Nurturing the Future project was conceptualised to co-design safe, acceptable and feasible strategies for supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents experiencing complex trauma in the perinatal period. Six strategies have been co-designed to increase complex trauma awareness amongst both parents and service providers in perinatal health settings: three resources for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents, alongside three training courses designed for perinatal service providers. This paper reports on the perceived acceptability and usefulness of the proposed project strategies from the perspectives of parents and service providers who participated in a series of national in-person discussion groups, as well as key stakeholders of a Victorian pilot implementation site who participated in an online workshop. Methods: Using a participatory action research approach, 21 Aboriginal parents participated in six discussion groups; and 20 service providers (seven Aboriginal; 13 non-Indigenous) participated in four discussion groups in 2022 in the Northen Territory, South Australia and Victoria. Fifty-seven key implementation site stakeholder participants attended the online workshop held in 2022. Most participants were from Victoria (56%) and South Australia (18%). Just under half of the participants identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander. Data were compiled and thematically analysed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous researchers. Main findings: Four major themes were generated from the discussion group and workshop data: 1) Who gets to tell the story on trauma? Doing it the right way for every community; 2) Listening to unlearn; decolonising practice in perinatal settings; 3) A two-way learning opportunity about parenthood beyond trauma; and 4) Strength in culture; ensuring cultural and emotional safety of parents through strengths-based approaches. Principal conclusions: The research findings reflect established principles for researching and implementing programs designed for and by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, emphasising community ownership, contextual relevance, cultural safety and shared learning. The findings have been used to inform the co-design and dissemination of resources; identify barriers and facilitators to project implementation; and to inform future evaluation of complex trauma awareness resources for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents, with a focus on the perinatal period.