The is a large-scale project tracking 12,000 participants over time, providing data for Indigenous-led research projects.
One project that developed from the study was to determine how much psychological distress is caused by everyday racism.
Two thirds of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adult population have experienced the eight types of everyday discrimination included in the study.Kirsty Nicholas, Mayi Kuwayu Project Manager
Examples of everyday racism include being treated with less respect than other people or being given worse service. People reported being insulted or yelled at, being treated as stupid, or dangerous, or followed around in shops.
The study demonstrated that for those with high or very high psychological stress, up to half of it was caused by everyday racism.
If we eliminated everyday racial discrimination, we could hypothetically half the gap in the prevalence of high to very high psychological distress.
The national study was created by and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Mayi Kuwayu in Ngiyampaa (Wongaibon) language means ‘to follow people over time’.
The study aims to provide data for research that can address Indigenous health from an Indigenous perspective. People can apply to access data from the study to develop research projects that align with Indigenous needs.
These strategies need to be Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander identified and led. We can no longer afford for anything we do to improve health to be implemented through the white lens. And also, the white savior complex that these western institutional changes are born out of needs to stop.Kirsty Nichols
is a health podcast for Indigenous peoples by Indigenous peoples. Host Dr Mikayla Couch interviews First Nations health care professionals to pick their brains and learn from their work. Follow the podcast in the or your preferred podcast app.
