Thompson Sandra C, Shahid Shaouli, DiGiacomo Michelle, Pilkington Leanne, Davidson Patricia M
Combined Universities Centre for Rural Health, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia.
BMC Public Health. 2014 Apr 11;14:347. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-14-347.
Indigenous Australians have poorer outcomes from cancer for a variety of reasons including poorer participation in screening programs, later diagnosis, higher rates of cancer with poor prognosis and poorer uptake and completion of treatment. Cancer prevention and support for people with cancer is part of the core business of the State and Territory Cancer Councils. To support sharing of lessons learned, this paper reports an environmental scan undertaken in 2010 in cancer councils (CCs) nationwide that aimed to support Indigenous cancer control.
The methods replicated the approach used in a 2006 environmental scan of Indigenous related activity in CCs. The Chief Executive Officer of each CC nominated individuals for interview. Interviews explored staffing, projects, programs and activities to progress cancer control issues for Indigenous Australians, through phone or face-to-face interviews. Reported initiatives were tabulated using predetermined categories of activity and summaries were returned to interviewees, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Subcommittee and Chief Executive Officers for verification.
All CCs participated and modest increases in activity had occurred in most states since 2006 through different means. Indigenous staff numbers were low and no Indigenous person had yet been employed in smaller CCs; no CC had an Indigenous Board member and efforts at capacity building were often directed outside of the organisation. Developing partnerships with Indigenous organisations were ongoing. Acknowledgement and specific mention of Indigenous people in policy was increasing. Momentum increased following the establishment of a national subcommittee which increased the profile of Indigenous issues and provided collegial and practical support for those committed to reducing Indigenous cancer disparities. Government funding of "Closing the Gap" and research in the larger CCs have been other avenues for increasing knowledge and activity in Indigenous cancer control.
This environmental scan measured progress, allowed sharing of information and provided critical assessment of progress across areas of importance for increasing Indigenous cancer control. Structured examination of policies, institutional support systems, programs and interventions is a useful means of highlighting opportunities for progress with minority groups relevant for many organisations. Progress has occurred with momentum likely to increase in the future and benefit from commitment to long-term monitoring and sharing of achievements.
澳大利亚原住民的癌症治疗结果较差，原因多种多样，包括参与筛查项目的比例较低、诊断较晚、预后不良的癌症发病率较高以及治疗的接受度和完成率较低。癌症预防以及为癌症患者提供支持是州和地区癌症理事会核心业务的一部分。为了支持经验教训的分享，本文报告了2010年在全国癌症理事会（CCs）进行的一项环境扫描，该扫描旨在支持澳大利亚原住民的癌症控制。
这些方法复制了2006年对癌症理事会中与原住民相关活动进行环境扫描时所采用的方法。每个癌症理事会的首席执行官提名人员接受访谈。通过电话或面对面访谈，探讨了为推进澳大利亚原住民癌症控制问题而开展的人员配备、项目、计划和活动。使用预先确定的活动类别将报告的举措制成表格，并将摘要返回给受访者、原住民和托雷斯海峡岛民小组委员会以及首席执行官进行核实。
所有癌症理事会都参与了，自2006年以来，大多数州通过不同方式在活动方面有适度增加。原住民工作人员数量较少，较小的癌症理事会尚未雇佣原住民；没有癌症理事会有原住民董事会成员，能力建设工作往往指向组织外部。与原住民组织建立伙伴关系的工作正在进行。政策中对原住民的认可和具体提及正在增加。在设立了一个全国小组委员会之后，势头增强，该小组委员会提高了原住民问题的关注度，并为致力于减少原住民癌症差距的人提供了合作和实际支持。政府对“消除差距”的资助以及较大癌症理事会的研究是增加原住民癌症控制知识和活动的其他途径。
此次环境扫描衡量了进展情况，促进了信息共享，并对在增加原住民癌症控制的重要领域取得的进展进行了批判性评估。对政策、机构支持系统、计划和干预措施进行结构化审查是一种有用的方式，可突出许多组织在与少数群体相关方面取得进展的机会。已经取得了进展，未来势头可能会增强，并受益于对长期监测和成果分享的承诺。
