New health course for indigenous communities

Mamarapha College has marked the beginning of its 12th year of operation with the launch of its new Diploma of Indigenous Lifestyle Health Promotion.

Michael Steed, a former educator at Avondale College’s School of Nursing, has spent the past year developing the diploma course toward gaining government accreditation, which was only finalised in December.

“Indigenous communities are saying they are looking for more than a government health program,” he says. “They are looking for a course that integrates a whole-of-health approach to health. With Indigenous people, health and spirituality are not separate issues.”

According to Mr Steed, the Adventist church has such an approach as part of its belief system and traditional approach to holistic health. “As far as I know, this is unique as a health course, because of its spiritual component,” he says.

One of the first students to begin the new course is Tony Stow from Ipswich, Qld. “So many of my friends have died and they’re all younger than me,” he says. “There is so much need for this. We have very bad problems with drug abuse and lifestyle issues. And there is nothing there in the programs currently available.”

The diploma course is offered on a part-time basis and will take three years to complete.

Mamarapha College is a Bible college for Indigenous Australians
and is an institution of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Australia.
Visit the website for more information.

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