Indigenous health in Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific

Health Risks, Chronic Diseases, and Access to Care Among US Pacific Islanders

“…10 To date, disparity studies and interventions in the US have largely focused on cancer screening and prevention in both Pacific Islander and Asian American communities. 9,[11][12][13][14] While these may continue to be important disparities in these groups, increased recognition of the linked epidemics of obesity and diabetes in Pacific Islanders, similar to that in many nations across the Pacific where these communities originate, 15,16 underscores the need for interventions aimed at reducing these specific Pacific Islander disparities in the US. In particular our finding that BMI, but not smoking, largely mediates the differences in reporting chronic diseases between Pacific Islanders and Asian Americans highlights the specific disparitypromoting impact that obesity may have for Pacific Islanders in the US.…”

Challenges to addressing obesity for Māori in Aotearoa/New Zealand

“…16 Since European settlement and the signing of the Treaty of Waitingi in 1840, Māori have been disadvantaged as a consequence of colonisation and repeated breaches of the Treaty that resulted in pervasive land confiscation, loss of mātauranga (knowledge) and resources, destabilisation of Māori socio-political organisations, racism 17 and discrimination. 18 Loss of land resulted in high levels of poverty and loss of access to traditional food sources for many Māori.…”

Addressing inequities in access to quality health care for indigenous people

“…In a review of indigenous health performance measurement systems, Smylie and colleagues argue that the development of these macrosystem measures, which are usually based on physical and disease variables, often come at the expense of developing locally specific health indicators for indigenous populations. 15 The article by Gao and colleagues exemplifies the problem discussed by Anderson and colleagues 5 in the classification of ethnicity, particularly for people of mixed descent. The classification of non-status First Nations and Metis people as non-Aboriginal is epidemiologically expedient, but it raises concerns about equity.…”