Injury is one of the leading causes of death, illness and disability amongst Indigenous Australians, with a higher incidence than that of non-Indigenous populations, while Indigenous youth and children are particularly at risk.

The George Institute's Safe Koori Kids study will collect and examine injury data, identify risk factors, as well as design, implement and evaluate prevention strategies with the aim of applying culturally relevant and sustainable interventions for Indigenous children and youth in school and community environments.

Principal researcher, Dr Kathleen Clapham, a leading Indigenous researcher at The George Institute, said that "The causative factors of injuries among Indigenous populations has received almost no research attention, yet Indigenous children and youth are currently over-represented in intentional and unintentional injury statistics. The study will be focussing on injury in selected urban Indigenous communities in New South Wales."

Recent reports have documented the negative impact on families and communities, however no studies to date offer sustainable and culturally acceptable solutions to the problem. There is a need for innovative approaches to strengthen the capacity of Indigenous led initiatives. The research explores and builds on Indigenous and mainstream models of resilience that empower and strengthen capacity for injury prevention. The research involves the development of partnerships between Indigenous researchers, Indigenous communities, organisations, and government.

National Health and Medical Research Council funding of the study was announced earlier this week at the launch of Research Australia's 2005 "Thank You" Day program. Now in its third year "Thank You" Day
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Contact: Emma Eyles
612-9993-4592
Research Australia
18-Oct-2005