Clinical Yarning: Improving communication and health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living with chronic pain
Chronic conditions are the leading cause of illness, disability and death for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Queenslanders. Whilst Indigenous people constitute 9% of the North Queensland Persistent Pain Management Service catchment population, in 2015, only 3% of referred patients identified as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander. The low representation of Indigenous people in the Pain Management Service may reflect that communication between Aboriginal patients and practitioners such as doctors, nurses and allied health professionals, continues to be problematic and may be a significant barrier to the delivery of successful health care to Aboriginal people. This research project aims to develop and deliver a “Clinical Yarning” training program to Persistent Pain Clinicians and to evaluate the impact of the training in terms of patient and family satisfaction with services; clinical outcomes; and cultural safety/competence of health professionals.
Professor Stephen Birch from the Centre for the Business and Economics of Health (CBEH) is a member of the Project Steering Committee, working alongside the investigative team, policymakers, clinicians and other researchers to guide the direction and delivery of this important work. Professor Birch provides specific expertise through the development of an economic framework and associated tools to determine efficiencies related to the use of the Clinical Yarning training package.
Project members
Our CBEH team
Taylor Chair and Centre Director
Centre for the Business and Economics of Health
Our collaborators
This project is led by the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute and comprises a team of leading investigators, academics, policymakers, clinicians and researchers from Indigenous and non-Indigenous backgrounds. See the full list of partners.