We are regretfully postponing the upcoming Nganampa Health Council 40th Anniversary Celebration scheduled for the 26th April 2024. Various unforeseen circumstances mean we are not able to deliver the large community event we had been planning for on this date. More details about the rescheduling will be posted when confirmed.

Nganampa Health Council (NHC) is celebrating 40 years providing Aṉangu-led health services on the APY Lands with a community celebration at Umuwa on 26 April. Aṉangu from APY, current staff, former staff and friends of NHC, plus invited dignitaries will gather for speeches and presentations, Inma, a BBQ dinner and music from local bands.

Nganampa means ‘our’ in the Aṉangu languages, and since 1983, this innovative Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (ACCHO) has been operating continuously on the Aṉangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands in the far north west of South Australia. Across 100,000 square kilometres, NHC operates seven clinics and assorted health related programs including sexual health, environmental health, health worker training, dental, women’s health, male health, children’s health, immunisation, eye health and mental health.

With nationally recognised successes in immunisation, child and maternal health, housing for health, and the establishment of the Mai Wiru (‘good food’) Regional Stores, NHC has delivered numerous benefits to the approximately 2,500 people living on the lands.

We look forward to joining our community to celebrate the continued success of this pioneering model of community-led health service provision.

When: Friday 26 April 2024, 2pm – 9pm

Where: Umuwa, APY Lands (and potential livestream – more info to come)

What: Speeches and presentations, Inma, BBQ dinner, Music from UPK bands & APY musicians (more details soon)

RSVP: 29 March 2024 — email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (please say whether you want to join in person or watch on a livestream)

We invite all members of the Nganampa 'family' to this celebration, but please note the event is not open to the general public and an APY Lands permit and National Police Check are required for all attendees. RSVP is essential for any non-Aṉangu from outside the Lands wishing to attend – email us as early as possible so we can support your application for a permit.

We are working on options for a livestream and details will be provided closer to the date.

Accommodation in Umuwa is limited and we encourage visitors to stay with friends or camp at the nearby creek. BBQ breakfast will be provided for those staying overnight.

The Nganampa Health Council AGM has been further postponed until February or March 2023. Further information, including a date and time, will be provided soon. 

The Nganampa Health Council are please to be able to support Cherie Jones with her tertiary studies with an Anangu Scholarship. Cherie is studying a Diploma of Psychology at Charles Darwin University in Alice Springs.

Cherie is a Yankunytjatjara woman, descendent from the Cooma & Charlie Lester. She grew up at Amata Community, and is from Tupul Homeland.

She moved to Alice Springs in the early 90's, to pursue work. Since then, she worked with organisations such as Arrernte Council, NPY Women's Council, Pitjantjatjara Council and Tangentyere Council undertaking administrative executive assistant duties. She then moved to my first management role with Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education, where she managed the Alice Springs staff and campus grounds.

Cherie’s employment career took her back home to Amata in 2010, where she worked in mental health, environmental health and housing, managing government contracts in health and human services. She moved back in Alice Springs to pursue a change in career which led to her current studies. Cherie will finish the course at the end of 2019 and is hoping to gain employment as a counselling. Her aim is to keep studying and she intends to enrol in a Bachelor of Psychology.

This is a video spoken in Pitjantjatjara language about the My Health record, the new Australian medical record that will be created for all Australians, and what to do if you don’t want one. Nganampa clinics have more information about the My Health Record and have people who can answer any questions about this.

https://www.myhealthrecord.gov.au/sites/g/files/net5181/f/stakeholder-materials/myhealth_60_pitjantjatjara.mp4 

  

Friends and staff at Nganampa Health have donated money to the Anangu Scholarship Fund. Any Anangu undertaking tertiary studies are eligible to apply. Currently we are supporting Pirpantji Nelson who is studying medicine.

More information on the scholarship fund can be found here.

You can also read about Pirpantji in our 2015 Annual Report.

Any Aboriginal people studying in a health related field might also be interested in the House Call Doctors Futures in Health Scholarhship.

Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD) is sadly still a common problem in remote Aboriginal communities. The APY Lands are no exception with more than 50% of the known cases of RHD in South Australia on the APY Lands.

With funding from the Commonwealth and State Government, we operate a RHD program to better manage patients with this condition. The program has been very successful with better medication compliance. See the graph below.

Nganampa Health Council board and staff members are deeply saddened about the passing of Yami Lester OAM on Friday, 21st July 2017.To work with Yami was an inspiration. His sense of humour, his professionalism, his cross cultural awareness and skills, his attention to detail and his love for all Aboriginal people and above all his total commitment to social justice provided a model that inspired many other people, both black and white, to take up the fight.

The photo is of the first UPK meeting with SA Health circa 1985 in Adelaide. Yami was instrumental in this project.