Real Ways of Working Together: co-creating meaningful Aboriginal community consultations to advance kidney care

Objective: To describe a process of meaningful Aboriginal community engagement that repositioned and valued community members' knowledge(s) and lived experiences while strengthening relationships, research processes and outcomes. Background: Aboriginal Australians have the oldest continuous culture in the world, yet due to effects of colonisation, experience some of the world's poorest health outcomes. The AKction [Aboriginal Kidney Care Together - Improving Outcomes Now] project brought together Aboriginal people with lived experience of kidney disease, clinicians and researchers to improve kidney care. Methodology: Using Aboriginal methodologies of Ganma and Dadirri within community-based participatory action research (cb-PAR), a core advisory group of Aboriginal people with lived experiences of kidney disease worked closely with clinicians and researchers. Results: Three community consultation workshops that deeply valued Aboriginal knowledge(s) were co-created. Community members formed a reference group, established partnerships and influenced health research, policy and service provision. Non-Indigenous researchers engaged in critical self-reflection and levelling of Western-Aboriginal and clinician-consumer power imbalances. Conclusions: Deeply respectful community engagement is possible through co-creation and cb-PAR. It results in multiple positive impacts and beneficial relationships between community members, clinicians and academics. Implications for public health: Meaningful consultation with Aboriginal communities guides culturally safe research processes, health policy and service delivery.

Automated summary

This study describes the process of repositioning and valuing the knowledge and lived experiences of Aboriginal community members, with the aim of strengthening relationships, research processes, and outcomes. Through co-creation and community-based participatory action research (cb-PAR), deeply respectful community engagement was possible. This approach resulted in multiple positive impacts and beneficial relationships between community members, clinicians, and academics. Meaningful consultation with Aboriginal communities guides culturally safe research processes, health policy, and service delivery.