This season of SNACK has been produced by the Empaur, as part of the COTA Queensland Home Care Workforce Support Program which received grant funding from the Australian Government.
EmPauR is a Torres Strait Islander-owned business dedicated to fostering cultural understanding and empowerment within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Our mission is to bridge cultural divides, promote mutual respect, and create pathways for authentic engagement between Indigenous and non-Indigenous individuals and organisations. Through comprehensive cultural awareness training, meaningful dialogue facilitation, and the honouring of Indigenous Elders, EmPauR serves as a guide for cultural resilience and empowerment, preserving and celebrating the rich heritage of Australia’s First Nations peoples.
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EmPauR would like to advise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander listeners that the following podcast may mention names of people who have gone before us into the stars and the dreaming. Empower acknowledges the Gimli wallarah in dingy people whose traditional lands this podcast has been recorded on. We pay our respects to the ongoing cultural connection that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue to hold with the land, sea and
00:49
wind miam sail Napa welcome to today’s episode, kinship a family’s voice the final episode of our podcast series. In today’s episode, we’re delving into a crucial aspect of our lives, family responsibilities for caregiving, we will explore how cultural and kinship ties play a significant role in shaping caregiving dynamics, and how these traditions and values influence these responsibilities. Strengthening the connections between individuals join us as Bala Reggie power yarns once more with Arab Island elder uncle boy pen CO and barter Island emerging elder Bala Jarrell belly about the importance of the kinship voice when caring for elders. Together they will share insights on the positive impacts and the value of ensuring that this vital voice is heard in our communities. Get ready to explore the fascinating realm of caregiving. As we unravel the mysteries of family bonds and responsibilities.
01:49
What cultural protocols should aged care provider, be mindful of when interacting with toasted Island elders and family?
01:57
kingship is a is a broader word. It’s a book kingship is made up of all the sections when we walk off. It’s like a guide. And it’s it’s all no LRE I think if you work with that broader guide and the mainstream, you will have no problem no risk, no errors. What I’m trying to say is when you do have communication awareness community, it’s got to be transparent, it’s got to be open, it’s got to be honest, because we exchanging words each other and sharing words. And that’s gonna it’s going to confirm that this journey will go a long long way if you’re connecting not only to the pupil current Are you also connected to the ancestors and you also connected to God first
02:47
from from an elder point of view, the culture protocol to an age care service provider will be active respect the elders in K and the family that involved must recognize their culture, the way they live the way they operate, that need to take into consideration and to integrate with your protocol in terms of how you provided care to us. For example, when a care provider is given care and when questioned by community the answer always we abide by the organization protocol, this is the way we have to look after the patient. So in terms of respect our cultural protocol, they have to respect the family way of living. And a lot of time a lot of instance it questioned the way the services provided by the organization. So in order for for our cultural protocols to be recognized. Again, it has to be 50% Both way 50% protocol of the organization and 50% protocol of the family values and the way we provide services to our care, our elders, if that can met to a certain degree, then I think the cultural protocol, it’s been a cue from our point of view the way you provided care for us.
04:04
How does the concept of kinship influenced the way toasted families traditionally provide care for the elders and how can aged care service better respect and incorporate these values?
04:16
Entering is one of the topics which we have to respect day and night. These guys are important, it mentioned poor that they are wisdom, they are strength, knowing that kingship, it’s clearly state that we have to have a respect we have to have the love and we have to look after them. So one of the things topic is calling. Calling people by name. Uncle is our main grandfather. So in that respect, we’ll have to use those terms when we come in across one of the biggest thing I found is when I deal with every group I’m Be cautious what words I use. I’m careful what I say. And I also respect the views when they come in across. So are we respecting, I was a translator with, with our elderly people, which is organization 8k, I will respect in the views as well, because they are the translators to help people. So overall respect is there and overall love. We know these people, how important are they to the community and families. So when I grew up in my family, I got to really know the kingship principles and the rules on my upbringing. That’s what made me a man. So
05:39
as far as the our family, family values and life in the Torres Strait, we operate under the kingship structure, in terms of discipline, in terms of education, in terms of training in terms of managing our faith, the kinship setting in our family are very important. The elders, they’ve got a part and responsibility to play around education discipline, the parents have their own responsibility. But in terms of the kinship setting, in terms of discipline, the key part is Uncle and Auntie they got the key role in terms of discipline and passing down information around educating young one for example, my children haggard responsibility so far to teach them but some of the deeper things that kids my kid is my brothers and sisters responsibility, my parents day God responsibility around for my kids. So when our elders get into the care setting that can save setting now become reversible, you reverse the kinship setting in terms of care for our elders in in the community in the aged care setting, for example, what why I’m saying this is because some elders when they go into the healthcare facilities, now the responsibility then can be the grandchildren, not the children anymore, but it depends on which family that’s how the kinship setting, it’s operating, especially in the eastern part of tourists request the ganglion so in terms of care and education, now, the the elders go into the community now they they tend to lean more to grandchildren opposed to their children. So there are portion in terms of the care that needs to be included into the aged care setting around the kinship as to take that into consideration. It’s not the children anymore, sometimes you become the grandchildren. That’s part of the care that need to provide in the aged care setting. So that need very important to take into consideration the Kinsey Oh, it unfold in terms of the care, the evaluation, the service provision, the decision making. So the way we live in community, the kinship is operate very different in terms of when you go into K. H. K. Yeah, that need to take must understand that because the grandchildren will look and respect the grandchildren more to their children. So the aged care setting the case very different in terms of an akin kinship setting,
08:10
okay? Taking care of loved ones, strengthen family bonds interested in the community there, what advice would you give to the younger generation on preserving kinship tradition in aged care, or
08:21
this my number one rule that I have to teach my kids to uphold those values and to uphold kinship, if you don’t work with it, if you don’t live with it doesn’t identify you as a as who you are. So the overall thing I want to say is that we’ve got to grow in this with it, work with it and obey a kinship because it’s been set by our ancestors, through our grandfathers to our fathers. And it’s something that will be passed on over generation and generation if you don’t apply it now we’re most well
08:57
I think in a nutshell, our cultural protocol, our way of living, it has to be part of the organization policies and procedures and the way forward, the organization or individual that a care provider has to respect our culture, our beliefs, our way of living our tribes, our totem that needs to be recognized. And also the organization has to involve elders every month in terms of providing the cultural advice in terms of implementing whatever protocol they got in place that recognize our culture, their cultural orientation as to be provided on a monthly basis to another organization in order to keep our culture alive within the organization. They are asked to take part in all our ceremonies and rituals when they invited and must respect our rights and our culture, not by word, not just only talk about it, but put it into action. That’s my final advice. That’s what I want to see a way forward for any organization. Lastly,
09:55
so if a non Indigenous employee would come on board, worried You think one of the first thing that they would know about the organization as to how to care for a trusted elder, they
10:07
have to understand the cultural protocol that’s been written into the organization. If there’s one, if not, the organization has to have an elder within the community setting or someone responsible for passing or educate them around our cultural protocols, how to give care for our people, they also need to understand that whichever is in the setting that they’re going to provide care to, they need to meet the family and sit with them when to go through the protocol in terms of caregiving.
10:36
As we conclude this episode, we trust that you’ll walk away with a deeper understanding of the multifaceted world of caregiving and family responsibilities. Whether you’re a caregiver, a recipient of care, or simply curious about the dynamics of family bonds. We hope this episode has provided you inspiration and reflection. So without further ado, let’s delve deeper into the heart of caregiving, exploring how traditions, values and responsibilities, interweave to create powerful connections within families. Funding for this podcast has been provided by the Council on the aging Queensland homecare workforce Support Consortium as part of the homecare workforce Support Program, which was funded through grant funding from the Australian Government
