Jessica Leonard

Our vision is that all Aboriginal people enjoy a high quality of health and wellbeing. Our mission is that the Aboriginal Health Council will work in ways that maximise the capacity of the Aboriginal community in determining their health and wellbeing by ensuring Community participation and Community ownership. AHCSA Objectives: 1. Operate as the peak body for Aboriginal health in South Australia 2. Improve the health outcomes for all Aboriginal people of South Australia, promoting and advancing the community’s commitment to physical, social and emotional wellbeing and quality of life 3. Build the capacity of members to create a strong and enduring Aboriginal Community Controlled health sector and contribute to improving the capacity of mainstream health services to respond appropriately to the health needs of the Aboriginal community of South Australia 4. Contribute to the development of a well qualified and trained Aboriginal health sector workforce AHCSA works with communities through its Members to ensure that governments and government departments clearly hear community needs. Therefore, AHCSA’s role is to act as a ‘watchdog’ over the provision of health services appropriately meeting community needs. AHCSA is committed to and endorses the NACCHO definition of Aboriginal health and primary health care. We would like to acknowledge this land that we meet on today is the Traditional Lands of the Kaurna people and that we respect their spiritual relationship with their country and that their cultural and heritage beliefs are still important to the living people today. We also welcome Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples visiting from other parts of Australia and respect their cultures.