Healing Camp For Young People At Nauiyu
By Jerome Gilbert
Assisted By Anglicare, Carers NT, Mental Health Troopy Program, Department of
Health and Red Dust Role Models.
Disclaimer : The Chief Minister’s Round Table Of Young Territorians is an independent
advisory body. The views expressed in this report are those of the authors and are not
necessarily reflective of those of the Office of Youth Affairs or The Northern Territory
Government.
YOUTH ISSUE – BRIEFING
TO:
CHIEF MINISTER
DATE:
FROM:
JEROME GILBERT
TOPIC:
YOUTH SUICIDE IN REMOTE AREAS OF THE NORTHERN TERRITORY
RECOMMENDATIONS
It is recommended that the Northern Territory Government:
1. Provide funding support for healing camps out bush.
2. Facilitate more youth activities that are run by young local people and
supported by organisations.
3. Fund camps, activities and programs to help communities address drug and
alcohol problems.
BACKGROUND
Nauiyu community (Daly River) experiences high levels of alcohol and drug abuse in
young people which can lead to suicide attempts. Sometimes young people try to do
the right thing and get a job or try to help others and they get teased and people try
to pull them down. We call the people who try to pull them down “Dream Killers”.
PROJECT OUTLINE
My project was about trying to help young people reconnect with country by going on
a healing camp. The young people on the camp were involved in art groups to
develop a poster and a t-shirt design. The poster and t-shirts had a targeted
message about bullying.
The target group were young people between 17 – 25 in Nauiyu (Daly River), who
have been dealing with the effects of drugs and alcohol and have even tried selfharm.
I wanted to help Nauiyu young people because I lost someone close to me from
suicide. I thought deeply about connecting to the land and culture as healing, so that
the young people can feel safe and calm around the bush.
I targeted bullying as it can really hurt and can lead to suicide. It also leads to
relationship problems and, for example, quietness, feeling empty, lost and being
embarrassed.
My stakeholders were Anglicare, Red Dust Role Models, Carers NT Mental Health
Troopy Program, Nauiyu health center. Representatives from each organisation
came to assist with the camp. Anglicare provided the funding and delivered SafeTalk
program. They also brought food and a very young psychologist who was down to
earth. I didn’t want the camp to be very professional because some of the youth
might get frightened. Red Dust made music with the young people and produced a
music video. Carers NT provided us with the vehicle, cooking utensils, chairs and
tents.
RESEARCH AND DISCUSSION
Research I have found shows that suicide rates for Indigenous youth in the Northern
Territory are increasing. There are high levels of suicide and attempted suicide in
Indigenous people across the Northern Territory and especially in remote areas. The
2012 ABS data for the period of 2001-2010 shows the overall rate of suicide for
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples (of all ages) was twice that of nonIndigenous people, with a rate ratio of 2.0 for males and 1.9 for females.
The Northern Territory has the highest rate of suicide compared to other jurisdictions.
The Victoria Daly Regional Council 2014-15 Nauiyu Community Plan reinforces this
message, stating there has been a “high suicide rate in recent times”, and that “youth
engagement is needed to assist current mental health problems and provide a
positive future.” I have noticed these negative behaviors in my community Nauiyu,
and I have also noticed bullying in the community. This can lead to suicide and
thoughts of suicide. I thought the camp would help with getting youth out bush and
connecting with the traditional way our ancestors lived.
The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention Strategy says
that suicide programs can’t be imposed on people in communities, and that programs
are better when they are developed by local people.
“there is a need for locally developed strategies to engage community members in
discussion about suicide prevention. External support should aim to assist
communities to take charge, plan and act”
(http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/content/mental-pub-atsisuicide-prevention-strategy, p 26)
“Substantial local input and capacity is integral to the generation of high
quality, meaningful resources supported by appropriate professional
expertise”
http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/content/mental-pubatsi-suicide-prevention-strategy, p 27)
The camp was successful because it was organised by local community people, and
stakeholders only provided support. None of it would have happened without it being
lead by myself and the community. These camps need to be built from the
community up. Stakeholders need to work with the community.
In 2008 Nauiyu health staff conducted a survey of young people aged between
15 – 25 asking them about youth issues including depression, suicidal thoughts,
alcohol and other drugs, culture, housing, food supply, training, law, jobs and where
they can to go for help.
This survey showed that most young people think that culture is important. There is
an alarming rate of alcohol, drugs and smoking in young people. There is
overcrowding and lack of transport. Mental health issues such as depression and
anxiety, self-harm, loss and grief were evident.
I met several times with Sandi Ford from Anglicare to plan our art group for the
poster and t-shirts for the healing camps. We held a workshop for Nauiyu young
people and we also brainstormed about bullying. Anglicare supplied paints and
canvas so we all could paint pictures about how we feel on the inside.
From my meetings with stakeholders and our research we all decided to have a
healing camp. We contacted the manager of Tipperary Station so that we could set
up camp at the crossing called Jeboom.
Anglicare helped us to make a plan for the healing camp for Nauiyu young people
and supplied swags for each participant. They provided a psychologist and supplied
money for the t-shirts, posters and food. Sandi Ford from Anglicare also delivered
the SafeTalk training to the young people.
We had meetings and teleconferences with Carers NT Mental Health Troopy
Program to plan the healing camp. They supplied two vehicles, fuel, camping
equipment, chairs and cooking utensils. We asked Red Dust to come to the camp
with a music team so we could make a camp song and video.
Staff at Nauiyu Health Clinic participated in all of the meetings and helped out with
getting each of the camper’s bags. My boss also helped me with the planning and
the camp. I also talked to our Elders about permits and if they would like to come to
the camp to help connect and translate for our camp song and video.
FRAMING THE FUTURE
My project fits in with Confident Culture in Framing the Future as it values diversity of
people, aboriginal language, youth development and art. It is also helping to create a
happy, healthy community.
CONCLUSION/SUMMARY
The healing camp was excellent, we had fun and also made a song, video and did
training at the camp. The Elders translated language for us all so that we could make
song and video together. The song was about connecting to the land and how it
affected our inner spirts. It talks also about how bullying can hurt you. The song is
called ‘Little Creeks Flowin’, and is about problems in our lives which start out as little
streams and if we don’t get help they can flow into the river and hit the rocks if the
water is flowing too fast.
We all felt light and happy and everyone was interacting with each other after the
camp. We asked everyone to fill out an evaluation form. They used pictures and
faces to show how they felt. Most importantly we all learnt some new ways of dealing
with our feelings and sharing stories with each and every one of us.
The music and the video makes me feel proud of who I am and where I come from. It
was very special to me because I felt lighter and it was good to share this experience
with others during the camp.
I would like to take the young people out to a different state in Australia because I
reckon it would be nice for them because some of them have never left the Territory
since they were born.
I would like to recommend more healing camps and youth activities which may help
reduce alcohol and other drugs abuse. Connecting back to country is spiritual and it
important to have Elders with us. They helped translate meanings when we made our
video and song. Young people were talking to each other and were open and happy
during the camp. This type of healing is important for young people who are having
troubles in their lives.
This year on the Round Table has been a scary experience. There have been ups
and down but I feel grateful for the experience. I have learnt a lot and made lots of
friends. I came out of my shell a little bit throughout the year.
JEROME GILBERT