| Australia is one of the healthiest countries in the world, with one of the most dramatic examples of social inequalities in health. In this dissertation, I examine the processes and institutional structures that affect relations between the Victorian Aboriginal (Koori) community-controlled health sector and government in the development, implementation and evaluation of health policy. I map the key community and government stakeholders in the Australian Aboriginal health sector, while analyzing tensions between the concepts of community control and of partnership in public health. In the process, I look to the complex challenges of Aboriginal representation and self-determination in the context of contemporary, urban Australian society. On a program level, I use Australian blindness prevention policy as a case study for the translation of policy into practice. Finally, I reflect upon the roles of anthropologists and the academy in public policy and community advocacy. |
