Walking side-by-side: Supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians to lead the way in alcohol research

K S Kylie Lee; Scott Wilson; Annalee E Stearne; Noel Hayman; James H Conigrave; Michael Doyle; Lynette Bullen; Teagan J Weatherall; Doug James; Taleah Reynolds; Jimmy Perry; Katherine M Conigrave; Members, Investigators, Indigenous Advisory Group and staff of the Centre of Research Excellence in Indigenous Health and Alcohol

doi:10.1111/dar.13523

Walking side-by-side: Supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians to lead the way in alcohol research

Drug Alcohol Rev. 2023 Feb;42(2):241-247. doi: 10.1111/dar.13523. Epub 2022 Aug 4.

Authors

K S Kylie Lee^{1

2

3

4

5}, Scott Wilson^{1

2

6}, Annalee E Stearne³, Noel Hayman^{7

8

9}, James H Conigrave^{1

2}, Michael Doyle^{1

2}, Lynette Bullen¹⁰, Teagan J Weatherall^{1

2}, Doug James¹¹, Taleah Reynolds^{1

2}, Jimmy Perry⁶, Katherine M Conigrave^{1

2

12}; Members, Investigators, Indigenous Advisory Group and staff of the Centre of Research Excellence in Indigenous Health and Alcohol

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Medicine and Health, Central Clinical School, NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Indigenous Health and Alcohol, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
² The Edith Collins Centre (Translational Research in Alcohol, Drugs and Toxicology), Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, Australia.
³ National Drug Research Institute and enAble Institute, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, Australia.
⁴ Burnet Institute, Melbourne, Australia.
⁵ Centre for Alcohol Policy Research, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.
⁶ Aboriginal Drug and Alcohol Council (South Australia) Aboriginal Corporation, Adelaide, Australia.
⁷ Southern Queensland Centre of Excellence in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Primary Health Care, Inala Indigenous Health Service, Brisbane, Australia.
⁸ School of Medicine, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia.
⁹ School of Medicine, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
¹⁰ Involuntary Drug and Alcohol Treatment Unit, Western NSW Local Health District, Dubbo, Australia.
¹¹ National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
¹² Drug Health Services, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, Australia.

Abstract

Several initiatives have sought to increase the number of First Nations individuals with a higher degree in research (i.e., PhD or research masters)-in Australia and in similarly colonised countries. However, little has been written on day-to-day support structures and mechanisms that might help First Nations Australian candidates thrive in postgraduate research degrees and beyond. For sensitive research fields such as alcohol, emerging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander researchers must grapple with topics which are stigmatising and in some instances associated with traumatic associations. There is also a lack of studies internationally that describe optimal support for First Nations students undertaking a higher degree by research with a primary focus on alcohol. Here we discuss what we have learned from the support offered through the Centre of Research Excellence in Indigenous Health and Alcohol-from the perspective of academic staff, students, trainees and early career researchers. We consider what may be generalisable lessons from this experience.

Keywords: Aboriginal; Australia; Indigenous; Torres Strait Islander; researcher.

Walking side-by-side: Supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians to lead the way in alcohol research

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

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Grants and funding