0:00:34 > 0:00:39Two years ago, Doctor Mary Fortune, an experienced GP from the Scottish Highlands,
0:00:39 > 0:00:45promised to return to Australia to work for three months in Aboriginal health care.
0:00:47 > 0:00:54Based at an Aboriginal clinic in Kununurra, Mary soon discovered the shocking state of Aboriginal health.
0:00:54 > 0:00:58Many struck down with preventable Third World diseases.
0:00:58 > 0:01:04These bugs come into the body, they go down, get into the heart, bang, time bomb.
0:01:04 > 0:01:08And you do wonder how that can happen in a country like this.
0:01:08 > 0:01:13She was horrified by the conditions in the Aboriginal housing estates.
0:01:13 > 0:01:17I'm really sort of struggling here to understand how...
0:01:17 > 0:01:20how this situation has come about.
0:01:20 > 0:01:27She witnessed first-hand the drug and alcohol fuelled disintegration of Aboriginal life and culture...
0:01:27 > 0:01:32My people are dying quickly from alcohol.
0:01:34 > 0:01:36And there's nothing to stop it.
0:01:36 > 0:01:40..leaving Mary feeling confused and looking for answers.
0:01:40 > 0:01:45Your head just goes round and round and round the whole time thinking, "Why?
0:01:45 > 0:01:47"Why has this situation got so bad?"
0:01:47 > 0:01:53On arrival in Australia, Mary's mission generated great political interest
0:01:53 > 0:01:57when she was delighted to meet the Deputy Premier to discuss her work.
0:01:57 > 0:01:59And, as she approaches her final three weeks,
0:01:59 > 0:02:03the Australian government announce a surprise general election.
0:02:03 > 0:02:09Not being allowed to vote, Mary finds her own way to get involved.
0:02:09 > 0:02:12You can see it's a photo finish.
0:02:12 > 0:02:17I put a wee bet on and we'll wait and see what happens.
0:02:17 > 0:02:21But do you know, medicine and politics go hand in hand.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38I'm not enjoying myself,
0:02:38 > 0:02:42but you know, as a doctor, I'm experiencing something that
0:02:42 > 0:02:48I would never have had the opportunity to experience had I stayed at home in my cosy surgery.
0:02:48 > 0:02:52Swallow? Clever you. Oh, well done.
0:02:52 > 0:02:54It pushes your boundaries to the limit.
0:02:54 > 0:02:56It pushes your emotions to the limit.
0:02:56 > 0:03:03Sores around the ears and then the back there, and there's a runny ear here as well.
0:03:03 > 0:03:09I mean, if you think every day's a struggle for you,
0:03:09 > 0:03:13what the hell is it like for these people out there that have got these problems?
0:03:13 > 0:03:16You know, my life's a breeze in comparison.
0:03:16 > 0:03:20I'm a privileged person, you know? I'm one of the lucky ones.
0:03:20 > 0:03:27Aboriginal life expectancy can be up to 20 years less than non-indigenous Australians.
0:03:27 > 0:03:28How are you today?
0:03:28 > 0:03:34Good? Well, if you're good, why are you at the doctor's?
0:03:34 > 0:03:42Almost half of Aboriginal men, and over a third of Aboriginal women, will die before the age of 45.
0:03:42 > 0:03:49The Ord Valley Aboriginal Health Service Clinic, or OVAHS, was opened in 1983, to cater for
0:03:49 > 0:03:54the specific needs of Aboriginals, although its doors are open to everyone, black or white.
0:03:54 > 0:03:58- Is this your big sister you're here with?- My mum.
0:03:58 > 0:03:59THEY LAUGH
0:03:59 > 0:04:05At that time, Aboriginal people were just emerging from a suppressed and brutal past.
0:04:05 > 0:04:10One of the founding members of the clinic, Frank Chulung, lived through it.
0:04:10 > 0:04:16The way they've treated Aboriginal people is really bad.
0:04:16 > 0:04:18I've treated my dog better.
0:04:19 > 0:04:21And, um,
0:04:21 > 0:04:22but that was the way of life.
0:04:22 > 0:04:28The shocking state of indigenous health was one of the main concerns
0:04:28 > 0:04:32of a radical group of Aboriginal activists in the '70s and '80s.
0:04:32 > 0:04:39as a member, Frank went on to use his experience and political muscle to do something about it.
0:04:39 > 0:04:45So in 1983, I decided to get a medical service up and running here,
0:04:45 > 0:04:50and at that time we all believed that, from the National Aboriginal Conference
0:04:50 > 0:04:54that represented, we all believed that we should bring
0:04:54 > 0:04:58Aboriginal people up to local, state, national and international levels.
0:04:58 > 0:05:03And I guess to some extent we have achieved something like that now.
0:05:03 > 0:05:08But after three decades of working flat out,
0:05:08 > 0:05:12the state of Aboriginal health has barely improved,
0:05:12 > 0:05:17leaving those now in charge under extreme pressure.
0:05:17 > 0:05:21We have two and a half full time doctors and one locum.
0:05:21 > 0:05:25What we need is a minimum of five permanent doctors.
0:05:25 > 0:05:30However, in order to see every single person, we need seven doctors, simple as that.
0:05:30 > 0:05:32So you've got a huge shortfall here.
0:05:32 > 0:05:38It's massive. It's massive. We need seven doctors, we need 13 nurses, 13 Aboriginal health workers,
0:05:38 > 0:05:42we need seven drivers and we need five people working at the front desk.
0:05:42 > 0:05:43We don't have that.
0:05:46 > 0:05:50Although the clinic has no appointment system, elderly patients
0:05:50 > 0:05:55are given priority if their medical state is deemed an emergency.
0:05:55 > 0:05:59What do you think about going to hospital?
0:05:59 > 0:06:03Mary decides this old lady is an emergency,
0:06:03 > 0:06:05and may need hospitalisation.
0:06:05 > 0:06:12- Yeah. Are you very busy? - But first, she has to check with the local hospital to find a bed space.
0:06:12 > 0:06:19I have a patient who's probably very well known to you, called Linda Cameron.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23She's a 71-year-old lady who suffers from COPD...
0:06:23 > 0:06:29Linda Cameron's carer, Veronica, has become increasingly anxious about Linda's living conditions.
0:06:29 > 0:06:33Believing it's no longer safe to leave Linda at home, she has
0:06:33 > 0:06:37brought her directly to the clinic in an attempt to find a solution.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41And I'll take a list of her medicines for you right away. Thank you
0:06:41 > 0:06:44very much, Erik. Thank you. See you. Bye, bye.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48He says, "I know that lady."
0:06:49 > 0:06:51So that's fine.
0:06:51 > 0:06:55Things at home are not good, are they?
0:06:56 > 0:07:04Things... People that are meant to be looking after you aren't looking after you as well as they should,
0:07:04 > 0:07:10and from what I hear, I think it's important that we put you into hospital and care for you for
0:07:10 > 0:07:18a few days, to give you a few days' break from the chaos at home and then see how things are.
0:07:18 > 0:07:20INDISTINCT
0:07:24 > 0:07:29Mary became familiar with Linda's home circumstances when
0:07:29 > 0:07:33two weeks earlier, she arrived at the clinic in a frail state.
0:07:35 > 0:07:41After a further examination today, Mary believes her condition has deteriorated,
0:07:41 > 0:07:45not just from infection but domestic circumstances.
0:07:45 > 0:07:47And the only course of action,
0:07:47 > 0:07:50to move her from her own home.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53This is a lifeline for them
0:07:53 > 0:07:56because they don't like going to hospital unless they have to.
0:07:56 > 0:08:00Linda here doesn't want to go to hospital, but she knows
0:08:00 > 0:08:03she'll feel better when she comes out after a few days.
0:08:06 > 0:08:11It'd just be so nice if these elderly people, who are meant to be respected individuals
0:08:11 > 0:08:20of the community were cared and looked after in a tender, loving and supportive environment.
0:08:20 > 0:08:23I mean, my God, that's what every human being needs.
0:08:23 > 0:08:29It's a human right, that they should have proper housing, proper sanitation, people who care for them.
0:08:47 > 0:08:53When I look at how my mother lives, and how Linda lives, there is just no comparison.
0:08:58 > 0:09:04Many Aboriginals live on designated estates, or so called "reserves" in and around Kununurra.
0:09:06 > 0:09:11Mary had previously visited a nearby estate to see for herself.
0:09:15 > 0:09:19It's like a ghetto, really. It's like a rural slum.
0:09:21 > 0:09:27I would not be able to sustain that type of living myself as a younger person.
0:09:27 > 0:09:31I mean, can you imagine being plucked out of our home and put
0:09:31 > 0:09:37into their home at the age of 71, with illnesses, etcetera etcetera, how would you feel?
0:09:37 > 0:09:39How would you cope?
0:09:39 > 0:09:44No bed, no change of clothes, 20 people, 30 people
0:09:44 > 0:09:47coming through your home like a train every night, stealing your food.
0:09:47 > 0:09:53Cats and dogs around, broken windows, people breaking in.
0:09:53 > 0:09:58I mean, how the hell would you be able to live, like that?
0:09:59 > 0:10:01It's deplorable, it's despicable. It's shameful.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04Hi, Linda.
0:10:04 > 0:10:10- It's Doctor Mary. Remember I saw you in the clinic this afternoon?- Yeah.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12How are you feeling tonight?
0:10:12 > 0:10:14Fine. I'm relaxed.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17I think you're a familiar face here, aren't you, darling?
0:10:17 > 0:10:22It's unbelievable and I've seen that time and time again.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25Line of tragedy coming in that door at the OVAHS.
0:10:25 > 0:10:30Every single one of them has tragedy written on their forehead before you even look at their notes.
0:10:30 > 0:10:34Is that better? And you know, these are Linda's notes.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37She's 71, so she's done pretty well.
0:10:37 > 0:10:44But there's notes this thick on people who are 30, 40 years old with chronic disease.
0:10:44 > 0:10:46Why should that be?
0:10:46 > 0:10:48Why should it be?
0:10:49 > 0:10:52I'm sorry, I'm getting angry, but that's
0:10:52 > 0:10:54you know...
0:10:54 > 0:10:56It's just shocking.
0:11:01 > 0:11:05To help ease the stresses and strains, Mary looks forward to
0:11:05 > 0:11:09her daily contact with her family, half-way around the globe.
0:11:14 > 0:11:18Look at you! What are you doin' with that hat on?
0:11:19 > 0:11:21G'day, Bruce, how're you doin', mate?
0:11:21 > 0:11:26- 'G'day, mate.'- Are you havin' good weather there or what?
0:11:26 > 0:11:29Are you going to put that in your case?
0:11:29 > 0:11:35After almost 11 weeks of living apart, Mary's husband, Alistair,
0:11:35 > 0:11:40has decided to fly out and help her through the last few days of her placement.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42Well, I wish you were coming this weekend.
0:11:42 > 0:11:44'So do I. So do I.'
0:11:44 > 0:11:46I'm lonely.
0:11:46 > 0:11:51'I'm lonely! Will you get a bottle of champagne or something into the fridge? A wee bottle of wine?'
0:11:51 > 0:11:54No, there'll be a couple of bottles of champagne in the fridge.
0:11:54 > 0:12:00There's just too much to tell you but believe you me, it has been
0:12:00 > 0:12:02- really difficult. - 'I know that.'- Yeah, yeah, yeah.
0:12:04 > 0:12:08'Was it worse than you originally expected it to be?'
0:12:08 > 0:12:12I don't think anything would prepare you for this, Alistair, to be honest.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15Nothing.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18- 'It sounds pretty dire.'- Oh, it is.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20'Can you hear Mum?'
0:12:21 > 0:12:23Oh, tell him I love him and I miss him.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27- 'Don't be too late in getting home.' - OK. I love you, darling.
0:12:27 > 0:12:29- 'I love you.'- I love you.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32- Take care.- 'I'll speak to you soon. Hopefully tomorrow. OK?'
0:12:32 > 0:12:35Love you. Bye.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46- You're a big fella. - They said down here.
0:12:46 > 0:12:49Just to the left now, along here.
0:12:49 > 0:12:51You're some man, Charlie.
0:12:51 > 0:12:53You've got gout.
0:12:53 > 0:12:58You've had a broken ankle, you've had a broken tibia, you've had a broken fibula.
0:12:58 > 0:13:03You've got two knee replacements, You've got multiple fractures in
0:13:03 > 0:13:06both hands, you've fractured your lower back.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08Is there anything else?
0:13:08 > 0:13:12- Front teeth are all gone. - Your front teeth. OK.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15- And up here.- Up there.
0:13:15 > 0:13:17And how did you do that?
0:13:17 > 0:13:20- I hit a tree.- Oh, jeepers.
0:13:20 > 0:13:23And that's all due to rodeo?
0:13:37 > 0:13:40The Kununurra Rodeo is one of the biggest events of the year,
0:13:40 > 0:13:45and provides a much needed distraction for Mary from the pressures of the OVAHS clinic.
0:13:45 > 0:13:47Yeehar!
0:13:57 > 0:14:00The two-day event is a display of traditional skills
0:14:00 > 0:14:07learned during the early days of colonisation, when sheep and cattle were imported in vast quantities.
0:14:10 > 0:14:11Hey!
0:14:14 > 0:14:20Due to their skills with animals and knowledge of the land, many Aboriginals were taken on
0:14:20 > 0:14:27as cattle hands and worked side by side with their white counterparts, which has stood the test of time.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32Today's skilled horseman and wranglers come from all over Australia,
0:14:32 > 0:14:37including one of the top stars, local boy Aaron Griffiths.
0:14:37 > 0:14:39Aaron, good on you Aaron.
0:14:39 > 0:14:41You got your licence,
0:14:41 > 0:14:43and Harry Wilson.
0:14:43 > 0:14:46I see you've got a prize in your pocket there. What'd you get?
0:14:46 > 0:14:48- Ah, second place in the bullride. - Oh, fantastic.- Yeah.
0:14:48 > 0:14:50I mean, there's some big beasts there.
0:14:50 > 0:14:53Yeah, they're pretty good, yeah.
0:14:53 > 0:14:59So is this bull riding and horse riding and rodeo and station stuff go way back into your family history?
0:14:59 > 0:15:03Yeah. Well, I've been ringing for the last... Ever since I was 13.
0:15:03 > 0:15:07- Ringing, does that mean mustering, riding horses?- Riding horses, yeah.
0:15:07 > 0:15:09- So it's in your blood.- Yeah.
0:15:09 > 0:15:14My grandfather and his father did it, and now all my sons are doing it,
0:15:14 > 0:15:17- and my grandchild's doing it. - So you're doing it.
0:15:17 > 0:15:2250 years ago, it wasn't done for sport.
0:15:22 > 0:15:26Living and working in the cattle industry had few pleasures.
0:15:28 > 0:15:32Well, I worked out on the cattle station,
0:15:32 > 0:15:36Newry Cattle Station back in 1956, when I was 16,
0:15:36 > 0:15:40and I seen how the Aboriginal people at them stations were treated.
0:15:41 > 0:15:46Another thing I could tell you that you really wouldn't think had happened to Aboriginal people, that
0:15:46 > 0:15:51women used to be raped, Aboriginal women used to be raped by white men at will.
0:15:52 > 0:15:54And there...
0:15:54 > 0:16:02I've never known anybody to be charged with sexual assault, or rape, you know, right until about 1972.
0:16:02 > 0:16:10Even as late as the 1960s, many Aboriginals were considered to be the property of the landowners.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13They were working as labourers,
0:16:13 > 0:16:16to put it mildly. I mean, some people say they worked there as slaves
0:16:16 > 0:16:20because they just worked for nothing.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23They were fed
0:16:23 > 0:16:24and that's about it.
0:16:24 > 0:16:29So tea and sugar, as people say. We worked for tea and sugar.
0:16:31 > 0:16:37In 1967 a national referendum was held, giving Aboriginals basic human rights,
0:16:37 > 0:16:43removing them from their previous status of flora and fauna.
0:16:43 > 0:16:47Two years later, an equal pay act was introduced,
0:16:47 > 0:16:51forcing white landowners to up the wages for Aboriginals,
0:16:51 > 0:16:55from tea and sugar to the going rate.
0:16:55 > 0:17:00Imagine what happens if people leave the farm or cattle station.
0:17:00 > 0:17:06Has about 50 or 100, or maybe even only 30 Aboriginal people working there for nothing
0:17:06 > 0:17:12and suddenly they would have to pay the same wages they would pay to their white farm hands.
0:17:12 > 0:17:16What happens? They got laid off.
0:17:16 > 0:17:22And that's just exactly what happened. That's what drove the people into towns.
0:17:25 > 0:17:30They have no idea how to live in houses.
0:17:30 > 0:17:36They have no introduction to so called civilisation that the white people brought in.
0:17:36 > 0:17:42Suddenly there were shops, there was alcohol, there was western lifestyle.
0:17:42 > 0:17:45And people were dumped into that.
0:17:45 > 0:17:49In a way, I was surprised when I first arrived here, and people said
0:17:49 > 0:17:51"Oh, the good old days when we still worked on the station," they said.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54Oh, come on, you worked as slaves.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57What good old days are you talking about?
0:17:57 > 0:18:01But people said, "Yeah, but yeah, there was no drinking and we had a job,
0:18:01 > 0:18:05"we knew what to do and in the wet season we had a holiday time
0:18:05 > 0:18:08"so we left our stuff behind and we went bush again
0:18:08 > 0:18:12"for a few months, then came back and worked on the station again."
0:18:12 > 0:18:16People refer to that as a good time.
0:18:16 > 0:18:21They are aware that on some stations, you were mistreated.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24You were probably beaten.
0:18:24 > 0:18:28And yet, if you ask the old people,
0:18:28 > 0:18:30they were
0:18:30 > 0:18:33well, they have some nostalgic feelings about those times.
0:18:33 > 0:18:39Because now, they are surrounded by our modern life problems
0:18:39 > 0:18:42and it seems it has an even stronger impact on people.
0:18:49 > 0:18:54Since leaving his job as stockman and cattle wrangler 40 years ago,
0:18:54 > 0:18:59Alan Griffiths is now famous for his work as an artist and painter.
0:18:59 > 0:19:05During Mary's stint at the OVAHS clinic, Alan has become one of her regular patients.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08It's still ticking, that's the important thing.
0:19:08 > 0:19:14I can see a kangaroo up there on the top of the hill.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18Say that again? Say it slowly for me.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21I think you got it a wee bit quick there.
0:19:21 > 0:19:25- What'd you say?- I can see a kangaroo fella up on the hill there.
0:19:25 > 0:19:27I can see a kangaroo up the top of the hill there.
0:19:27 > 0:19:34Alan has invited Mary to his place of work, the Waringarri Aboriginal Arts Centre, on the edge of town.
0:19:34 > 0:19:36Hi there.
0:19:36 > 0:19:41- You must be Cathy.- Hi, Mary, how are you?- At last we've got here.
0:19:41 > 0:19:45- Terrific. Well, here's Alan at work. - Here's Alan.- Hello.
0:19:45 > 0:19:50You look much more comfortable sitting there than you do in the surgery, that's for sure.
0:19:50 > 0:19:52So this is your expertise?
0:19:54 > 0:19:57You know that I met your grandson at the rodeo?
0:19:57 > 0:20:01He can certainly sit on a horse and a bull, can't he?
0:20:01 > 0:20:03He learned that from his grandad, did he?
0:20:03 > 0:20:11- Yeah.- Yeah?- Got a little bit of style from me, I think.
0:20:11 > 0:20:16- What did he say? - He's got style from him.
0:20:16 > 0:20:17I would say he has, actually.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21As a community elder and custodian of Aboriginal culture,
0:20:21 > 0:20:23Alan is keen for all white visitors
0:20:23 > 0:20:27to see first hand what the gallery is trying to achieve.
0:20:27 > 0:20:32- So this was a story?- Yeah. - It was a dream he had?
0:20:32 > 0:20:35Yes, he had a dream and that dream was then
0:20:35 > 0:20:39- transferred into a performance, which he now paints.- Right.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43Alan and curator, Cathy Cummins believe that many
0:20:43 > 0:20:47Aboriginal traditions and ways of life are vanishing.
0:20:47 > 0:20:49What the senior artists have been asking us
0:20:49 > 0:20:53to do for quite a while is, and this is across the Kimberley too,
0:20:53 > 0:20:58is to film them, to video them, to document what they have to say,
0:20:58 > 0:21:01document their stories.
0:21:01 > 0:21:05They are so well aware of what's happening to the generations
0:21:05 > 0:21:12below them and their hope is that these recordings will be held.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15When someone's ready to look at them, they'll be there.
0:21:16 > 0:21:19It's not only damaging to the young people in this community,
0:21:19 > 0:21:23it's damaging to the knowledge base of Australia.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26We're losing that because we're not listening enough.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28The losing of knowledge, the losing of culture,
0:21:28 > 0:21:32the losing of recognition
0:21:32 > 0:21:35- and if it's not archived, you've lost it.- Yeah.
0:21:36 > 0:21:40The Kimberley region is rich in Aboriginal history,
0:21:40 > 0:21:44dating back more than 40,000 years.
0:21:44 > 0:21:50But the stories and events since colonisation, just 200 years ago,
0:21:50 > 0:21:53are equally important to preserve, no matter how painful.
0:21:56 > 0:21:59ABORIGINAL CHANTING
0:22:03 > 0:22:05Fire Fire Burning Bright,
0:22:05 > 0:22:09a true story of brutality, racism and murder,
0:22:09 > 0:22:14goes straight to the heart of the difficult relationship between black and white
0:22:14 > 0:22:19and was brought to prominence by senior Aboriginal elder
0:22:19 > 0:22:21and cultural custodian, Peggy Patrick.
0:22:23 > 0:22:28I've read all about you and it's just clicked who you are.
0:22:28 > 0:22:31I've read about you in Fire Fire Burning Bright.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35- Yeah.- That's you? - That's mine.- Fantastic.
0:22:45 > 0:22:47The story goes,
0:22:47 > 0:22:52a group of around 12 Aboriginal men, including Peggy's father,
0:22:52 > 0:22:54were falsely accused of stealing a cow.
0:22:54 > 0:22:59They were chained and frogmarched to a remote cattle station.
0:22:59 > 0:23:04The men were forced to chop wood in preparation for their own funeral pyre.
0:23:06 > 0:23:08They were poisoned with strychnine
0:23:08 > 0:23:11and then bludgeoned and shot at close range...
0:23:13 > 0:23:17Their half-dead bodies then thrown on the blazing pyre.
0:23:24 > 0:23:28Peggy's work has become so popular and far-reaching
0:23:28 > 0:23:31she recently became one of the few Aboriginals to be awarded
0:23:31 > 0:23:34one of the country's most prestigious honours,
0:23:34 > 0:23:35the Order of Australia.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45You're an amazing woman, Peggy Patrick.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48- Thank you.- Amazing woman.
0:23:48 > 0:23:55Peggy and Alan Griffiths have worked tirelessly for conciliation between black and white.
0:23:55 > 0:24:00Some time, you're going to be like that.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03And over the last 50 years, tensions have eased.
0:24:03 > 0:24:08Would you like to come in? You got a wee present there for me?
0:24:08 > 0:24:11The mix of black and white patients at the clinic
0:24:11 > 0:24:15gives Mary a snapshot of today's race relations.
0:24:15 > 0:24:19To me, it doesn't matter if your skin's black, white or yellow,
0:24:19 > 0:24:24we're the same, we all get sick, we've all got a heart.
0:24:24 > 0:24:27So, yeah, it doesn't make any difference to me.
0:24:29 > 0:24:32- Makes a difference to some people in this town, doesn't it? - Some, yeah.
0:24:32 > 0:24:38The majority of them don't work, they will never work, they don't want to work,
0:24:38 > 0:24:42whereas I've worked all my life and paid my taxes.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45They're getting away with murder, black fellas.
0:24:45 > 0:24:47They're getting far too much money.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50And it's not this generation's fault either,
0:24:50 > 0:24:55it's the generation before them and before them and before. They've had no education.
0:24:55 > 0:24:59They come in the roadhouse drunk and smash things.
0:24:59 > 0:25:03Yeah, that's bad, but the majority of people, they're good.
0:25:03 > 0:25:09Yeah. It's when they get on the piss a bit and like any white man too.
0:25:09 > 0:25:15But some Aboriginal and mixed-race patients have a more discerning view.
0:25:15 > 0:25:20Australia's got a habit of being known as a polite racism country.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23There's nothing polite about racism.
0:25:23 > 0:25:29There's also nothing polite about the genocide that's happening in these regions.
0:25:29 > 0:25:32I think that that's... a lot of people don't see that.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35They think, well no, this is not a form of genocide,
0:25:35 > 0:25:39and so genocide comes in different ways.
0:25:39 > 0:25:43I think what we're seeing here is a genocide in all different ways.
0:25:45 > 0:25:50Yeah. It's pretty evident when you see what's happening here
0:25:50 > 0:25:53with patients coming through
0:25:53 > 0:25:59and I do think sometimes, it must be very difficult for white Australians
0:25:59 > 0:26:02not to want to perhaps recognise that this is
0:26:02 > 0:26:05happening in their own backyard.
0:26:11 > 0:26:19- RADIO:- Good morning, this is AM, I'm Tony Eastley on the last full day at election campaigning.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23Well, it worked for the Conservative Party in the UK earlier this year, and now...
0:26:23 > 0:26:26Goodness, what a crowd of folks.
0:26:26 > 0:26:28This is the leisure centre in Kununurra,
0:26:28 > 0:26:30which is the polling booth today,
0:26:30 > 0:26:35THE most important day of the year really, for Australians,
0:26:35 > 0:26:38voting for the new Prime Minister.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42Voting in Australia is compulsory.
0:26:44 > 0:26:48But, I don't have a vote, so I'm not going to get into trouble.
0:26:52 > 0:26:58Winning full citizenship and voting rights has been a long, hard battle.
0:26:58 > 0:27:03The election in 1973 enabled black and white
0:27:03 > 0:27:06to vote on an equal footing for the first time.
0:27:06 > 0:27:10On the run-up to the election, Frank was out canvassing,
0:27:10 > 0:27:12encouraging his people to vote.
0:27:12 > 0:27:18I went out and tried to get them all on the roll for voting
0:27:18 > 0:27:23and when I got back to Wyndham, the story...
0:27:23 > 0:27:25Well, there was a big commotion about it.
0:27:25 > 0:27:30There was a lot of the white voters up in arms, fully armed, they were going to gun me down.
0:27:30 > 0:27:33They reckoned I was out recruiting Aborigines for black power,
0:27:33 > 0:27:36going to take over the white people.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39- And they threatened to shoot you? - They did, they threatened to shoot me.
0:27:39 > 0:27:45That was back in 1973. It's still crystal clear in my mind.
0:27:45 > 0:27:4937 years on, and the voters at the polling stations
0:27:49 > 0:27:52are much more congenial and unguarded.
0:27:52 > 0:27:53- Hello, there, how are you?- Hi.
0:27:53 > 0:27:56Just wondered what issues are prominent in your mind
0:27:56 > 0:27:59- when you're waiting to vote? - Black people.- Pardon?
0:27:59 > 0:28:03Black people, mining tax, and am I going to vote for the right person.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06Immigration, big one.
0:28:06 > 0:28:10WA getting a fair share of the royalties from mining.
0:28:10 > 0:28:15- Are you thinking about what you're voting for while queuing? - No, I never think.
0:28:15 > 0:28:18I can't see any black faces in the queue. I just wondered...?
0:28:18 > 0:28:21I hope there's a bus out there picking some of them up.
0:28:21 > 0:28:24Most of them get ushered along by someone.
0:28:24 > 0:28:27- What do you mean? - Brought along, basically.
0:28:27 > 0:28:29What about indigenous affairs?
0:28:32 > 0:28:34I think they're all right, don't you?
0:28:34 > 0:28:38Well, I'm asking you, I wondered is indigenous affairs something you think about?
0:28:38 > 0:28:41- No.- Why? Can you explain to me? I'm new here.
0:28:41 > 0:28:45I think they're pretty well looked after, as far as I'm concerned.
0:28:45 > 0:28:47You think it should be an issue, then?
0:28:47 > 0:28:51Yet, because a lot of taxpayers' money is spent there.
0:28:51 > 0:28:55- Too much, maybe?- I'm not saying too much, but it's spent wrongly.
0:28:55 > 0:28:57It's spent too much on ministration,
0:28:57 > 0:29:00not down to where it's supposed to be. Nothing changes.
0:29:00 > 0:29:04You just have to go for a drive round the outskirts of here, nothing changes.
0:29:05 > 0:29:10Do Aboriginal people really have that much clout
0:29:10 > 0:29:14when it comes to health dollars?
0:29:14 > 0:29:18Do their votes really count that much?
0:29:18 > 0:29:20Are you going to put 1.8 million
0:29:20 > 0:29:24into the Ord Valley Aboriginal Health Service
0:29:24 > 0:29:28so that we can provide a service? Or do we put it into
0:29:28 > 0:29:34a marginal seat in Perth or in Adelaide or wherever?
0:29:34 > 0:29:39I don't want to be a cynical bastard. I want to be...
0:29:39 > 0:29:42I want to think that people...
0:29:42 > 0:29:47No, no, I'm just a cynical bastard, actually.
0:29:48 > 0:29:51Change is not going to happen overnight.
0:29:51 > 0:29:55Change isn't going to happen until we believe it's going to be meaningful for us.
0:29:55 > 0:29:59It's going to get harder for us black fellas
0:29:59 > 0:30:04if we don't really start unifying our way of thinking and really working on one outcome.
0:30:04 > 0:30:06One voice, one outcome.
0:30:11 > 0:30:14- RADIO:- It's 24 to seven on RM Breakfast.
0:30:14 > 0:30:17First, though, it may seem improbable
0:30:17 > 0:30:19but going on current opinion polls,
0:30:19 > 0:30:23the chance of a hung parliament after the next election is real.
0:30:23 > 0:30:28Yes, the current state of play is that Labor has 72 seats, the coalition 69,
0:30:28 > 0:30:35and then the Greens, one, independents, three, with five seats still hanging in the balance.
0:30:35 > 0:30:37Medicine and politics go hand in hand
0:30:37 > 0:30:40and I've been watching the election with great interest,
0:30:40 > 0:30:46because when I was here a few years ago, Kevin Rudd made the apology
0:30:46 > 0:30:50to the stolen generation and I think a lot of people at that point thought
0:30:50 > 0:30:56yes, you know, something positive is going to be done for Aboriginal issues.
0:30:57 > 0:31:02Today, the Parliament has come together to right a great wrong...
0:31:02 > 0:31:06In 2008, during a medical placement in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia,
0:31:06 > 0:31:11Mary witnessed an historic event, Apology Day.
0:31:11 > 0:31:16Recognised by many as one of the most important days in Australian history,
0:31:16 > 0:31:18when the government finally came to terms
0:31:18 > 0:31:22with its past treatment of the Aboriginal people.
0:31:22 > 0:31:25We apologise, especially for the removal
0:31:25 > 0:31:29of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families,
0:31:29 > 0:31:31their communities and their country.
0:31:33 > 0:31:38..for the pain, suffering and hurt the of these stolen generations...
0:31:38 > 0:31:42During the last century and only ending in 1975,
0:31:42 > 0:31:46over 50,000 Aboriginal children were forcibly removed
0:31:46 > 0:31:51from their parents in an attempt to cleanse them from their indigenous heritage.
0:31:51 > 0:31:56Referred to as "the stolen generation", these children
0:31:56 > 0:31:59were hidden away in boarding houses and Christian missions
0:31:59 > 0:32:03and many were subjected to physical and sexual abuse.
0:32:05 > 0:32:11For the pain, suffering and hurt of these stolen generations we say sorry.
0:32:13 > 0:32:17As a mother, you can't even begin to think
0:32:17 > 0:32:21and to appreciate what has gone on in this country
0:32:21 > 0:32:24when these people came and stole their children.
0:32:24 > 0:32:30To the mothers and the fathers, the brothers and the sisters,
0:32:30 > 0:32:34for the breaking up of families and communities, we say sorry.
0:32:42 > 0:32:45Now, two years on, two and a half years on,
0:32:45 > 0:32:47I've been watching this very closely
0:32:47 > 0:32:51and speaking to people that work here at the OVAHS clinic about politics,
0:32:51 > 0:32:55and nobody ever wants to say who they're going to vote for,
0:32:55 > 0:33:01but what we all have in common here is that there's been very little said in the media,
0:33:01 > 0:33:07on television, on radio, about indigenous health affairs
0:33:07 > 0:33:09and what can be done to improve these things.
0:33:09 > 0:33:15Of course, it's obvious to me that it's a low, low priority.
0:33:15 > 0:33:20But it is really sad to see the potential next Prime Ministers
0:33:20 > 0:33:23saying very little about indigenous health issues
0:33:23 > 0:33:26and I would have thought that in a country such as this,
0:33:26 > 0:33:29it would have been a priority.
0:33:29 > 0:33:33You know, they've talked more about sending the boat people back
0:33:33 > 0:33:37and abortion and things like that than actually,
0:33:37 > 0:33:40the natural custodians of their land.
0:33:52 > 0:33:54It's the day Mary has been looking forward to,
0:33:54 > 0:33:56the arrival of her husband, Alastair.
0:34:01 > 0:34:03Apart from two short medical placements,
0:34:03 > 0:34:09Alastair and Mary have only been separated for 10 days in their 25 years of marriage.
0:34:15 > 0:34:19Oh! I love you!
0:34:26 > 0:34:31- Bloody Falkland Islands! Did you have a good flight?- Yeah, good.
0:34:31 > 0:34:36- Good flight.- Long.- Are you tired? - No, not too bad.- Not too bad.
0:34:36 > 0:34:39I just thought I'd let you feel the heat.
0:34:39 > 0:34:44- It's wonderful. Melbourne was so cold!- Yeah?
0:34:44 > 0:34:49- I told you to put a nice shirt on!- I did! Not too nice!
0:34:50 > 0:34:52Welcome.
0:34:57 > 0:35:00- Nice to have you.- Many of them.
0:35:00 > 0:35:05I mean, it has been a long, long time to be on your own.
0:35:05 > 0:35:11But, it's strange that you just walk through the door together
0:35:11 > 0:35:16and, it's going to be not only lovely to see you, but now,
0:35:16 > 0:35:19I'll not have to do the shopping, the banking, all these things
0:35:19 > 0:35:25and cooking and you can see the bed sheets are still on the whirligig there,
0:35:25 > 0:35:30- so that might be one of your first jobs, cos you're very good at that. - That and bed and breakfast!
0:35:30 > 0:35:36I mean, it is odd and it's sad that Tom's not with us but it wasn't to be.
0:35:36 > 0:35:40Has she told you about what kind of stuff she's dealing with, getting her hands dirty?
0:35:40 > 0:35:45Yes, yes, she's been quite graphic in her details at times.
0:35:45 > 0:35:53I think we've worked out a fair idea of the stresses she's working under at times.
0:35:53 > 0:35:54It's been very long.
0:35:54 > 0:35:58- It's been very long.- It has gone slowly, it's not been a quick... - No.
0:36:01 > 0:36:02Yeah, I am relieved.
0:36:06 > 0:36:10With just days to go before the end of her contract, Mary has accepted
0:36:10 > 0:36:15an invitation to help out for an evening at the local hospital.
0:36:16 > 0:36:18- Have you had a scan?- Yes.
0:36:18 > 0:36:21Senior Medical Officer, Dr Eric Beltz,
0:36:21 > 0:36:24worked in Botswana for several years before moving to Australia
0:36:24 > 0:36:28and is highly experienced in Third World medicine.
0:36:28 > 0:36:32- Were you shocked when you came here? - It's a different approach.
0:36:32 > 0:36:37I mean, health is extremely important for everybody
0:36:37 > 0:36:41and there seems to be a different approach to health here.
0:36:41 > 0:36:44- It's a girl.- It's a girl? OK.
0:36:46 > 0:36:51There's far less resources that side than here.
0:36:51 > 0:36:56I think it's a bit of education that you're saying is needed,
0:36:56 > 0:36:59but the priorities should be right here.
0:37:02 > 0:37:06Both doctors share common knowledge of Third World healthcare.
0:37:06 > 0:37:09They also share the same frustrations as to what can be done about it.
0:37:09 > 0:37:12You know, I just think something,
0:37:12 > 0:37:14and I've got not the answer,
0:37:14 > 0:37:17something has got to be done to reverse this treating
0:37:17 > 0:37:21endstage renal failure, endstage cardiac failure,
0:37:21 > 0:37:26by operations that cost 40,000 or whatever for a valve.
0:37:26 > 0:37:31Let's look at the housing, the things that cause disease and prevention.
0:37:31 > 0:37:35I tend to agree with that. It's unfortunate,
0:37:35 > 0:37:39and you wonder why that is, there's money not getting where it's supposed to go,
0:37:39 > 0:37:42if the programme's wrong, or what's wrong with the whole system
0:37:42 > 0:37:46in as much as there should be a programme goes to politicians so that they can see
0:37:46 > 0:37:52what's actually happening. I would like, definitely, some visits from politicians,
0:37:52 > 0:37:56not to see how well things are running, but see how things
0:37:56 > 0:38:01are actually running in the towns, in the townships and in the remote areas.
0:38:01 > 0:38:08- In the communities. - In the communities, see how people live,
0:38:08 > 0:38:12not looking only at nice, posh areas in this town, for example,
0:38:12 > 0:38:14but go to different communities.
0:38:21 > 0:38:26Ours will be a government with just one purpose
0:38:26 > 0:38:30and that's to serve the Australian people.
0:38:30 > 0:38:33We will be held more accountable than ever before
0:38:33 > 0:38:36and more than any government in modern memory.
0:38:39 > 0:38:43What actually really astounded me about this election,
0:38:43 > 0:38:50as opposed to the last election, where Kevin Rudd was talking about saying sorry and closing the gap,
0:38:50 > 0:38:56and actually every second news bite was about Aboriginal health and saying sorry, it was incredible.
0:38:56 > 0:39:01I think the momentum behind that actually carried on
0:39:01 > 0:39:03for about a year, then it just kind of slid off.
0:39:03 > 0:39:08This election, I'm sorry to say, has been an utter disappointment
0:39:08 > 0:39:11for Aboriginal health, as far as I'm concerned.
0:39:11 > 0:39:15I wonder where all that momentum and where all that hope went.
0:39:15 > 0:39:19You know? I really do. I...wonder where it went to.
0:39:19 > 0:39:24I actually think that it was just thrown out with the baby, basically.
0:39:27 > 0:39:29After three months working flat-out,
0:39:29 > 0:39:33it's Mary's last full day at the clinic.
0:39:33 > 0:39:38Soon, OVHAS will be down to just one part-time and two full-time doctors.
0:39:38 > 0:39:41But the patients keep coming, at around 120 a day.
0:39:41 > 0:39:44My husband thinks he's sleeping with a pod of whales,
0:39:44 > 0:39:49cos when I breathe in and out at night time it goes, "Wheeeee."
0:39:49 > 0:39:50- Do you?- Yes.
0:39:50 > 0:39:52Is that once daily?
0:39:55 > 0:39:58This foot is not good.
0:39:58 > 0:40:03We need to get you back in hospital, keep your leg up.
0:40:03 > 0:40:06Yeah, I know, she's on the...
0:40:06 > 0:40:10You had a needle before? Eh?
0:40:10 > 0:40:11Oooh!
0:40:11 > 0:40:14Oooh! Tell me a story, Raymond. Tell me a wee story.
0:40:14 > 0:40:16(CRIES)
0:40:18 > 0:40:19Hunt the soap.
0:40:19 > 0:40:22We're hunting for soap.
0:40:22 > 0:40:25You've got... You've got diabetes, high blood pressure...
0:40:25 > 0:40:31Both of us, you know? My husband had the blindness for a while.
0:40:31 > 0:40:33Finding replacement doctors
0:40:33 > 0:40:37is a constant struggle for the OVHAS board,
0:40:37 > 0:40:40made more difficult by a primary healthcare system
0:40:40 > 0:40:41fraught with inequalities.
0:40:43 > 0:40:47It's a crime what the Aboriginal Medical Services pay their doctors
0:40:47 > 0:40:52and what the health service pay their doctors.
0:40:52 > 0:40:58It would be about 170 grand difference...in salary.
0:40:58 > 0:41:00It's a massive amount of money
0:41:00 > 0:41:02and it's something that we just can't do.
0:41:02 > 0:41:07One of our core budgets had a loss of 30 for the month.
0:41:07 > 0:41:15'Whilst that inequality exists, Aboriginal health will struggle'
0:41:15 > 0:41:20because we can't attract Australian trained GPs for a start.
0:41:22 > 0:41:25We attract an awful lot of overseas doctors, however,
0:41:25 > 0:41:31it's pretty tough and sad when a lot of the Aboriginal medical services
0:41:31 > 0:41:34cannot employ Australian-based doctors.
0:41:34 > 0:41:37And... Because they're all working at the bloody hospital
0:41:37 > 0:41:40and in private practice, you know what I mean?
0:41:40 > 0:41:43The argument over the recruitment and retention
0:41:43 > 0:41:46of doctors in rural areas seems set to go on.
0:41:47 > 0:41:52Meanwhile, the churn of patients at the clinic goes on relentlessly.
0:41:52 > 0:41:55Watch, because there might be a wee person behind the door.
0:41:55 > 0:41:57There we go, there we go.
0:41:57 > 0:42:00Some more needy than others.
0:42:00 > 0:42:03Hello, I'm Doctor Mary. Now it's Gus, isn't it?
0:42:03 > 0:42:06This family has arrived from the outlying community of Balgo,
0:42:06 > 0:42:07600 kilometres away.
0:42:08 > 0:42:11OVAHS is their nearest clinic,
0:42:11 > 0:42:12and it's the first time Mary has met them.
0:42:14 > 0:42:17There we go. Are you wanting to...
0:42:17 > 0:42:22The consultation seems straight forward. Gus, one of the young boys,
0:42:22 > 0:42:23has had a bad ear infection,
0:42:23 > 0:42:27and Mary has asked senior OVAHS nurse, Dave Mitchell, to help out.
0:42:30 > 0:42:34So you can see the pus just pouring out of his ear there.
0:42:40 > 0:42:44Oh, poor darling. Poor wee man. Poor wee man.
0:42:47 > 0:42:49This is so common, isn't it? With these kids.
0:42:49 > 0:42:55Oh, I know it's sore, my darling. I know, I know.
0:42:55 > 0:42:57I know.
0:42:57 > 0:43:01This one isn't quite so bad. It's the right side that looks ...
0:43:01 > 0:43:04Is that what you thought? Yeah?
0:43:06 > 0:43:09- How much does he weigh? - He's 10.6 kilos.
0:43:09 > 0:43:1210.6, 250...
0:43:12 > 0:43:16- That's 200 milligrams and five mils. - 200 and five...
0:43:18 > 0:43:21Eva, we'll be back. You can guarantee that.
0:43:28 > 0:43:32I don't know how he's going to do here, but we'll try.
0:43:32 > 0:43:33Ooh, nice medicine.
0:43:41 > 0:43:45It's estimated that 90% of Aboriginal children suffer
0:43:45 > 0:43:48from recurring middle-ear infections,
0:43:48 > 0:43:50with many developing holes in the ear drums,
0:43:50 > 0:43:52and frequent leakage of pus,
0:43:52 > 0:43:55causing deafness, hampering speech development
0:43:55 > 0:43:59and interfering with educational development.
0:44:04 > 0:44:07The infant mortality rate for Aboriginal children
0:44:07 > 0:44:09is three times the national average,
0:44:09 > 0:44:12mostly as a result of low birthweight,
0:44:12 > 0:44:14greatly increasing the risk
0:44:14 > 0:44:18of developing chronic diseases later in life.
0:44:18 > 0:44:19Have you used a syringe before?
0:44:19 > 0:44:22Will I put all this into a plastic bag for you?
0:44:22 > 0:44:25In a bag. Oh!
0:44:25 > 0:44:29During the consultation, Mary has also been keeping an eye
0:44:29 > 0:44:33on Gus's older brother, who appears to be sleeping on the surgery floor.
0:44:33 > 0:44:35You all right?
0:44:37 > 0:44:38Are you OK there?
0:44:40 > 0:44:42- Is he all right?- Yeah. - Just tired?
0:44:45 > 0:44:50Are you coming? Come on. Come with me, wee man, hey?
0:44:54 > 0:44:57I'll get a bag.
0:44:59 > 0:45:01Let me get the door for Mum. There we go.
0:45:01 > 0:45:05Watch your toes now. Watch your toes.
0:45:05 > 0:45:07There we go.
0:45:16 > 0:45:18Come on, come on.
0:45:18 > 0:45:20What's wrong with you, eh?
0:45:21 > 0:45:23Come on, we'll have a look at you too.
0:45:26 > 0:45:31Where's your tummy, sore? Hungry? This wee fella's not right.
0:45:31 > 0:45:36He's just sitting down in the corner there. Told me it's his tummy.
0:45:36 > 0:45:39- Where's your tummy sore? - He's warm.
0:45:39 > 0:45:42Is your tummy sore here? Where is it sore, darling?
0:45:42 > 0:45:47- There.- There? Are you hungry? Are you hungry?
0:45:51 > 0:45:55Do you want something to eat? Yeah? Is he hungry, Mum?
0:45:57 > 0:46:00- You wanna go to the shop? - Let me feel your tummy.
0:46:03 > 0:46:08Where's your tummy sore? Is it sore here?
0:46:18 > 0:46:21Are you a hungry boy? Are you very hungry?
0:46:21 > 0:46:23- HE GROANS - No.
0:46:23 > 0:46:27Are you just thirsty? Thirsty and hungry?
0:46:36 > 0:46:39Has he been eating and drinking OK the last few days, yeah?
0:46:41 > 0:46:43Is that nice?
0:46:45 > 0:46:48You've been very thirsty, haven't you?
0:46:48 > 0:46:52Does that feel better? OK? That feel better?
0:46:56 > 0:46:59OK, cough for me. Can you cough?
0:47:00 > 0:47:04- Go on, try and cough. - Cough.- Cough for Mummy.
0:47:05 > 0:47:07WET COUGHING
0:47:09 > 0:47:13Try again. Try another cough. WET COUGHING
0:47:13 > 0:47:16He has a chest infection as well.
0:47:17 > 0:47:19Hey?
0:47:25 > 0:47:30Can I have some amoxicillin syrup, and...
0:47:30 > 0:47:34- This one here.- Yeah. And, um, 2.5 three times.
0:47:42 > 0:47:43Come on, talk to me.
0:47:48 > 0:47:50I can't talk to you.
0:48:02 > 0:48:04I just find it very upsetting at times.
0:48:08 > 0:48:13Can't let the professional and personal get to you, mate.
0:48:13 > 0:48:16You know things get a bit crazy.
0:48:20 > 0:48:26That wee kid sitting there, all this...muck pouring out of his ears.
0:48:26 > 0:48:30That's the thing, the runny ears, it's a normal thing.
0:48:30 > 0:48:33I know, I know. But the other one's starving, you know?
0:48:33 > 0:48:36And they're covered in nits and...unclean,
0:48:36 > 0:48:40and the mum's trying her best. It's just such human tragedy and despair.
0:48:40 > 0:48:46- That's the thing. I mean, it's not just one problem...- It's multiple.
0:48:46 > 0:48:50And you try and fix it and there's another thing, there's housing, where they live..
0:48:50 > 0:48:53I know. Have you got any tissues in here so I can just...
0:48:53 > 0:48:56try and pull myself together before I go out there?
0:49:04 > 0:49:07Right, here we go. Here we go.
0:49:07 > 0:49:11This is for this wee fellow, Mum, OK?
0:49:11 > 0:49:13MOTHER SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY
0:49:16 > 0:49:18Oh, you're on the phone?
0:49:28 > 0:49:31Can you come off the phone, Mum, so I can show you what to do?
0:49:31 > 0:49:35- Yeah.- Are you finished your call? - Yeah.- Yeah.
0:49:45 > 0:49:50We've got some medicine that you can take and we'll give you some water. All right?
0:49:50 > 0:49:53- Ready?- And you give it up to there,
0:49:53 > 0:49:55three times a day, it's on the bottle.
0:49:55 > 0:50:00- Three times a day. - Sit down. That's a boy.
0:50:00 > 0:50:03- Well done. - Is he saying anything to you?
0:50:03 > 0:50:06Yeah, we've been talking about pre-primary.
0:50:06 > 0:50:08Is he OK? I mean, he's not in agony or...
0:50:08 > 0:50:12No, he wants to go get another drink.
0:50:12 > 0:50:13So next time...
0:50:13 > 0:50:15In this case, a small intervention
0:50:15 > 0:50:20has prevented a potentially disastrous medical situation from developing...
0:50:21 > 0:50:22..for now.
0:50:22 > 0:50:24Come on, then, honey bun.
0:50:28 > 0:50:32You all right? There we go.
0:50:32 > 0:50:38Now you know that somebody will be out to see you tomorrow, OK? Right.
0:50:40 > 0:50:41- You OK?- Yeah.
0:50:41 > 0:50:44The OVAHS healthcare professionals
0:50:44 > 0:50:47are aware that today's child patients
0:50:47 > 0:50:51are tomorrow's chronic cases, just waiting to happen.
0:50:56 > 0:51:04What you've just seen is what happens in here...every day,
0:51:04 > 0:51:09- every day, isn't it Dave? - Yep. It's an unfortunate thing.
0:51:14 > 0:51:15And, um...
0:51:20 > 0:51:22I suppose you get hardened to it, don't you?
0:51:22 > 0:51:26Because you have to pull your emotions back
0:51:26 > 0:51:30from seeing and comparing your own kids
0:51:30 > 0:51:32with what they have as well, isn't it?
0:51:32 > 0:51:35But you have to, because if you let one get to you,
0:51:35 > 0:51:37you let them all get to you, and it's...
0:51:37 > 0:51:41Every now and then one will slip through the system and it gets in the cracks.
0:51:41 > 0:51:44- But if you did it to everybody, You wouldn't be in the job.- No.
0:51:44 > 0:51:45So...
0:51:46 > 0:51:48That's why we're in the business.
0:51:50 > 0:51:51Everyone has their weak spot.
0:51:54 > 0:51:55Me today.
0:51:58 > 0:52:03Thanks for coming, because I wouldn't coped on my own with that all.
0:52:03 > 0:52:06- Well, I didn't know who was going to take them.- No.
0:52:06 > 0:52:08OK. Thanks.
0:52:14 > 0:52:15I'd better do some swabs.
0:52:15 > 0:52:19I think you should take a wee break and get a cup of tea, or something.
0:52:19 > 0:52:22I... I think actually if you just left me alone.
0:52:29 > 0:52:33Mary's time at the OVAHS clinic is over.
0:52:33 > 0:52:36Unaccustomed to speaking as I am,
0:52:36 > 0:52:41we once again say goodbye to another staff member,
0:52:41 > 0:52:44Doctor Mary, wherever you are... There you are.
0:52:44 > 0:52:46It's another sad day at OVAHS.
0:52:48 > 0:52:52The more you think about it, the heavier it gets.
0:52:52 > 0:52:55We're trying and we're trying and we're trying,
0:52:55 > 0:53:01and I think that's why you get burned out, why people throw their hands up in the air and say,
0:53:01 > 0:53:03"I'm off!" You know what I mean?
0:53:03 > 0:53:08When you think about this, you're talking about people's lives here,
0:53:08 > 0:53:13you're talking about a culture, about stories, you're talking about people's history,
0:53:13 > 0:53:20and the impact that the lack of resources has on that history.
0:53:22 > 0:53:28..so, um, I don't really know what else to say, apart from thank you, Doctor Mary.
0:53:32 > 0:53:35If somebody had said I would be back in Kununurra...
0:53:35 > 0:53:38It's been three months in a strange and difficult environment,
0:53:38 > 0:53:43but Mary has made many friends here, who understand her pain and torment.
0:53:43 > 0:53:50They say goodbye, knowing that she is taking with her a lifetime of extraordinary experiences.
0:53:50 > 0:53:56There's lots and many, many happy memories, but the thing, um...
0:53:57 > 0:53:59Put that camera away!
0:54:13 > 0:54:16- Nothing is ever just... - < Straightforward.
0:54:16 > 0:54:19There's always that bit of an edge somewhere else.
0:54:19 > 0:54:25We need to eradicate rheumatic heart disease. In Australia, we shouldn't have this. It's disgraceful.
0:54:25 > 0:54:30We actually see more rheumatic fever in the Kimberley
0:54:30 > 0:54:34than probably Africa, India,
0:54:34 > 0:54:37where rheumatic fever is very common.
0:54:37 > 0:54:39All we ask in life is three things.
0:54:39 > 0:54:44The basic needs of Aboriginal people is water, power and housing.
0:54:44 > 0:54:49- Water, power and housing.- And no community's ever gotten that yet.
0:54:49 > 0:54:54He's seen his culture his dissipate, his country be taken off him.
0:54:54 > 0:54:58He's living in poverty. He's been disempowered.
0:54:58 > 0:55:02This is a senior lawman from a large part of this Kimberley region.
0:55:03 > 0:55:08If he was a white fella, he'd have heaps of respect.
0:55:08 > 0:55:14He'd have a big house, cars that don't break down every five minutes, you know what I mean?
0:55:14 > 0:55:19People would listen to him. How would you feel?
0:55:19 > 0:55:23- You never stop grieving, my dear. - No.- You never stop grieving.- No.
0:55:26 > 0:55:29- I lost a son. It's ten years since I lost my baby...- Ohh.
0:55:29 > 0:55:31..my son, through suicide.
0:55:31 > 0:55:35There's never a day go by that I stop grieving for him.
0:55:36 > 0:55:37I know.
0:55:40 > 0:55:42We have to do something now, because I tell you now, our kids are getting lighter.
0:55:42 > 0:55:47We won't be an Aboriginal race any more. There won't.
0:55:47 > 0:55:49It'll just die out.
0:55:49 > 0:55:50We will die out. And you know what?
0:55:50 > 0:55:55If I was someone that didn't want Aboriginal people here, I'd just wait.
0:55:55 > 0:55:59Just wait. They'll be gone in a couple of...you know?
0:56:01 > 0:56:03It's not that I've forgotten my lines.
0:56:05 > 0:56:07I don't have lines, but the thing...
0:56:12 > 0:56:14Somebody help me out here.
0:56:16 > 0:56:18- Commercial break?- >
0:56:18 > 0:56:21- Uh?- Commercial break? - Commercial break! That's a good one.
0:56:21 > 0:56:28Commercial break. The thing I was trying to say, that's what you need to break that cycle of pure emotion,
0:56:28 > 0:56:31is to say thank you so much. I've learnt so much from the doctors,
0:56:31 > 0:56:35and I've learnt so much about third-world diseases,
0:56:35 > 0:56:39which, to be honest, have been completely shocking.
0:56:39 > 0:56:46It shocked me to see preventable diseases, and people dying from them every day.
0:56:46 > 0:56:51I'm not going to go on and dwell on that too much, because everybody that works here knows that.
0:56:51 > 0:56:55But, for me, it has been overwhelming at times.
0:56:55 > 0:57:00I just want to thank you all, every one of you... Cheers. ..for putting us up.
0:57:10 > 0:57:16Before starting her long journey home, there is one final question.
0:57:16 > 0:57:22Has Mary found any answers to the Aboriginal health crisis?
0:57:22 > 0:57:27I was speaking to a guy that said, the only thing that's going to improve Aboriginal health care
0:57:27 > 0:57:31is if the World Health Organisation comes in and does something about it.
0:57:31 > 0:57:35But I was thinking, well, he's maybe not that far wrong,
0:57:35 > 0:57:37because this has gone on and on and on and on.
0:57:37 > 0:57:42And you know, to white Australians listening to me talking like this,
0:57:42 > 0:57:47some of them will be really, really angry and they'll say, "What the hell do you mean?"
0:57:47 > 0:57:50But a lot of people don't actually know what's happening.
0:57:52 > 0:57:56To be honest, I would be ashamed if I wasn't proactive
0:57:56 > 0:58:02and really doing something about the situation,
0:58:02 > 0:58:08not just here in Kununurra, but in all these Aboriginal communities, throughout Australia.
0:58:09 > 0:58:11- Have you got everything?- I think so.
0:58:15 > 0:58:16Got everything?
0:58:42 > 0:58:46Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:46 > 0:58:49E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk