Binar Futures: Basketball proving critical link in positive health outcomes for Aboriginal kids

A simple game of basketball is making the crucial link between Aboriginal children and critical health care.

By just showing up to a tournament across Western Australia, thousands of Aboriginal children have accessed free health checks they might not have otherwise sought out.

As part of Binar Futures’ interactive health screening method, children collect a passport from each Health Embassy station, where they are checked over by a volunteer nurse or doctor. They even win a prize if they visit every one.

And the outcome is astounding.

Last year across six locations — Albany, Bunbury, Derby, Perth, Port Hedland and Broome — 2598 children took part in sport-embedded Health Embassies and, of those, 265 needed to see a doctor.

About 53 per cent of those children presented with ear exam abnormalities, signalling ear health as the dominant clinical issue.

In just a three-day period of activations in Broome and Port Hedland, where barriers to care can be prominent, almost 570 participants had a health screening.

More than 70 per cent of 101 people needing a doctor referral had an ear issue, about 20 per cent needed to be seen for their blood glucose and about 5 per cent needed their heart looked at.

The ripple effect of health risks not being identified is far-reaching, Binar Chair Andrew Vlahov says.

“If a child can’t hear properly, there are a whole bunch of domino effects that come from that, not only their own cognitive abilities, but then that affects education, it affects speech, it affects a whole range of these things,” Mr Vlahov says.

“The ability to identify these early and get them corrected makes sure that the playing field is level for everyone that is trying to learn and trying to do the right thing.”

The service has gained the tick of approval from the community, too, with more than 80 per cent of 280 participants selecting “it was deadly” in response to a survey about the service.

“All of my children attended the Health Embassy at the Bounce Back event. They had a fantastic time and were really happy to participate in the doctor stations,” one parent says of the program.

“The passport activity kept them motivated and meant they didn’t give up halfway through. They were excited to complete every station.”

Seeing children be curious about their health when being checked over was another big positive.

“One of the really cool things is when you’re observing the kids interacting with the health staff, the kinds of questions that they are asking, that they have wanted to ask or didn’t have the courage to at school or with their parents or with their family, but they’re able to in this kind of environment,” Mr Vlahov says.

The program weaves health and sport together seamlessly, empowering the community in the process.

“Rather than asking individual people to go to three different health centres, we’re bringing all the health services under one roof, so it takes away that travel logistic element, which is a significant barrier for a lot of people,” Mr Vlahov says.

Value in the program has been acknowledged by Lotterywest, which just issued a grant of $1.8 million in support of a permanent Health Embassy in Midland.

As a Telethon beneficiary, Mr Vlahov says the health service is honoured to be considered worthy of funding.