Kevin Pennington - Senior Podiatrist
Susan Jetta - Aboriginal Health Professional
Moorditj Djena Program
North Metropolitan Area Health Service

The aim of this presentation is to provide examples and discuss cultural reasons for Aboriginal patients failing to attend their Podiatry appointments.

The Moorditj Djena Program (‘Strong Feet’ in Nyoongar language) is a unique service providing culturally secure Podiatry and Diabetes Education services to Aboriginal patients within the Perth metropolitan area. Working closely with our Aboriginal Health Professionals and patients the program has come to understand and empathise with the patients’ varied reasons causing them to fail to attend appointments.

This presentation will further expand and provide practical solutions to these issues. Examples and discussions will include family commitments, health reasons, cultural reasons, transport issues, plus many more examples preventing and restricting Aboriginal patients from attending their medical appointments. The presentation will discuss the culturally appropriate ways in overcoming these issues. It will provide ideas and examples in which the program has endeavoured to successfully accommodate and work with these issues to enable patients to access the Moorditj Djena Program.