Psychiatric Dilemmas in Australian Aborigines

Many workers have pointed out that there is a great need for training aboriginal workers to become involved in the psychiatric problems of their community. However, it sometimes occurs that such workers are regarded with suspicion and are often disturbed by the act of working among their own people. It would appear that the principle psychiatric illnesses seen in the rest of mankind are also recognizable in the Australian aborigines, but these currently represent only a minority of the mental health problems encountered. One important role of the psychiatrist, therefore, is to contribute to the understanding of the overall problem. There are several ways in which he can do this. One is to inform the rest of the Australian community that aboriginal problems are not due to stereotyped behaviour--stupidity, laziness or purposeful deliberation--and that aborigines are not basically aggressive and that their problems should be seen as a disorder of adjustment and adaption failure. The psychiatrist should strive to continue educating members of the community for the specialized nature of the task required.