At the heart of care for people with palliative care needs is the support a person receives from their care team, family, and broader community. Palliative Care Connect is a suite of navigation services that increase access and information to palliative care and bereavement support in the South Australian community. It offers an Aboriginal-specific navigation service, providing culturally safe guidance for Aboriginal people and their families who are living with sickness or close to finishing up.  

The service is accessible over the phone statewide, or in person in Port Augusta and Whyalla. Aboriginal Palliative Care Navigators are available to give practical, emotional and bereavement support, as well as provide guidance on culturally respectful approaches to care, for health, community and aged care professionals working with Aboriginal people.

This navigation service has been highlighted in the Palliative Care Connect website with a new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander pathway. When developing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander pathway to include in the website, a visual identity for the pathway was seen as essential. To reflect the importance of this work, Ngarrindjeri artist Jordan Lovegrove has composed an art piece symbolising the journey of patients in palliative care and the collective support of family, community, and care teams.You can read more about the artwork and what it represents on the Palliative Care Connect website at www.palliativecareconnect.com.au

To connect with the Aboriginal Palliative Care Navigation  call 8643 5600. This is a free service, made possible by funding and support from the Aboriginal Navigation Service, which is part of Palliative Care Connect, funded by the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care with support from SA Health.