Capacity and Sector Development

The alcohol and other drug (AOD) sector includes workers whose primary role is to focus on reducing harms from alcohol and other drug use. It also includes workers across health, welfare and justice settings where alcohol and other drugs use is an issue of concern [30137].

Designated roles for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander AOD workers in the AOD sector recognise the importance of offering culturally safe, accessible care for community members. Peer support or lived experience workers are also dedicated roles that draw on the value of lived experience to inform service delivery and empower and connect others to the support they need [49623].

Many community-led AOD programs have been initiated by Elders, community leaders and volunteers who work without external funding, but want to see change in their communities [46914]. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community controlled health services provide AOD services based on a holistic model of care that incorporates social, emotional and physical wellbeing. Alcohol or drug use may be one factor among many challenges that include unstable housing, physical ill health and intergenerational trauma [46914].

In responding to harms from alcohol and drug use, recommended strategies for the AOD workforce include [46914][47167]:

• an increased recognition of Indigenous ways of working
• ensuring cultural safety and AOD training across the health system
• providing access to quality local data for making place-based decisions
• facilitating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership to inform decision-making in planning services.

Developing and increasing the capacity of the AOD workforce in both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander services and general services is an investment in preventing and minimising harms from alcohol and other for individuals, family and community [49619].