AMS Redfern facts for kids

Aboriginal Medical Services Redfern, also known as AMS Redfern, is a health service for Aboriginal Australian people in Redfern, a suburb of Sydney. It started around 1971 and was the first health service in Australia that was controlled by the Aboriginal community. It became a very important organisation, and many other Aboriginal medical services across New South Wales and Australia were inspired by its model.

History of AMS Redfern

Why the Service Started

When AMS Redfern began, Australia did not have free healthcare for everyone, like Medicare does today. Many Aboriginal people faced serious health problems because of poor living conditions and not enough healthy food. It was also hard for them to get help from regular doctors. This was often because of racism, a lack of trust, or not being able to pay for medical care.

Who Helped Start It

The idea for AMS Redfern came from people like Mum (Shirl) Smith, Ken Brindle, and Chicka and Elsa Dixon. It was set up by Gordon Briscoe, Dr. Fred Hollows, and others who were worried about the health of Aboriginal Australians in Sydney. The local priest, Fr Ted Kennedy, also encouraged its growth. In 1978, the Sisters of Mercy gave the building where the service was located to the Redfern Aboriginal community.

Mum Shirl was the first person to work directly with the community. Dr. Hollows brought in medical students, doctors, and volunteers to help. Other founders included Paul Coe, Dulcie Flower, John Russell, and Ross McKenna. The first director was Aboriginal journalist John Newfong, and Andrew Refshauge was the main doctor. Naomi Mayers joined in 1972 and later became the CEO.

How It Began and Grew

The group was inspired by the Aboriginal Legal Service, which offered free legal help to the Aboriginal community. They asked the government for money and opened the service in a small shop. Like the Legal Service, it had important community members working as field officers and white professionals volunteering their time. Aboriginal people were in charge of the service. It became so popular that it quickly had more patients than it could handle.

Challenges and Support

Even though the government seemed to support the service at first, AMS Redfern struggled to get steady money for its first five years. The government often delayed payments, forcing the service to rely on bank loans and donations from the community. Volunteers staffed the centre, and doctors even brought their own equipment. Despite these difficulties, AMS Redfern offered all its services for free, though patients could donate if they wished. The struggle for money continued for about 15 years.

A New Way of Thinking About Health

From the very beginning, the service used a "holistic" approach to healthcare. This means they looked at Aboriginal health problems not just as sickness, but also as connected to social, economic, and political issues. They believed that to improve health, they also needed to address these wider problems. The service also aimed to help Aboriginal people control their own lives and futures.

AMS Redfern, along with people like Sol Bellear, Paul Coe, Mum Shirl, and Kaye Edwards, even started a breakfast program for children in a park in Newtown. They served food from a caravan.

Moving and Expanding

In 1977, the service moved to new, bigger buildings in Turner Street, Redfern. They began to offer many different types of specialist clinics, as well as general doctor visits and dental care.

In 1984, Dulcie Flower created the first course for Aboriginal health workers at Redfern. Soon after, AMS Redfern also started offering advanced courses in mental health care. These courses later moved to colleges and universities.

Sometime before 2012, the Aboriginal Medical Service changed its name to AMS Redfern.

Inspiring Others

The success of the Aboriginal Medical Service inspired Aboriginal communities all over Australia to start their own health services. By 2008, there were over 60 Aboriginal-controlled health services in New South Wales. By 2012, there were 150 such services across Australia, all following the AMS Redfern model.

In 2012, Naomi Mayers was the CEO. By this time, AMS Redfern had grown into a service that offered many different types of health care. This included general medical care, dental clinics, public health programs, and outreach services that reached out to people in the community. It also became a teaching centre, training new doctors and nurses from the University of Sydney. Many hospitals and other organisations also worked with AMS Redfern.

The modern centre was designed by the Merrima company. It was built on land next to the St Vincent's Roman Catholic church and school, which were built around 1887.

On November 26, 2022, AMS Redfern held a special dinner to celebrate its 50th anniversary.

Services Offered

As of 2022, AMS Redfern is officially known as the Aboriginal Medical Service Cooperative Limited. It describes itself as a "multi-functional non-for-profit organisation that delivers a broad range of services and community programs". This means it offers many different types of services and programs to the community.

The current joint CEOs are LaVerne Bellear and Aunty Dulcie Flower.