A group of young people from migrant and refugee backgrounds have developed a series of online resources, in an effort to empower other young people to take preventative care of their health.
As part of the Youth Affairs Council Victoria’s Multicultural Communications Outreach Program, Young Health Ambassadors developed a series of ideas to respond to common needs and questions related to the healthcare system.
The project aimed to provide awareness of mental healthcare, sexual healthcare, and cancer prevention, in both an accessible and culturally sensitive way.
Hoppers Crossing based Young Health Ambassador Belise Tuyikeze said she wants their work to empower individuals to live their life.
“I also understand the importance of wellness, and I am a believer of how health truly matters for all and its life changing benefits,” she said.
A number of common barriers were identified including, the stigma surrounding accessing healthcare, a lack of health literacy, wanting better options to incorporate cultural or spiritual practices into their healthcare and uncertainty around costs.
To respond to the concerns, the teams created simplified digital resources and shared them through YACVic’s social media and website.
This included info-graphics posted to Instagram which discuss a person’s rights when getting a sexual health check, how to express needs during a doctors appointment, and what types of sexual health issues to talk to your doctor about.
To assist with cancer prevention, a flyer was developed to contain information about how to do routine self-checks, preventative measures, and to provide information about skin health for people of colour.
“This project is important as it gives insights, resources and guidance to young people from migrant and refugee backgrounds. It also hopes to create awareness while also challenging and breaking stigmatization the society might have towards mental health,” Ms Tuyikeze said.
Young translators were also engaged to translate key COVID resources on YACVic’s website into Mandarin, Punjabi, and Arabic.
