The Heart Foundation has welcomed yesterday's announcement from the NSW Government of a $7.4 million investment towards its Closing the Gap commitment.
"Investing in and partnering with Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations, as well as enabling them to lead the way, is key to tackling the conditions of disadvantage that affect Indigenous Australians, such as housing and health," said Heart Foundation Group CEO, Adjunct Professor John Kelly AM.
"This commitment also recognises that community and Indigenous leadership is a pivotal step forward in Closing the Gap and ending rheumatic heart disease (RHD) for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
"There's no cure for RHD, but the path towards the disease can be interrupted by addressing the disadvantages that contribute to this disease, such as overcrowded living conditions and the barriers remote communities face in having access to healthcare.
"The NSW Government's expansion of the Aboriginal Community Controlled organisations in the key sectors of early childhood, housing, disability and health is a step closer to making sustainable change to close the gap.
"As one of the Founding Members of the
