Purpose: The NSW Health Services Aboriginal Cultural Engagement Self-Assessment Tool (ACESAAT) has been designed to assist NSW Health organisations in moving towards a health system where cultural differences and strengths are recognized and responded to in the governance, management, and delivery of health services for Aboriginal patients and clients across the NSW Health system. The ACESAAT provides evidence during facility/hospital accreditation process against the six Aboriginal specific actions in the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards (NSQHS) and the strategic directions of the NSW Aboriginal Health Plan (2013 - 2023). It also strategically aligns with the six Aboriginal-specific actions from the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards Second Edition (NSQHS Standards) and Service Agreement requirements regarding partnerships with Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services (ACCHSs) and supports implementation of the National Cultural Respect Framework for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health (2016-26). The ACESAAT is an important benchmarking and quality improvement tool. It is designed to assist Local Health Districts (LHDs) and Specialty Health Networks (SHNs) in identifying actions to strengthen cultural engagement between NSW Health services and Aboriginal stakeholders, improve system-wide cultural safety and provides evidence for LHD/SHN accreditation processes against the Aboriginal- specific actions in the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards.
It is completed on the NSW Health Quality Audit Reporting System (QARS). Once the tool has been completed the Centre for Aboriginal Health will review the data and provide key takeaways. LHD/SHNs are also strongly encouraged to undertake local analysis of their results, identify focus areas for action and develop an action plan to monitor and review their progress.The ACESAAT assists NSW Health organisations to engage with their local Aboriginal stakeholders in ways that are relevant to their circumstances, concerns, and priorities, and that minimize the risk of overburden.