About
VACCHO

Founded in 1996, the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO) is the peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and wellbeing in Victoria.

Centred on Members and Community

With a large membership of Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs), VACCHO has a simple aim: ensure Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have access to high-quality, culturally safe health, wellbeing, and social services – wherever they are in Victoria.

We support and strengthen Member organisations and the broader Aboriginal health and wellbeing sector in the following areas:

Leadership and Action

VACCHO works closely with external stakeholders of all kinds: state and federal governments, other Aboriginal organisations, mainstream health services and corporate services – to name a few.

Led by highly respected Gunditjmara woman and VACCHO CEO, Dr. Jill Gallagher AO, VACCHO seeks to raise awareness, change laws and policies and make Victoria a more equitable, inclusive state.

Our aim? Driving positive change in Aboriginal health and wellbeing sector – now, and into the future. Because change doesn’t happen in a vacuum – it happens when we work together towards a shared goal.

Foundations and Innovations

VACCHO is committed to supporting strong organisations – by starting with strong foundations.

We offer Members practical advice and support in these key areas:

Finance, audit and commercial risk
Corporate governance, board and secretariat support
Business development, funding alerts and proposal support
Monitoring, evaluation and learning
IT systems, purchasing and security
Business informatics
Deadly Data and member dashboards
Client Management System development and deployment
Infrastructure planning and advocacy
Workforce strategy projects
People and operations
Quality, risk and clinical governance
LGBTQIASB+ inclusion and Rainbow Tick Accreditation
Quality Management System development and deployment
Member engagement and advisory services

Policy, Advocacy and Communications

VACCHO has a simple focus: establish the ACCO sector as the authority on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and wellbeing.

We connect Members’ work to the wider community, government departments and other important stakeholders to drive structural reform – and improve Community health and wellbeing. At the centre of this is ensuring Community’s voices are heard, included and respected on matters that affect them.

With a policy and communications focus, VACCHO can assist in areas like:

Advocacy and local campaigning
Government forums and relationship-building
Media engagement
Digital and print communications resources

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Population Health

VACCHO’s primary aim is to improve health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across all life stages. And here are some key ways we make that happen.

We support healthy Communities by:

Sharing strengths-based health information resources and campaigns – and providing on-the-ground support at health promotion events.
Driving initiatives to improve Community food security, including access to emergency food relief.

We develop the ACCO workforce through:

Scholarships for Aboriginal Health Workers and Practitioners.
Training and professional development opportunities for healthcare workers.
Optimising clinical operations, including MBS billing guidelines and practices.

We promote screening and early detection by:

Enhancing the quality of Aboriginal health checks (Medicare 715).
Increasing access to cancer, sexually transmitted infection and blood borne virus screening.
Supporting hearing and vision screening and follow-up care.

We enhance quality of life with:

Training and professional development opportunities for workers in Community and residential aged care.
Information and support to navigate the NDIS access pathway.
Support to understand and access community palliative care.

We improve public health by providing:

Advice and practical support from a Public Health Medical Officer.
On-the-ground support for Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) projects.
Public health support and advice during pandemics or local disease outbreaks, natural disasters and other emergencies.

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Cultural Safety Training and Accreditation

VACCHO’s Aboriginal Cultural Safety Training and Accreditation program is designed to help individuals and organisations build their cultural understandings.

The Cultural Safety Training program focuses on building respectful and effective relationship with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Through a blend of stories and practical strategies, participants gain a deeper understanding of cultural identity and the impacts of colonisation.

The Cultural Safety Accreditation program is focused on working with organisations to address systemic and structural processes that can hinder working in a culturally responsive manner.

Both Training and Accreditation programs are available to corporate, government, not-for-profit and professional services.

The programs are supportive, non-judgemental and lay the foundation for culturally safe practices – in both work and life.

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Download the VACCHO Model

Centres of Excellence

VACCHO is home to five Centres of Excellence, each focused on driving consistent, positive change to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and wellbeing – on a large and long-term scale.

Think of our Centres as hubs – or hiveminds – for innovative Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research, service development, leadership and more.

The Balit Durn Durn Centre | Social and Emotional Wellbeing

Good health for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is about more than just physical wellbeing. It’s about social, emotional, mental and spiritual wellbeing, too.

The Balit Durn Durn Centre (BDDC) seeks to expand and improve social and emotional wellbeing services, policy and research. Its aim is to ensure all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can access high-quality, culturally safe mental healthcare no matter where they are in Victoria.

The BDDC supports ACCOs and the broader Aboriginal Social and Emotional Wellbeing (SEWB) sector by:

Embedding Aboriginal ways of knowing, being and doing in SEWB services and policy
Supporting and strengthening the SEWB workforce
Leading and influencing policy and advocacy
Creating and disseminating trusted research

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Yagilaith Djerring | Education and Training (RTO:20739)

The Centre of Excellence in Aboriginal Vocational Education and Training, Yagilaith Djerring, is our registered training organisation (RTO) delivering nationally accredited courses for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.

Whether students are looking to start a new career or upskill, Yagilaith Djerring equips them with in-demand skills to assist Community.

We have nationally accredited courses focussed on:

Aboriginal Health
Business and Leadership
Social and Emotional Wellbeing

With the guidance of our highly valued Aboriginal Student Mentors, students get wrap around support to achieve their education goals.

That means our deadly students not only gain valuable skills – they graduate confident, strong in their culture and workforce ready.

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Centre for Excellence for Aboriginal Families Wellbeing

The Centre of Excellence for Aboriginal Families Wellbeing is dedicated to advancing the rights and social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families across Victoria.

The Centre works to influence positive change for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families in Victoria through strengths-based:

Research
Programming
Advocacy
Collaboration

This work is done in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

Mostly, it amplifies the voices of Aboriginal families, empowering them to shape policies and practices that promote their social and wellbeing, self-determination and prosperity.

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Centre for Aboriginal Medical, Health and Wellbeing Research

The Centre for Aboriginal Medical, Health and Wellbeing Research aims to ensure Aboriginal research is in Aboriginal Hands.

The Centre works to:

Place ethics, self-determination and data sovereignty at the core of research
Empower ACCOs to lead research initiatives
Foster more medical, health and wellbeing research by and for Community
Facilitate marra ngarrgoo, marra goorri, the Victorian Aboriginal Health, Medical and Wellbeing Research Accord

It also aims to maintain strong and effective strategic direction and culturally appropriate leadership in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research.

In other words, if it’s research about Mob in Victoria, this Centre helps ensure it’s done by Mob in Victoria.

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Centre of Excellence for Aboriginal Digital in Health

Under the auspices of VACCHO, the Centre of Excellence for Aboriginal Digital in Health (CEADH) is a national organisation for advancing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander digital health.

That means embedding Mob’s views, experiences and innovations in health systems, tools and services that use communication and information technology – to improve Community’s health and wellbeing outcomes.

Working across a broad digital health portfolio, CEADH aims to:

Ensure ACCOs can connect to mainstream health services through high quality, user-friendly health systems, data and infrastructure
Improve mainstream digital health services’ cultural safety
Create informatics career opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
Advocate for and cement Indigenous health data sovereignty

United by peak bodies from every Australian state and territory, CEADH is a shared voice, building visibility of – and strength in – Aboriginal ways of knowing, doing and being across the digital health sector.

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About the VACCHO logo

Our logo was originally created on canvas by Wiradjuri and Yorta Yorta artist Lyn Briggs in 1997. Its story and meaning underpin VACCHO’s philosophy:

“The painting depicts tracks, inspired by the old tracks… which represent the connection between VACCHO Members and Aboriginal people across Australia. The figures represent VACCHO Members working on behalf of all Victorian Kooris.”

“Sitting groups throughout Victoria symbolise the talking that must go on in Communities to achieve a better life for Kooris.”

Reference: Fletcher, S. (2007). Communities Working for Health and Wellbeing: Success stories from the Aboriginal Community controlled health sector in Victoria. [online] Lowitja Institute, Fitzroy, Victoria: Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation, Cooperative Research Centre for Aboriginal Health, pp.1–26. Available here.