Clarke Scott’s story

My name is Clark Scott.

I’m a Wiradjuri man.

My father’s side of the family from Narrandera and Cowra and my mum from around Parkes and Forbes area.

So I’m, you know, and I have strong contacts with, with my mob.

With the Cancer Council, I think it’s really a great opportunity for the Aboriginal voice to be heard in such a hard and difficult disease. I suppose the cancer which is so, so tough and so unknown, but you know with the Cancer Council allowing us from community and from, from services to have a voice is, you know, a really good thing.

And I also needed to want to say to the leadership from the the Aboriginal workers within Cancer Council has been really great for us too as far as an advisory committee and going through the things that need to be done. I think it’s mainly about the word being out among the community.

So with, you know, the advisory committee having that connection to community to be able to, to pass on the information on from Cancer Council with their pamphlets and all that type of thing.

But I think it’s so good that we’re able to help the community, the Aboriginal community and understanding the things with cancer which are so, so broad.

I think it’s the employment of Aboriginal, specific Aboriginal staff within the services to, to have that connection to community and, and that support that cultural support.

So it’s really important that Aboriginal health workers or pall care workers or whatever, but someone in that space to, to be able to talk to community and support community and provide that cultural advice to the non-Aboriginal staff and cultural support to our community members.

I just think the sadness of it, you know, I’ve had, I lost family members.

And the story that sticks with me is how sad and how difficult and how I know there’s a lot of research being done.

But, you know, to really go through it every every day watching and seeing what people go through as devastating that sticks with me because it’s the fear and because of past things that have happened.

So there is still that fear with a fear within the non-Aboriginal services. And if we can have Cancer Council Aboriginal staff involved there, it’s it gets our mob to go in to get, you know, to have to have things looked at early.

I’m so happy that the Cancer Council has brought an advisory committee together and willing to also to take advice from outside with with the with the different services that are that are involved, the people that are on the advisory committee.

And I think there are other services, I think that maybe aren’t as committed as Cancer Council.

I’ve seen that type of thing, lack of commitment from others.

But my thoughts are now that the the Cancer Council has a 13 11 20 number, I encourage our communities to contact that number with any concerns. And the the medical staff on the other end will will advise and be able to refer to specific Aboriginal organisations if needed.