Aged Care Research & Industry Innovation Australia (ARIIA) has launched a new First Nations Hub designed to showcase culturally appropriate, evidence-based aged care practices for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
The First Nations Hub brings together innovative models of care, community-led case studies and practical examples of successful initiatives developed by and for First Nations aged care organisations across Australia. It also provides information on workforce recruitment, training and support initiatives, linking users to ARIIA’s easy-to-read evidence summaries and research resources to support the aged care workforce and service providers.
Community leadership and lived experience are central to the Hub, which features stories of inspirational leadership alongside examples of effective practice grounded in Indigenous knowledge systems and local community needs.
ARIIA Program and Research Director Dr Rebecca Bilton said the Hub forms part of ARIIA’s broader mission to build workforce capability across the aged care sector.
“Ensuring the workforce is equipped to deliver culturally safe care is essential,” Dr Bilton said.
“Our new First Nations Hub was co-developed with First Nations-identifying aged care leaders and care providers, researchers and designers to ensure it is culturally relevant, accessible and genuinely useful.”
Dr Bilton said feedback from First Nations aged care experts highlighted two key challenges: difficulty accessing information about successful workforce initiatives, and limited support to implement new ideas at the local level.
“We heard clearly that it was hard to easily find examples of what works,” she added. “ARIIA can be a strong ally by highlighting community-level initiatives and supporting peer learning. Through Knowledge Exchange Visits and targeted funding, First Nations leaders can adapt good practice shared by others back into their own communities.”
The Hub is a key element of ARIIA’s First Nations Aged Care Workforce Capability Building Program, which is supported by the J.O. & J.R. Wicking Trust. The program was informed by the First Nations Aged Care Workforce Needs and Opportunities Roundtable hosted by ARIIA in Tarndanya/Adelaide in October 2024, bringing together more than 20 First Nations aged care experts and community stakeholders.
The Hub showcases two of the program’s three core activities: case studies and resources supporting good practice implementation, and Knowledge Exchange Visits. A national Knowledge Sharing Event is scheduled for May 2026.
Interim First Nations Aged Care Commissioner Andrea Kelly said the program plays an important role in strengthening aged care services for older Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Ms Kelly also served as a judge for the 2025 Future of Ageing Awards, including the First Nations categories presented by this publication. View the results.
“By highlighting Indigenous knowledge systems and community-led approaches, this program supports care environments that are more responsive, respectful and grounded in cultural safety and self-determination,” Ms Kelly said.
More information about the First Nations Hub and how to apply for Knowledge Exchange Visits is available via ARIIA’s website.
