Suicide prevention programs: Aboriginal communities

​​​​ On this page

1. Building on Aboriginal Communities Resilience (BACR)
2. About the BACR initiative
   
3. NSW Aboriginal Mental Health and Wellbeing Model of Care

Building on Aboriginal Communities Resilience (BACR)

Suicide is the fourth leading cause of death for Aboriginal people living in NSW.

Under the Building on Aboriginal Communities’ Resilience initiative, 25 Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs) are being funded to:

• deliver programs to local Aboriginal communities across NSW
• increase access to culturally responsive suici​d​​​e prevention activities.

The programs are being designed and led by Aboriginal people. 

To find out about the programs in your area, contact​ your local ACCHO. Visit their website to find their phone number and email address.

Your local ACCHO

Table: This is a list of ACCHOs delivering mental health and suicide prevention activities under the Building on Aboriginal Communities’ Resilience Program (BACR).

About the BACR initiative

The BACR initiative is inspired by three key components:  

• ​Culture as treatment - Discussed by Dr Vanessa Lee at the 2018 National Suicide Prevention Conference, highlighting the role of cultural connection in building resilience and reducing suicide risk.  
  
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention Evaluation Project (ATSISPEP) and Solutions That Work – Led by the University of Western Australia’s Centre for Best Practice in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention​​​, this report identified success factors for Aboriginal led suicide prevention, including community ownership, Elder involvement, cultural identity and access to support that would inform the design of the initiative in NSW.  
  
• Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Declaration – Launched by the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership in Mental Health (NATSILMH) in 2018, this declaration promotes Aboriginal concepts of wellbeing, integration with clinical care, and values-based outcome measurement – principles that guided the BACR’s development 
  

To support the implementation of this initiative, NSW Health will continue to work closely with key partners including:

• ​ACCHOs
• the Aboriginal Health & Medical Research Council (AH&MRC)​​​​, and
  
• other experts in suicide prevention in NSW Aboriginal communities. 

NSW Aboriginal Mental Health and Wellbeing Model of Care 

​The NSW Aboriginal Mental Health and Wellbeing Model of Care (MoC) is an Aboriginal-led initiative designed to improve the cultural safety, effectiveness, and quality of mental health services for Aboriginal people and communities across NSW.

This initiative provides 12 grants per year over four years to Districts/Networks and ACCHOs to co-design, implement, sustain, and evaluate MoC across NSW. Through collaboration between Local Health Districts (LHDs) and Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs), the initiative supports the co-design, implementation, and evaluation of culturally responsive models of care. These models prioritise holistic healing, cultural connection, and community-led approaches ensuring the program reflex local context.  

​Key features of the initiative include:

• Partnerships with ACCHOs and LHDs to develop and sustain culturally safe mental health services.
• A focus on cultural healing, incorporating traditional healing methods and community-led solutions.
• An evaluation process to build evidence on the role of culture in mental health and inform future service improvements.
• Alignment with key national and state strategies, including Closing the Gap, the Fifth National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Plan, and Zero Suicides NSW.

By embedding Aboriginal perspectives, cultural safety, and shared governance into mental health service delivery, this initiative strengthens support for Aboriginal individuals, families, and communities, ensuring care pathways that are both effective and culturally appropriate. ​