Western Health marks significant milestone in improving Indigenous health
Western Health has reaffirmed its commitment to improving the health of 
Indigenous Australians residing in the Western suburbs after becoming an official signatory to the national Closing the Gap campaign.
Closing the Gap is a strategy that aims to reduce Indigenous disadvantage with respect to life expectancy, child mortality, access to early childhood education, educational achievement and employment outcomes.
Endorsed by the Australian Government in March 2008, Closing the Gap is a formal commitment developed in response, to the call of the Social Justice Report 2005 to achieve Indigenous health equality within 25 years.
To monitor change, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) has set measurable targets to monitor improvements in the health and wellbeing of the Indigenous population.
These targets focus on health, housing, early childhood, education, economic participation, and remote service delivery.
The achievement of substantial improvements in the health and wellbeing of Indigenous people will depend largely on the effective implementation of these targets as they reflect some of the substantial disadvantages experienced by Indigenous people.
Western Health Chief Executive, Associate Professor Alex Cockram officially signed the declaration, in the presence of representatives from Department of Health Aboriginal Health branch.
