Implementing Cultural Safety in Research Methodology: The Co‐Design Process of a Brief Therapeutic Intervention for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Young People Who Engage in Self‐Harm and/or Suicidal Behaviours

BACKGROUND: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples share rich cultural traditions unrivalled across the world; however, the continued impact of colonisation led to sustained, profound trauma that has spanned generations. With Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people presenting to hospital emergency departments (ED) for self-harm and suicidal behaviours at a rate 2.9 times higher than non-Indigenous people, there is a need to develop culturally appropriate interventions to address this growing problem. OBJECTIVE: This paper sought to describe the co-design process of culturally adapting a brief therapeutic intervention for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people who display self-harm and/or suicidal behaviours. The adaptation focus was Therapeutic Assessment (TA), a brief intervention provided to young people who present to the ED with self-harm. SETTING: The process was split into two phases located in Geraldton and Meekatharra, two communities in the Mid-west of Western Australia. PARTICIPANTS: In phase one, three male Aboriginal young people (aged between 16 and 19 years old) and eight Aboriginal Elders participated in two yarning circles run on one day. In phase two, 26 Aboriginal young people (aged between 12 and 25 years old), five Aboriginal senior members of the community and one Aboriginal carer participated in a combination of small yarning circles and/or single interviews. RESULTS: This paper describes the elements of the culturally safe process of adapting a brief intervention for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people experiencing self-harm and/or suicidal behaviours. CONCLUSION: Two points are important to note. The first is that implementing a culturally safe process can be an outcome in itself, and second, that the principles supporting cultural safety can assist in evaluating how non-Indigenous researchers implement this process.