Indigenous oral health: A matter of rights

Despite consistently ranking among the top countries on the United Nations Development Programme’s Human Development Index, Turtle Island (Canada and the United States), so-called Australia,1 and Aotearoa New Zealand face a stark contrast in the health and social conditions of their Indigenous populations (Cooke et al. 2007). This is reflected in significantly lower Human Development Index scores for these communities, who continue to face substantial disparities (King et al. 2009). Within Australia, and indeed elsewhere, colonisation, systemic racism and the ongoing exclusion from decision-making processes continue to pose significant barriers to achieving equitable health outcomes and care provision for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples (Campbell et al.