The Deadly Choices program aims to empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to make healthy choices for themselves and their families.
These healthy choices include to stop smoking, to eat good food and exercise daily. Deadly Choices also encourages our people to complete their annual ‘Health Check’.
Deadly Choices is a health promotion initiative of the Institute for Urban Indigenous Health (IUIH).
In Aboriginal slang, if something is ‘deadly’ it is great and so a 'Deadly Choice' is a good choice.
Kalwun’s project officers facilitate the successful Deadly Choices program on the Gold Coast and promote preventative health messages to young people in schools and community members at events. They also interact with our community and neighbouring communities to ensure we share the experiences available through all of the south-east region.
Deadly Choices activities include:
- Community events
- Cooking programs
- Education programs
- Leadership camps
- Sport and recreation
- Tobacco cessation programs
A very important part of the preventative health message is the program the team presents to students in schools. This program has two aspects; healthy lifestyles and tobacco education. A recent evaluation from participants in the Deadly Choice Program showed 100% now eat breakfast more often, 57%increased their physical daily exercise after completing the program and smoking decreased by 14%. 100% did not understand chronic disease before the program and said they would undertake the program again.
The Deadly Choices program gives students the opportunity to participate in many events including touch football tournaments, school holiday programs, golf days and leadership camps. These events are regularly advertised within clinics and through the Deadly Choices team.
Deadly Choices Education Program
The Deadly Choices Education Program is a health education and capacity development program aimed at supporting students to be positive role models and mentors for their family, peer group and community by leading a healthy lifestyle.
The eight-week program is delivered in a flexible manner to suit school environments and timetables, and addresses healthy lifestyle topics such as:
- leadership
- chronic disease
- tobacco cessation
- nutrition
- physical activity
- harmful substances
- healthy relationships
- access and health checks.
The program also involves a 715 health check and developing links with Kalwun Health clinics.
Students are incentivised to complete the Deadly Choices Education Program with Deadly Choices merchandise. The criteria for receiving incentives include full attendance at the program, good behaviour and school attendance.
Incentives include a Deadly Choices shirt, opportunities to win prize packs and opportunities to participate in end of school year camps.
An Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural framework lays the foundation for Deadly Choices which is essential for building relationships with participants. The Deadly Choices Education Program encourages participants to embrace their Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander identity and further develop their understanding of their culture. The cultural framework draws on the importance of identifying, building and being leaders in the Deadly Choices Education Program.
Deadly Choices encourages two-way and peer-to-peer collaboration as a successful way of learning how to make Deadly Choices every day. Leadership is used as a tool to direct good health and education practices, and throughout the program we continuously reflect on leadership as a cornerstone of healthy lifestyle behaviours and encourage our friends, family and community to do the same.
Tobacco stalls
As part of our efforts to tackle Indigenous smoking, the Deadly Choices team hold pop-up tobacco information stalls at licensee clinics.
The stalls display visually confronting smoking cessation tools – such as a jars of tar and phlegm, and smoker v non-smoker lungs – along with smoking cessation information and referral forms.
Smokers are asked to sign the Deadly Places, Smoke-Free Spaces pledge and complete a tobacco survey to help the team collect data on smoking prevalence and better understand the needs of smokers and their families.
Tobacco stalls are held at Kalwun health clinics, various sporting events, community days, and event activations.
Eligibility
The Deadly Choices program is provided to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and community members.
Accessing the service
Kalwun's Deadly Choices programs are rolled out across the Gold Coast through events and school incursions. For any enquiries regarding the program, contact 0419 662 960 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Terms and conditions
Please refer to the Deadly Choices Program Terms and Conditions.
