Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation Inc

28/11/2025

Today, VACCHO honoured the accomplishments of 46 dedicated students at their Registered Training Organisation’s graduation ceremony.

VACCHO CEO Dr. Jill Gallagher AO, addressed the graduates at a touching ceremony at the Aborigines Advancement League in Thornbury, commending them for their hard work, dedication and resilience.

“Each and every one of you will walk away with qualifications that will hopefully lead to a long, successful career in the Aboriginal health sector. You now have valuable knowledge that will position you to be future leaders in our Community,” she said.

The Federal Minister for Skills and Training, Andrew Giles MP shared his congratulations with the graduates. Parliamentary Secretary for First Peoples Christine Couzens MP joined the celebrations and shared the honour of handing the graduates their certificates.


Read the full story here > https://www.vaccho.org.au/2025/11/28/vaccho-celebrates-the-outstanding-achievements-of-graduating-students/

RTO No: 20739

27/11/2025

A deadly opportunity for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students!

📣𝗔𝗡𝗡𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗖𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗜𝗡𝗗𝗜𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗢𝗨𝗦 𝗛𝗘𝗔𝗟𝗧𝗛 𝗦𝗖𝗛𝗢𝗟𝗔𝗥𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣𝗦 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗠 𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 𝗔𝗥𝗘 𝗡𝗢𝗪 𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗡! 📣

𝖠𝗇𝗇𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖼𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈𝖽𝖺𝗒 𝖺𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖨𝖠𝖧𝖠 𝖭𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝖢𝗈𝗇𝖿𝖾𝗋𝖾𝗇𝖼𝖾 - 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗀𝖾𝗇𝗈𝗎𝗌 𝖧𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗍𝗁 𝖲𝖼𝗁𝗈𝗅𝖺𝗋𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗉𝗌 𝖯𝗋𝗈𝗀𝗋𝖺𝗆 𝖲𝖼𝗁𝗈𝗅𝖺𝗋𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗉𝗌 𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗇𝗈𝗐 𝗈𝗉𝖾𝗇 𝗎𝗇𝗍𝗂𝗅 𝗆𝗂𝖽𝗇𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍 𝖲𝗎𝗇𝖽𝖺𝗒 𝟣𝟧 𝖥𝖾𝖻𝗋𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨.

𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗀𝖾𝗇𝗈𝗎𝗌 𝖧𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗍𝗁 𝖲𝖼𝗁𝗈𝗅𝖺𝗋𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗉𝗌 𝖯𝗋𝗈𝗀𝗋𝖺𝗆, 𝖺𝖽𝗆𝗂𝗇𝗂𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗋𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗀𝖾𝗇𝗈𝗎𝗌 𝖠𝗅𝗅𝗂𝖾𝖽 𝖧𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗍𝗁 𝖠𝗎𝗌𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗅𝗂𝖺, 𝗌𝗎𝗉𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝗌 𝖠𝖻𝗈𝗋𝗂𝗀𝗂𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝖺𝗇𝖽/𝗈𝗋 𝖳𝗈𝗋𝗋𝖾𝗌 𝖲𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗍 𝖨𝗌𝗅𝖺𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗋 𝗌𝗍𝗎𝖽𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗌 𝗐𝗁𝗈 𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗂𝗇𝗍𝖾𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝖾𝗇𝗋𝗈𝗅𝗅, 𝗈𝗋 𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝖾𝗇𝗋𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖽 𝗂𝗇 𝖺𝗇 𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗋𝗒-𝗅𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗅 𝗈𝗋 𝗀𝗋𝖺𝖽𝗎𝖺𝗍𝖾 𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗋𝗒-𝗅𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗅 𝗊𝗎𝖺𝗅𝗂𝖿𝗂𝖼𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗂𝗇 𝖺𝗇 𝖾𝗅𝗂𝗀𝗂𝖻𝗅𝖾 𝗁𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗍𝗁-𝗋𝖾𝗅𝖺𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖽𝖾𝗀𝗋𝖾𝖾.

𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗀𝗋𝖺𝗆 𝖺𝗂𝗆𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝖾𝗆𝗉𝗈𝗐𝖾𝗋 𝗆𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝖠𝖻𝗈𝗋𝗂𝗀𝗂𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖳𝗈𝗋𝗋𝖾𝗌 𝖲𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗍 𝖨𝗌𝗅𝖺𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗋 𝗉𝖾𝗈𝗉𝗅𝖾, 𝗂𝗇𝖼𝗅𝗎𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗌𝗍𝗎𝖽𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗌 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝗋𝖾𝗆𝗈𝗍𝖾 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗋𝗎𝗋𝖺𝗅 𝖺𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗌, 𝗍𝗈 𝗎𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗋𝗍𝖺𝗄𝖾 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖼𝗈𝗆𝗉𝗅𝖾𝗍𝖾 𝗌𝗍𝗎𝖽𝗂𝖾𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗁𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗍𝗁.

𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨 𝗌𝖼𝗁𝗈𝗅𝖺𝗋𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗉 𝗋𝖾𝖼𝗂𝗉𝗂𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗌 𝗐𝗂𝗅𝗅 𝗋𝖾𝖼𝖾𝗂𝗏𝖾 𝗎𝗉 𝗍𝗈 $𝟧,𝟢𝟢𝟢, 𝗉𝖺𝗂𝖽 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗐𝗈 𝗂𝗇𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗌 𝗈𝖿 $𝟤,𝟧𝟢𝟢 𝗉𝖾𝗋 𝗌𝖾𝗆𝖾𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗋 (𝗂𝖿 𝖾𝗅𝗂𝗀𝗂𝖻𝗅𝖾). 𝖠𝗉𝗉𝗅𝗂𝖼𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗇𝗈𝗐 𝗈𝗉𝖾𝗇 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖼𝗅𝗈𝗌𝖾 𝗆𝗂𝖽𝗇𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍 𝗈𝗇 𝖲𝗎𝗇𝖽𝖺𝗒 𝟣𝟧 𝖥𝖾𝖻𝗋𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨.

𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗲𝗯𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲: 𝗵𝘁𝘁𝗽𝘀://𝗶𝗮𝗵𝗮.𝗰𝗼𝗺.𝗮𝘂/𝗶𝗵𝘀𝗽/

26/11/2025

: Optus says a major service outage that affected thousands of services south of Melbourne was caused by vandals attempting to steal copper.

More than 14,000 Optus services in Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula were affected by the mobile phone outage at about 9am on Tuesday, with the telco warning calls to emergency services could be impacted.

But Optus spokesperson Jane McNamara said the telco believed no Triple Zero calls had been disrupted.

According to the Optus website, the issue was caused by an "aerial fibre break" and meant customers could only call emergency services if they were within coverage of another mobile network or were able to call via wi-fi.

The incident followed outages across the country in recent months, some of which cut off access to Triple Zero and one of which has been linked to two deaths.

Read here: https://ab.co/4p3CQbq

When news is breaking, stay in the know. Download the ABC NEWS app: https://ab.co/abcnewsapp

25/11/2025

24/11/2025

Different choices for different people!

We want Mob to feel empowered and make informed choices on contraception.

Let's have safe, open and respectful conversations about our options.

VACCHO's new resource, Our Bodies Our Choices, is a brief guide on contraceptive methods, their effectiveness and things you should consider when yarning with your GP about contraception.

Have a yarn with your local ACCO Health Worker or GP about what contraceptive method may be right for you.

Check out the Our Bodies, Our Choices resource > https://cdn.intelligencebank.com/au/share/NJA21J/dA42b/PkEA6/original/VACCHO_Our+Bodies+Our+Choices

Artwork by Sandra Kropinyeri

21/11/2025

“Our Culture is built upon the Lore, and that meant we listened to our Elders… They were the building blocks of our Culture. It’s so important today to remember where we came from and that… we have to respect our Elders. And when Elders speak, we should listen.” – Aunty Thelma Chilly, Victorian Aboriginal Elders Summit guest speaker.

Elders from across Victoria gathered on Wurundjeri Country in Naarm for the second Victorian Aboriginal Elders Summit in late October.

The Summit’s theme ‘Dreaming of our past to shape our future’ celebrated the long and enduring wisdom of Elders past and present, and how their strength and legacy will define the future of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

We extend our deepest gratitude to all the deadly speakers, performers, Elders and attendees who helped make this gathering so powerful.
We also thank the Summit’s gold sponsors Commonwealth Bank and Law Squared, and our partner exhibitors.

Read more about the Victorian Aboriginal Elders Summit - https://www.vaccho.org.au/2025/11/21/dreaming-of-our-past-to-shape-our-future-2025-victorian-aboriginal-elders-summit/

19/11/2025

VACCHO extends its congratulations to Jess Wilson on her historic election as the first woman to lead the Victorian Liberal party.

VACCHO CEO, Dr Jill Gallagher AO says VACCHO is pleased to work with anyone willing to listen to Aboriginal Communities and invest in Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations.

VACCHO reaffirms its commitment to working with all political Leaders to improve the lives of Aboriginal people. Dr Gallagher is, however, deeply disappointed to hear Ms Wilson say that she would repeal Treaty if the Coalition were to form government at next year’s state election.

Read the full news story here > https://www.vaccho.org.au/2025/11/19/vaccho-congratulates-jess-wilson-on-her-historic-leadership-appointment-but-asserts-treaty-must-not-be-dismantled/

18/11/2025

Trans Mob: Your health – your words.

Make a health service check right for you by sharing what language and personal details you want used.

If you want, you can ask your health provider to write a letter to Medicare confirming your affirmed gender and updating these details.

Remember, access to culturally safe health care is your right as Trans Mob.

Sign up to VACCHOs Rainbow Mob lived experience network for more Trans Mob resources and opportunities > https://www.vaccho.org.au/rainbowmob

🏳️⚧️🌈🖤💛❤️💙💚🤍🖤🌈

18/11/2025

If you’re a woman or person with a cervix and haven’t screened in the past 5 years, now’s the time to book in for your Cervical Screening Test.

Screening helps you keep your health in check, so you can keep doing the things you love. It’s one small step that can make a big difference.

Cervical cancer often has no symptoms, but testing regularly can find it early, when it’s easiest to treat.

Screening is quick, safe and can even be done yourself using a self-collection swab at your local ACCO or health clinic.

This Cervical Screening Awareness Week, book your test – for you, your family and your Mob.

17/11/2025

Trans Mob with a cervix aged 25-74 should have a cervical screen every 5 years.

It is important to have a cervical screen even if you:
- have had the HPV vaccine(s)
- have only had one s*xual encounter
- have only had one s*xual partner
- haven’t been s*xually active for many years
- are in a relationship with someone of any s*x or gender
- have gone through menopause.

Have a yarn with your GP or Aboriginal Health Worker about cervical screening today.

Find and filter services that provide cervical screening via the Cancer Council Victoria directory > https://www.cancervic.org.au/cervical-screening-test/where.asp

Find more about cervical screening for LGBTQIASB+ people > https://www.cancervic.org.au/about-cancer/prevent-detect-cancer/screening/cervical-screening/everyone-with-a-cervix

🏳️‍⚧️🌈🖤💛❤️💙💚🤍🖤🌈

16/11/2025

ICYMI 🖤 💛 ❤️ 💙 💚 🤍

14/11/2025

Hey Mob in Collingwood! VACCHO is hosting a Mob yarns event at Harmsworth Street Reserve next Tuesday 18 November, 12-3pm.

Come down and have a yarn with all our local ACCOs, Community members and government stakeholders. Lets yarn about what we can do as a community to help make change.

We're here to lister and share your stories!