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The health and wellbeing of Australian Indigenous peoples is a nationally sanctioned priority, but despite this, few studies have comprehensively analyzed the features and characteristics of the research in the field. In this regard, a comprehensive scientometric analysis and knowledge mapping to systematically summarize and discuss the current state of research, research trends, and emerging areas of research were conducted. Original articles and reviews published between 2003 and 2022 were obtained from the Web of Science Core Collection. CiteSpace and VOSviewer software were used to perform scientometric analysis and knowledge mapping. An examination of document and citation trends, authors, institutions, countries/regions, journals, and keywords was untaken, while co-citation, cooccurrence, and burst analysis provide insights and future development in this area. A total of 2,468 documents in this field were retrieved. A gradual increase in the number of documents over the past two decades is observed, with the number of documents doubling every ~7.5 years. Author Thompson SC and Charles Darwin University published the most documents, and 85.6% were affiliated with only Australian-based researchers. The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health is the most prominent journal publishing in the field. The most commonly co-occurring keyword was "health," and the keyword "risk" had the longest citation burst. Five keyword clusters were identified; "cultural safety" was the largest. This study articulates the knowledge structure of the research, revealing a shift from population-level and data-driven studies to more applied research that informs Indigenous peoples health and wellbeing. Based on this review, we anticipate emergent research areas to (1) reflect a more comprehensive understanding of the multidimensional factors that shape Indigenous health and wellbeing; (2) move beyond a deficit-based perspective; (3) respect cultural protocols and protect the rights and privacy of Indigenous participants; (4) address racism and discrimination within the healthcare system; (5) foster respectful, equitable, and collaborative research practices with Indigenous peoples; (6) provide culturally appropriate and effective interventions for prevention, early intervention, and treatment; and (7) ensure equitable change in systems to enhance access, quality, and outcomes in health and wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on a qualitative study of social capital within an urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander context. Using data generated from 100 Aboriginal and Tortes Strait Islander participants in focus group discussions and in-depth interviews collected by Aboriginal community development workers, this article describes two worlds of social capital available to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The primary source of bonding social capital comes from family and wider Aboriginal and Tortes Strait Islander community connections. In the context of an oppressive history and experiences of ongoing racism and discrimination, a second world of bridging social capital remains elusive to many Indigenous Australians. Our findings suggest that to understand the tensions between the two social capitals requires an engagement with the complexities of identity. We argue that it is vital to explore the texture of social capital, rather than just measure its volume. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Injecting drug use by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people has recently generated considerable concern in communities and by public health services and planners. However, there has been almost no research on the use of illicit drugs by indigneous people. This study is the first step in filling this information gap. Through a process of extensive community consultation the important issues were identified and a culturally appropriate research method was developed. A questionnaire was administered by peer interviewers to 77 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples who had injected an illegal drug in the past 12 months and who lived in the Brisbane metropolitan area. Speed is the most commonly injected drug but 56% had tried heroin and for about one-third of the sample it was the last drug injected. Sharing injecting equipment is common in this group, with 39% reporting that they had shared a needle in the past month; among participants under 20 years old the percentage rises to 63. Youth and/or inexperience is also associated with unsafe needle disposal and having never personally obtained injecting equipment from a chemist or needle exchange. There is widespread ignorance about safe procedures for cleaning needles. Knowledge about HIV/AIDS is not universal and less than one-quarter personally know someone living with HIV/AIDS; 67% rank their own chances of becoming infected with HIV as very low or low. The results have been used to develop programmes and strategies for harm reduction locally. \[Larson A, Shannon C, Eldridge C. Indigenous Australians who inject drugs: results from a Bristoane study. Drug Alcohol Rev 1999;18:53-62]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]