Researchers have a responsibility to cause no harm, but research has been a source of distress for indigenous people because of inappropriate methods and practices. The way researchers acquire knowledge in indigenous communities may be as critical for eliminating health disparities as the actual knowledge that is gained about a particular health problem. Researchers working with indigenous communities must continue to resolve conflict between the values of the academic setting and those of the community. It is important to consider the ways of knowing that exist in indigenous communities when developing research methods. Challenges to research partnerships include how to distribute the benefits of the research findings when academic or external needs contrast with the need to protect indigenous knowledge.

There is growing interest in patient-centered care, but there is little guidance about the interventions required for its delivery and whether it leads to better health outcomes. This systematic review evaluates the efficacy of patient-centered care interventions for people with chronic conditions. Thirty randomized controlled trials were identified from health-related databases. The findings indicated that most interventions were based on the notion of empowering care and included attempts to educate consumers or prompt them about how to manage a health consultation. Other common interventions focused on training providers in delivering empowering care. Although it was difficult to draw firm conclusions because of the moderate to high risk of bias of the research designs, this review has shown some promising findings from implementing a patient-centered care approach. There appeared to be benefits associated with this model of care in terms of patient satisfaction and perceived quality of care.

Culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities in Australia experience both significant health disparities and a lack of access to services. Consequently, there have been calls for culturally appropriate services for people with chronic disease in CALD populations. This paper presents a systematic review of the literature on the effectiveness of culturally appropriate interventions to manage or prevent chronic disease in CALD communities. Evidence was sought from randomized controlled trials and controlled studies that examined strategies for promoting cultural competence in health service delivery to CALD communities. The outcomes examined included changes in consumer health behaviours, utilisation/satisfaction with the service, and the cultural competence of health-care providers. Of the 202 studies that were identified only 24 met the inclusion criteria. The five categories of intervention that were identified included: (1) the use of community-based bi-lingual health workers; (2) providing cultural competency training for health workers; (3) using interpreter service for CALD people; (4) using multimedia and culturally sensitive videos to promote health for CALD people and (5) establishing community point-of-care services for CALD people with chronic disease. The review supported the use of trained bi-lingual health workers, who are culturally competent, as a major consideration in the development of an appropriate health service model for CALD communities.