How Neoliberalism Shapes Indigenous Oral Health Inequalities Globally: Examples from Five Countries

Lisa Jamieson, Joanne Hedges, Sheri McKinstry, Pauline Koopu and Kamilla Venner
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Lisa Jamieson: Indigenous Oral Health Unit, University of Adelaide Dental School, Adelaide 5005, Australia
Joanne Hedges: Indigenous Oral Health Unit, University of Adelaide Dental School, Adelaide 5005, Australia
Sheri McKinstry: College of Dentistry, University of Saskatchewan, E3350-107 Wiggins Road, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5E4, Canada
Pauline Koopu: Auckland Regional Hospital & Specialist Dentistry, Auckland District Health Board, 1023 Auckland, New Zealand
Kamilla Venner: Center on Alcoholism, Department of Psychology, Substance Abuse, & Addiction, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 23, 1-20

Abstract: Evidence suggests that countries with neoliberal political and economic philosophical underpinnings have greater health inequalities compared to less neoliberal countries. But few studies examine how neoliberalism specifically impacts health inequalities involving highly vulnerable populations, such as Indigenous groups. Even fewer take this perspective from an oral health viewpoint. From a lens of indigenous groups in five countries (the United States, Canada, Australia, Aotearoa/New Zealand and Norway), this commentary provides critical insights of how neoliberalism, in domains including colonialism, racism, inter-generational trauma and health service provision, shapes oral health inequalities among Indigenous societies at a global level. We posit that all socially marginalised groups are disadvantaged under neoliberalism agendas, but that this is amplified among Indigenous groups because of ongoing legacies of colonialism, institutional racism and intergenerational trauma.

Keywords: indigenous; neoliberalism; oral health; M?ori; aboriginal; Torres Strait Islander; Sámi; Alaskan Native; Native American; First Nations; Inuit; Métis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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