The Silent Killer: Documentary Exposes Healthcare Gaps for Indigenous Australians with Kidney Disease

A new documentary is shining a light on the disproportionate impact of kidney disease on First Nations Australians, highlighting systemic racism and healthcare gaps in the medical system.

For Kelli Karrikarringka Owen, a Kaurna, Narungga and Ngarrindjeri woman, the journey to a kidney transplant was marked by frustration and disappointment. When she needed a transplant 10 years ago, her family members offered to donate their organs, but their requests were refused.

"This is systemic racism that I’m talking about," she said. "Basically, they were saying that because my family was Aboriginal that they couldn't donate, which is bollocks."

Ms Owen, now a public health researcher at Adelaide University, has Alport syndrome, a genetic kidney disease that left her feeling lethargic, itchy, and without a sense of taste. For about three years, she would drive from Murray Bridge to Adelaide every second day to be hooked up to a dialysis machine for five hours.

"I actually had to withdraw my two youngest children from school, get in a taxi and travel down to the old RAH (Royal Adelaide Hospital) three times a week," she said. "It was a scary time."

Ms Owen eventually received a kidney from a donor from New South Wales through the national donor program in 2016. While she is now enjoying a life of "freedom" after a successful transplant, she said she felt "angry" that her family's initial requests were refused.

"I could have saved a few years being hooked up to a machine," she said. "I could have been there for my younger children that were missing me being there for sports."

According to federal government data, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults are twice as likely as non-Indigenous adults to have chronic kidney disease. However, First Nations people are less likely to receive a kidney transplant.

Data from 2022 showed that 16 per cent of First Nations people receiving kidney replacement therapy had a functioning kidney transplant, compared with 48 per cent of non-Indigenous Australians.

Adelaide University nurse researcher Professor Janet Kelly said kidney disease was known as a "silent killer", with some patients experiencing significant loss of kidney function without any symptoms.

"A lot of our services are based within major cities and often half of Aboriginal people will live in cities, but half live in rural and remote places, so there is an immediate challenge to accessing equitable services," Professor Kelly said.

The documentary, titled "In Contrast", has premiered in Sydney and Adelaide, highlighting the discrepancy in transplant rates and the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Ms Owen said she hoped the documentary raised awareness about kidney disease.

"It's a silent disease and we don't want to make it silent anymore," she said.