Mater celebrates Refugee Week

Tuesday, 29 June 2010

Mater Health Services used Refugee Week (June 20-26) as a unique opportunity to reflect on the care of refugees and celebrate the diversity they bring to the community.

To mark the occasion, a morning tea was held on Thursday giving staff a chance to indulge in Eritrean finger food and meet special guest speakers.

Attendees included members of the Sisters of Mercy congregations and the Board of Directors.

Among the speakers was Sudanese refugee Lavinia Yor who fled Sudan more than 20 years ago.

“I’m a refugee and I’m proud to be a refugee; it’s something that I cannot change,” Mrs Yor said.

“I am from South Sudan and I left my country 20-something years ago when my father was killed trying to protect me.

“My experience was not different from any other refugees, we have all suffered trauma; all suffered in many ways, some of us physically, some of us mentally or both.”

Mrs Yor settled in Egypt where she studied, married and had three children. Her family then received asylum in Australia in 1997—where they celebrated the arrival of another four children.

As one of the first Sudanese refugees to settle in Brisbane more than a decade ago, Mrs Yor and her family have witnessed a slow change in people’s perceptions towards refugees.

“I think people didn’t know what to expect from me or what to do,” she said.

“As refugees we carry a lot of things in our hearts, so when we come to a service we need people to be patient with us.

“The things we have been through mean we are not able to trust easily but if I see patience and trust in someone’s eye, I follow that, it is easier.

“The way we are treated in the community has changed. People are more willing to help us now.”

Mrs Yor recently delivered her seventh child, Patience, at Mater Mothers’ Hospital through the Refugee Maternity Service which is staffed by a multidisciplinary team including a lead obstetrician, dedicated midwife, social worker and interpreters.

She will also join the Mater staff in early July as an interpreter in her native Sudanese language, Dinka.

Sisters of Mercy Congregation Leader Sr Sandra Lupi with Sudanese refugee Lavinia Yor at celebrate Refugee Week (June 20-26).

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