The Old People in Doomadgee speak of a time in living memory when there was no sickness amongst their people.
It's a time Alec Doomadgee remembers as well.
"I was born in the 1970s, at the tail-end of that era," the Waanyi Garawa Gangalida man told NITV.
"A lot of the Old People ate tucker from out in the bush, that they got themselves. They were healthy: very active and physical.
"It's not the same any more."
Now the same Elders say they can hear the wheezes of children as they walk home from school.
The health of the remote Aboriginal community's residents was thrown under the spotlight again on Friday,
Coroner Nerida Wilson gave her thanks and sympathies to the residents of Doomadgee as she detailed the systemic failures that had met Kaya, Betty and Ms Sandy as they struggled with rheumatic heart disease (RHD), the affliction that would claim all three lives between 2019 and 2020.
Mr Doomadgee, who was Ms Sandy's brother and a father figure to Kaya, has been central in pushing for accountability since he lost them.
"I'm a bit overwhelmed, because it's been three years of fighting for justice," he said.
"I welcome the findings and the recommendations from the coroner that she that she handed down, and I thank her for her hard work in bringing the truth to light.
"It's been a long struggle for our family, and one that's been very emotional."
'System failed'
Betty Booth, Shakaya George and Adele Sandy were dearly cherished by their families who are now fighting for justice for them. Source: Supplied / Photo: Supplied by families
Once established, the mortality rates are shocking, rising to 30 per cent just six years after diagnosis.
In her findings, Coroner Wilson described it as a disease almost exclusively of poverty.
Betty, Ms Sandy and Kaya were all suffering from the disease when they presented to Doomadgee Hospital in September 2019, May 2020 and August 2020 respectively.
While Betty and Ms Sandy died at the local health centre, Kaya was transferred to two hospitals and underwent several surgeries before eventually succumbing to her illness.
Coroner Wilson detailed a system that had "failed" the three women on multiple fronts.
"There is a tendency [in coronial proceedings] to blame individuals," she told the court and those listening in, including residents of Doomadgee.
"In this case, systems failed: they failed Kaya, Betty and Ms Sandy, as well as the health professionals involved."
The lack of an "unimpeded flow of information" between Gidgee Healing and the hospitals at Doomadgee, Mount Isa and Brisbane had impacted the ability of caregivers to guild a "full clinical picture" of the three women.
She made 19 recommendations, including addressing racism within the system, appointing experts to examine the patient information system and creating a role of community liaison.
'Not fit for modern society'
Coroner Wilson said a breakdown in the trust between community members and the staff and healthcare professionals at Doomadgee Hospital was a determinant in the women's death.
She specifically highlighted the exmaple of a cage structure that had been erected around the dispensary at the hospital, saying that it was culturally inappropriate and was unnecessarily reminiscent of the carceral system to Doomadgee residents.
The coroner said it was not enough for individuals working in the health system to declare they are not racist.
"That is a subjective judgement, and it is not fit for modern society," she told the court.
For Alec Doomadgee, the mention of systemic bias stood out clearly amongst the issues highlighted by the coroner.
"It's an issue that needs to be addressed, one that needs to be spoken about more," he told NITV.
"We, as Aboriginal people have lived with this racism for a long period of time. We know what it feels like, we know what it tastes like, we know what it looks like. And we certainly know what it sounds like.
"So to hear the coroner address [that issue] was really satisfying for myself, because it's one that I've pushed from the beginning: that the inadequate treatment towards Aboriginal people is most is racially motivated."
The Queensland Health Minister Shannon Fentiman welcomed all of the coroner's recommendations, saying in a statement that the government would work with the community to implement them.
