Family members of three women who died from complications associated with rheumatic heart disease (RHD) in the remote Gulf community of Doomadgee have given emotional victim impact statements to the inquest into their deaths.
Warning: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that this article contains images and names of people who have died.
The three young women, whose families requested they be referred to as Kaya, Ms Sandy and Betty, died in 2019 and 2020.
Outside court, Alec Doomadgee, the brother of Ms Sandy and cultural father of Kaya, said the world needed to know the women were human beings and a crucial part of their families.
Ms Sandy is survived by her four children, three of whom were sitting in court for several days this week.
Her eldest daughter, Timesha Sandy said she and her siblings missed her mother a lot.
"My favourite thing about her is that every night, Mum and Dad would be in the kitchen dancing, I'd just watch them," she said.
"Sometimes we'd like to lie next to her, listen to her heart, the clock in her heart ticking.
"She would just tell us she would be with us."
Ms Sandy's husband, Edgar Sandy, also spoke before the court about all three women.
He recalled one morning waking up to see his daughter and Kaya playing outside, making breakfast for them in the early light before anyone else was awake.
"I remember this like it was yesterday," he said.
"To see her go so early, she had a lot to learn in life, now that will never happen.
"My wife, my beautiful wife, I miss her every day, every night and going to bed every night, it's not the same anymore."
In a statement delivered by Betty's family's lawyer, Angela Taylor, the family recalled how much she loved animals, especially riding horses and her pet dog Bolt.
"She treated him like he was her baby, she took him everywhere she could," she said.
Her family said on a trip home, she insisted Bolt be brought to the bus stop to meet her when she came home.
'It is an issue of race'
Alec Doomadgee said he hoped the inquest would help bring these women's lives — and the injustice they faced — to the public's attention.
"There needs to be accountability, and the Queensland Health System and the Queensland Government need to take responsibility for their inaction," he said.
He said that, if Kaya had been white, her treatment at various hospitals would have been very different.
"It is an issue of race. It is an issue of systemic racism, institutionalised racism, and it is an issue of stereotyping Aboriginal people," he said.
Mr Doomadge said the issue of poor communication between health services needs to be addressed but also said he thought the system, as a whole, needs to be re-evaluated.
"They're playing Russian roulette with Aboriginal women's lives in the community just because they've got an issue with another health care provider coming into town," he said.
"They always come in with the notion that: 'I'm here to help you to do good for you.' But they've done the total opposite. They've created chaos, they've created death and destruction amongst our community.
"We're sick of being helped. We know what's best for us, and we know how to help ourselves. We just need you to start listening to us."
He called on the state government to take real action and responsibility.
"If Anna Palaszczuk wants to talk with us, and wants to be respectful of us, come and talk to us before we're all dead.
"[Ms Sandy] didn't die due to neglect, didn't die due to negligence. She died because the system and the people [who are] supposed to help didn't care."
Community involvement key
The inquest also heard cultural practices needed to be central to healthcare.
Doomadgee Elder, Barry Walden, who previously worked with the Federal Government on "Closing the Gap" told the court, Doomadgee needed to be allowed to lead the way.
"Let Doomadgee take the lead, Doomadgee will show you what is expected in Doomadgee," he said.
He said this meant any services operating in the community must be invited and endorsed by the community and follow cultural protocols.
"The attitude that you bring into my community and our community is first of all, (you must) learn from people, not come out here to teach," he said.
"Whatever delivery of services that come out here now, Doomadgee clearly don't have a say."
He said practices at the hospital meant many cultural ties weren't recognised.
"That is cutting the cultural string that we own," he said.
He said this applies not only to health services.
"We suffer, we live like a third-world country lives," he said.
"Community will lead that conversation, not Gidgee, not Queensland Health, it has to be done by the community themselves.
"We need to be the ones that create our own destiny."
The inquest was triggered after an ABC Four Corners program revealed issues around the treatment of the women at the local hospital.
