The fundamental rights and freedoms we enjoy as Australians are universal. Australia has affirmed, within our support for fundamental rights and freedoms, 'that Indigenous peoples are equal to all other peoples, while recognising the right of all peoples to be different, to consider themselves different, and to be respected as such' (UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples). Nurses play a pivotal role in ensuring that the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are maintained throughout the health sector. The challenge for nursing is how, in a diverse society, do we navigate the translation of rights to reality? Culturally valid understandings must shape the provision of services and must guide assessment, care and management of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people's health (Purdie, Dudgeon and Walker, 2009). Subject content explores the practice of cultural competence for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The subject covers topics such as contemporary Indigenous health and the ways in which historical circumstances have had, and continue to have, an impact on the health of Indigenous peoples. The unit will focus primarily on the health of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island peoples, but will also briefly explore the health of Indigenous populations in other comparable western nations. Students will explore in some depth the most significant social determinants of health as these relate to the health of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island populations. The unit will also focus on the relationship between access to health care services and health outcomes for Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island peoples, and the concept of cultural diversity in relation to the provision of health care services to people from Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island backgrounds.