Ngangkari are the traditionalhealers of the Anangu, the Aboriginal Australians who live in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands that encompass about of the remote Western Desert of Australia. The word in the Arrerntelanguages of Central Australia is ngangkere. For thousands of years the ngangkari have nurtured the physical, emotional and social-wellbeing of their people. To become a ngangkari you must be "born into" the ability and both the ability and knowledge are passed on through family lines; the powers ngangkari are given are called mapanpa. Before colonisation the Anangu were fit, happy and healthy; living their traditional lifestyle of hunting, gathering and eating traditional foods. In these times the ngangkari were primarily needed for simple injuries such as burns and people who had been in the sun too long but that role has changed significantly. Following colonisation, and the introduction of a number of epidemics, being moved off country and the introduction of drugs and alcohol, ngangkari are having to work harder then ever to help their people and adjust to these new demands. The ngangkari tradition continues to the present day, with ngangkari continuing to help people from their communities as well as in hospitals, nursing homes, gaols, hostels and a variety of health services. Ngangkari also work inpartnership with the western health system in order to deliver the best health and wellbeing outcomes for their people. Using ngangkari in partnership with western medicine has proven to be very successful and in some places, including the Royal Adelaide Hospital, ngangkari healers are popular with clients from different backgrounds, assisting with pain management and relief and, especially for Aboriginal patients, improving attendance rates at medical appointments. The Pitjantjatjara word ngangkari, defined as an Indigenous practitioner of bush medicine, was short-listed for the Macquarie Dictionary2019word of the year. Ngangkari include Pitjantjatjara artist, Bill Whiskey Tjapaltjarri.
