THE Coonamble Aboriginal Health Service (CAHS) has broken new ground by developing a mobile app to connect people to health services and promotion.

The Fair Dinkum Choices ™ app was launched on Friday 21 October at Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo with a bevy of high profile supporters on hand.

Glen Inglis, former NRL International, has signed on to help champion the app and spoke at the launch about his own story and his Goanna Academy, the first accredited and Indigenous-owned mental health organisation in Australia.

He was joined by current National Rugby League player Brett Naden, former National Basketball League star Tyson Demos, the Honorable Mark Coulton MP, Rob Skeen CEO of the Aboriginal Health & Medical Research Council (AH&MRC), Andrew Coe, CEO of the Western Public Health Network, the CAHS Board of Directors and other government officials as well as community members and school students.

Master of Ceremonies for the launch was comedian Sean Choolburra and Coonamble's own Castlereagh Connection provided musical entertainment.

CEO Phil Naden says that CAHS have been working on the app for at least 18 months.

"It came out of a grassroots health promotion conversation we had in the community," Mr Naden said. "We got the idea for the wording 'Fair Dinkum Choices' from Jonathon Knight out in Bourke."

"He talks a lot on social media about making 'fair dinkum choices' and so I rang and asked him if we could turn this into a health promotion and he said 'go for it.'"

ABOVE: CAHS CEO Phil Naden with Board member Gloria Fernando and Comedian Sean Choolburra at the official launch of the Fair Dinkum Choices app.

The app not only provides a platform for CAHS to communicate with clients across their multiple sites in Coonamble, Dubbo and Gilgandra but was also designed to enable participation by a wider network of health organisations.

"We believe it is one of the first apps developed in Australia by an Aboriginal community-controlled organisation," Mr Naden said.

"Apps are very accessible and easy to download, and it is linked to a website with all our programs on it."

As well as providing a directory of services and programs available, features include the capacity for geo-location (to find the nearest service) and to make appointments directly from the app.

"The bottom line for the app is to have collective impact to improve health and wellbeing of communities across Australia," Mr Naden said.

"Part of it is pursuing one of the aims of our Board to diversify our revenue and not be so reliant on government funding but to generate revenue from outside the business."

CAHS staff and supporters at the launch. PHOTO SUPPLIED.

"We provide and sell packages to organisations who want to sign up to be part of Fair Dinkum Choices ™," he said.

"We control the dashboard so it will all continue to be managed by CAHS."

So far thirteen agencies have taken up the opportunity to be featured on the app from the national AH&MRC to a local service in the Illawarra.

Mr Naden says an offshore company in Daipur, India was selected to develop the app "purely on a cost basis" and that himself, CAHS Chairman Brendon Harris, and Executive Assistant Beau Ewers travelled to India to liaise with developers Dotspur "to put the finishing touches" on the app in its final stages.

"A lot of work has been put in behind the scenes and I want to acknowledge the Board and Beau's tireless work in supporting the company in developing the app," he said.

The Fair Dinkum Choices ™ app is already registered for IOS and Android smartphones but more work is required before it finally goes live on 1 December 2022.