Aim: For Australian Aboriginals there is lack of culturally secure educational resources available for health professionals working in the field of diabetes in pregnancy. The ADIPS Educational Research prize provided support for this research.
Method: Over a five-year period, Aboriginal women with diabetes attending antenatal clinics were recruited for focus groups or for individual participation. Resources were developed in the areas of maternal and infant health with the focus on nutrition for pregnancy, diabetes in pregnancy for self-management, PCOS, conception and contraception. Using a cyclical approach to develop, evaluate and correct educational resources and further testing the resources with various language groups for transferability. Peer review by experts in the field approved the technical content.
Results: A comprehensive series of educational resources suitable for people with limited health literacy, limited literacy and numerical literacy resulted from the research. The resources are easily downloaded and reproducible, in a variety of formats ranging from simple brochures, diary formats, in a Power Point (Microsoft) format or printed as flip charts to be suitable for yarning groups.
Conclusion: The ADIPS Educational Research prize has resulted in an extensive, comprehensive and culturally secure collection of educational resources suitable for Australian Aboriginal women. These resources have approval by the ADIPS council to be hosted on the ADIPS Website as a resource for health professionals working in the field of diabetes in pregnancy or for pre-conception use in general diabetes clinics.