Investigating the processes used to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of health education resources for adult Indigenous people: A literature review^†

† Ian Miller Elder, Mary-Anne Dieckmann Registered Nurse (RN), Audrey Trindall Elder, Neville Sampson Elder, Pam Smith Elder community member, Raymond Smith community member, Coral Toomey Elder, Bill Toomey Elder, Norman McGrady Elder (passed away 2016), Chris McGrady Elder, Karl McGrady Elder, Lexine McGrady Elder, Elaine Edwards Elder, Delphine Pitt Elder, Gomeroi/ Gamilaraay Aboriginal Community. Hunter New England Health.

Abstract

Purpose: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities need to participate in the development of health education material to gain connection with and ownership of concepts. This review extracted and synthesized evidence to answer the question: what processes are used to develop health education resources for adult Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and what makes them effective?

Design: A review was conducted using the PRISMA guidelines. Five databases were searched (OvidSP Medline, CINAHL, Informit, OvidSP Embase and ProQuest) and 438 non duplicate records were screened.

Findings: Twenty-two articles were identified; 18 reporting qualitative studies, two reporting mixed-method studies and two discussion papers. No quantitative studies met the inclusion criteria. Synthesis of the evidence revealed five themes: collaborative relationships, community ownership, lack of evaluation, cultural sensitivity, and health literacy.

Discussions/Conclusions: Limitations identified include barriers due to distance, time, and funding, and a need for cultural competency in mainstream health.

Keywords:

• aboriginal
• Torres Strait Islander
• Indigenous
• First Nation
• health literacy and engagement
• cultural sensitivity
• community ownership
• collaboration
• evaluation
• literature review

Acknowledgements

I acknowledge the input of Professor Cynthia Stuhlmiller (past supervisor) Professor Barry Tolchard (past supervisor) into this work as the initial supervisors of the project

Declaration of conflicting interests

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Notes

† Ian Miller Elder, Mary-Anne Dieckmann Registered Nurse (RN), Audrey Trindall Elder, Neville Sampson Elder, Pam Smith Elder community member, Raymond Smith community member, Coral Toomey Elder, Bill Toomey Elder, Norman McGrady Elder (passed away 2016), Chris McGrady Elder, Karl McGrady Elder, Lexine McGrady Elder, Elaine Edwards Elder, Delphine Pitt Elder, Gomeroi/ Gamilaraay Aboriginal Community. Hunter New England Health.

Additional information

Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.