First Nations Peoples' perceptions, knowledge and beliefs regarding stillbirth prevention and bereavement practices: A mixed methods systematic review.

BACKGROUND: First Nations Peoples endure disproportionate rates of stillbirth compared with non-First Nations Peoples. Previous interventions have aimed at reducing stillbirth in First Nations Peoples and providing better bereavement care without necessarily understanding the perceptions, knowledge and beliefs that could influence the design of the intervention and implementation. AIM: The aim of this review was to understand the perceptions, knowledge and beliefs about stillbirth prevention and bereavement of First Nations Peoples from the US, Canada, Aotearoa/New Zealand, and Australia. METHODS: This review was conducted in accordance with the JBI methodology for a convergent integrated mixed method systematic review. This review was overseen by an advisory board of Aboriginal Elders, researchers, and clinicians. A search of eight databases (PubMed, MEDLINE, PsycInfo, CINAHL, Embase, Emcare, Dissertations and Theses and Indigenous Health InfoNet) and grey literature was conducted. All studies were screened, extracted, and appraised for quality by two reviewers and results were categorised, and narratively summarised. RESULTS: Ten studies were included within this review. Their findings were summarised into four categories: safeguarding baby, traditional practices of birthing and grieving, bereavement photography and post-mortem examination. The results indicate a diversity of perceptions, knowledge and beliefs primarily around smoking cessation and bereavement practices after stillbirth. However, there was a paucity of research available. CONCLUSIONS: Further research is needed to understand the perceptions, knowledge and beliefs about stillbirth among First Nations Peoples. Without research within this area, interventions to prevent stillbirth and support bereaved parents and their communities after stillbirth may face barriers to implementation.

Coupling Machine Learning Models with Innovative Technology-based Screening Tool for Identifying Psychological Distress among Aboriginal Perinatal Mothers.

Aboriginal perinatal mothers are at a significant risk of experiencing mental health problems, which can have profound negative impacts, despite their overall resilience. This work aimed to build prediction models for identifying high psychological distress among Aboriginal perinatal mothers by coupling machine learning models with an innovative and culturally-safe screening tool. The original dataset of 179 Aboriginal mothers with 337 variables was obtained from twelve perinatal health settings at Perth metropolitan and regional centers in Western Australia between July and September 2022, using a specifically designed web-based rubric for the perinatal mental health assessment. After data preprocessing and feature selection, 23 variables related to emotional manifestations, the problematic partner, worries about daily living, and the need for follow-up wraparound support were identified as significant predictors for the high risk of psychological distress measured by the Kessler 5 plus adaptation. The selected predictors were used to train prediction models, and most of the chosen machine learning models achieved satisfactory results, with Random Forest and Support Vector Machine yielding the highest AUC of over 0.95, accuracy over 0.86, and F1 score above 0.87. This study demonstrates the potential of using machine learning-based models in clinical decision-making to facilitate healthcare and social and emotional well-being for Aboriginal families.

Overweight/obesity and other predictors of gestational diabetes among Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal women in Western Australia.

This population-based study investigated the association of BMI and other predictors with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) among Australian Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal mothers. We conducted a state-wide retrospective cohort study that included all singleton births in Western Australia (n = 134,552) between 2012 and 2015 using population health datasets linked by the Western Australian Data Linkage Branch. Associations between GDM and its predictors were estimated as adjusted relative risks (aRRs) from multivariable generalised linear models. Adjusted ratio of relative risks (aRRRs) compared RRs in Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal mothers. Adjusted population attributable fractions estimated the contribution of overweight/obesity to GDM burden, and adjusted predicted probabilities for GDM were plotted against BMI levels. The following predictors had stronger associations with GDM in Aboriginal, compared to non-Aboriginal, mothers: maternal obesity (aRR [95% CI] 3.16 [2.54-3.93]; aRRR 1.57 [1.26-1.94]), previous LGA (aRR 1.70 [1.37-2.12]; aRRR 1.41 [1.13-1.76]) and previous macrosomia (birthweight ≥ 4 kg) (aRR 1.55 [1.24-1.94]; aRRR 1.53 [1.22-1.91]). 46.1% (95% CI: 36.6-54.1) of GDM cases in Aboriginal women (23.3% in non-Aboriginal mothers, 95% CI: 21.6-25.1) were attributed to overweight/obesity. Compared to non-Aboriginal mothers, adjusted GDM probabilities were higher at all BMI levels and showed greater increase with BMI. Overweight/obesity is a key driver of GDM among Aboriginal women. Association between BMI and GDM is stronger in Aboriginal, compared to non-Aboriginal, women especially at higher BMI.

First Nations populations' perceptions, knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and myths about prevention and bereavement in stillbirth: a mixed methods systematic review protocol.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this review is to investigate First Nations populations' perceptions, knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and myths about stillbirth. INTRODUCTION: First Nations populations experience disproportionate rates of stillbirth compared with non-First Nations populations. There has been a surge of interventions aimed at reducing stillbirth and providing better bereavement care, but these are not necessarily appropriate for First Nations populations. As a first step toward developing appropriate interventions for these populations, this review will examine current perceptions, knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and myths about stillbirth held by First Nations people from the United States, Canada, Aotearoa/New Zealand, and Australia. INCLUSION CRITERIA: The review will consider studies that include individuals of any age (bereaved or non-bereaved) who identify as belonging to First Nations populations. Eligible studies will include the perceptions, knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and myths about stillbirth among First Nations populations. METHODS: This review will follow the JBI methodology for convergent mixed methods systematic reviews. The review is supported by an advisory panel of Aboriginal elders, lived-experience stillbirth researchers, Aboriginal researchers, and clinicians. PubMed, MEDLINE (Ovid), CINAHL (EBSCOhost), Embase (Ovid), Emcare (Ovid), PsycINFO (EBSCOhost), Indigenous Health InfoNet, Trove, Informit, and ProQuest Dissertations and Theses will be searched for relevant information. Titles and abstracts of potential studies will be screened and examined for eligibility. After critical appraisal, quantitative and qualitative data will be extracted from included studies, with the former "qualitized" and the data undergoing a convergent integrated approach. REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO CRD42023379627.

The availability and delivery of culturally responsive Australian Aboriginal infant resuscitation education programmes: a structured literature review.

AIM: To critically appraise the literature to determine availability and identify the cultural responsiveness of infant resuscitation education for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations. BACKGROUND: Despite overall reductions in infant mortality in the last two decades, Aboriginal people have some of the highest rates of infant mortality of any developed nation. One of the key factors that has attributed to improvements in infant mortality rates is parent and carer education around risk factors and actions of first responders. Identifying gaps in the current basic first-aid initiatives available to Aboriginal communities may contribute to developing resources to contribute to reductions in Aboriginal neonatal mortality rates. METHOD: The review used key terms and Boolean operators across an 11-month time frame searching for research articles utilising the databases of CINAHL, Scopus, Ovid Emcare, Informit, Pubmed and Proquest. After review, 39 articles met the inclusion criteria, 25 articles were discarded due to irrelevant material and 14 articles were included in the structured literature review. The search process was developed using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines. Articles were assessed for validity and inclusion using the Critical Appraisal Skills Program checklist. RESULTS: Research literature relating to First Nation community-based CPR and first-aid education programmes in Canada, USA, India, UK and Europe, Asia and Africa were identified; however, none pertaining specifically to CPR and first-aid education in Australian Aboriginal communities were found. DISCUSSION: Despite the lack of research evidence relating to infant cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) education for Australian Aboriginal populations, the reviewed studies noted the importance of culturally responsive education designed in collaboration with First Nation peoples, using novel ways of teaching CPR, that align with the language, culture and needs of the communities it is intended for. CONCLUSION: Further research is required to create a framework for the delivery of culturally responsive infant resuscitation education for Australian Aboriginal parents and communities.

The perinatal and childhood outcomes of children born to Indigenous women with mental health problems: A scoping review.

OBJECTIVE: Maternal mental health problems are common during the perinatal period and have been associated with several negative outcomes in children. However, few studies have examined the associations between maternal mental health problems and offspring outcomes among Indigenous people, and the findings across these studies have been inconsistent. This scoping review examined the birth and childhood (≤12 years) health and development outcomes of the children of Indigenous women with mental health problems. METHODS: A scoping review was conducted following the methodological framework developed by Arksey and O'Malley and based on the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Eight databases were searched electronically for studies examining the associations between any perinatal maternal mental health problems and birth and childhood outcomes among the Indigenous populations of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the USA. Two authors reviewed studies for inclusion. A narrative synthesis approach was adopted. RESULTS: Of 2,836 records identified, 10 were eligible. One of three studies evaluating maternal depression and anxiety problems found a negative (adverse) association with birth and childhood behavioural outcomes. Six of seven studies that examined the associations between maternal substance use disorder (mainly alcohol use disorder) and several birth and childhood outcomes found at least one negative association. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Maternal substance use disorder appears to be associated with adverse birth and childhood outcomes among some Indigenous populations. However, there is preliminary evidence for the other common maternal mental health problems. Further research is critically required to draw definitive conclusions regarding the impact of maternal mental health problems on the birth and childhood outcomes.

Infant and Pre-birth Involvement With Child Protection Across Australia.

Infants (<1 year old) are the age group in Australia with the highest rate of involvement with child protection. Many jurisdictions across Australia and internationally are implementing policies focused on prenatal planning and targeted support. This study investigates Australian trends in prenatal and infant child protection notifications, substantiations and out-of-home care; and the extent of over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander infants. Data was provided by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare for the period 1 July 2012-30 June 2019. Univariate Poisson regression analysis was conducted, reporting the percentage change in the incidence rate ratios. All Australian jurisdictions who collect and approved release of prenatal notification data experienced increases in the rates of children with prenatal notifications, with a 4% (IRR: 1.04(1.04-1.05)) overall increase per year across Australia. Approximately 33% of children had substantiated prenatal notifications. Rates of infant notifications and entry to care in Australia increased overall by 3% (IRR:1.03(1.03-1.04)) and 2% per year (IRR:1.02(1.01-1.03)), respectively. With rising numbers of families reported prenatally and during infancy, greater evidence of the effectiveness of policies, interventions and outcomes for children and families is required.

The impact of diabetes during pregnancy on neonatal outcomes among the Aboriginal population in Western Australia: a whole-population study.

BACKGROUND: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (hereafter Aboriginal) women have a high prevalence of diabetes in pregnancy (DIP), which includes pre-gestational diabetes mellitus (PGDM) and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). We aimed to characterize the impact of DIP in babies born to Aboriginal mothers. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study, using routinely collected linked health data that included all singleton births (N = 510 761) in Western Australia between 1998 and 2015. Stratified by Aboriginal status, generalized linear mixed models quantified the impact of DIP on neonatal outcomes, estimating relative risks (RRs) with 95% CIs. Ratio of RRs (RRRs) examined whether RRs differed between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal populations. RESULTS: Exposure to DIP increased the risk of adverse outcomes to a greater extent in Aboriginal babies. PGDM heightened the risk of large for gestational age (LGA) (RR: 4.10, 95% CI: 3.56-4.72; RRR: 1.25, 95% CI: 1.09-1.43), macrosomia (RR: 2.03, 95% CI: 1.67-2.48; RRR: 1.39, 95% CI: 1.14-1.69), shoulder dystocia (RR: 4.51, 95% CI: 3.14-6.49; RRR: 2.19, 95% CI: 1.44-3.33) and major congenital anomalies (RR: 2.14, 95% CI: 1.68-2.74; RRR: 1.62, 95% CI: 1.24-2.10). GDM increased the risk of LGA (RR: 2.63, 95% CI: 2.36-2.94; RRR: 2.00, 95% CI: 1.80-2.22), macrosomia (RR: 1.95, 95% CI: 1.72-2.21; RRR: 2.27, 95% CI: 2.01-2.56) and shoulder dystocia (RR: 2.78, 95% CI: 2.12-3.63; RRR: 2.11, 95% CI: 1.61-2.77). Birthweight mediated about half of the DIP effect on shoulder dystocia only in the Aboriginal babies. CONCLUSIONS: DIP differentially increased the risks of fetal overgrowth, shoulder dystocia and congenital anomalies in Aboriginal babies. Improving care for Aboriginal women with diabetes and further research on preventing shoulder dystocia among these women can reduce the disparities.

Indigenous Women and Their Nutrition During Pregnancy (the Mums and Bubs Deadly Diets Project): Protocol for a Co-designed mHealth Resource Development Study.

BACKGROUND: Nutrition in pregnancy is pivotal to optimizing infant growth and maternal well-being. The factors affecting Indigenous people's food and nutrition intake are complex with a history of colonization impacting the disproportionate effect of social determinants to this day. Literature regarding the dietary intake or dietary priorities of Indigenous women in Australia is scarce, with supportive, culturally appropriate resources developed for and with this group rare. Research suggests mobile health (mHealth) tools are effective in supporting health knowledge of Indigenous people and positive health behavior changes when designed and developed with the expertise of Indigenous communities. OBJECTIVE: This study seeks to build the body of knowledge related to nutrition needs and priorities for Indigenous women in Australia during pregnancy. Further, this project team and its participants will co-design an mHealth digital tool to support these nutrition needs. METHODS: The Mums and Bubs Deadly Diets study recruits Indigenous women and health care professionals who support Indigenous women during pregnancy into 2 phases. Phase 1 (predesign) uses a mixed methods convergent design using a biographical questionnaire and social or focus groups to inform phase 2 (generative). Phase 2 will use a participatory action research process during co-design workshops to iteratively develop the digital tool; the exact actions within a workshop will evolve according to the participant group decisions. RESULTS: To date, this project has undertaken phase 1 focus groups at all Queensland sites, with New South Wales and Western Australia to begin in early to mid-2023. We have recruited 12 participants from Galangoor Duwalami, 18 participants from Carbal in Toowoomba, and 18 participants from Carbal in Warwick. We are expecting similar numbers of recruits in Western Australia and New South Wales. Participants have been both community members and health care professionals. CONCLUSIONS: This study is an iterative and adaptive research program that endeavors to develop real-world, impactful resources to support the nutrition needs and priorities of pregnant Indigenous women in Australia. This comprehensive project requires a combination of methods and methodologies to ensure Indigenous voices are heard at each stage and in all aspects of research output. The development of an mHealth resource for this cohort will provide a necessary bridge where there is often a gap in access to nutrition resources for women in pregnancy in Indigenous communities. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/45983.

Perinatal outcomes of Aboriginal women with mental health disorders.

OBJECTIVE: Maternal mental disorders have been associated with adverse perinatal outcomes such as low birthweight and preterm birth, although these links have been examined rarely among Australian Aboriginal populations. We aimed to evaluate the association between maternal mental disorders and adverse perinatal outcomes among Aboriginal births. METHODS: We used whole population-based linked data to conduct a retrospective cohort study (N = 38,592) using all Western Australia singleton Aboriginal births (1990-2015). Maternal mental disorders were identified based on the International Classification of Diseases diagnoses and grouped into six broad diagnostic categories. The perinatal outcomes evaluated were preterm birth, small for gestational age, perinatal death, major congenital anomalies, foetal distress, low birthweight and 5-minute Apgar score. We employed log-binomial/-Poisson models to calculate risk ratios and 95% confidence intervals. RESULTS: After adjustment for sociodemographic factors and pre-existing medical conditions, having a maternal mental disorder in the five years before the birth was associated with adverse perinatal outcomes, with risk ratios (95% confidence intervals) ranging from 1.26 [1.17, 1.36] for foetal distress to 2.00 [1.87, 2.15] for low birthweight. We found similar associations for each maternal mental illness category and neonatal outcomes, with slightly stronger associations when maternal mental illnesses were reported within 1 year rather than 5 years before birth and for substance use disorder. CONCLUSIONS: This large population-based study demonstrated an increased risk of several adverse birth outcomes among Aboriginal women with mental disorders. Holistic perinatal care, treatment and support for women with mental disorders may reduce the burden of adverse birth outcomes.

Early mortality among aboriginal and non-aboriginal women who had a preterm birth in Western Australia: A population-based cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Having a preterm (<37 weeks' gestation) birth may increase a woman's risk of early mortality. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (hereafter Aboriginal) women have higher preterm birth and mortality rates compared with other Australian women. OBJECTIVES: We investigated whether a history of having a preterm birth was associated with early mortality in women and whether these associations differed by Aboriginal status. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study used population-based perinatal records of women who had a singleton birth between 1980 and 2015 in Western Australia linked to Death Registry data until June 2018. The primary and secondary outcomes were all-cause and cause-specific mortality respectively. After stratification by Aboriginal status, rate differences were calculated, and Cox proportional hazard regression was used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for all-cause and cause-specific mortality. RESULTS: There were 20,244 Aboriginal mothers (1349 deaths) and 457,357 non-Aboriginal mothers (7646 deaths) with 8.6 million person-years of follow-up. The all-cause mortality rates for Aboriginal mothers who had preterm births and term births were 529.5 and 344.0 (rate difference 185.5, 95% CI 135.5, 238.5) per 100,000 person-years respectively. Among non-Aboriginal mothers, the corresponding figures were 125.5 and 88.6 (rate difference 37.0, 95% CI 29.4, 44.9) per 100,000 person-years. The HR for all-cause mortality for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal mothers associated with preterm birth were 1.48 (95% CI 1.32, 1.66) and 1.35 (95% CI 1.26, 1.44), respectively, compared with term birth. Compared with mothers who had term births, mothers of preterm births had higher relative risks of mortality from diabetes, cardiovascular, digestive and external causes. CONCLUSIONS: Both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal women who had a preterm birth had a moderately increased risk of mortality up to 38 years after the birth, reinforcing the importance of primary prevention and ongoing screening.

Family-centred interventions for Indigenous early childhood well-being by primary healthcare services.

BACKGROUND: Primary healthcare, particularly Indigenous-led services, are well placed to deliver services that reflect the needs of Indigenous children and their families. Important characteristics identified by families for primary health care include services that support families, accommodate sociocultural needs, recognise extended family child-rearing practices, and Indigenous ways of knowing and doing business. Indigenous family-centred care interventions have been developed and implemented within primary healthcare services to plan, implement, and support the care of children, immediate and extended family and the home environment. The delivery of family-centred interventions can be through environmental, communication, educational, counselling, and family support approaches. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the benefits and harms of family-centred interventions delivered by primary healthcare services in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the USA on a range of physical, psychosocial, and behavioural outcomes of Indigenous children (aged from conception to less than five years), parents, and families. SEARCH METHODS: We used standard, extensive Cochrane search methods. The latest search date was 22 September 2021. SELECTION CRITERIA: We included randomised controlled trials (RCTs), cluster RCTs, quasi-RCTs, controlled before-after studies, and interrupted time series of family-centred care interventions that included Indigenous children aged less than five years from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the USA. Interventions were included if they met the assessment criteria for family-centred interventions and were delivered in primary health care. Comparison interventions could include usual maternal and child health care or one form of family-centred intervention versus another. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: We used standard Cochrane methods. Our primary outcomes were 1. overall health and well-being, 2. psychological health and emotional behaviour of children, 3. physical health and developmental health outcomes of children, 4. family health-enhancing lifestyle or behaviour outcomes, 5. psychological health of parent/carer. 6. adverse events or harms. Our secondary outcomes were 7. parenting knowledge and awareness, 8. family evaluation of care, 9. service access and utilisation, 10. family-centredness of consultation processes, and 11. economic costs and outcomes associated with the interventions. We used GRADE to assess the certainty of the evidence for our primary outcomes. MAIN RESULTS: We included nine RCTs and two cluster-RCTs that investigated the effect of family-centred care interventions delivered by primary healthcare services for Indigenous early child well-being. There were 1270 mother-child dyads and 1924 children aged less than five years recruited. Seven studies were from the USA, two from New Zealand, one from Canada, and one delivered in both Australia and New Zealand. The focus of interventions varied and included three studies focused on early childhood caries; three on childhood obesity; two on child behavioural problems; and one each on negative parenting patterns, child acute respiratory illness, and sudden unexpected death in infancy. Family-centred education was the most common type of intervention delivered. Three studies compared family-centred care to usual care and seven studies provided some 'minimal' intervention to families such as education in the form of pamphlets or newsletters. One study provided a minimal intervention during the child's first 24 months and then the family-centred care intervention for one year. No studies had low or unclear risk of bias across all domains. All studies had a high risk of bias for the blinding of participants and personnel domain. Family-centred care may improve overall health and well-being of Indigenous children and their families, but the evidence was very uncertain. The pooled effect estimate from 11 studies suggests that family-centred care improved the overall health and well-being of Indigenous children and their families compared no family-centred care (standardised mean difference (SMD) 0.14, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.03 to 0.24; 2386 participants). We are very uncertain whether family-centred care compared to no family-centred care improves the psychological health and emotional behaviour of children as measured by the Infant Toddler Social Emotional Assessment (ITSEA) (Competence domain) (mean difference (MD) 0.04, 95% CI -0.03 to 0.11; 2 studies, 384 participants). We assessed the evidence as being very uncertain about the effect of family-centred care on physical health and developmental health outcomes of children. Pooled data from eight trials on physical health and developmental outcomes found there was little to no difference between the intervention and the control groups (SMD 0.13, 95% CI -0.00 to 0.26; 1961 participants). The evidence is also very unclear whether family-centred care improved family-enhancing lifestyle and behaviours outcomes. Nine studies measured family health-enhancing lifestyle and behaviours and pooled analysis found there was little to no difference between groups (SMD 0.16, 95% CI -0.06 to 0.39; 1969 participants; very low-certainty evidence). There was very low-certainty evidence of little to no difference for the psychological health of parents and carers when they participated in family-centred care compared to any control group (SMD 0.10, 95% CI -0.03 to 0.22; 5 studies, 975 parents/carers). Two studies stated that there were no adverse events as a result of the intervention. No additional data were provided. No studies reported from the health service providers perspective or on outcomes for family's evaluation of care or family-centredness of consultation processes. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: There is some evidence to suggest that family-centred care delivered by primary healthcare services improves the overall health and well-being of Indigenous children, parents, and families. However, due to lack of data, there was not enough evidence to determine whether specific outcomes such as child health and development improved as a result of family-centred interventions. Seven of the 11 studies delivered family-centred education interventions. Seven studies were from the USA and centred on two particular trials, the 'Healthy Children, Strong Families' and 'Family Spirit' trials. As the evidence is very low certainty for all outcomes, further high-quality trials are needed to provide robust evidence for the use of family-centred care interventions for Indigenous children aged less than five years.

Supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Families to Stay Together from the Start (SAFeST Start): Urgent call to action to address crisis in infant removals.

Reducing the rate of over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care (OOHC) is a key Closing the Gap target committed to by all Australian governments. Current strategies are failing. The "gap" is widening, with the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in OOHC at 30 June 2020 being 11 times that of non-Indigenous children. Approximately, one in five Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children entering OOHC each year are younger than one year. These figures represent compounding intergenerational trauma and institutional harm to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and communities. This article outlines systemic failures to address the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents during pregnancy and following birth, causing cumulative harm and trauma to families, communities and cultures. Major reform to child and family notification and service systems, and significant investment to address this crisis, is urgently needed. The Family Matters Building Blocks and five elements of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle (Prevention, Participation, Partnership, Placement and Connection) provide a transformative foundation to address historical, institutional, well-being and socioeconomic drivers of current catastrophic trajectories. The time for action is now.

Aboriginal children and family connections to primary health care whilst homeless and in high housing mobility: observations from a Nurse Practitioner-led service.

AIM: This article documents the impact of a Nurse Practitioner-led primary health service for disadvantaged children living in housing instability or homelessness. It identifies that First Nations children miss out on essential primary care, particularly immunisation, but have less severe health conditions than non-First Nations children living in housing insecurity. BACKGROUND: Health services for homeless populations focus on the 11% of rough sleepers, little is done for the 22% of children in Australia living in housing instability; many of whom are from First Nations families. Little is known of the health status of these children or their connections to appropriate primary health care. METHODS: This research implemented an innovative model of extended health care delivery, embedding a Nurse Practitioner in a homeless service to work with families providing health assessments and referrals, using clinically validated assessment tools. This article reports on proof of concept findings on the service that measured immunisation rates, developmental, medical, dental and mental health needs of children, particularly First Nations children, using a three-point severity level scale with Level 3 being the most severe and in need of immediate referral to a specialist medical service. FINDINGS: Forty-three children were referred by the service to the Nurse Practitioner over a 6-month period, with nine identifying as First Nations children. Differences in severity levels between First Nations/non-First Nations children were Level 1, First Nations/non-First Nations 0/15%; Level 2, 10/17%; and Level 3, 45/29%. Forty-five percent of First Nations children had no health problems, as compared to 29% on non-First Nations children. Immunisation rates were low for both cohorts. No First Nations child was immunised and only 9% of the non-First Nations children. While numbers for both cohorts are too low for valid statistical analysis, the lower levels of severity for First Nations children suggest stronger extended family support and the positive impact of cultural norms of reciprocity.

Health promotion in an Australian Aboriginal community: the Growing Strong Brains® toolkit.

AIM: The aim of this paper is to describe the implementation and evaluation of the Growing Strong Brains® (GSB) toolkit in a remote Aboriginal community in Western Australia (WA) over a 2-year period, 2018-2019. BACKGROUND: Ngala, a community service organisation in WA, developed the GSB toolkit in 2014, a culturally appropriate and interactive resource to build knowledge of early childhood development within Aboriginal communities. This was in response to evidence that a higher percentage of children in Aboriginal communities were developmentally vulnerable compared to the rest of the population. The GSB toolkit promotes awareness and understanding of early brain development pre-birth and in the early years of a child's life. METHODS: The project was underpinned by participatory action research (PAR). Reflective PAR review cycles (n = 5) monitored local community engagement, navigated challenges and utilised community strengths. Fifty-nine local service providers attended a 2-day formal training. Data were collected by using various methods throughout the project, including feedback following training, focus groups, surveys, one-on-one interviews using yarning techniques and reflective feedback from the Project Lead. FINDINGS: Establishing local Aboriginal project staff was pivotal to the success of the project. When delivering services for and with Aboriginal people, it is essential that cultural competence, safety and decision-making is carried through from planning to implementation and evaluation, and involves genuine, respectful and authentic relationships. Sufficient time allocation directed towards building relationships with other service providers and local community members needs to be considered and built into future projects.The Growing Strong Brains® project is embedded within the local community, and anticipated implementation outcomes were achieved. The support of the local people and service providers was beyond expectation, enabling the building of local capacity, and the development of a common understanding of the key messages from the GSB toolkit to allow integration throughout all levels of the community. This project has been important to build on the strategies necessary to introduce, implement and evaluate the GSB toolkit in other remote Aboriginal communities.

A Nurse Practitioner service designed to address the health needs of children living in housing instability: A non-randomised, concurrent mixed methods study protocol.

In 2019-2020 we conducted a pilot study of a Nurse Practitioner clinic working with housing insecure children (0-18 years) that found high levels of developmental delay, missed immunizations and dental caries. This present non-randomized, concurrent mixed-methods study protocol explains the next phase of the research designed proving proof of concept for a Nurse Practitioner model of care for these vulnerable children. Focusing on identifying and understanding clinic admission processes, tracking referral pathways and uptake, and how many vulnerable children miss potential care and why. This will help us to understand and address gaps in health service delivery for this cohort. DESIGN: The study uses a concurrent mixed- method design where both qualitative and quantitative data are collected during the same period (between January 2021 and March 2022 as per the funding timeline). METHODS: The concurrent mixed-method design will collect data from: A comprehensive assessment tool used by the Nurse Practitioner to evaluate the child accessing specialist homeless services, which assess their mental, physical and social health needs. Documentation about the child's referral needs and uptake by disadvantage families. Interviews with housing insecure families, and staff/managers of the specialist homeless service. A review of Nurse Practitioner case notes. Surveys of families with children accessing the Nurse Practitioner service. DISCUSSION: Addressing the childhood impacts of family homelessness is of global importance. Structural equation modelling, from the surveys and in-depth health assessments along with the thematic analysis of the interviews with parents and staff/managers provide an understanding of the relationships between referral uptake and variables such as education, homelessness and transport accessibility. Investigating the enablers and barriers to the usual health access and our extended referral uptake impacted by family homelessness enables a better understanding of the current health gaps. IMPACT: Just over one fifth of Australian children live with their families in some form of housing instability including homelessness. These children, aged from birth to 18 years, are often disconnected from health and similar social institutions, making them an underserviced population. Our research investigates a Nurse Practitioner services that helps reconnect children with services to help avoid poor long-term health outcomes.

Experiences of using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale in the context of antenatal care for Aboriginal mothers: Women and midwives' perspectives.

PROBLEM: Routine administration of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) is intended to promote early detection and preventative support for those who may be at risk of perinatal depression and anxiety. The cultural suitability of the EPDS has not been validated in the Aboriginal Australian context. BACKGROUND: Marked differences in health outcomes and service access between Australian Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal women and infants continue to exist. AIM: This study aimed to explore the cultural validity of the EPDS through understanding the experiences of Aboriginal women and midwives. METHODS: Qualitative data was drawn from semi-structured interviews/yarns with 13 Perth-based Aboriginal antenatal women and 10 non-Aboriginal midwives. FINDINGS: Utilising a grounded theory approach, thematic analysis of verbatim transcripts revealed that, surprisingly, women expressed generally favourable views of the EPDS, especially when the relationships between women and midwives were focused on. Midwives, however, expressed reservations about administering the EPDS and used the EPDS as a conversation-starter rather than as a standardised, standalone tool. DISCUSSION: In attempt to reconcile conflicting perspectives, analysis of recordings extended to evaluate micro-processes in the interviews. At the process level, it was clear that demand characteristics operated in some interviews, including socially desirable response biases, demand biases and acquiescent response styles. CONCLUSION: This highlights the need for researchers and clinicians to be trained in non-leading interview questioning techniques and in yarning methodology. Researchers and clinicians should also be aware of the cognitive biases and demand characteristics that may influence responding, likely perpetuated by dominant forces of a colonised society.

Measuring Social and Emotional Wellbeing in Aboriginal Youth Using Strong Souls: A Rasch Measurement Approach.

Currently, there are few robustly evaluated social and emotional wellbeing (SEWB) measures available for use with Aboriginal youth in research, policy, and practice. As such, this study used a Rasch measurement approach to examine the psychometric properties of Strong Souls, a 25-item self-reported SEWB instrument, created for use with Aboriginal youth in the Northern Territory. Our sample (N = 154) included youth (15-25 years old) living on Whadjuk (metropolitan Western Australia; N = 91) and Kamilaroi countries (rural New South Wales; N = 63). Using Rasch modelling techniques, evidence for multidimensionality in the scale was observed, resulting in subsequent analyses conducted separately on two subscales: Psychological Distress and Resilience. The Resilience subscale did not meet the Rasch model assumptions, with poor person and item separation and reliability indexes suggesting the scale was not reliably differentiating between participants' Resilience scores. The Psychological Distress subscale had mixed separation and reliability index results, with good construct validity implied but poorer ability to target the distress of participants. Our findings provide novel evidence demonstrating the functioning of Strong Souls in a contemporary sample of Aboriginal youth, suggesting further modifications of the instrument are required before it can be used with confidence as a reliable measure in this population group.

Caregiver-mediated interventions to support self-regulation among infants and young children (0-5 years): a protocol for a realist review.

INTRODUCTION: Self-regulation is a modifiable protective factor for lifespan mental and physical health outcomes. Early caregiver-mediated interventions to promote infant and child regulatory outcomes prevent long-term developmental, emotional and behavioural difficulties and improve outcomes such as school readiness, educational achievement and economic success. To harness the population health promise of these programmes, there is a need for more nuanced understanding of the impact of these interventions. The aim of this realist review is to understand how, why, under which circumstances and for whom, early caregiver-mediated interventions improve infant and child self-regulation. The research questions guiding this review were based on consultation with families and community organisations that provide early childhood and family services. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Realist reviews take a theory-driven and iterative approach to evidence synthesis, structured around continuous refinement of a programme theory. Programme theories specify context-mechanism-outcome configurations to explain what works, for whom, under which circumstances and how. Our initial programme theory is based on prior work in this field and will be refined through the review process. A working group, comprising service users, community organisation representatives, representatives from specific populations, clinicians and review team members will guide the evidence synthesis and interpretation, as well as the development and dissemination of recommendations based on the findings of the review. The review will involve searching: (i) electronic databases, (ii) connected papers, articles and citations and (iii) grey literature. Decisions to include evidence will be guided by judgements about their contribution to the programme theory and will be made by the research team, with input from the working group. Evidence synthesis will be reported using the Realist and MEta-narrative Evidence Synthesis: Evolving Standards guidelines. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval is not required as this is a review. Findings will be disseminated to our working group and through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations. REVIEW REGISTRATION NUMBER: The protocol is registered with Open Science Framework https://osf.io/5ce2z/registrations.