Aboriginal Health Workers promoting oral health among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women during pregnancy : development and pilot testing of the Grinnin' Up Mums & Bubs program

Ariana Kong, Michelle Dickson, Lucie Ramjan, Mariana S. Sousa, Nathan Jones, Ravi Srinivas, Jemma Chao, Joanne Goulding, Ajesh George

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background: this study aimed to develop and pilot test the model of care, Grinnin’ Up Mums & Bubs, to train Aboriginal Health Workers to promote oral health among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander pregnant women. Methods: Participatory Action Research was employed to develop the different components of the model (oral health promotion resources, training workshop, and a culturally safe referral pathway to dental services). The model was piloted (pre-post), using an embedded mixed-methods design, to determine the acceptability, satisfaction, and any recommendations made by seven Aboriginal Health Workers at an antenatal service in Western Sydney, Australia. Results: there was a high level of satisfaction with the components of the model of care among the participants, who believed that the model could be integrated into practice. The training showed some improvement in oral health knowledge and confidence. The participants recommended strategies for discussing oral health with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander pregnant women, and changes in public health dental policy to ensure that all women would be able to access affordable dental services through the referral pathway. Conclusion: the findings suggest a high level of satisfaction with the model of care among the Aboriginal Health Workers. Further evaluation is needed to confirm the short and long-term impact of the model.
Original languageEnglish
Article number9576
Number of pages20
JournalInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Volume18
Issue number18
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2021

Open Access - Access Right Statement

© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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