Oral Presentation ANZOS Annual Scientific Meeting 2021

Keriba Way: Co-designing a culturally tailored healthy lifestyle program for communities in the outer Islands of the Torres Strait (#67)

Stella Boyd-Ford 1 2 , Deanne Minniecon 1 , Ella Kris 3 , Simone Nalatu 1
  1. Health and Wellbeing Qld, Milton, QLD, Australia
  2. The University of Qld, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
  3. Torres Strait Island Regional Council, Thursday Island, QLD, Australia

The proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults in Australia who were overweight or obese increased from 69% in 2012-13 to 74% in 2018-19. Programs with strong community involvement to improve knowledge and skills are effective in reducing personal risk factors related to obesity. Culturally tailored programs led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander facilitators are more effective than non-Indigenous programs in addressing risk factors associated with obesity, such as the importance of relationships, connection to lands, community, identity, self-determination, spirituality and culture. A needs assessment was conducted and identified the outer islands of the Torres Strait as a priority area for obesity prevention. A healthy lifestyle program adapted from Queensland Health’s Living Strong was co-designed with 13 local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff. Following this, 10 Healthy Lifestyle Officers from outer island communities gathered for consultation and training in the program. Results from consultation indicated the need for inclusion of local foods, gardening, practical activities, and separation of groups by gender for some topics. The pilot program, called Keriba Way, includes information on nutrition, physical activity, food security, gardening, diabetes and smoking cessation. Keriba means "our" in Meriam Mir. Keriba Way is facilitated by Healthy Lifestyle Officers who are also community members. All adults in the community can participate, allowing for flexibility around each community’s needs. Keriba Way has been piloted in three outer island communities so far with over 30 participants. Baseline data has been collected, and evaluation based on changes in anthropometry and behaviours and community feedback is ongoing with the aim to implement the program in further settings. Feedback from community has been positive, and development of this program will contribute to a suite of obesity prevention activities adapted for Torres Strait Islander peoples, by Torres Strait Islander peoples.