Obstructive sleep apnea diagnosis and management in First Nations communities: protocol for the Let’s Yarn About Sleep-Obstructive Sleep Apnea Program

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is a highly prevalent, yet significantly under-recognized disorder in First Nations Australians. Responding to strong community demand for local capacity building for sleep health equity, this paper outlines the Let’s Yarn About Sleep-OSA (LYAS-OSA) program protocol. The LYAS-OSA program will involve the co-design, implementation, and evaluation of a place-based, culturally responsive, nurse-led, and Aboriginal Health Worker-supported model for OSA diagnosis and management for First Nations peoples. This program will partner with health services and organizations across 12 communities in Queensland, Australia. The program will be conducted from 2023 to 2027. During the set up and development stage, an advanced data analytics study of secondary data will examine OSA phenotypes and symptomatology in First Nations Queensland communities. In addition, consumers and healthcare professionals will be engaged in co-design workshops to inform the development of a service delivery model framework. In stage two, local capacity building activities for Aboriginal Health Workers and nurses will be undertaken, with training on OSA diagnosis and management. This work will culminate in delivering and evaluating the co-designed service model. This community-led approach to co-designing, implementing, and evaluating the LYAS-OSA service delivery model will advance knowledge to deliver culturally responsive, context-responsive, OSA diagnosis, and management care for First Nations communities. The LYAS-OSA program outputs will significantly contribute to the evidence base and service delivery provision for OSA care, thereby improving sleep health equity for First Nations Australians.