Background: Chinese is the second largest oversea-born population in Sydney, and the third largest in Australia¹. Meanwhile, they are also the third largest group to have diabetes in NSW². Access to appropriate health information for the Chinese community is limited due to language problems, lack of culturally appropriate information, cost and dependence on others for transport. To address this gap, Diabetes NSW (DNSW) held a Diabetes Seminar in November 2014 at Burwood, a suburb within the heart of the Chinese community (28% population is Chinese)3. 

Aim: To evaluate participants’ satisfaction of the seminar and their perceived impact on knowledge and confidence in diabetes self-management. 

Method: A four-hour seminar was delivered by two health professionals with one of them is a dual qualified Chinese-speaking diabetes educator and dietitian. The physical activity section was delivered by the exercise physiologist and the interpreter. The seminar covered diabetes self-management, complications, healthy eating and physical activity with a brief section of diabetes distress. All participants received a translated session feedback questionnaire.

Results: 111 questionnaires were collected. 86% participants indicated to speak Chinese (Mandarin 61% and Cantonese 25%) with 62% of them reported they have diabetes. Around 96% rated both the length of the session, and the resources provided to be good to excellent. 94% and 93% agreed or strongly agreed their knowledge and understanding, and the confidence of healthy lifestyle and diabetes management had improved, respectively. Nearly 83% intended to make changes within the three months and the most popular intended changes are

-       Making healthier food choices (19%)

-       Increasing physical activity (19%)

-       Attending diabetes check-ups (11%)

99% would recommend this seminar to others and wanted to be contacted again for future programs from DNSW. The top three preferred topics for future programs are:

-       Chronic complications (21%)

-       Stress management (17%)

-       Travelling and eating out (15%) 

Conclusion: The format and delivery of this Chinese Diabetes Seminar was culturally appropriate esp. when it was delivered by the native Chinese-speaking health professional. The seminar had improved participant’s perceived knowledge and confidence and may lead to positive behaviour changes.