An Indigenous and Western paradigm to understand gestational diabetes mellitus: Reflections and insights

Indigenous women face many barriers to maternal care during pregnancy in Canada. A participatory study was conducted in two First Nations Communities in Nova Scotia, Canada to gain new knowledge about Mi’kmaw women’s experiences of living with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Relational ethics helped guide this journey. In this paper we describe how Indigenous and Western approaches were used to understand Mi’kmaw women’s experiences with GDM. It was important to us that the research methodology facilitated building relationship and trust. This led to an openness and willingness of the women to express their concerns and offer ways to address GDM in their communities. The challenges of blending Indigenous approaches with Western research are also discussed in the paper. The foundational principles that were used during this research included: 1) Staying true to my word; 2) Mutual Trust; 3) Mutual Respect; 4) Being Flexible; 5) Being Non judgemental; 6) Working in partnership; 7) Taking time to explain; 8) Promoting autonomy; and 9) Genuine connectiveness. The findings revealed that the research assisted the Mi’kmaw women in understanding their experiences in new ways and helped to build capacity so that they could take action to improve their health, while sustaining their Mi’kmaw culture.