Professor Fatima is a Professor of Sleep Health at the University of the Sunshine Coast. She led the development of Let's Yarn About Sleep - Australia's first sleep health initiative designed with, and for, First Nations communities.
"I applied mixed-methods and co-design approaches to develop, evaluate, and scale up culturally grounded evidence-based programs that privilege the voices and priorities of the communities I work with."
Conversations and co-design
Fatima's first step was to listen to First Nations communities. "These conversations were critical in shaping a culturally grounded understanding of sleep, identifying community priorities, and guiding the development of the program to align with local values and strengths."
Drawing on these insights, she collaborated with communities to co-design the program for First Nations adolescents, blending cultural knowledge with Western sleep science.
Culturally safe sleep coaching
Six First Nations community members trained as Sleep Coaches and delivered the culturally safe program to 70 First Nations adolescents in the Mount Isa region.
"Training was shaped by community Elders and embedded with cultural protocols, ensuring the program remained grounded in local knowledge and practices."
Transforming sleep habits
Delivered through strong partnerships with health services, schools, advocacy groups, and local stakeholders, the program was well received by young people and their families.
"Young people who participated in the program showed a strong improvement in their understanding of healthy sleep, such as how much sleep they need, why it matters, and how to build better sleep habits.
Their overall sleep health improved, including better sleep routines, longer sleep, fewer night-time disruptions, and feeling more rested during the day.
There were also signs that the program may help reduce stress and support emotional wellbeing, although those changes were not large enough to draw firm conclusions."
Embedding First Nations leadership at every level
"Our commitment to First Nations leadership and co-design is embedded in the program content, research process, governance structures, authorship, and dissemination activities.
This approach has enabled culturally safe, strengths-based, and effective implementation that reflects the priorities and aspirations of First Nations communities."
The program's culturally responsive resources have since been adopted by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and other health services.
A deeper understanding of sleep
The community-led approach helped Fatima learn that sleep is not just a biological process for First Nations communities.
"Dreaming is deeply connected to culture, identity, creativity, and spiritual health. This brought an important shift in how we think about sleep health in First Nations contexts."
"Our research also led to a broader recognition of how poor sleep impacts physical health, emotional wellbeing, and the social lives of young people in the community. As a result, there is now stronger momentum to consider sleep as a core part of health and wellbeing, not just an add-on.
This shift influences how sleep health is assessed in clinical and community settings. It has raised important questions about whether existing diagnostic tools and treatment programs are appropriate or effective for First Nations peoples."
A collaborative journey
Fatima's journey has been shaped by the leadership and wisdom of First Nations communities. She believes that the MRFF has been instrumental in enabling a level of collaboration that would not have been possible otherwise.
"MRFF funding has supported the development of a robust, multidisciplinary research network spanning community, academic, industry, and advocacy sectors.
Through this support, we established the Let's Yarn About Sleep research group, which includes more than 90 researchers,19 of whom identify as First Nations, from 18 leading Australian universities.
It has enabled us to centre community leadership by supporting the participation of First Nations researchers, community members, and Elders throughout all stages of the research."
"Importantly, this journey has been shaped by the privilege of working alongside and learning from First Nations communities. Their leadership, generosity, and guidance have strengthened the research's quality and cultural integrity and made my work more meaningful, grounded, and aligned with real-world priorities."
