Lead: Associate Professor Jonathan Shaw
The Diabetes in Pregnancy Partnership (DIP) Project is being conducted in collaboration with Menzies School of Health Research and Northern Territory Department of Health, with the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute Central Australia researchers carrying out the project at Alice Springs Hospital.
The DIP project responds to the rising rates of diabetes in pregnant women and aims to build on what is known about the impact of abnormal blood glucose levels on health outcomes for mothers and their babies. The project is investigating the extent of diabetes in pregnancy in the Northern Territory and will provide clinical indicators to examine what is happening for the women and their infant children.
There are two parts of the DIP project: the clinical register and the research study known as PANDORA (Pregnancy And Neonatal Outcomes in Remote Australia). The DIP clinical register records routine information from women who have had diabetes in pregnancy and their babies and this information will be used to assist with planning models of health care and service delivery. The DIP research study follows women with diabetes in pregnancy and their babies over regular intervals up to 12 years. Clinical information is gathered by the Baker Institute's research nurses/midwives, with the aim to inform health professionals' practice and ultimately improve the health and wellbeing of upcoming generations of Territorians.