Endometriosis Centre at Epworth (JAECE) is addressing this very issue through their ‘KNOWENDO:Endometriosis Education for All' project. Assisted by a $50,000 grant from Telematics Trust, KNOWENDO will contain a suite of multilingual podcast and video resources designed to bridge the gap in endometriosis knowledge amongst those that otherwise struggle to find accessible help and information. Utilising an innovative AI framework, the resources will be evidence-based, produced in 9 languages and free to access – removing a barrier that has kept disadvantaged Victorians with endometriosis from accessing the healthcare information they need.
New Formats for Diverse Learning
In 2018, Australia’s first National Action Plan for Endometriosis was published. It made clear that improving the quality of life of those who live with endometriosis can not be achieved without first improving awareness and community understanding of the condition. Currently, efforts to achieve this goal don’t fully account for the over 285,000 Victorians that report difficulties with English, the 44% of Australians who have low literacy or the 15-20% of the population that are neurodivergent. KNOWENDO is set to change this.
Telematics funding will enable the Julia Argyrou Endometriosis Centre to utilise the power of AI to create educational podcasts in nine new languages, as well as new translations of existing video resources. By using video and podcast formats in this way, the team at the JAECE will be creating flexible and engaging alternatives for those with diverse learning styles, particularly low-literacy and neurodivergent audiences. These freely available resources will ensure that those who have difficulty understanding or processing written information can access JAECE’s world-class endometriosis resources, empowering them to make the healthcare choices that work best for them.
Endo Education for All
Veronica Abruzzo, Program Manager at the Julia Argyrou Endometriosis Centre, had this to say about the partnership with the Telematics Trust:
“The support of the Telematics Trust is enabling us to bring KNOWENDO: Endometriosis Education for All to life. By combining clinical expertise, consumer input and emerging technology, the project aims to deliver culturally appropriate podcasts and educational videos that support people from CALD backgrounds, those with low literacy, and neurodivergent individuals. We are deeply grateful to the Telematics Trust for supporting a project that has the potential to improve access to trusted health education, reduce inequities, and create a scalable model that could be applied across healthcare and education sectors in the future.
This grant is giving us the opportunity to explore new ways of using technology to expand the reach of endometriosis education, creating resources that can support people regardless of where they live or the language they speak. We are incredibly grateful to the Telematics Trust for supporting our vision of improving awareness, reducing inequities in health education, and ultimately helping more people access the care and support they need.”
Improving Treatments for Better Outcomes
Established in 2021, The Julia Argyrou Endometriosis Centre at Epworth has quickly become a leader in improving the diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis, working towards better outcomes and, one day, a cure. KNOWENDO is the latest step in this mission.