Sharing, listening, and learning: advancing conversations on stigma, mental health and person-centred diabetes care
By Alison Robinson [1], Edith Holloway [2], Jo Jordan [3], Meaghan Read [4], and Elizabeth Holmes-Truscott [5]
Last week, we were proud to take part in the 2026 International Diabetes Federation – Western Pacific Region and Australasian Diabetes Congress (IDF-WPR & ADC). The Congress was held in Melbourne, Victoria. It brought together thousands of local and international diabetes experts: people with lived experience of diabetes, health professionals, researchers, policy makers, industry and more.
A standout feature of this Congress was the strong representation of lived experience throughout its program and leadership. This included a dedicated lived experience stream led by Renza Scibilia and Anita Sabidi. This helped ensure that discussions remained grounded in the realities of life with diabetes. Whether the focus was stigma, emotional wellbeing, technology, healthcare experiences or research priorities, lived experience perspectives were recognised as essential expertise.
Across the week, ACBRD shared research, listened to lived experience, and contributed to conversations. Our team chaired three sessions, staffed two exhibition booths, led 13 talks and two posters. Below, we highlight ACBRD’s activities and contributions at the Congress.
A place to share, listen and learn
Throughout the week, we welcomed delegates at two exhibition booths. The booths provided a space for people to learn more about our research, ask questions, share their experiences, and connect with the team.
For many, the week kicked off on Tuesday with the Diabetes Community Day, hosted by Diabetes Australia. At the Community Day we hosted a booth promoting the #EndDiabetesStigma movement. We connected with people living with diabetes, family members, and advocates, hearing first-hand reflections on what stigma means in everyday life.
From Wednesday to Friday, the official Congress was underway. We hosted a booth in the main exhibition hall where researchers, clinicians and advocates stopped by to connect. This was a great place to debrief and share our learnings.
Ending Diabetes Stigma
We were pleased to see diabetes stigma receive greater attention than in previous years, especially within the lived experience program. Across sessions, people living with diabetes, advocates, and researchers explored the impact of stigma and steps towards ending it.
On Tuesday, Jane Speight [6] and Liz Holmes-Truscott [5] were invited speakers at a “Spotlight on Stigma”. Liz shared the latest evidence and Jane provided an update following the recent Global Summit [7] to End Diabetes Stigma. Together with advocates and people with lived experience from Australia and around the world, the session explored how research, advocacy and community can work together to end diabetes stigma.
In a session exploring the power of communication, lived experience advocates shared their use of storytelling [8], art [9], textile design [10], comics [11] and social media to address stigma. Jane then reflected on 15 years of the #LanguageMatters movement [12], highlighting progress and the work still needed to embed respectful, inclusive and person-centred communication.
On Thursday, leaders and attendees of the Global Diabetes Stigma Summit [7] shared ‘where to next’. Liz highlighted that a power shift is needed to achieve a future without stigma. Principles for action must include stigma-free communication, inclusion and belonging, and recognising the complexity of all types of diabetes. What better way to begin than with a panel including people living with type 1 and type 2 diabetes from across the region!
Further contributing to this work, Eloise Litterbach [13] presented a poster exploring qualitative insights into what people with diabetes believe it will take to end diabetes stigma and discrimination in Australia. Together, these presentations reinforced the growing commitment across the diabetes community to a future free from stigma.
Supporting Emotional Health and Wellbeing
Tuesday was also the Australian Diabetes Educators Association (ADEA) Education Day. There, Edith Holloway [2] contributed to the Medication and Beyond round-robin session. Edith presented to 100 ADEA members, including Credentialled Diabetes Educators. She shared practical ways to support the emotional wellbeing of people living with diabetes. She also introduced LISTEN [14] (Low Intensity Support To ENhance emotional wellbeing), an online training module for health professionals.
The emotional impact of living with diabetes was also a prominent theme throughout the main Congress. Across ACBRD presentations, researchers highlighted the importance of recognising emotional wellbeing as a fundamental part of diabetes care.
In a symposium on mental health and diabetes, Jane presented an overview of upcoming European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) guidelines on recognising and addressing diabetes distress. She highlighted that putting these guidelines into practice will require training and support for diabetes health professionals. Edith [2] then shared findings from the LISTEN trial [15]. The study shows that a brief, structured intervention delivered by trained diabetes health professionals significantly reduces diabetes distress and improves emotional wellbeing and coping. She highlighted the potential to upskill the diabetes workforce to provide effective emotional support, while emphasising that LISTEN is one part of a broader approach needed to embed emotionally supportive care into routine diabetes practice.
Creating Better Healthcare Experiences
ACBRD presentations also explored how healthcare environments, systems and services can better support people living with diabetes.
Timothy Skinner [16] spoke about the importance of creating safe spaces for difficult conversations. He challenged health professionals to think about how their clinical settings can either support or hinder meaningful conversations.
Healthcare needs to be person-centred. In another session on mental health and diabetes, Jennifer Halliday [17] highlighted that there is no one single approach to mental health care support that works for everybody. She shared practical guidance to a packed room of people living with diabetes, health professionals, and researchers alike.
In another session, Alison Robinson [1] presented insights from the HypoPAST study. She highlighted the importance of flexible, accessible programs that reflect the realities of living with diabetes.
We also need healthcare that grows with the person and their needs. Dr Eloise Litterbach [13] presented a poster focused on supporting type 2 diabetes risk reduction for women and children following gestational diabetes. Eloise’s research with Australian health professionals highlights opportunities to improve care and support across the life course.
These presentations shared a common goal: creating healthcare experiences that are safe, supportive and responsive to people’s individual needs.
Collaboration and Community Involvement
Collaboration was highlighted through an ACADI [18] symposium on ‘Integrating Co-design, Behavioural & Implementation Science’. In this session, Liz highlighted how behavioural science helps us understand what makes diabetes management easier or harder, and how we can better support people in their daily lives. Liz emphasised that behavioural science should not be done in isolation. Working alongside people with lived experience and other disciplines is essential to developing, implementing and scaling solutions.
The value of meaningful community involvement was evident throughout the Congress. Meaghan Read [4] spoke about what meaningful community engagement looks like for both researchers and people with lived experience. She highlighted the challenges created when people living with diabetes are unable to hear about opportunities to get involved. This can limit both participation and diversity in research. Meaghan called for improved infrastructure to support stronger connections between researchers and the diabetes community.
Another highlight was meeting community members Lia Goodwin and Kate Bolam in person. Kate and Lia are lived experience advocates, mothers of young children with type 1 diabetes (T1D) and community co-researchers. Over the past four years, they have championed safer and more inclusive early childhood education and care for children with T1D, drawing on their own experiences and those of families across Australia. At the Congress, they presented a poster showcasing this important work and its impact on the community. Kate and Lia are valued community co-researchers at the ACBRD, working on a project exploring families experiences of ECEC for children with T1D [19].
Looking Back
From thought-provoking discussions to new collaborations. IDF-WPR & ADC 2026 was an inspiring week. Thank you to everyone who attended our sessions, visited out booths, and shared their expertise and experiences. We look forward to building on this momentum in the year ahead. See you in Adelaide at ADC 2027 [20].