Review
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Milena C. D. Almeida, Antonio M. R. Cordeiro, Aliete Cunha-Oliveira, Daniele M. S. Barros, Diana G. S. M. Santos, Thaisa S. Lima, Ricardo A. M. Valentim
Summary: Syphilis is a common sexually transmitted infection worldwide that has been increasing in recent years. This study conducted a scoping review to examine the global response to syphilis after the publication of the global strategy for the elimination of sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The findings showed that Brazil and Peru had the highest level of adherence to the strategies recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). However, no country has achieved a comprehensive response to syphilis, particularly in all key populations. Continuous monitoring of national policies and in-depth studies are needed to address the challenges and perspectives for disease control until 2030, the year in which the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be reviewed.
FRONTIERS IN PUBLIC HEALTH
(2022)
Review
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Adam D. Koon, Robert Marten
Summary: Health taxes are considered effective policy instruments for controlling non-communicable diseases, improving health, and generating government revenues. However, there is limited understanding of the different framing strategies used by health advocates and industry representatives, and how they employ morals and values to persuade. More research, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, is needed to better understand the politics of framing health taxes.
Review
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Kara Lilly, Bridie Kean, Jonathan Hallett, Suzanne Robinson, Linda A. Selvey
Summary: This review aimed to identify factors in the policymaking environment that influence a Health in all Policies approach in local government. Sixteen factors of the policy process were identified, expanding on previous literature. However, few studies reported findings based on different local government contexts, limiting our understanding of how these factors vary across settings.
FRONTIERS IN PUBLIC HEALTH
(2023)
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Jillian C. Ryan, John Noel Viana, Hamza Sellak, Shakuntla Gondalia, Nathan O'Callaghan
Summary: Precision health is a new field that requires clearer definition and differentiation from precision medicine. This study aims to conduct a scoping review to define precision health and map research in this area. By analyzing data from scientific databases and grey literature sources, the study will identify gaps and future directions for precision health research.
Review
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Racha Fadlallah, Najla Daher, Amena El-Harakeh, Rima Hammam, Hneine Brax, Lama Bou Karroum, Luciane Cruz Lopes, Ghida Arnous, Inas Kassamany, Stephanie Baltayan, Aya Harb, Tamara Lotfi, Fadi El-Jardali, Elie A. Akl
Summary: This study systematically identifies and describes approaches to prioritize primary research topics in any health-related area. The findings highlight the need for greater participation of potential users and incorporation of equity in the prioritization process. These findings can guide researchers, policymakers, and funders in conducting or funding primary health research and enhance a more coordinated approach to prioritize health research for decision-making at all levels.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Kamila Kolpashnikova, Shital Desai
Summary: This article introduces the fear of falling (FoF) as a major challenge for the quality of life among older adults and highlights the lack of comprehensive research in this area. By conducting a scoping review, the authors aim to identify key topics, gaps in the literature, and potential opportunities for further research on FoF. This review will contribute to the development of an interdisciplinary theoretical and empirical framework, and ultimately promote policy and practice innovations for individuals living with FoF.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Chloe Clifford Astbury, Elizabeth McGill, Matt Egan, Tarra L. Penney
Summary: This study aims to identify existing applications of methods informed by systems thinking and complexity science (STCS) in the policy process for non-communicable disease (NCD) prevention and document which domains of the policy process they have been applied to. The findings of this review will serve as a useful reference for policymakers, outlining the different parts of the policy process where various methods informed by STCS have been applied.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Alessandro Connor Crocetti, Beau Cubillo (Larrakia), Mark Lock (Ngiyampaa), Troy Walker (Yorta Yorta), Karen Hill (Torres Strait Islander), Fiona Mitchell (Mununjali), Yin Paradies (Wakaya), Kathryn Backholer, Jennifer Browne
Summary: The study found that commercial industry activities have significant impacts on the health and well-being of Indigenous populations in high-income countries, with extractive (mining), tobacco, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, alcohol, and gambling industries playing roles. While harmful commercial practices such as exploitation of Indigenous land, marketing, lobbying, and corporate social responsibility were common, there were also positive activities that reinforced cultural expression, cultural continuity, and Indigenous self-determination. Few articles highlighted Indigenous involvement in the study design and implementation, indicating the need for more Indigenous-led or collaborative research on commercial determinants of Indigenous health.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Jonathan Amoyaw, Mamata Pandey, Geoffrey Maina, Yiyan Li, Daniel Owusu Nkrumah
Summary: International students contribute significantly, but not all of them have the financial means to support themselves throughout their study program, putting them at risk of food insecurity. This scoping review aims to synthesize available information on factors related to food insecurity among international students and identify interventions that have been implemented.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Luke Johnson, Kerry Gutridge, Julie Parkes, Anjana Roy, Emma Plugge
Summary: The study examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of imprisoned people and prison staff, finding negative effects such as challenges and fears among prisoners. However, due to limited research and poor quality of studies, the conclusions are not definitive. Nevertheless, the findings suggest significant adverse impacts on the mental health and well-being of those living and working in prisons.
Review
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Emily Susannah Grace Hulse, Rifat Atun, Barbara McPake, John Tayu Lee
Summary: This scoping review examines the use of social impact bonds (SIBs) in financing the prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and finds a lack of empirical evidence on their effectiveness. Common issues include conflict of interest and lack of transparency in both published and grey literature. Only three SIBs implemented for NCDs were meeting all target outcomes, with evidence-based interventions and multiple service providers being key characteristics for success. More high-quality studies, including economic evaluations and qualitative studies, are needed to improve SIBs for preventing NCDs.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Saeideh Babashahi, Nicola Carey, Yogini Jani, Kath Hart, Natalia Hounsome
Summary: Non-medical prescribing (NMP) is a key feature of the UK healthcare system that grants legal prescribing rights to non-medical healthcare professionals. This scoping review aims to identify and synthesize evidence on the costs, consequences, and value for money of NMP provided by these professionals.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Mar Estupinan Fdez de Mesa, Afrodita Marcu, Emma Ream, Katriina L. Whitaker
Summary: This article addresses the persistent inequalities in cancer care and outcomes, and the mixed evidence regarding the root causes of these inequalities. It introduces the intersectionality framework as an alternative lens to understand and analyze the unique experiences of cancer patients at the intersection of multiple social categories. The article outlines a scoping review protocol to systematically map the relationship between intersectionality and inequalities in cancer care and outcomes, and to examine the application of the intersectionality framework in studies across countries.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Yvonne Zurynski, Jessica Herkes-Deane, Joanna Holt, Elise McPherson, Gina Lamprell, Genevieve Dammery, Isabelle Meulenbroeks, Nicole Halim, Jeffrey Braithwaite
Summary: The research found that the definition of SPHS is primarily based on financial sustainability, but it is also more broadly conceptualized to include acceptability to patients and workforce, resilience through adaptation, and rapid absorption of evidence and innovations. Measures of SPHS are predominantly financial, but recent articles have proposed composite measures that account for financial, social, and health outcomes. Challenges to achieving SPHS include increasingly complex patient populations, limited integration due to entrenched fragmented systems and siloed professional groups, and ongoing translational gaps in evidence-to-practice and policy-to-practice. Improvement strategies for SPHS include developing appropriate workplace cultures, direct community and consumer involvement, and adoption of evidence-based practice and technologies. There is also a strong identified need for long-term monitoring and evaluations to support adaptation of healthcare systems.
Review
Food Science & Technology
Miriam Alvarado, Jean Adams, Tarra Penney, Madhuvanti M. Murphy, Safura Abdool Karim, Nat Egan, Nina Trivedy Rogers, Lauren Carters-White, Martin White
Summary: This study applies systems thinking to investigate the influences and impacts of sugar-sweetened beverage taxation. The findings suggest that influences and impacts may be cyclically linked, and the use of systems thinking methods in this area is relatively limited. A feedback-oriented conceptual framework is proposed to synthesize the evidence and guide further research and policy development.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Shantelle Spencer, Tida Samateh, Katharina Wabnitz, Susannah Mayhew, Haddijatou Allen, Ana Bonell
Summary: Pregnant farmers in The Gambia face significant heat stress while working outdoors and utilize various adaptive techniques to reduce its impact. Factors such as age, marital status, and socioeconomic status play a role in shaping women's ability to mitigate heat exposure. Participants demonstrated high awareness of climate change and provided valuable insights into adaptation.
FRONTIERS IN PUBLIC HEALTH
(2022)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Eleonora Bassetti, Elizabeth Zehner, Susannah H. Mayhew, Nadine Nasser, Anzelle Mulder, Jane Badham, Lara Sweet, Rachel Crossley, Alissa M. Pries
Summary: This study assessed the nutritional suitability of commercially produced complementary foods (CPCF) in three South-East Asian contexts. The findings indicate that most of the products did not meet the nutrient composition requirements of the WHO Europe nutrient profile model and had high levels of sugar and sodium.
PUBLIC HEALTH NUTRITION
(2022)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Katharina Wabnitz, Stephanie Drossler, Susannah Mayhew
Summary: The study aims to comparatively explore the social representations of risk in individuals categorized 'at risk' based on age during the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings suggest that individuals' perception of risk and their behavior are contingent on their mindset, body, and the context they are positioned in, and negotiating identities is an inevitable process accompanying risk sense-making.
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Manuela Colombini, Susannah H. Mayhew, Claudia Garcia-Moreno, Ana Flavia d'Oliveira, Gene Feder, Loraine J. Bacchus
Summary: This paper presents a framework for assessing health system readiness to improve quality of care for intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors. The framework was tested in Brazil and the Palestinian territories and proved to be valuable in capturing system capabilities beyond material and technical capacity, considering stakeholder values, confidence, motivation, and connection with clients and communities.
BMC HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Substance Abuse
Ross MacKenzie, Benjamin Hawkins, Daniel Eisenkraft Klein, Mustafa Ahmad, Amanda Keys Norman, Adam Koon
Summary: The opioid crisis in the United States has resulted in a significant number of deaths and is expected to continue to rise. Recent settlements in litigation have provided access to previously confidential corporate documents related to the opioid industry. These documents offer insights into the operations and strategies of manufacturers and other actors in the opioid supply chain. The availability of these documents is important for researching the causes and effects of the opioid crisis, as well as understanding the role of corporate actors in public health outcomes.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DRUG POLICY
(2023)
Article
Health Policy & Services
Obinna Onwujekwe, Prince Agwu, Pallavi Roy, Eleanor Hutchinson, Charles Orjiakor, Martin McKee, Aloysius Odii, Chukwudi Nwokolo, Mushtaq Khan, Susannah Mayhew, Dina Balabanova
Summary: Absenteeism among PHC workers in Nigeria is a major obstacle to achieving UHC. The dominant approach of government-led topdown solutions has not been successful. This paper explores grassroots approaches, highlighting the importance of community resources, philanthropic support, and engaging trained health workers to address absenteeism. However, a holistic response should combine horizontal and vertical measures.
HEALTH SYSTEMS & REFORM
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Samuel T. Boland, Dina Balabanova, Susannah Mayhew
Summary: The 2013-2016 West Africa Ebola Epidemic was the largest outbreak of Ebola in history. The military intervention by the British and Sierra Leonean militaries was seen as valuable for containing the outbreak, but it also caused structural harm, resulting in a vicious cycle.
CONFLICT AND HEALTH
(2023)
Review
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Adam D. Koon, Robert Marten
Summary: Health taxes are considered effective policy instruments for controlling non-communicable diseases, improving health, and generating government revenues. However, there is limited understanding of the different framing strategies used by health advocates and industry representatives, and how they employ morals and values to persuade. More research, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, is needed to better understand the politics of framing health taxes.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Christine Johnson Curtis, Matti Marklund, Akshar Saxena, Eva Goyena, Josie Desnacido, Adam D. Koon, Bethany Warren, Laura K. Cobb, Megan Henry, Lawrence J. Appel, Imelda Angeles-Agdeppa
Summary: Fiscal policies to improve diet are a promising strategy for addressing non-communicable diseases. Cost-effectiveness analyses can provide evidence for designing these policies. Modelling considerations for food taxes include data availability, nutrient content, tax structure, and rate. By taking these factors into account, policymakers can design food tax policies to improve the health and well-being of future generations.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Kaung Suu Lwin, Adam D. Koon, Kumanan Rasanathan, Abdillah Ahsan, Daniel Erku, Melissa Mialon, Silvana Perez-Leon, Arti Singh, Zafar Mirza, Mario Zuleta, Shiva Raj Adhikari, Yubraj Acharya, Son The Dao, Sabrina Rasheed, Jeremias Paul Jr, Robert Marten
Summary: Health taxes are effective policy instruments for saving lives, raising government revenues, and improving equity. However, they conflict with commercial interests. Multiple frames exist in different settings, shaping discourse and policies related to health taxes. Understanding how to strategically position health taxes can empower policymakers and support broader coalitions for their advancement.
Review
Substance Abuse
Jake Lang, Emily Mendenhall, Adam D. Koon
Summary: This article reviews research on the interaction between opioid-related morbidity and mortality and other social, psychiatric, and biological conditions, highlighting the syndemic nature of the problem. Opioid-related overdose syndemics are driven by commercial interests and disproportionately affect disadvantaged communities, interacting with various other health conditions. However, the research often fails to address the macro-structural drivers of localized disease clustering and remains disconnected from the wider discourse on Deaths of Despair. It is crucial to redirect attention to the sociopolitical forces shaping opioid-related overdose syndemics to prevent future health crises caused by commercial interests and to help those affected by these deadly syndemics.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DRUG POLICY
(2023)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Daniela C. Rodriguez, Lakshmi Narasimhan Balaji, Elita Chamdimba, Juba Kafumba, Adam D. Koon, Jacob Mazalale, Dadirai Mkombe, Joshua Munywoki, Tawonga Mwase-Vuma, Justine Namakula, Bejoy Nambiar, Abigail H. Neel, Xavier Nsabagasani, Ligia Paina, Braeden Rogers, Maxton Tsoka, Evelyn Waweru, Alister Munthali, Freddie Ssengooba, Benjamin Tsofa
Summary: This study explores the impact of decentralization on primary health care performance in Eastern and Southern Africa. It finds that while decentralization has the potential to improve decision-making and community input, it is hindered by bureaucracy, underfunding, and weak accountability mechanisms. Without addressing these challenges, the goals of universal health coverage and the SDGs will be difficult to achieve.
HEALTH POLICY AND PLANNING
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Samuel T. Boland, Dina Balabanova, Susannah Mayhew
Summary: This study found that the hierarchical Ebola response centres effectively eased civil-military relationships and increased efficiency through the use of 'rule-bound niches', 'neutral zones', 'co-dependence', and 'hybridity'. Additionally, the centres were inclusive spaces that further increased efficiency through decentralisation and localisation of interventions, catering mainly to privileged groups in limited ways. This suggests that an 'inclusive hierarchical coordination' could be a viable and ethical strategy for future public health emergency responses, allowing for the inclusion of typically marginalized local actors while improving operational efficiency.
GLOBALIZATION AND HEALTH
(2023)
Letter
Medicine, General & Internal
Adam D. Koon, Emily Mendenhall, Benjamin Hawkins
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Neha S. Singh, Andrea K. Blanchard, Hannah Blencowe, Adam D. Koon, Ties Boerma, Sudha Sharma, Oona M. R. Campbell
Summary: Research is needed to understand why some countries succeed in improving maternal, late foetal, and newborn health more than others. A conceptual framework has been developed to explain the factors that contribute to these improvements, including health policy and system levers, service delivery and coverage, and epidemiological and behavioral risk factors. The framework also considers the role of context in influencing health outcomes.
HEALTH POLICY AND PLANNING
(2022)