India's healthcare system faces substantial challenges, including a high burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases, limited access to healthcare in rural areas, and a shortage of skilled healthcare professionals. Artificial intelligence (AI) offers promising solutions to address these gaps by enhancing diagnostic accuracy, improving disease prediction, and optimizing treatment management. This scoping review examines AI's role in early detection, treatment, and disease prevention in community health settings. A comprehensive literature search was conducted in PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Google Scholar from January 2013 to July 2024. Eligible studies focused on the application of AI in public health, emphasizing early detection, disease prevention, and treatment interventions. Data on AI models, health outcomes, and performance metrics were extracted and analyzed in line with PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Forty-eight studies were analyzed and categorized into diagnostic accuracy, disease prediction, treatment management, and clinical validation. AI-based tools, such as AIDMAN for malaria detection, demonstrated high diagnostic accuracy (95%) and AUC (0.96). Predictive models for chronic kidney disease (93% accuracy) and diabetes (91% accuracy) showed substantial promise. TB screening using AI-powered cough analysis achieved 86% accuracy. The studies also emphasized AI's role in managing chronic diseases, facilitating early interventions, and reducing healthcare burdens in resource-limited settings. AI has the potential to revolutionize healthcare delivery in India, particularly in underserved regions, by enhancing early detection and treatment. However, challenges related to data privacy, algorithmic bias, and infrastructure require attention. Continued research and policy development are essential to fully harness AI's capabilities in improving public health outcomes.

International migration is contributing to changes in the sociocultural and the economic landscapes of many cities in the world. As part of the changes in cities, we are witnessing an increased use of community gardens as spaces for wellbeing restoration, for social connection, and for addressing the challenge of food insecurity, particularly cultural food insecurity. Cultural food security is one major under-recognized issue, yet is pivotal to address given its role in positively supporting immigrants' settlement and health. However, there is lack of comprehensive evidence of how neighborhoods are changing to accommodate these initiatives and meet the cultural food needs of diverse communities. Our scoping review explored evidence from existing literature on how neighborhoods are changing to accommodate community gardens (CG) as a novel means to address cultural food insecurity among immigrant communities and support place-making and resettlement. Our literature search identified several areas of transformations including the different kinds of community gardens that have emerged, the associated physical, social, cultural, environmental, economic, and policy changes that have been reported in other countries in the Global North. The review also identified multifold benefits of CG in this regard, including benefits to health and wellbeing - the physical (i.e. nutrition and physical activity), mental (e.g., a place for healing for immigrants fleeing war-torn countries, domestic violence, trauma; fostering a connection to the land in new environments via place-making), and social (e.g., fostering community connections and cultural knowledge exchange). Despite the known benefits of community gardens to immigrants' health and wellbeing, there remains a lack of comprehensive evidence in Canada on how neighborhoods are changing to accommodate these initiatives and meet the cultural food needs of diverse communities. Such studies will serve as sources of evidence for novel ideas to address the cultural food needs and food insecurity of immigrant communities, which is becoming a growing public health concern.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions in reducing loneliness among community-dwelling older adults. Design: A network meta-analysis (NMA) and systematic review. Setting and participants: Interventional studies were included if they contained original quantitative data on interventions to reduce loneliness among community-dwelling older adults. Qualitative studies were included if they contained views on loneliness coping strategies or intervention evaluation. Methods: Six English databases and 3 Chinese databases were searched for studies published before August 2023. We extracted mean and standard deviation for the NMA to examine the overall effectiveness and efficacy of different interventions on loneliness. Thematic analysis was used to derive perspectives on coping strategies to mitigate loneliness. Results: Forty-six quantitative studies with 6049 participants and 40 qualitative studies with 1095 participants were included in the analysis. The pooled effect size was large and significant [standardized mean difference (SMD), -0.95; 95% CI, -1.32 to -0.58; P < .001], indicating a strong effect of interventions in reducing loneliness. Subgroup analyses revealed significant differences in effect sizes by study region and health risk. Results of the NMA suggested interventions seem to be most effective when having psychosocial interventions as the content, a combination of individual and group as the delivery mode, and a mixture of face-to-face and online methods as the contact mode. Findings of the qualitative synthesis revealed 2 main dimensions of activities for reducing loneliness, including delivery modes (individual or group or combination) and settings (indoor or outdoor or combination). Strategies for coping with loneliness at the social, cognitive, and behavioral levels were also identified. Conclusions and implications: The present study identified the most effective components of loneliness interventions in reducing loneliness among older adults. Findings offer important insights for practice and policy-making on potential strategies that can be used to reduce loneliness among community-dwelling older adults.

Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on the health of Indigenous Peoples in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the USA, as reflected in the growing literature. However, Indigenous Peoples are often homogenised, with key differences often overlooked, failing to capture the complexity of issues and may lead to suboptimal public health policy-making. The objective of this review was to assess the extent to which the heterogeneity of the Indigenous Peoples in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the USA has been reflected in COVID-19 research. Design: This study took the form of a scoping review. Data sources: Medline, Embase, CINAHL and Web of Science were searched for studies investigating COVID-19 pandemic outcomes among Indigenous Peoples in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the USA. The search dates included January 2019 to January 2024. Eligibility criteria: All citations yielded by this search were subjected to title and abstract screening, full-text review and data extraction. We included original, peer-reviewed research investigating COVID-19-related outcomes among Indigenous Peoples in Canada, Australia, New Zealand or the USA. Data extraction and synthesis: Data extraction was conducted as an iterative process, reaching consensus between two of the study authors. All included studies were analysed through a combination of quantitative descriptive summary and qualitative thematic analysis. Results: Of the 9795 citations found by the initial search, 428 citations were deemed eligible for inclusion. Of these citations: 72.9% compared Indigenous participants to non-Indigenous participants; 10.0% aggregated Indigenous and non-white participants; and 17.1% provided findings for Indigenous participants exclusively. Conclusions: By overlooking the heterogeneity that exists among Indigenous Peoples in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the USA, researchers and policy-makers run the risk of masking inequities and the unique needs of groups of Indigenous Peoples. This may lead to inefficient policy recommendations and unintentionally perpetuate health disparities during public health crises.

In Europe, most countries are facing common healthcare challenges that lead to a need for innovation, effectiveness and efficiency in the healthcare systems. This is often addressed through actions and intentions including enhanced primary and integrated care. However, these developments seem to be progressing slowly and non-uniformly, nor is there knowledge exchange, and the full implications of these changes on healthcare design are still unfolding. The research presented investigates what are the current trends in healthcare systems and the effects on design transformations, focusing on the Swedish experience. In Sweden, a reform known as "Nära Vård" [Close Care], aims to "reconstruct" the core of the healthcare service around primary care. It strives to bring care "closer" to people and communities concerning access to both care and the facilities where it is delivered. The objective of this paper is to understand what can be learnt from the Swedish experience; the research presented aims at investigating the effects of the Close Care reform on primary care facilities design. The study was conducted from April to July 2023, and it consisted of: i) desk research and literature review; ii) data collection through 12 interviews with experts; iii) data analysis through qualitative content analysis; iv) study visits to local care facilities. From the interviews, 10 factors for change and 9 challenges emerged. Moreover, it appears that the organisational structure of the Swedish healthcare system caters for regional and individual projects' interpretations of how to bring care "closer" to the patients; this variation allows for a broader understanding of the advantages and drawbacks of each organisational model and design, and it reinforces the idea that there is no "one-size-fits-all" for close care. This diversity points to a need for a project evaluation program of the ongoing experiences, aimed at assessing the performance and effectiveness of each approach.

Background: People with HIV have a higher risk of developing non-AIDS-defining cancers in older age, leading to a significant population living with two conditions, HIV and cancer. There is an increasing interest in cannabis use for symptom management in people with chronic conditions; in 2023, the American Nurses Association officially recognised cannabis nursing as a specialty nursing practice focusing on the care of individuals seeking education/guidance in the therapeutic use of cannabis, supporting the urgency of its research. However, the scientific literature lacks a synthesised review in the focused populations. Aim: To explore observational research on cannabis use for symptom management among people with HIV and/or cancer and identify gaps in current knowledge to inform future research and policy development. Methods: Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) checklist, a literature search of relevant articles was conducted in the databases PubMed (n = 552), PsycInfo (n = 204), CINAHL (n = 164) and Embase (n = 976). Upon screening 1738 articles, 142 were identified for full-text review and 51 were retained for data extraction. Results: There were more studies evaluating cannabis use among people with cancer than with HIV and no studies among people living with comorbid HIV and cancer. Most studies were cross-sectional with limited metrics on the perceived effectiveness and safety of cannabis use for symptom management and its dosing/mode of delivery for reducing symptoms. While studies focused on cannabis therapy under the provision of healthcare providers, individuals reported obtaining information about cannabis from friends/family/the Internet. Implications for cannabis nursing: This body of research could be strengthened by rigorous longitudinal study designs to build causal relationships on the therapeutic effects of cannabis use and the inclusion of reliable and valid symptom assessment measures over time, which facilitates developing clinical practice guidance and policymaking in cannabis nursing. Patient or public contribution: No patient or public contribution.

Abstract Palliative care is a crucial discipline that alleviates suffering and enhances the quality of life for patients with life-limiting illnesses and their families. However, there is gap globally between the need for and availability of these services. Integrated health service networks offer a promising solution to address this gap in rural areas, by coordinating care across different levels and sectors. This scoping review aimed at identifying the key characteristics of palliative care networks in rural communities. A broad search without time limits was conducted in four databases. Analysis and synthesis were conducted using Latent Dirichlet Allocation topic modeling. Sixteen studies were included, revealing four key themes regarding the development of palliative care networks in rural areas: community engagement is essential to secure the reach of rural networks, tailored approaches acknowledging diversity enrich these networks, team-centric efforts involving stakeholder coordination ensure successful implementation, and a multifaceted approach-empowering non-traditional stakeholders and incorporating technology resources into primary health services-dynamizes palliative care delivery in rural areas. These findings underscore the potential of collaborative and innovative approaches to enhance the accessibility and effectiveness of palliative care in underserved rural communities. Further cost-effectiveness studies are warranted to better understand the impact these strategies can have on health systems.

Introduction: The community-based health information system (CBHIS) is a vital component of the community health system, as it assesses community-level healthcare service delivery and generates data for community health programme planning, monitoring, and evaluation. CBHIS promotes data-driven decision-making, by identifying priority interventions and programs, guiding resource allocation, and contributing to evidence-based policy development. Objective: This scoping review aims to comprehensively examine the use of CBHIS in African countries, focusing on data generation, pathways, utilisation of CBHIS data, community accessibility to the data and use of the data to empower communities. Methods: We utilised Arksey and O'Malley's scoping review methodology. We searched eight databases: PubMed, EMBASE, HINARI, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Scopus, Google Scholar, and grey literature databases (Open Grey and OAIster). We synthesised findings using a thematic approach. Results: Our review included 55 articles from 27 African countries, primarily in Eastern and Southern Africa, followed by West Africa. Most of the studies were either quantitative (42%) or qualitative (33%). Paper-based systems are primarily used for data collection in most countries, but some have adopted electronic/mobile-based systems or both. The data flow for CBHIS varies by country and the tools used for data collection. CBHIS data informs policies, resource allocation, staffing, community health dialogues, and commodity supplies for community health programmes. Community dialogue is the most common approach for community engagement, empowerment, and sharing of CBHIS data with communities. Community empowerment tends towards health promotion activities and health provider-led approaches. Conclusion: CBHIS utilises both paper-based and electronic-based systems to collect and process data. Nevertheless, most countries rely on paper-based systems. Most of the CBHIS investments have focused on digitisation and enhancing data collection, process, and quality. However, there is a need to shift the emphasis towards enabling data utilisation at the community level and community empowerment.

Home care is the preferred care option for most people who need support; yet abuse exists in these settings toward both home care workers and clients. There are no existing reviews that assess the scope of current research on abuse in home care, and tangentially related reviews are dated. For these reasons, a scoping review is warranted to map the current state of research on abuse in home care and examine current interventions in this field. Databases selected for searching were Medline and EMBASE on OVID, Scopus, and the following databases in EBSCOhost: Academic Search Complete, AgeLine, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature. Records were included if: (a) they were written in English; (b) the participants were home care workers or clients age 18 years or older; (c) they were published in journals; (d) they undertook empirical research; and (e) they were published within the last 10-year period. Following Graham et al. (2006), the 52 included articles are categorized as either knowledge inquiry or as intervention studies. We find three themes among knowledge inquiry studies: (1) prevalence and types of abuse in home care, (2) abuse in the context of living with dementia, and (3) working conditions and abuse. Analysis from the intervention studies suggest that not all organizations have specific policies and practices to prevent abuse, and no existing interventions to protect the well-being of clients were identified. Findings from this review can inform up-to-date practice and policymaking to improve the health and well-being of home care clients and workers.

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular diseases are a leading cause of mortality globally. The modifiable risk factors can be measured and identified early at primary healthcare facilities. Community pharmacists present an opportunity for improved management of cardiovascular diseases and health outcomes. The systematic review aims to identify the roles of community pharmacists in preventing and controlling cardiovascular diseases and patients' perceptions towards such functions. METHODS: A systematic review of the literature was conducted using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. The team searched MEDLINE, CINAHL via EBSCOhost, and Web of Science from January 2001 to December 2021 with a focus on studies reporting the role of community pharmacists in preventing and controlling cardiovascular diseases, and patients' perceptions of such roles. Search terms included were ''interventions,'' ''community pharmacists,'' ''patients,'' ''cardiovascular diseases,'' ''risk factors,'' and "perceptions". The quality of studies was appraised using the Joanne Briggs Institute checklist. RESULTS: A total of 45 studies met the inclusion criteria: 35 (78%) and 10 (22%) reported community pharmacists' preventive and control roles, respectively. Generally, drug therapy monitoring, medicine and lifestyle counselling, and health education were most common roles, with pharmacist-initiated prescribing and social support least common. A total of 11 (24%) studies reported patients' perceptions of community pharmacists' contribution in preventing (73%, n = 8) and controlling (27%, n = 3) cardiovascular diseases. Patients were satisfied with community pharmacists' services in 10 of 11 studies. CONCLUSIONS: The findings highlight community pharmacists' capability of providing primary healthcare services in preventing and controlling cardiovascular diseases and provide evidence for their inclusion in primary healthcare frameworks. Future research should assess the effectiveness of these roles and provide a comprehensive evaluation of clinical, humanistic, and economic outcomes.

BACKGROUND: While there is clear evidence that nurses can play a significant role in responding to the needs of populations with chronic conditions, there is a lack of consistency between and within primary care settings in the implementation of nursing processes for chronic disease management. Previous reviews have focused either on a specific model of care, populations with a single health condition, or a specific type of nurses. Since primary care nurses are involved in a wide range of services, a comprehensive perspective of effective nursing processes across primary care settings and chronic health conditions could allow for a better understanding of how to support them in a broader way across the primary care continuum. This systematic overview aims to provide a picture of the nursing processes and their characteristics in chronic disease management as reported in empirical studies, using the Chronic Care Model (CCM) conceptual approach. METHODS: We conducted an umbrella review of systematic reviews published between 2005 and 2021 based on the recommendations of the Joanna Briggs Institute. The methodological quality was assessed independently by two reviewers using the AMSTAR 2 tool. RESULTS: Twenty-six systematic reviews and meta-analyses were included, covering 394 primary studies. The methodological quality of most reviews was moderate. Self-care support processes show the most consistent positive outcomes across different conditions and primary care settings. Case management and nurse-led care show inconsistent outcomes. Most reviews report on the clinical components of the Chronic Care Model, with little mention of the decision support and clinical information systems components. CONCLUSIONS: Placing greater emphasis on decision support and clinical information systems could improve the implementation of nursing processes. While the need for an interdisciplinary approach to primary care is widely promoted, it is important that this approach not be viewed solely from a clinical perspective. The organization of care and resources need to be designed to support contributions from all providers to optimize the full range of services available to patients with chronic conditions.

Background: The translation of research into healthcare practice relies on effective communication between disciplines, however strategies to address the gap between information sharing and knowledge transfer are still under exploration. Communities of Practice (CoP) are informal networks of stakeholders with shared knowledge or endeavour and present an opportunity to address this gap beyond disciplinary boundaries. However, the evidence-base supporting their development, implementation and efficacy in health is not well described. This review explores the evidence underpinning the use of CoP in health research and translation. Methods: A scoping review was undertaken using Arksey and O'Malley's methodological framework. A comprehensive search of health databases and grey literature was performed using keywords and controlled vocabulary. Studies were not restricted by date or research method. Results: A total of 1355 potentially relevant articles were identified through the global search strategy. Following screening, six articles were retained for analysis. Included studies were published between 2002 and 2013 in the United Kingdom (n = 3), Canada (n = 2) and Italy (n = 1). Three papers reported primary research; one used a quantitative methodology, one a qualitative, and one a descriptive evaluation approach. The three remaining papers explored seminal and evolving theories of CoP in the context of knowledge transfer and translation to the health sector. Conclusions: A paucity of evidence exists regarding the development and efficacy of CoP in health research and translation. Further empirical research is required to determine if communities of practice can enhance the translation of research into clinical practice.

BACKGROUND: In low-resource settings, access to basic rehabilitation could be supplemented by community-level interventions provided by community health workers, health volunteers, or family caregivers. Yet, it is unclear whether basic physical rehabilitation interventions delivered to adults by non-professional alternative resources in the community, under task-shifting or task-sharing approaches, are effective as those delivered by skilled rehabilitation professionals. We aim to synthesize evidence on the effectiveness of community-level rehabilitation interventions delivered by non-professional community-level workers or informal caregivers to improve health outcomes for persons with physical impairments or disabilities. METHODS: We performed a systematic review with a PROSPERO registration. Eight databases were searched for (PubMed, CINAHL, Global Health, PDQ Evidence, Scopus, ProQuest, CENTRAL, and Web of Science), supplemented by snowballing and key-informant recommendations, with no time restrictions, applied. Controlled and non-controlled experiments were included if reporting the effects of interventions on mobility, activities of daily living (ADLs), quality of life, or social participation outcomes. Two independent investigators performed the eligibility decisions, data extraction, risk of bias, and assessed the quality of the evidence using the GRADE approach. RESULTS: Ten studies (five randomized controlled trials [RCTs]) involving 2149 participants were included. Most common targeted stroke survivors (n = 8); family caregivers were most frequently used to deliver the intervention (n = 4); and the intervention was usually provided in homes (n = 7), with training initiated in the hospital (n = 4). Of the four RCTs delivered by family caregivers, one demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in mobility (effect size: 0.3; confidence interval [CI] 121.81-122.19; [p = 0.04]) and another one in ADLs (effect size: 0.4; CI 25.92-35.08; [p = 0.03]). Of the five non-RCT studies by community health workers or volunteers, one demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in mobility (effect size: 0.3; CI 10.143-16.857; [p < 0.05]), while two demonstrated improved statistically significant improvement in ADLs (effect size: 0.2; CI 180.202-184.789 [p = 0.001]; 0.4; CI - 7.643-18.643; [p = 0.026]). However, the quality of evidence, based on GRADE criteria, was rated as low to very low. CONCLUSIONS: While task-sharing is a possible strategy to meet basic rehabilitation needs in low-resource settings, the current evidence on the effectiveness of delivering rehabilitation interventions by non-professional community-level workers and informal caregivers is inconclusive. We can use the data and experiences from existing studies to better design studies and improve the implementation of interventions. Trial registration PROSPERO registration number: CRD42022319130.

BACKGROUND: The Veterans Health Administration (VA) serves Veterans in the nation's largest integrated healthcare system. VA seeks to provide high quality of healthcare to Veterans, but due to the VA Choice and MISSION Acts, VA increasingly pays for care outside of its system in the community. This systematic review compares care provided in VA and non-VA settings, and includes published studies from 2015 to 2023, updating 2 prior systematic reviews on this topic. METHODS: We searched PubMed, Web of Science, and PsychINFO from 2015 to 2023 for published literature comparing VA and non-VA care, including VA-paid community care. Records were included at the abstract or full-text level if they compared VA medical care with care provided in other healthcare systems, and included clinical quality, safety, access, patient experience, efficiency (cost), or equity outcomes. Data from included studies was abstracted by two independent reviewers, with disagreements resolved by consensus. Results were synthesized narratively and via graphical evidence maps. RESULTS: Thirty-seven studies were included after screening 2415 titles. Twelve studies compared VA and VA-paid community care. Most studies assessed clinical quality and safety, and studies of access were second most common. Only six studies assessed patient experience and six assessed cost or efficiency. Clinical quality and safety of VA care was better than or equal to non-VA care in most studies. Patient experience in VA care was better than or equal to experience in non-VA care in all studies, but access and cost/efficiency outcomes were mixed. DISCUSSION: VA care is consistently as good as or better than non-VA care in terms of clinical quality and safety. Access, cost/efficiency, and patient experience between the two systems are not well studied. Further research is needed on these outcomes and on services widely used by Veterans in VA-paid community care, like physical medicine and rehabilitation.

How climate change is uniquely affecting Indigenous health remains a very less explored area in the existing research literature. The imperative of inclusive climate action to protect indigenous health multiplies manifolds due to their unique vulnerabilities owing to predominant dependence on natural resources and multiple disadvantages faced. The current article attempted to add to the evidence pool regarding climate change impacts on the indigenous population by systematically collecting, processing, and interpreting data as a scoping literature review for effective and inclusive climate policymaking. Twenty-Nine articles of varied study designs were identified employing a systematically organized search strategy using PubMed (Field, MeSH, and advanced search) and Google scholar; relevant data were extracted for further analysis. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines were followed. Changing climate scenarios had both direct and indirect health-related impacts on indigenous health, and altered the epidemiological triad for various health-related events, causing the emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases, and increased prevalence of chronic diseases and mental disorders. An expanded framework was developed showcasing the variability of climate change events, multiple disadvantages, and its impacts on indigenous populations. Few studies also reported a wide range of adaptation responses of indigenous peoples towards climate change. It was substantiated that any climate-change mitigation policy must take into account the trials and tribulations of indigenous communities. Also, due to the complexity and large variability of the impacts and differences in mitigation capabilities, policies should be contextualized locally and tailored to meet the climate need of the indigenous community.

Background: Accurate, consistent assessment of outcomes and impacts is challenging in the health research partnerships domain. Increased focus on tool quality, including conceptual, psychometric and pragmatic characteristics, could improve the quantification, measurement and reporting partnership outcomes and impacts. This cascading review was undertaken as part of a coordinated, multicentre effort to identify, synthesize and assess a vast body of health research partnership literature. Objective: To systematically assess the outcomes and impacts of health research partnerships, relevant terminology and the type/use of theories, models and frameworks (TMF) arising from studies using partnership assessment tools with known conceptual, psychometric and pragmatic characteristics. Methods: Four electronic databases were searched (MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL Plus and PsycINFO) from inception to 2 June 2021. We retained studies containing partnership evaluation tools with (1) conceptual foundations (reference to TMF), (2) empirical, quantitative psychometric evidence (evidence of validity and reliability, at minimum) and (3) one or more pragmatic characteristics. Outcomes, impacts, terminology, definitions and TMF type/use were abstracted verbatim from eligible studies using a hybrid (independent abstraction-validation) approach and synthesized using summary statistics (quantitative), inductive thematic analysis and deductive categories (qualitative). Methodological quality was assessed using the Quality Assessment Tool for Studies with Diverse Designs (QATSDD). Results: Application of inclusion criteria yielded 37 eligible studies. Study quality scores were high (mean 80%, standard deviation 0.11%) but revealed needed improvements (i.e. methodological, reporting, user involvement in research design). Only 14 (38%) studies reported 48 partnership outcomes and 55 impacts; most were positive effects (43, 90% and 47, 89%, respectively). Most outcomes were positive personal, functional, structural and contextual effects; most impacts were personal, functional and contextual in nature. Most terms described outcomes (39, 89%), and 30 of 44 outcomes/impacts terms were unique, but few were explicitly defined (9, 20%). Terms were complex and mixed on one or more dimensions (e.g. type, temporality, stage, perspective). Most studies made explicit use of study-related TMF (34, 92%). There were 138 unique TMF sources, and these informed tool construct type/choice and hypothesis testing in almost all cases (36, 97%). Conclusion: This study synthesized partnership outcomes and impacts, deconstructed term complexities and evolved our understanding of TMF use in tool development, testing and refinement studies. Renewed attention to basic concepts is necessary to advance partnership measurement and research innovation in the field. Systematic review protocol registration: PROSPERO protocol registration: CRD42021137932 https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=137932 .

Preventing hospitalizations due to ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSCs) is traditionally the responsibility of primary care. The determinants of ACSC hospitalizations, however, are not purely medical, but also influenced by other factors like patients’ social and personal circumstances. Interventions that include or consist entirely of community health services and social care could potentially reduce the ACSC hospitalization rate. Comparisons of the features of successful interventions of this nature, however, are still lacking. We therefore conducted a systematic review of the literature to identify out-of-hospital interventions that (a) included aspects or consisted entirely of community health services and social care and (b) analyzed the ACSC hospitalization rate as an outcome measure. We identified papers reporting the results of 32 interventions and extracted structural and behavioral features to determine which of these were shared by most or all of the successful interventions. We found that all of the successful interventions included a primary care physician and provided care management. Moreover, most of the successful interventions were characterized by a high degree of interconnectedness between professional groups and provided care within so-called health care homes. We also identified a set of care coordination activities that were implemented in most of the successful interventions. Policy makers may wish to consider adopting these features when designing interventions that aim to reduce the ACSC hospitalization rate.

Australia has undergone significant youth mental health reform over the past 10 years, leading to numerous studies examining the effects of community-based mental health care programs for Australian youth. However, no synthesis of this literature currently exists. Therefore, this systematic review aimed to: (1) describe the types of community-based mental health programs that have been delivered to Australian youth in the past 10 years; and (2) examine their impact in improving young people's mental health symptomology and psychosocial functioning. A systematic search of the peer-reviewed literature was conducted. Studies were included if they evaluated the extent to which such programs improved mental health symptomology (e.g., depression, anxiety, substance use) and/or psychosocial outcomes (e.g., social functioning, school engagement, employment) for Australian youth aged 10-25 years. Thirty-seven studies were included. Four types of community-based youth mental health care programs were identified: therapy (n = 16), case management (n = 9), integrated 'one-stop-shop' (n = 6) and lifestyle (n = 6) programs. The majority of therapeutic programs were effective in reducing mental health symptomology. Case management and integrated approaches consistently yielded significant improvements in both symptomology and psychosocial outcomes. Lifestyle programs were effective in alleviating depressive symptoms, but inconclusive for other outcomes. This review provides support for youth-friendly, systemic, multidisciplinary and integrated assertive outreach models of community mental health care to improve outcomes for young Australians experiencing mental health concerns. Several recommendations for future research are provided to strengthen the local evidence-base supporting community mental health programs to ultimately enhance young people's life trajectory.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak has magnified existing health inequities linked to social determinants of health, with racial and ethnic minorities being disproportionately affected by the pandemic. A proposed strategy to address these inequities is based on the implementation of community health worker (CHW) programs able to bridge the gaps between marginalized communities and the formal health care systems. A scoping review was conducted through searching 4 databases: PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Science Direct. Inclusion criteria focused on studies defining any kind of adopted CHW intervention to address inequities related to racial/ethnic groups during the COVID-19 crisis, published from December 31, 2019, to October 31, 2021. Narrative synthesis was undertaken to summarize the findings. In total, 23 studies met the inclusion out of the 107 search results. Data converged on the relevant potential of CHWs on engaging with community leaders, addressing social determinants of health, and issues related to structural racism, promoting culturally tailored health information, and encouraging institutions to policy change in favor of people left behind. Although vulnerability of racial and ethnic minorities was already present before the COVID-19 outbreak, the pandemic has represented a wakeup call to address it more efficiently. In recent years, CHWs have increasingly been acknowledged as valuable members of the health care workforce. As health disparities may increase after our multicultural societies begin to recover from COVID-19, CHWs may play a crucial role in addressing system-level changes to have broad and lasting effects on health outcomes.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the closure or reduction in support services for family carers, resulting in increased social isolation and stress for this population. The current scoping review aimed to identify the impact of COVID-19 upon carers and support provided for them during the pandemic. Four online databases (CINAHL, Medline, PsycINFO and PubMed) were systematically searched on 16th December 2020 and updated on 16th July 2021 for articles written in English and published after January 2020, focused on the carer and the impact of COVID-19. Google scholar and reference lists of relevant papers were checked, and key authors were contacted for further relevant information. The database searches identified 976 citations, which resulted in 670 unique articles following the removal of duplicates. Title and abstract screening identified 63 articles for full-text review, 11 of which were subsequently excluded, leaving 52 articles which were subject to inductive thematic analysis. Four key themes were identified. Whilst a number of issues were identified that were exacerbated by the pandemic, others directly resulting from it were revealed. Few studies discussed support measures for carers and only one trial evaluated an intervention. This review identifies the impact of COVID-19 on carers, but there is a dearth of evidence to inform appropriate tailored support. Governments need to identify carers as a priority group in social care reform and commission co-produced, evidence and experience informed pathways to reinstate support services, potentially modelled on pandemic plans following the example currently being considered for the paid healthcare workforce.