Heard and valued: the development of a model to meaningfully engage marginalized populations in health services planning

Series: Public engagement with research. Part 2: GPs and primary care researchers working inclusively with minoritised communities in health research to help address inequalities

Public engagement in health research is vital for addressing health disparities and promoting inclusivity among minoritised communities who often face barriers to accessing healthcare. Minoritised communities are groups, which have been made minorities by a dominant culture, race, ethnic group and/or social class and may experience health inequalities as a result. By incorporating diverse perspectives and lived experiences of minoritised communities, this approach aims to achieve contextually relevant research outcomes that reduce health inequalities and improve overall well-being. However, underrepresentation and lack of inclusivity challenges persist, necessitating the establishment of inclusive partnerships and grassroots participatory methodologies.

To foster inclusive public engagement, it is important to overcome structural and cultural barriers, address socioeconomic challenges, and build trust with minoritised communities. This can be achieved by promoting a cultural shift that values inclusivity, providing comprehensive training to researchers, and collecting rigorous data on engagement demographics for transparency and accountability. Involving minoritised communities in decision-making through participatory research approaches enhances trust and yields successful outcomes. Additionally, allocating sufficient resources, collaborating in co-production, and prioritising the diverse needs and perspectives of stakeholders contribute to fostering inclusive public engagement in research.

Overall, inclusive engagement practices particularly in primary care research have the potential to reduce health inequalities and cater to the unique requirements of minoritised communities, thereby creating more impactful outcomes and promoting equitable healthcare access.

Interrogating the effectiveness of service engagement for underserved populations in complex health and social care systems: towards an equitable engagement strategy

There are increased sector-wide efforts within health and social care systems to engage those with lived experience in service design, delivery, and monitoring - aiming to secure more equitable health outcomes. However, critical knowledge gaps persist around how national whole-system engagement strategies can account for the challenges experienced by populations that encounter exclusion within complex multi-layered systems. This includes a failure to delineate shared challenges across groups, and to develop transferable cross-group frameworks to assist sector-wide change. There is, therefore, a danger that those groups already least heard will be collectively left behind. With a view to informing a more inclusive engagement strategy in Ireland, this national study aims to investigate multi-level (policy and strategic, operational, on-the-ground services, individual) shared challenges impacting engagement for five populations who have been identified as underserved groups in a complex health and social care system, including: (1) those who misuse drugs and alcohol, (2) those who are experiencing homelessness, (3) those experiencing mental health, (4) migrants and those of minority ethnicies, and (5) Irish Travellers. Adopting a mixed-methods approach which draws on an evidence-informed multistakeholder perspective, this study employs data from: focus groups and life-course interviews with lived-experience populations (n=136), five focus groups (n=39) and a national on-line survey (n=320) with population-specific services providers; and national-level stakeholder interviews (n=9). Two cross-group participatory consultative forums with lived-experience and provider participants (n=28) were used to co-produce priority action areas based on study findings. This article presents findings on shared challenges in engaging these groups around leadership and commitment, implementation and action, population capacities, trust, and representation, stigma, and discrimination. Derived from these challenges, six development areas are presented to advance an inclusive equitable engagement approach in Ireland. These comprise: 1) balancing top-down prioritisation, and bottom-up direction; 2) sustaining multi-level, multi-form implementation; 3) measuring effectiveness and action; 4) embedding inclusive equitable engagement; 5) trust as a prerequisite, and outcome; and 6) an equalising, agency empowering agenda.

Between Public Guidelines for User Involvement and Ideals About Free Research: Using Collaborative Autoethnography to Explore Researcher Experiences From a User Involvement Process

BACKGROUND AND AIM

User participation is a prerequisite for receiving research funding in healthcare in Norway. Despite many positive benefits, studies report challenges from users' and researchers' perspectives. Limited knowledge exists concerning researchers' experiences in scenarios where the users are professionals within healthcare and research. The aim of this retrospective study was to explore and reflect on personal experiences as researchers from a process of planning and developing research questions for a PhD project, following the James Lind Alliance guidelines, which were a requirement for funding. We focused on how the process of collaboration with a specific group of users influenced the researchers' sense of selves.

DESIGN AND METHOD

We used a qualitative design based on collaborative autoethnography, exploring personal experiences from a sociocultural point of view. Two of the three researchers in the team recollected their experiences from the user involvement process while applying the James Lind Alliance guidelines. We used different data sources to develop two autoethnographic narratives. The narratives were analysed using thematic analysis.

RESULTS

The autoethnographic narratives demonstrate the complexity of user involvement from the researchers' perspectives. We identified four themes in the analysis: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, competing paradigms, hierarchy and dual roles. The accounts illustrated the researchers' ambivalence within the process, indicating that they feared a loss of control over the direction of the research project. The narratives visualised a struggle to appear as credible researchers, illustrating how the involvement of a specific group of users and adherence to a specific guideline for user involvement influenced the researchers' experiences of their roles and identities in the collaboration.

CONCLUSION

The results point to the relevance of the sociocultural backdrop; researchers might become frontline providers of policy implementation in research, balancing tensions between regulatory constraints, user involvement and researchers' professional identity and research ideals, when a specific, detailed procedure for user involvement is required.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

Two user panels comprising participants from clinical practice, education and research, along with a service user, collaborated in the planning and development of research questions for a PhD project. This autoethnographic study elaborates this process.

Trends in Government-Initiated Public Engagement in Canadian Health Policy From 2000 to 2021

Introduction

Canada has a rich history of public engagement in health policy; however, shifts in engagement practices over time have not been critically examined.

Methodology

We searched for cases of government-initiated public engagement in Canadian health policy from 2000 to 2021 at the federal, provincial (Ontario, British Columbia, Nova Scotia) and pan-Canadian levels. Government databases, portals and platforms for engagement were searched, followed by academic and grey literature using relevant search terms. A coding scheme was iteratively developed to categorize cases by target population, recruitment method and type of engagement.

Results

We identified 132 cases of government-initiated public engagement. We found a predominance of feedback and consultation engagement types and self-selection recruitment, especially at the federal level from 2016 onward. Engagements that targeted multiple populations (patients, public and other stakeholders) were favoured overall and over time. Just over 10% of cases in our survey mentioned efforts to engage with equity-deserving groups.

Conclusion

Overall, our results identify a heavy reliance over time on more passive, indirect engagement approaches, which limit opportunities for collaborative problem solving and fail to include equity-deserving populations. Those overseeing the design and implementation of government-initiated public engagement will draw valuable lessons from this review to inform the design of engagement initatives.

Whole-Body Photobiomodulation Therapy Propels the Fibromyalgia Patient into the Recomposition Phase: A Reflexive Thematic Analysis

BACKGROUND

Recent evidence has identified great promise for the novel whole-body photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) for individuals with fibromyalgia (FM). However, currently no evidence has documented the experiences of participants. The objective of this study was to qualitatively assess treatment experience and response in a group of participants with FM undergoing a course of whole-body PBMT.

METHODS

An interpretive hermeneutic phenomenological study situated within the worldview of pragmatism was undertaken. A convenience sample of individuals with FM were included if they had undertaken a novel 6-week trial of PBMT. Individuals undertook semi-structured interviews exploring treatment experience and multidimensional treatment responses during Week 3 and Week 6.

RESULTS

Sixteen trial participants (47.3 ± 10.9 years) took part in this study. The analysis produced three overarching themes that were previously identified from a baseline study (namely, 'Body Structure & Function', 'Activities & Participation', and 'Environment') with an additional five sub-themes that highlighted the intervention experience. Subsequently, four important processes were observed and identified: increased motivation; feeling proud; improved confidence; feeling like 'old self'. This ultimately culminated in the identification of a positive spiral, which we have termed 'recomposition'.

CONCLUSIONS

We believe our study is the first in the field of chronic pain management to utilise qualitative methodology to directly assess the acceptability and efficacy of a specific medical intervention in a clinical trial, and the first study to qualitatively assess whole-body PBMT experience. The findings are compelling and warrant further work to support the introduction of this device into the National Health Service (NHS).

Advancing the Care Experience for patients receiving Palliative care as they Transition from hospital to Home (ACEPATH): Codesigning an intervention to improve patient and family caregiver experiences

BACKGROUND

Returning home from the hospital for palliative-focused care is a common transition, but the process can be emotionally distressing and logistically challenging for patients and caregivers. While interventions exist to aid in the transition, none have been developed in partnership with patients and caregivers.

OBJECTIVE

To undergo the initial stages of codesign to create an intervention (Advancing the Care Experience for patients receiving Palliative care as they Transition from hospital to Home [ACEPATH]) to improve the experience of hospital-to-home transitions for adult patients receiving palliative care and their caregiver(s).

METHODS

The codesign process consisted of (1) the development of codesign workshop (CDW) materials to communicate key findings from prior research to CDW participants; (2) CDWs with patients, caregivers and healthcare providers (HCPs); and (3) low-fidelity prototype testing to review CDW outputs and develop low-fidelity prototypes of interventions. HCPs provided feedback on the viability of low-fidelity prototypes.

RESULTS

Three patients, seven caregivers and five HCPs participated in eight CDWs from July 2022 to March 2023. CDWs resulted in four intervention prototypes: a checklist, quick reference sheets, a patient/caregiver workbook and a transition navigator role. Outputs from CDWs included descriptions of interventions and measures of success. In April 2023, the four prototypes were presented in four low-fidelity prototype sessions to 20 HCPs. Participants in the low-fidelity prototype sessions provided feedback on what the interventions could look like, what problems the interventions were trying to solve and concerns about the interventions.

CONCLUSION

Insights gained from this codesign work will inform high-fidelity prototype testing and the eventual implementation and evaluation of an ACEPATH intervention that aims to improve hospital-to-home transitions for patients receiving a palliative approach to care.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

Patients and caregivers with lived experience attended CDWs aimed at designing an intervention to improve the transition from hospital to home. Their direct involvement aligns the intervention with patients' and caregivers' needs when transitioning from hospital to home. Furthermore, four patient/caregiver advisors were engaged throughout the project (from grant writing through to manuscript writing) to ensure all stages were patient- and caregiver-centred.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Patient and Family Advisory Councils: Advancing Best Practice in Children's Hospitals

INTRODUCTION

This qualitative research study explored practices that support and advance diverse membership in Patient and Family Advisory Councils (PFACs) in children's hospitals and the involvement of PFACs in organization-level diversity, equity, and inclusion work.

METHOD

This study consisted of a focused literature review and 17 key informant interviews. The study sought to identify important learnings about (1) recruiting and supporting patient and family advisors (PFAs) from historically marginalized populations and (2) ways to develop and sustain meaningful partnerships with PFAs and PFACs in diversity, equity, and inclusion work.

RESULTS

The study findings highlighted a number of best practices for hospitals to adopt, including more actively reaching out to communities served, addressing barriers to participation through approaches and structures such as specialty PFACs and "tiered" options for participation by PFAs, and co-creation of inclusive environments.

DISCUSSION

To move forward with this work, additional research, true commitment from health care organizations, and shared guidance and tools for the field are needed.

Empowering patients as co-researchers in social pharmacy: Lessons learned and practical tips for meaningful partnership and impact

Engaging patients as co-researchers in health service research, involving them in the design, planning, and implementation rather than treating them as mere participants, can yield positive outcomes and generate value for patients' health. It also increases patients' health literacy and empowerment, leading to more meaningful studies and substantial research impact. However, deeper levels of engagement as partners throughout the research lifecycle come with ethical and methodological challenges. This commentary provides actionable advice for Patient Engagement and Involvement (PEI) in social pharmacy research through a rapid review of models, frameworks, and guidelines and by gathering lessons from four recent social pharmacy research initiatives conducted in Nordic settings. It also identifies and discusses ethical and methodological challenges to conducting authentic and sustained patient-driven research. Deeper levels of engagement where patients take the lead in shaping the social pharmacy research question(s) are rare due to the intensity of resources required. With these 24 tips and the lessons learned, we aim to make this approach more accessible to social pharmacy researchers interested in PEI.

Sustainable political commitment is necessary for institutionalizing community participation in health policy-making: Insights from Iran

BACKGROUND

Community participation is currently utilized as a national strategy to promote public health and mitigate health inequalities across the world. While community participation is acknowledged as a civic right in the Constitution of Iran and other related upstream documents, the government has typically failed in translating, integrating and implementing community participation in health system policy. The present study was conducted to determine the level of public voice consideration within the health policy in Iran and address fundamental interventions required to promote the public voice in the context of Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). This study has originality because there is no study that addresses the requirements of institutionalizing community participation especially in low-middle-income countries, so Iran's experience can be useful for other countries.

METHODS

Methodologically, this study utilized a multi-method and multi-strand sequential research design, including qualitative, comparative and documentary studies. In the first phase, the current level of community participation in the health policy cycle of Iran was identified using the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) spectrum. In the second phase, a comparative study was designed to identify relevant interventions to promote the community participation level in the selected countries under study. In the third phase, a qualitative study was conducted to address the barriers, facilitators and strategies for improving the level of public participation. Accordingly, appropriate interventions and policy options were recommended. Interventions were reviewed in a policy dialogue with policy-makers and community representatives, and their effectiveness, applicability and practical feasibility were evaluated.

RESULTS

Based on the IAP2 spectrum, the level of community participation in the health policy-making process is non-participation, while empowerment is set at the highest level in the upstream documents. Moreover, capacity-building, demand, mobilization of the local population, provision of resources and setting a specific structure were found to be among the key interventions to improve the level of community participation in Iran's health sector. More importantly, "political will for action" was identified as the driving force for implementing the necessary health interventions.

CONCLUSIONS

To sum up, a paradigm shift in the governing social, economic and political philosophy; establishing a real-world and moral dialogue and communication between the government and the society; identifying and managing the conflicts of interest in the leading stockholders of the healthcare system; and, more importantly, maintaining a stable political will for action are integral to promote and institutionalize participatory governance in the health sector of Iran. All of the above will lead us to scheme, implement and institutionalize suitable interventions for participatory governance in health and medicine.

Patient partner perspectives on compensation: Insights from the Canadian Patient Partner Survey

INTRODUCTION

There is a growing role for patients, family members and caregivers as consultants, collaborators and partners in health system settings in Canada. However, compensation for this role is not systematized. When offered, it varies in both type (e.g., one-time honorarium, salary) and amount. Further, broad-based views of patient partners on compensation are still unknown. We aimed to describe the types and frequency of compensation patient partners have been offered and their attitudes towards compensation.

METHODS

This study uses data from the Canadian Patient Partner Study (CPPS) survey. The survey gathered the experiences and perspectives of those who self-identified as patient partners working across the Canadian health system. Three questions were about compensation, asking what types of compensation participants had been offered, if they had ever refused compensation, and whether they felt adequately compensated. The latter two questions included open-text comments in addition to menu-based and scaled response options. Basic frequencies were performed for all questions and open-text comments were analyzed through inductive qualitative content analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 603 individuals participated in the CPPS survey. Most respondents were never or rarely offered salary (81%), honorarium (64%), gift cards (80%) or material gifts (93%) while half were offered conference registration and expenses at least sometimes. A total of 129 (26%) of 499 respondents reported refusing compensation. Of 511 respondents, half felt adequately compensated always or often, and half only sometimes, rarely or never. Open-text comments revealed positive, ambivalent and negative attitudes towards compensation. Attitudes were framed by perceptions about their role, sentiments of giving back to the health system, feelings of acknowledgement, practical considerations, values of fairness and equity and accountability relationships.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings confirm that compensation is not standardized in Canada. Half of survey respondents routinely feel inadequately compensated. Patient partners have diverse views of what constitutes adequate compensation inclusive of personal considerations such as a preference for volunteering, and broader concerns such as promoting equity in patient partnership. Organizations should attempt to ensure that compensation practices are clear, transparent and attentive to patient partners' unique contexts.

PATIENT CONTRIBUTION

Two patient partners are members of the CPPS research team and have been fully engaged in all study phases from project conception to knowledge translation. They are co-authors of this manuscript. The survey was co-designed and pilot tested with patient partners and survey participants were patient partners.

Patients' and caregivers' experiences of virtual care in a primary care setting during the COVID-19 pandemic: A patient-oriented research study

Objective

This study explored patient and caregiver expectations and experiences of virtual primary care in Manitoba, Canada. This study focused on accessibility of care, acceptability and perceptions of quality from 'users' of primary healthcare services. Due to the rapid implementation of virtual primary care during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, patient/public input was largely bypassed.

Methods

A mixed method was conducted in collaboration with Patient and Caregiver Community Advisors. Data was obtained from 696 surveys and 9 focus groups (n = 41 patients and caregivers).

Results

Data suggest good acceptance of virtual visits, although considered a new experience despite almost exclusive use of the telephone. Participants preferred more input for choosing the type of visit but experienced less stress, time and inconvenience by using virtual care. There were mixed opinions of quality. More complex visits were associated with incomplete consultations and serve as one exemplar of the limitations due to lack of physical presence or contact. Unique communication skills were required to convey health concerns adequately and accurately. A more transactional approach was perceived from the lack of visual cues and the awkwardness associated with pauses during the phone conversation. Virtual care may be better used for certain circumstances but should encompass patient-centred decision making for when and how. Many expressed interests in video options; technology access and user ability are additional considerations for advancing virtual care.

Conclusions

The experiences and recommendations from patients and caregivers provide an important contribution to decision-making and integrating and sustaining quality virtual care for patient-centered healthcare service delivery. Keywords: Virtual care experiences, primary care, patient-oriented research, mixed methods, COVID-19.

Internalized Weight Stigma and Weight Discrimination: Associations with Quality of Life and Psychosocial Impairment in a Sample Living with Food Insecurity

Research suggests that experiencing weight discrimination is associated with a lower quality of life and poor psychological and physical health. However, much of the existing weight discrimination literature has neglected under-represented groups. Little is known about how the experience of weight discrimination affects quality of life and eating/weight-related psychosocial impairment in those living with food insecurity. The present study investigated the associations of weight discrimination and eating/weight-related psychosocial impairment and quality of life. We examined internalized weight stigma and several psychological indicators as potential mediators. Participants (N = 1085) who were recruited from a local food bank completed a questionnaire assessing food insecurity, weight discrimination, internalized weight stigma, eating disorder pathology, anxiety, depression, eating/weight-related psychosocial impairment, and quality of life. Overall, almost one in four participants reported experiencing weight discrimination. Our serial mediation models indicated that increased experiences of weight discrimination were associated with greater internalized weight stigma and psychopathology, which were in turn associated with lower quality of life and greater eating/weight-related psychosocial impairment. Thus, experiencing weight discrimination may negatively impact quality of life and eating/weight-related psychosocial impairment through its effect on mental health. It is imperative to address the negative effects of the widespread discrimination of people based on their weight.

Shared Decision-Making in Patients Seeking Surgery for Facial Trauma: The Role of Decisional Conflict and Perceived Discrimination

Background: Shared decision-making (SDM) may facilitate challenging discussions between patients with facial trauma and reconstructive surgeons. Objective: To determine among patients seeking surgical evaluation for facial trauma, whether patient demographics, decisional conflict (DC), or experiences of discrimination in health care are associated with patient perceptions of SDM, as measured by scored responses on the CollaboRATE-10 questionnaire. Methods: English-speaking adults who presented to the offices of five facial trauma surgeons were contacted by telephone after their visit to complete a cross-sectional survey. Results: After screening 247 patients, 131 patients were recruited (53.0%). DC and history of discrimination were associated with lower perceived SDM (p < 0.001 and p = 0.048, respectively). After adjusting for age, sex, race, education, initial emergency department presentation, DC, and past discrimination, patients of older age (odds ratio [OR] 1.1, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.02-1.09) and non-White race (OR 3.5, 95% CI 1.1-11.4) had higher perceptions of SDM; patients with DC (OR 0.52, 95% CI 0.01-0.20) reported less SDM. Conclusions: Patients who present to clinic for surgical evaluation after facial trauma feel that their physicians involve them less when deciding on a treatment plan if they have experienced discrimination in health care settings in the past, or if they have significant difficulty deciding between treatment options.

Hospitalization and Housing: A Qualitative Study Exploring the Perspectives of Hospitalized Patients Experiencing Housing Insecurity

Although housing insecurity has clear negative impacts on health, little is known about how it impacts patients' experience of hospitalization. In this qualitative study, we interviewed 22 hospitalized patients experiencing housing insecurity. The following three major themes emerged: 1) adverse social and environmental factors directly contribute to hospitalization, 2) lack of tailored care during hospitalization leaves patients unprepared for discharge, and 3) patients have difficulty recuperating after a hospital stay, leading to the risk of rehospitalization. Within these themes, participants described the roles of extreme physical and psychological hardship, chaotic interpersonal relationships, substance use, and stigma affecting participants' experiences before, during, and following hospitalization. Our results, based directly on the patient experience, suggest a need for hospital systems to invest in universal in-hospital screening for housing insecurity, incorporation of trauma-informed care, and robust partnerships with community organizations. Future research should explore the feasibility and impact of these interventions.

How can we meet the needs of patients, their families and their communities? A qualitative study including clinicians, consumer representatives, patients, and community members

BACKGROUND

The Diversity Working Group was formed in response to Australian Quality and Safety Health Care Standards that require organisations plan service delivery that incorporates information about the diversity of consumers, and those at higher risk of harm.

METHODS

A qualitative gap analysis was conducted by a team from varied professional backgrounds including a clinician researcher, a nurse researcher with expertise in culturally and linguistically diverse care and a consumer representative with expertise in advocacy and carer representation. Qualitative questions were co-designed, using a person-centred care lens. Community organisation members, and clinicians and patients from both ambulatory and inpatient areas were approached. Responses were coded independently and synthesised using a Framework Methodology.

RESULTS

In total 3 community organisation members, 40 clinicians and 30 patients consented to participate in the qualitative study over a period of three weeks. There were three key themes across responses, 'What are diverse needs?'; 'Assigning people to a group does not address a need'; 'Unplanned care makes people feel vulnerable'. Those patients who are isolated, for any number of reasons, were identified as at greater risk of harm.

CONCLUSION

Taking a person-centred approach can potentially better understand the needs of patients and communities so that this information can be incorporated into health service delivery. Resources are needed to support patients and their families at times of transition care, particularly when care is unplanned.

Exploring the lived experience of patients and families who speak language other than English (LOE) for healthcare: developing a qualitative study

BACKGROUND

Patients who use Languages other than English (LOE) for healthcare communication in an English-dominant region are at increased risk for experiencing adverse events and worse health outcomes in healthcare settings, including in pediatric hospitals. Despite the knowledge that individuals who speak LOE have worse health outcomes, they are often excluded from research studies on the basis of language and there is a paucity of data on ways to address these known disparities. Our work aims to address this gap by generating knowledge to improve health outcomes for children with illness and their families with LEP. BODY: We describe an approach to developing a study with individuals marginalized due to using LOE for healthcare communication, specifically using semi-structured qualitative interviews. The premise of this study is participatory research-our overall goal with this systematic inquiry is to, in collaboration with patients and families with LOE, set an agenda for creating actionable change to address the health information disparities these patients and families experience. In this paper we describe our overarching study design principles, a collaboration framework in working with different stakeholders and note important considerations for study design and execution.

CONCLUSIONS

We have a significant opportunity to improve our engagement with marginalized populations. We also need to develop approaches to including patients and families with LOE in our research given the health disparities they experience. Further, understanding lived experience is critical to advancing efforts to address these well-known health disparities. Our process to develop a qualitative study protocol can serve as an example for engaging this patient population and can serve as a starting point for other groups who wish to develop similar research in this area. Providing high-quality care that meets the needs of marginalized and vulnerable populations is important to achieving an equitable, high-quality health care system. Children and families who use a Language other than English (LOE) in English dominant regions for healthcare have worse health outcomes including a significantly increased risk of experiencing adverse events, longer lengths of stay in hospital settings, and receiving more unnecessary tests and investigations. Despite this, these individuals are often excluded from research studies and the field of participatory research has yet to meaningfully involve them. This paper aims to describe an approach to conducting research with a marginalized population of children and families due to using a LOE. We detail protocol development for a qualitative study exploring the lived experiences of patients and families who use a LOE during hospitalization. We aim to share considerations when conducting research within this population of families with LOE. We highlight learning applied from the field of patient-partner and child and family-centred research and note specific considerations for those with LOE. Developing strong partnerships and adopting a common set of research principles and collaborative framework underlies our approach and initial learnings, which we hope spark additional work in this area.

'To me, it's ones and zeros, but in reality that one is death': A qualitative study exploring researchers' experience of involving and engaging seldom-heard communities in big data research

BACKGROUND

Big data research requires public support. It has been argued that this can be achieved by public involvement and engagement to ensure that public views are at the centre of research projects. Researchers should aim to include diverse communities, including seldom-heard voices, to ensure that a range of voices are heard and that research is meaningful to them.

OBJECTIVE

We explored how researchers involve and engage seldom-heard communities around big data research.

METHODS

This is a qualitative study. Researchers who had experience of involving or engaging seldom-heard communities in big data research were recruited. They were based in England (n = 5), Scotland (n = 4), Belgium (n = 2) and Canada (n = 1). Twelve semistructured interviews were conducted on Zoom. All interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed, and we used reflexive thematic analysis to analyse participants' experiences.

RESULTS

The analysis highlighted the complexity of involving and engaging seldom-heard communities around big data research. Four themes were developed to represent participants' experiences: (1) abstraction and complexity of big data, (2) one size does not fit all, (3) working in partnership and (4) empowering the public contribution.

CONCLUSION

The study offers researchers a better understanding of how to involve and engage seldom-heard communities in a meaningful way around big data research. There is no one right approach, with involvement and engagement activities required to be project-specific and dependent on the public contributors, researchers' needs, resources and time available.

PATIENT AND PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT

Two public contributors are authors of the paper and they were involved in the study design, analysis and writing.

Consumers' and health providers' views and perceptions of partnering to improve health services design, delivery and evaluation: a co-produced qualitative evidence synthesis

BACKGROUND

Partnering with consumers in the planning, delivery and evaluation of health services is an essential component of person-centred care. There are many ways to partner with consumers to improve health services, including formal group partnerships (such as committees, boards or steering groups). However, consumers' and health providers' views and experiences of formal group partnerships remain unclear. In this qualitative evidence synthesis (QES), we focus specifically on formal group partnerships where health providers and consumers share decision-making about planning, delivering and/or evaluating health services. Formal group partnerships were selected because they are widely used throughout the world to improve person-centred care. For the purposes of this QES, the term 'consumer' refers to a person who is a patient, carer or community member who brings their perspective to health service partnerships. 'Health provider' refers to a person with a health policy, management, administrative or clinical role who participates in formal partnerships in an advisory or representative capacity. This QES was co-produced with a Stakeholder Panel of consumers and health providers. The QES was undertaken concurrently with a Cochrane intervention review entitled Effects of consumers and health providers working in partnership on health services planning, delivery and evaluation.

OBJECTIVES

1. To synthesise the views and experiences of consumers and health providers of formal partnership approaches that aimed to improve planning, delivery or evaluation of health services. 2. To identify best practice principles for formal partnership approaches in health services by understanding consumers' and health providers' views and experiences.

SEARCH METHODS

We searched MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO and CINAHL for studies published between January 2000 and October 2018. We also searched grey literature sources including websites of relevant research and policy organisations involved in promoting person-centred care.

SELECTION CRITERIA

We included qualitative studies that explored consumers' and health providers' perceptions and experiences of partnering in formal group formats to improve the planning, delivery or evaluation of health services.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Following completion of abstract and full-text screening, we used purposive sampling to select a sample of eligible studies that covered a range of pre-defined criteria, including rich data, range of countries and country income level, settings, participants, and types of partnership activities. A Framework Synthesis approach was used to synthesise the findings of the sample. We appraised the quality of each study using the CASP (Critical Appraisal Skill Program) tool. We assessed our confidence in the findings using the GRADE-CERQual (Confidence in the Evidence from Reviews of Qualitative research) approach. The Stakeholder Panel was involved in each stage of the review from development of the protocol to development of the best practice principles.

MAIN RESULTS

We found 182 studies that were eligible for inclusion. From this group, we selected 33 studies to include in the final synthesis. These studies came from a wide range of countries including 28 from high-income countries and five from low- or middle-income countries (LMICs). Each of the studies included the experiences and views of consumers and/or health providers of partnering in formal group formats. The results were divided into the following categories. Contextual factors influencing partnerships: government policy, policy implementation processes and funding, as well as the organisational context of the health service, could facilitate or impede partnering (moderate level of confidence). Consumer recruitment: consumer recruitment occurred in different ways and consumers managed the recruitment process in a minority of studies only (high level of confidence). Recruiting a range of consumers who were reflective of the clinic's demographic population was considered desirable, particularly by health providers (high level of confidence). Some health providers perceived that individual consumers' experiences were not generalisable to the broader population whereas consumers perceived it could be problematic to aim to represent a broad range of community views (high level of confidence). Partnership dynamics and processes: positive interpersonal dynamics between health providers and consumers facilitated partnerships (high level of confidence). However, formal meeting formats and lack of clarity about the consumer role could constrain consumers' involvement (high level of confidence). Health providers' professional status, technical knowledge and use of jargon were intimidating for some consumers (high level of confidence) and consumers could feel their experiential knowledge was not valued (moderate level of confidence). Consumers could also become frustrated when health providers dominated the meeting agenda (moderate level of confidence) and when they experienced token involvement, such as a lack of decision-making power (high level of confidence) Perceived impacts on partnership participants: partnering could affect health provider and consumer participants in both positive and negative ways (high level of confidence). Perceived impacts on health service planning, delivery and evaluation: partnering was perceived to improve the person-centredness of health service culture (high level of confidence), improve the built environment of the health service (high level of confidence), improve health service design and delivery e.g. facilitate 'out of hours' services or treatment closer to home (high level of confidence), enhance community ownership of health services, particularly in LMICs (moderate level of confidence), and improve consumer involvement in strategic decision-making, under certain conditions (moderate level of confidence). There was limited evidence suggesting partnering may improve health service evaluation (very low level of confidence). Best practice principles for formal partnering to promote person-centred care were developed from these findings. The principles were developed collaboratively with the Stakeholder Panel and included leadership and health service culture; diversity; equity; mutual respect; shared vision and regular communication; shared agendas and decision-making; influence and sustainability.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

Successful formal group partnerships with consumers require health providers to continually reflect and address power imbalances that may constrain consumers' participation. Such imbalances may be particularly acute in recruitment procedures, meeting structure and content and decision-making processes. Formal group partnerships were perceived to improve the physical environment of health services, the person-centredness of health service culture and health service design and delivery. Implementing the best practice principles may help to address power imbalances, strengthen formal partnering, improve the experiences of consumers and health providers and positively affect partnership outcomes.

Analyzing models of patient-centered care in Canada through a scoping review and environmental scan

Aim

The objective of this study was to identify and synthesize models of patient-centered care in Canada and compare them with the normative models described in the literature.

Subject and methods

Patient-centered care has gained momentum in the twenty-first century as a component of quality care. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the crisis often shifts the focus to the disease rather than the patient. The multiplicity of Canadian systems, including the federal, provincial, and territorial contexts, made a good case to search for a variety of models. This study was conducted using a scoping review method supported by an environmental scan to identify patient-centered care models in Canada.

Results

The study identified 19 patient-centered interventions across Canada. The interventions included bedside interventions, patient-engagement projects at the organizational level, and citizen advisory panels at the system level. The organizational model was the most common. The goals of interventions ranged from enhancing the patient's experience of care to identifying ways to cut costs. In most organizational-level projects, there was a marked tendency to engage patients as members of quality improvement committees. Respecting patient dignity and autonomy in one-on-one clinical interactions was minimally addressed in the models.

Conclusion

Health systems are not only technical, biomedical organizations but also socio-political institutions with goals of financial protection, the fair distribution of services and resources, and the meaningful inclusion of the citizens in the system, and thus patients need to be respected as individuals and as collectives within the healthcare system.

Patient engagement in healthcare planning and evaluation: A call for social justice

Patient engagement in healthcare planning and evaluation has been promoted as a way to improve healthcare's ability to meet patients' needs. However, populations experiencing oppression and discrimination, such as racism, colonialism, sexism, heterosexism, cisnormativity, ableism, classism, and poverty, are often underrepresented in patient engagement spaces. The context and structure of patient engagement processes may systematically exclude certain populations from participating in meaningful ways or from participating at all. By excluding certain populations from active, meaningful patient engagement, we risk planning and evaluating health services on the basis of the values, needs, and preferences of the dominant population. This, in turn, will further entrench health inequities and preclude the ability to surface ideas that challenge dominant conceptualisations of health and healthcare, thereby reinforcing the status quo rather than promoting healthcare transformation. Recognising that experiences of health, healthcare, and patient engagement processes are mediated through gender, race, ability, sexual orientation, and other dimensions of diversity, it is proposed that processes for engaging patients in healthcare planning and evaluation must by intersectional, attend to systemic and power relations, and truly put patients in the driver's seat of engagement processes. Health services planners and evaluators need to create more inclusive, accessible, and appropriate patient engagement experiences in order to focus on transforming healthcare towards a more socially just system.

Implementing public involvement throughout the research process-Experience and learning from the GPs in EDs study

BACKGROUND

Public involvement in health services research is encouraged. Descriptions of public involvement across the whole research cycle of a major study are uncommon and its effects on research conduct are poorly understood.

AIM

This study aimed to describe how we implemented public involvement, reflect on process and effects in a large-scale multi-site research study and present learning for future involvement practice.

METHOD

We recorded public involvement roles and activities throughout the study and compared these to our original public involvement plan included in our project proposal. We held a group interview with study co-applicants to explore their experiences, transcribed the recorded discussion and conducted thematic analysis. We synthesized the findings to develop recommendations for future practice.

RESULTS

Public contributors' activities went beyond strategic study planning and management to include active involvement in data collection, analysis and dissemination. They attended management, scrutiny, planning and task meetings. They also facilitated public involvement through annual planning and review sessions, conducted a Public Involvement audit and coordinated public and patient input to stakeholder discussions at key study stages. Group interview respondents said that involvement exceeded their expectations. They identified effects such as changes to patient recruitment, terminology clarification and extra dissemination activities. They identified factors enabling effective involvement including team and leader commitment, named support contact, building relationships and demonstrating equality and public contributors being confident to challenge and flexible to meet researchers' timescales and work patterns. There were challenges matching resources to roles and questions about the risk of over-professionalizing public contributors.

CONCLUSION

We extended our planned approach to public involvement and identified benefits to the research process that were both specific and general. We identified good practice to support effective public involvement in health services research that study teams should consider in planning and undertaking research.

PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

This paper was co-conceived, co-planned and co-authored by public contributors to contribute research evidence, based on their experiences of active involvement in the design, implementation and dissemination of a major health services research study.

Completing the time trade-off with respondents who are older, in poorer health or with an immigrant background in an EQ-5D-5L valuation study

OBJECTIVES

To determine the effects of age, immigrant background, and poor self-reported health in a general population sample on the probability of non-completion or slow completion of the time trade-off (TTO).

METHODS

We used data from an interrupted Norwegian EQ-5D-5L valuation study conducted between 2019 and 2020. All participants responded to background items, irrespective of completion. We used mixed effect logistic regression analysis to assess the effect of old age, poor health, and immigrant background on the probability of non-completion of the TTO, and, for those who completed the TTO, of slow completion times.

RESULTS

First experiences from a Norwegian valuation study were that 29 (5.5%) respondents failed to complete the TTO tasks. For those reporting age over 65 years, poor health, or an immigrant background, 12% failed to complete the TTO. Adjusted odds ratios for predictors of non-completion were statistically significant (age > 65 years, 8.3; EQ-VAS ≤ 50, 3.49; immigrant background, 4.56). Being over 65 years or with an immigrant background also predicted slow completion of both the introduction and TTO tasks.

CONCLUSIONS

High age, poor health, and immigrant status increased the risk of not being able to complete the TTO tasks, and of slow completion. Higher non-completion rates and increased completion times suggest that elements of the TTO may be demanding for some respondent groups, with possible implications for representativeness.

How do hospitals engage patients and family members in quality management? A grounded theory study of hospitals in Brazil

BACKGROUND

Patient and family engagement (PFE) is considered an essential element of the transformation of the healthcare system. However, it is characterised by its complexity and a small number of institutions that have implemented the mechanisms of engagement.

OBJECTIVE

To understand PFE in quality management (QM) in the hospital environment.

DESIGN

A qualitative approach was guided by the grounded theory based in Straussian perspective. Data were gathered using semistructured interviews. The coding was performed by excerpts, using an inductive approach and the constant comparison technique.

SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS

A total of seven Brazilian hospitals were selected based on the theoretical sampling technique.

RESULTS

A total of five categories emerged, namely: patient partner, mechanisms of engagement, internal structure for engagement, maturity of the QM system and openness to change. Externally, three contextual factors can impact the engagement: the local health system, the profile of the community and the change in access to the information. At the centre of the change is the balance in power relations between patients and professionals, the sharing of information from the hospital and a proactive attitude towards improving services.

CONCLUSIONS

The PFE involves a cultural and process change. Cultural change is represented by 'openness', that is, openness to learn, to listen and to consider new perspectives. The change in processes is in turn characterised by the phrase 'test and venture' because the model to be adopted may be different between hospitals. The patient's perspective allows actions to be driven towards what really matters to them, ensuring quality of service and safety, obtaining a new perspective to understand and solve problems, and stimulating a sense of urgency, more empathy and compassion in professionals.

“Nothing for Us Without Us”: An Evaluation of Patient Engagement in an HIV Care Improvement Collaborative in the Caribbean

This evaluation suggests that it is both possible and valuable to include patients as partners in quality improvement efforts, especially when resources must be prioritized for the highest impact efforts. Patient engagement in the improvement process is particularly powerful when addressing illnesses that may be stigmatized such as HIV.

Introduction:

Patient engagement is increasingly recognized as a key strategy to promote patient-centered care and accelerate health care improvements. Ensuring patient participation in improvement efforts is particularly important with stigmatized illnesses and marginalized populations. Despite the attention it has garnered, patient engagement is still not widely implemented and has not been well documented in global health literature.

Methods:

We implemented a patient-engagement strategy to involve people living with HIV in quality improvement efforts. As part of the Caribbean Regional Quality Improvement Collaborative, quality improvement teams from Barbados (1 team), Jamaica (20 teams), Suriname (3 teams), and Trinidad and Tobago (2 teams) engaged health care providers from care facilities and people living with HIV to serve as community representatives (CRs) to lead the improvement efforts alongside them. This strategy was evaluated via a mixed method design that included 2 rounds of semistructured, in-depth interviews with patients and providers.

Results:

Findings suggest that the patient engagement strategy had several key strengths: it promoted the collection, use, and appreciation of patient input to inform health care improvements at the facility level; facilitated the empowerment of CRs; enhanced mutual understanding and empathy between CRs and providers; and helped to dispel HIV stigma and discrimination in health care settings. Moreover, both health care providers and CRs reported that CR opinions and perspectives are as important as providers' and that CR participation in the improvement process was beneficial.

'They need to ask me first'. Community engagement with low-income citizens. A realist qualitative case-study

Background

Community engagement is seen as key to citizen‐centred and sustainable healthcare systems as involving citizens in the designing, implementation and improvement of services and policies is thought to tailor these more closely to communities’ own needs and experiences. Organizations have struggled to reach out to and involve disadvantaged citizens. This paper examines how if, why, and when low‐income citizens wish to be involved.

Methods

For this qualitative realist case‐study, 19 interviews (one dyad) were held with (20) low‐income citizens in two Dutch municipalities. Additionally, the results were discussed with a reference panel consisting of professionals and citizens to enrich the results and to ensure the results had face validity.

Results

The results showed four different ways in which low‐income citizens wished to be involved: (a) in a practical/volunteer way; (b) as a buddy; (c) as a lay expert; (d) not involved at all. The factors affecting citizens’ interest and capacity to participate include citizens’ own experiences of the services they access and their personal situations, e.g. their mental or physical health, extent of financial crisis, family situation, home environment. None of the interviewees was currently involved, but all had ideas for improving health(care) services and policies. Citizens’ experiences of the services they accessed acted as a motivator for some to be involved as they wanted to ensure others would not have the same struggles, while for others their own needs and an apathetic system remained too high a barrier. To enable involvement, citizens need continued support for their own health(care) and financial situation, better communication and accessibility from services, practical support (e.g., training and bus passes) and recognition for their input (e.g., monetary compensation).

Conclusion

The study shows that citizens’ experiences of the services they accessed influenced if and how they wanted to be involved with health and care services. Despite the fact that all participants had shared solid ideas for improving services and policies, they were hindered by a bureaucratic, impersonal and inaccessible system. Organizations seem to underestimate the required investments to reach out to low‐income citizens and the support required to ensure their involvement.

Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) in Study

Citizens as well as PPI organizations were members of the reference panel who helped formulate the research questions and recruitment strategy. The local reference panel also helped to interpret and refine the initial findings.

What motivates informal carers to be actively involved in research, and what obstacles to involvement do they perceive?

BACKGROUND

Due to demographic changes and a strained public sector operating in many countries globally, informal care is increasing. Currently, at least 1.3 million adults in Sweden regularly provide help, support and/or care to a family member/significant other. With no sign of an imminent decrease in their caring activities, it is important that informal carers are considered as a key stakeholder group within research that affects them, e.g., the co-design of carer and/or dyadic support interventions. The objective of this descriptive, quantitative study was to investigate informal carers' perceived motivations and obstacles to become involved in research.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey design was adopted, using first-wave data from a panel study. The data, collected in Sweden between September 2019 and March 2020, included survey responses from 147 informal carers who were either aged 60+ years themselves or were caring for someone who was aged 60+ years.

RESULTS

Our main results showed that informal carers are, in general, interested in research. Slightly fewer were interested in becoming actively involved themselves, but older age was the only characteristic significantly associated with less interest of being actively involved. Two latent motivational dimensions emerged from the factor analysis: 'family motivation' and 'the greater good motivation'. These, according to our results, almost equally valued dimensions, described the differing reasons for informal carers to become involved in research. The most common perceived obstacle was lack of time and it was reported by more women than men.

CONCLUSION

Our study contributes with new knowledge of informal carers' perceived motivations and obstacles regarding carer involvement in research. Paying attention to the differing motivational dimensions held by informal carers could help researchers create conditions for more inclusive and systematic participation of informal carers within research. Thereby, increasing the opportunities for research that is deemed to be of higher societal impact. IRRID (International Registered Report Identifier): RR2-10.2196/17759.

Binge eating among older women: prevalence rates and health correlates across three independent samples

BACKGROUND

Emerging research indicates that binge eating (BE; consuming unusually large amounts of food in one siting while feeling a loss of control) is prevalent among older women. Yet, health correlates of BE in older adult populations are poorly understood. The original study aimed to investigate BE prevalence, frequency, and health correlates in a sample of older adult women. Based on results from this first study, we then sought to replicate findings in two additional samples of older adult women from separate studies.

METHOD

Using self-reported frequencies of BE from three separate samples of older women with very different demographics, we compared BE prevalence, frequency, and health correlates among older women. Study 1 (N = 185) includes data collected online (86% White; 59% overweight/obese status). Study 2 (N = 64) was conducted in person at a local food pantry (65% Hispanic; 47% household income < $10,000/year). Study 3 (N = 100) comprises data collected online (72% White; 50% Masters/Doctoral Degree).

RESULTS

Per DSM-5 frequency criterion of BE at least weekly, we found prevalence rates ranging from 19 to 26% across the three samples. Correlates of BE frequency included elevated negative mood, worry, BMI, and less nutritious food consumption.

CONCLUSIONS

Across three very different samples in terms of race/ethnicity, education, food security status, measurements, and sampling methodology, we found fairly consistent rates of self-reported BE at least weekly (19-26%). Results suggest that BE is related to negative health indices among older women and support the need for more research in this population.

Themes for evaluating the quality of initiatives to engage patients and family caregivers in decision-making in healthcare systems: a scoping review

OBJECTIVE

To identify the key themes for evaluating the quality of initiatives to engage patients and family caregivers in decision-making across the organisation and system domains of healthcare systems.

METHODS

We conducted a scoping review. Seven databases of journal articles were searched from their inception to June 2019. Eligible articles were literature reviews published in English and provided useful information for determining aspects of engaging patients and family caregivers in decision-making to evaluate. We extracted text under three predetermined categories: structure, process and outcomes that were adapted from the Donabedian conceptual framework. These excerpts were then independently open-coded among four researchers. The subsequent themes and their corresponding excerpts were summarised to provide a rich description of each theme.

RESULTS

Of 7747 unique articles identified, 366 were potentially relevant, from which we selected the 42 literature reviews. 18 unique themes were identified across the three predetermined categories. There were six structure themes: engagement plan, level of engagement, time and timing of engagement, format and composition, commitment to support and environment. There were four process themes: objectives, engagement approach, communication and engagement activities. There were eight outcome themes: decision-making process, stakeholder relationship, capacity development, stakeholder experience, shape policy/service/programme, health status, healthcare quality, and cost-effectiveness.

CONCLUSIONS

The 18 themes and their descriptions provide a foundation for identifying constructs and selecting measures to evaluate the quality of initiatives for engaging patients and family caregivers in healthcare system decision-making within the organisation and system domains. The themes can be used to investigate the mechanisms through which relevant initiatives are effective and investigate their effectiveness.

Engaging citizens living in vulnerable circumstances in research: a narrative review using a systematic search

Although public engagement in research is increasingly popular, the involvement of citizens living in vulnerable circumstances is rarely realized. This narrative review aims to describe and critically analyse concerns and corresponding strategies, tools, and methods that could support the inclusion of these citizens in health research. The 40 studies that are included were thematically analysed using the socioecological model. Concerns originate most often on the intrapersonal level of the socioecological model, but concerns were also identified at institutional, community, and policy levels. It is thought-provoking that there is a lack of attention for the research and policy structure in which engagement practices are designed, implemented and evaluated. More research is needed to explore how these cultures could be changed in a way that promotes rather than restrains the engagement of citizens living in vulnerable circumstances in research and policymaking.

Barriers and Facilitators Affecting the HIV Care Cascade for Migrant People Living with HIV in Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development Countries: A Systematic Mixed Studies Review

Migrants in countries affiliated with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) have a higher risk of acquiring HIV, experience delayed HIV diagnosis, and have variable levels of engagement with HIV care and treatment when compared to native-born populations. A systematic mixed studies review was conducted to generate a multilevel understanding of the barriers and facilitators affecting HIV Care Cascade steps for migrant people living with HIV (MLWH) in OECD countries. Medline, Embase, Scopus, CINAHL, and the Cochrane Library were searched on March 25, 2020. Screening, critical appraisal, and analysis were conducted independently by two authors. We used qualitative content analysis and the five-level Socio-Ecological Model (i.e., individual, interpersonal, organizational, community, and policy) to categorize barriers and facilitators. Fifty-nine studies from 17 OECD countries were included. MLWH faced similar barriers and facilitators regardless of their host country, ethnic and geographic origins, or legal status. Most barriers and facilitators were associated with the individual and organizational levels and centered around retention in HIV care and treatment. Adapting clinical environments to better address MLWH's competing needs via multidisciplinary models would address retention issues across OECD countries.

An exploratory examination of internalized weight stigma in a sample living with food insecurity

Internalized weight stigma (IWS) is associated with various health concerns, regardless of body size. One weakness of existing IWS research is that it largely lacks diverse study populations. One recent exception, however, found increasing IWS was associated with higher levels of food insecurity (FI) in a low-income, majority Latinx sample. Using the same sample (N = 530), the present study further explored levels of IWS as compared to documented (mostly White/European) samples; we also investigated IWS in relation to three dichotomous eating disorder (ED) outcomes (e.g., any/no vomiting). Finally, based on previous qualitative findings regarding dietary restraint in the most severe level of FI, we explored the independent contribution of dietary restraint and IWS to cross-sectional risk of ED pathology. Results indicated that individuals living with FI experience IWS at concerning levels. Additionally, IWS played a small yet significant role in cross-sectional risk for ED pathology regardless of FI severity, while dietary restraint contributed to independent risk only in those with the most severe FI. Findings suggest that IWS is prevalent in this marginalized population, associated with ED pathology, and that the effect of dietary restraint on risk for ED pathology appears to uniquely impact those living with severe FI.

"We are the stakeholders with the most at stake": scientific and autism community co-researchers reflect on their collaborative experience in the CONNECT project

BACKGROUND

Little research describes the everyday challenges and needs of autistic adults. In order to fill this data gap, the CONtiNuity of carE and support for autistiC adulTs (CONNECT) project set out to learn about the health and well-being of autistic adults as well as their service and support needs. To do so, CONNECT welcomed autistic adults and caregivers of autistic adults as members of the research team, alongside researchers, policy-makers, service providers and health professionals. Autistic adults were involved in every stage of the research project and participated in team meetings held several times a year as well as in numerous email exchanges.

METHODS

Two feedback questionnaires were designed for this study: one for the scientific co-researchers and one for the autism community co-researchers (the project's "patient partners"). Although the surveys varied from one another, they probed respondents to provide critical and constructive comments on issues that were central to their engagement in CONNECT. Four scientific co-researchers and four autism community co-researchers filled out the questionnaires. A comparative analysis was carried out on the responses provided to the open- and closed-ended survey questions as well as on complimentary data collected from the team's documents.

RESULTS

CONNECT was seen as a positive experience for both groups. Highlights included: helping tailor and design research and its relevant materials to better suit the needs of the autistic community; establishing relationships and creating long-lasting friendships with other autistic adults; gaining a better understanding of the research process; and forging new connections with regional, national and international stakeholders. Areas for improvement include: establishing clear roles, responsibilities and expectations from the start; outlining a strategy to address unforeseen changes in project leadership; and creating a platform allowing for the involvement and participation of a more representative sample of adults on the autism spectrum.

CONCLUSIONS

While not without its challenges, CONNECT demonstrates that a collaborative multi-stakeholder approach engaging autistic adults can be an effective model for conducting research on adult autism. Autistic adults and their caregivers can make the research process more open and accessible and make its outputs more relevant, useful and meaningful to the wider autistic adult community.

Early life risk and resiliency factors and their influences on developmental outcomes and disease pathways: a rapid evidence review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses

The Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) framework aims to understand how environmental exposures in early life shape lifecycle health. Our understanding and the ability to prevent poor health outcomes and enrich for resiliency remain limited, in part, because exposure-outcome relationships are complex and poorly defined. We, therefore, aimed to determine the major DOHaD risk and resilience factors. A systematic approach with a 3-level screening process was used to conduct our Rapid Evidence Review following the established guidelines. Scientific databases using DOHaD-related keywords were searched to capture articles between January 1, 2009 and April 19, 2019. A final total of 56 systematic reviews/meta-analyses were obtained. Studies were categorized into domains based on primary exposures and outcomes investigated. Primary summary statistics and extracted data from the studies are presented in Graphical Overview for Evidence Reviews diagrams. There was substantial heterogeneity within and between studies. While global trends showed an increase in DOHaD publications over the last decade, the majority of data reported were from high-income countries. Articles were categorized under six exposure domains: Early Life Nutrition, Maternal/Paternal Health, Maternal/Paternal Psychological Exposure, Toxicants/Environment, Social Determinants, and Others. Studies examining social determinants of health and paternal influences were underrepresented. Only 23% of the articles explored resiliency factors. We synthesized major evidence on relationships between early life exposures and developmental and health outcomes, identifying risk and resiliency factors that influence later life health. Our findings provide insight into important trends and gaps in knowledge within many exposures and outcome domains.

Searching for new community engagement approaches in the Netherlands: a realist qualitative study

Background

Community engagement is increasingly seen as key to improving healthcare systems and to increasing communities’ involvement in the shaping of their own communities. This paper describes how ‘community engagement’ (CE) is understood and being operationalised in the Dutch healthcare system by investigating the CE approaches being implemented in six different regions and by examining engaged citizens’ and professionals’ experiences of those CE approaches.

Methods

For this realist study, interviews and focus groups were held with citizens (16) and professionals (42) involved in CE approaches in the six regions. Additionally, CE-related activities were observed to supplement interview data.

Results

This study shows that citizens and professionals defined and experienced CE differently and that they differed in who they felt had ownership of CE. The CE approaches implemented in community-led initiatives and organisationally-led initiatives varied accordingly. Furthermore, both citizens and professionals were searching for meaningful ways for citizens to have more control over healthcare in their own communities.

Conclusion

CE can be improved by, first of all, developing a shared and overarching vision of what CE should look like, establishing clear roles and remits for organisations and communities, and taking active measures to ensure CE is more inclusive and representative of harder-to-reach groups. At the same time, to help ensure such shared visions do not further entrench power imbalances between citizens and professionals, professionals require training in successful CE approaches.

How executives' expectations and experiences shape population health management strategies

BACKGROUND

Within Population Health Management (PHM) initiatives, stakeholders from various sectors apply PHM strategies, via which services are reorganised and integrated in order to improve population health and quality of care while reducing cost growth. This study unravelled how stakeholders' expectations and prior experiences influenced stakeholders intended PHM strategies.

METHODS

This study used realist principles. Nine Dutch PHM initiatives participated. Seventy stakeholders (mainly executive level) from seven different stakeholder groups (healthcare insurers, hospitals, primary care groups, municipalities, patient representative organisations, regional businesses and program managers of the PHM initiatives) were interviewed. Associations between expectations, prior experiences and intended strategies of the various stakeholder groups were identified through analyses of the interviews.

RESULTS

Stakeholders' expectations, their underlying explanations and intended strategies could be categorized into four themes: 1. Regional collaboration; 2. Governance structures and stakeholder roles; 3. Regional learning environments, and 4. Financial and regulative conditions. Stakeholders agreed on the long-term expectations of PHM development. Differences in short- and middle-term expectations, and prior experiences were identified between stakeholder groups and within the stakeholder group healthcare insurers. These differences influenced stakeholders' intended strategies. For instance, healthcare insurers that intended to stay close to the business of care had encountered barriers in pushing PHM e.g. lack of data insight, and expected that staying in control of the purchasing process was the best way to achieve value for money. Healthcare insurers that were more keen to invest in experiments with data-technology, new forms of payment and accountability had encountered positive experiences in establishing regional responsibility and expected this to be a strong driver for establishing improvements in regional health and a vital and economic competitive region.

CONCLUSION

This is the first study that revealed insight into the differences and similarities between stakeholder groups' expectations, experiences and intended strategies. These insights can be used to improve the pivotal cooperation within and between stakeholder groups for PHM.

Facilitating non-tokenistic user involvement in research

BACKGROUND

With the increase in user activism in the Western societies in recent years, there has also been an increase in promoting user involvement in research. Hence, is necessary to address the danger of tokenism, a false appearance of inclusiveness, in user involvement, as well as to explore methods for promoting active user involvement. Using a Norwegian research project on the rehabilitation processes following traumatic injuries organised via user involvement, this study reviews ways in which to avoid tokenism in user involvement and how to instead stimulate active user engagement in research.

METHODS

The analysis employs an ethnographic approach using participant observations from real life settings involving user involvement during the five years research process. The empirical material includes 472 pages of transcribed audio recordings from meetings between researchers and collaborators discussing personal experiences with traumatic injuries, and 340 pages of documents on the project's involvement process. This empirical material was examined by thematic analysis, involving processes such as decontextualising, flagging and re-contextualising.

RESULTS

Two main categories of facilitation emerged as promoting non-tokenistic, active user involvement in research: 1) defining the collaborative arena, (i.e. the setting of collaboration) which entails preparing for participation and promoting active involvement, and 2) designing for research counselling, which involves gathering user perspectives and valuing criticism. Taking into account the existing asymmetric relationships between researchers and collaborators, enabling more evenly distributed power dynamics also proved to be essential.

CONCLUSIONS

To achieve active participation that is relevant to the collaborators, two interconnected yet analytically independent themes should be considered: the collaborative arena and counselling. Both prove crucial for curbing power imbalance and stimulating the involvement process. The study indicates that non-tokenistic involvement should be anchored in the respect for participants and their ability to make contributions. This analysis can help researchers who seek active engagement and non-tokenistic involvement in research to find methods for facilitating and organising participation in their fields.