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Are evidence-based, community-engaged energy balance interventions enough for extremely vulnerable populations?

ABSTRACT: Well-documented associations between lifestyle behaviors and disease outcomes necessitate evidence-based health promotion interventions. To enhance potential efficacy and effectiveness, interventionists increasingly respond to community priorities, employ comprehensive theoretical frameworks, invest heavily to ensure cultural fit, implement evidence-based programming, and deploy research gold standards. We describe a project that followed all of these recommended strategies, but did not achieve desired outcomes. This community-based participatory research (CBPR) energy balance (diet and physical activity) intervention, conducted in Appalachian Kentucky among 900+ residents, employed a wait list control cluster randomized design. We engaged faith institutions, took an intergenerational approach, and modified two existing evidence-based interventions to enhance cultural relevance. Despite these efforts, fruit and vegetable consumption and physical activity did not change from baseline to post-test or differed significantly between intervention and wait list control groups. Barriers to engaging in optimal energy balance focused more on motivation and attitude than on structural and material barriers. The complex interplay of psychosocial, structural, and physiological processes offers significant challenges to groups with entrenched health challenges.

SUBMITTER: Schoenberg NE

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6128962 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:Community-based health workers (CBHWs) are frontline public health workers who are trusted members of the community they serve. Recently, considerable attention has been drawn to CBHWs in promoting healthy behaviors and health outcomes among vulnerable populations who often face health inequities.We performed a systematic review to synthesize evidence concerning the types of CBHW interventions, the qualification and characteristics of CBHWs, and patient outcomes and cost-effectiveness of such interventions in vulnerable populations with chronic, noncommunicable conditions.We undertook 4 electronic database searches-PubMed, EMBASE, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, and Cochrane-and hand searched reference collections to identify randomized controlled trials published in English before August 2014.We screened a total of 934 unique citations initially for titles and abstracts. Two reviewers then independently evaluated 166 full-text articles that were passed onto review processes. Sixty-one studies and 6 companion articles (e.g., cost-effectiveness analysis) met eligibility criteria for inclusion.Four trained research assistants extracted data by using a standardized data extraction form developed by the authors. Subsequently, an independent research assistant reviewed extracted data to check accuracy. Discrepancies were resolved through discussions among the study team members. Each study was evaluated for its quality by 2 research assistants who extracted relevant study information. Interrater agreement rates ranged from 61% to 91% (average 86%). Any discrepancies in terms of quality rating were resolved through team discussions.All but 4 studies were conducted in the United States. The 2 most common areas for CBHW interventions were cancer prevention (n?=?30) and cardiovascular disease risk reduction (n?=?26). The roles assumed by CBHWs included health education (n?=?48), counseling (n?=?36), navigation assistance (n?=?21), case management (n?=?4), social services (n?=?7), and social support (n?=?18). Fifty-three studies provided information regarding CBHW training, yet CBHW competency evaluation (n?=?9) and supervision procedures (n?=?24) were largely underreported. The length and duration of CBHW training ranged from 4 hours to 240 hours with an average of 41.3 hours (median: 16.5 hours) in 24 studies that reported length of training. Eight studies reported the frequency of supervision, which ranged from weekly to monthly. There was a trend toward improvements in cancer prevention (n?=?21) and cardiovascular risk reduction (n?=?16). Eight articles documented cost analyses and found that integrating CBHWs into the health care delivery system was associated with cost-effective and sustainable care.Interventions by CBHWs appear to be effective when compared with alternatives and also cost-effective for certain health conditions, particularly when partnering with low-income, underserved, and racial and ethnic minority communities. Future research is warranted to fully incorporate CBHWs into the health care system to promote noncommunicable health outcomes among vulnerable populations.

Project description:ContextSocial determinants of health are drivers of vaccine inequity and lead to higher risks of complications from infectious diseases in under vaccinated communities. In many countries, pharmacists have gained the rights to prescribe and administer vaccines, which contributes to improving vaccination rates. However, little is known on how they define and target vulnerable communities.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study is to describe how vulnerable communities are targeted in community pharmacies.MethodsWe performed a systematic search of the Embase and MEDLINE database in August 2021 inspired by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses protocols (PRISMA ScR). Articles in English, French or Spanish addressing any vaccine in a community pharmacy context and that target a population defined as vulnerable were screened for inclusion.ResultsA total of 1039 articles were identified through the initial search, and 63 articles met the inclusion criteria. Most of the literature originated from North America (n = 54, 86%) and addressed influenza (n = 29, 46%), pneumococcal (n = 14, 22%), herpes zoster (n = 14, 22%) or human papilloma virus vaccination (n = 14, 22%). Lifecycle vulnerabilities (n = 48, 76%) such as age and pregnancy were most often used to target vulnerable patients followed by clinical factors (n = 18, 29%), socio-economical determinants (n = 16, 25%) and geographical vulnerabilities (n = 7, 11%). The most frequently listed strategy was providing a strong recommendation for vaccination, promotional posters in pharmacy, distributing leaflet/bag stuffers and providing staff training. A total of 24 barriers and 25 facilitators were identified. The main barriers associated to each vulnerable category were associated to effective promotional strategies to overcome them.ConclusionPharmacists prioritize lifecycle and clinical vulnerability at the expense of narrowing down the definition of vulnerability. Some vulnerable groups are also under targeted in pharmacies. A wide variety of promotional strategies are available to pharmacies to overcome the specific barriers experienced by various groups.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has grown to become one of the leading causes of mortality worldwide. The advancements of CVD-related treatments have led to a decline in CVD prevalence among individuals in high-income countries (HICs). However, these improvements do not reflect the state of individuals in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and vulnerable subgroup populations in HICs, such as the Indigenous. To help minimize the health disparities in these populations, technology-based interventions have been offered as a potential solution, but there is concern regarding if they will be effective, or even needed, as these tools have been designed for use in HICs. OBJECTIVE:The objective of this study was to explore how mobile health (mHealth) interventions currently assist individuals in Indigenous communities and LMICs with CVD management. METHODS:A scoping review guided by the methods outlined by Arksey and O'Malley was conducted. A comprehensive search was completed by 2 reviewers in 5 electronic databases using keywords related to mobile health, cardiovascular disease, self-care, Indigenous communities, and LMICs. Studies were screened over 2 rounds and critically reviewed using a descriptive-analytical narrative method. Descriptive data were categorized into thematic groups reflecting the major findings related to the study objective. RESULTS:We identified a total of 11 original articles and 11 review papers that met the criteria for this scoping review. The majority of the studies included a telemonitoring- and text messaging (short message service, SMS)-related feature associated with the intervention. The use of SMS was the most common approach to effectively promote disease management among individuals in both LMICs and Indigenous communities. However, customizing for cultural considerations within the design of the intervention was highlighted as a pivotal component to encourage CVD management. Specifically, individuals emphasized that the inclusion of collaborative partnerships with community members would strengthen the effectiveness of the intervention by ensuring it was designed with the appropriate context. CONCLUSIONS:Technology-based interventions used within Indigenous communities and LMICs have shown their potential to assist individuals with managing their condition. Although the literature available regarding this topic is limited, this review outlines key components to promote the effective use of these tools in the context of these vulnerable populations.

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Are evidence-based, community-engaged energy balance interventions enough for extremely vulnerable populations?

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