scholarly journals Effect of nutrition interventions on diet-related and health outcomes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians: a systematic review

BMJ Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. e025291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josephine Gwynn ◽  
Kyra Sim ◽  
Tania Searle ◽  
Alistair Senior ◽  
Amanda Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Community Engagement ◽  
Urban Communities ◽  
Torres Strait Islander ◽  
Nutrition Interventions ◽  
Torres Strait Islander People ◽  
Remote Communities ◽  
Australian Aboriginal ◽  
Torres Strait

ObjectiveTo review the literature on nutrition interventions and identify which work to improve diet-related and health outcomes in Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.Study designSystematic review of peer-reviewed literature.Data sourcesMEDLINE, PubMed, Embase, Science Direct, CINAHL, Informit, PsychInfo and Cochrane Library, Australian Indigenous Health InfoNet.Study selectionPeer-reviewed article describing an original study; published in English prior to December 2017; inclusion of one or more of the following outcome measures: nutritional status, food/dietary/nutrient intake, diet-related biomedical markers, anthropometric or health measures; and conducted with Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.Data extraction and synthesisTwo independent reviewers extracted data and applied the Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies from the Effective Public Health Practice Project. A purpose designed tool assessed community engagement in research, and a framework was applied to interventions to report a score based on numbers of settings and strategies. Heterogeneity of studies precluded a meta-analysis. The effect size of health outcome results were estimated and presented as forest plots.ResultsThirty-five articles (26 studies) met inclusion criteria; two rated moderate in quality; 12 described cohort designs; 18 described interventions in remote/very remote communities; none focused solely on urban communities; and 11 reported moderate or strong community engagement. Six intervention types were identified. Statistically significant improvements were reported in 14 studies of which eight reported improvements in biochemical/haematological markers and either anthropometric and/or diet-related outcomes.ConclusionsStore-based intervention with community health promotion in very remote communities, fiscal strategies and nutrition education and promotion programmes show promise. Future dietary intervention studies must be rigorously evaluated, provide intervention implementation details explore scale up of programmes, include urban communities and consider a multisetting and strategy approach. Strong Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community engagement is essential for effective nutrition intervention research and evaluation.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42015029551.

Considering the Impact of Social Media on Contemporary Improvement of Australian Aboriginal Health: Scoping Review (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Troy Walker ◽  
Claire Palermo ◽  
Karen Klassen
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Torres Strait Islander ◽  
Aboriginal People ◽  
Aboriginal Health ◽  
Health Messages ◽  
Community Control ◽  
Torres Strait Islander People ◽  
Australian Aboriginal ◽  
Torres Strait

BACKGROUND Social media may have a significant role in influencing the present and future health implications among Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, yet there has been no review of the role of social media in improving health. OBJECTIVE This study aims to examine the extent of health initiatives using social media that aimed to improve the health of Australian Aboriginal communities. METHODS A scoping review was conducted by systematically searching databases CINAHL Plus; PubMed; Scopus; Web of Science, and Ovid MEDLINE in June 2017 using the terms and their synonyms “Aboriginal” and “Social media.” In addition, reference lists of included studies and the Indigenous HealthInfonet gray literature were searched. Key information about the social media intervention and its impacts on health were extracted and data synthesized using narrative summaries. RESULTS Five papers met inclusion criteria. All included studies were published in the past 5 years and involved urban, rural, and remote Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people aged 12-60 years. No studies reported objective impacts on health. Three papers found that social media provided greater space for sharing health messages in a 2-way exchange. The negative portrayal of Aboriginal people and negative health impacts of social media were described in 2 papers. CONCLUSIONS Social media may be a useful strategy to provide health messages and sharing of content among Aboriginal people, but objective impacts on health remain unknown. More research is necessary on social media as a way to connect, communicate, and improve Aboriginal health with particular emphasis on community control, self-empowerment, and decolonization.

Gonorrhoea testing and positivity in non-remote Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services

Sexual Health ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Ellen Harrod ◽  
Sophia Couzos ◽  
James Ward ◽  
Mark Saunders ◽  
Basil Donovan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Services ◽  
Torres Strait Islander ◽  
Clinical Encounter ◽  
Current Approach ◽  
Research Network ◽  
Torres Strait Islander People ◽  
Remote Communities ◽  
Aboriginal Community ◽  
Torres Strait ◽  
Concurrent Testing

Background Gonorrhoea occurs at high levels in young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in remote communities, but there are limited data on urban and regional settings. An analysis was undertaken of gonorrhoea testing and positivity at four non-remote Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services participating in a collaborative research network. Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of clinical encounter data derived from electronic medical records at participating services. Data were extracted using the GRHANITE program for all patients aged 15–54 years from 2009 to 2013. Demographic characteristics and testing and positivity for gonorrhoea were calculated for each year. Results: A total of 2971 patients (2571 Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander) were tested for gonorrhoea during the study period. Among Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander patients, 40 (1.6%) tested positive. Gonorrhoea positivity was associated with clinic location (higher in the regional clinic) and having had a positive chlamydia test. By year, the proportion of patients aged 15–29 years tested for gonorrhoea increased in both men (7.4% in 2009 to 15.9% in 2013) and women (14.8% in 2009 to 25.3% in 2013). Concurrent testing for chlamydia was performed on 86.3% of testing occasions, increasing from 75% in 2009 to 92% in 2013. Factors related to concurrent testing were sex and year of test. Conclusions: The prevalence of gonorrhoea among young Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in non-remote settings suggests that the current approach of duplex testing for chlamydia and gonorrhoea simultaneously is justified, particularly for women.

scholarly journals The effectiveness of Ear Nose and Throat outreach programs for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians: a systematic review

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Gotis-Graham ◽  
Rona Macniven ◽  
Kelvin Kong ◽  
Kylie Gwynne
Keyword(s):  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Torres Strait Islander ◽  
List Type ◽  
Torres Strait Islander People ◽  
Outreach Programs ◽  
Outreach Services ◽  
Torres Strait ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Nose And Throat ◽  
Improve Health

AbstractBackgroundAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children experience a higher prevalence of ear, nose, and throat (ENT) diseases than non-Indigenous children. Many programs exist that aim to prevent and treat these diseases. Culturally appropriate and timely specialist outreach services may help improve access, service use, and outcomes but there has been a lack of rigorous evaluation of ENT outreach programs to date.ObjectiveTo examine the ability of ENT outreach programs to improve health outcomes among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peopleMethodsWe performed a systematic literature search of nine databases (Medline, CINAHLS, PsychINFO, Embase, Cochrane, Scopus, Global health, Informit Rural health database and Indigenous collection) and grey literature sources for primary studies evaluating ENT outreach services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. Two authors independently evaluated the eligible articles and extracted relevant information.ResultsOf the 506 studies identified, 15 were included in this review. These 15 studies evaluated eight different programs/activities. Studies were heterogeneous in design so a meta-analysis could not be conducted. Seven studies measured health-related outcomes in middle ear or hearing status; six reported overall positive changes one reported no clinically significant improvements. Five programs/activities and their corresponding studies involved Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and organisations in delivery and evaluation, but involvement in program or study design was unclear.ConclusionWhile some studies demonstrated improved outcomes, the overall ability of ENT programs/activities to improve health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children is unclear. The impact of ENT outreach may be limited by a lack of evidence quality, a lack of coordination of services, and the provision of potentially unsustainable services. Improvements in the quality of evidence, service coordination and sustainability would likely improve health outcomes.Strengths and limitations of this studyStudies were identification based on a clearly defined and extensive search strategy based on a priori inclusion and exclusion criteriaStudy appraisal was performed using a relevant tool for mixed methods studiesThe involvement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in all aspects of programs and their evaluation was examinedPROSPERO registration numberCRD42019134757

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