scholarly journals Impact of tobacco tax increases and industry pricing on smoking behaviours and inequalities: a mixed-methods study

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 1-140
Author(s):  
Timea R Partos ◽  
Rosemary Hiscock ◽  
Anna B Gilmore ◽  
J Robert Branston ◽  
Sara Hitchman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Tobacco Industry ◽  
Control Policy ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
Pricing Strategies ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Tax Changes ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Evaluation Project

Background Increasing tobacco prices through taxation is very effective for reducing smoking prevalence and inequalities. For optimum effect, understanding how the tobacco industry and smokers respond is essential. Tobacco taxation changes occurred in the UK over the study period, including annual increases, a shift in structure from ad valorem to specific taxation and relatively higher increases on roll-your-own tobacco than on factory-made cigarettes. Objectives Understanding tobacco industry pricing strategies in response to tax changes and the impact of tax on smokers’ behaviour, including tax evasion and avoidance, as well as the effect on smoking inequalities. Synthesising findings to inform how taxation can be improved as a public health intervention. Design Qualitative analysis and evidence synthesis (commercial and Nielsen data) and longitudinal and aggregate cross-sectional analyses (International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project data). Setting The UK, from 2002 to 2016. Data sources and participants Data were from the tobacco industry commercial literature and retail tobacco sales data (Nielsen, New York, NY, USA). Participants were a longitudinal cohort (with replenishment) of smokers and ex-smokers from 10 surveys of the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project (around 1500 participants per survey). Main outcome measures (1) Tobacco industry pricing strategies, (2) sales volumes and prices by segments over time and (3) smokers’ behaviours, including products purchased, sources, brands, consumption, quit attempts, success and sociodemographic differences. Review methods Tobacco industry commercial literature was searched for mentions of tobacco products and price segments, with 517 articles extracted. Results The tobacco industry increased prices on top of tax increases (overshifting), particularly on premium products, and, recently, the tobacco industry overshifted more on cheap roll-your-own tobacco than on factory-made cigarettes. Increasingly, price rises were from industry revenue generation rather than tax. The tobacco industry raised prices gradually to soften impact; this was less possible with larger tax increases. Budget measures to reduce cheap product availability failed due to new cheap factory-made products, price marking and small packs. In 2014, smokers could buy factory-made (roll-your-own tobacco) cigarettes at real prices similar to 2002. Exclusive roll-your-own tobacco and mixed factory-made cigarettes and roll-your-own tobacco use increased, whereas exclusive factory-made cigarette use decreased, alongside increased cheap product use, rather than quitting. Quitting behaviours were associated with higher taxes. Smokers consumed fewer factory-made cigarettes and reduced roll-your-own tobacco weight over time. Apparent illicit purchasing did not increase. Disadvantaged and dependent smokers struggled with tobacco affordability and were more likely to smoke cheaper products, but disadvantage did not affect quit success. Limitations Different for each data set; triangulation increased confidence. Conclusions The tobacco industry overshifted taxes and increased revenues, even when tax increases were high. Therefore, tobacco taxes can be further increased to reduce price differentials and recoup public health costs. Government strategies on illicit tobacco appear effective. Large, sudden tax increases would reduce the industry’s ability to manipulate prices, decrease affordability and increase quitting behaviours. More disadvantaged, and dependent, smokers need more help with quitting. Future work Assessing the impact of tax changes made since 2014; changing how tax changes are introduced (e.g. sudden intermittent or smaller continuous); and tax changes on tobacco initiation. Funding This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Public Health Research programme and will be published in full in Public Health Research; Vol. 8, No. 6. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information.

scholarly journals Understanding the contribution of UK public health research to clinical guidelines: a bibliometric analysis

F1000Research ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 1093
Author(s):  
Susan Guthrie ◽  
Gavin Cochrane ◽  
Advait Deshpande ◽  
Benoit Macaluso ◽  
Vincent Larivière
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Clinical Excellence ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
Public Health Decision ◽  
Health Decision ◽  
Nice Guidance ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

Background: There is an increasing need to understand the wider impacts of research on society and the economy. For health research, a key focus is understanding the impact of research on practice and ultimately on patient outcomes. This can be challenging to measure, but one useful proxy for changes in practice is impact on guidelines. Methods: The aim of this study is to map the contribution of UK research and UK research funders to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) public health guidelines, understanding areas of strengths and weakness and the level of collaboration and coordination across countries and between funders. The work consisted of two main elements: analysis of the references cited on NICE guidelines and interviews with experts in public health. Results: Across the papers cited on 62 NICE public health guidelines, we find that 28% of the papers matched include at least one UK affiliation, which is relatively high when compared to other health fields. In total, 165 unique funders were identified with more than three acknowledgements, based in 20 countries. 68% of papers which acknowledge funding cite at least one UK funder, and NIHR is the most highly cited funder in the sample.   Conclusions: The UK makes an important contribution to public health research cited on NICE PH guidelines, although the research does not appear to be bibliometrically distinct from other research sectors, other than having a relatively low level of international collaboration. However, the extent to which NICE public health guidelines reflect practice at the local authority level is less clear. More research is needed to understand the sources of evidence to support public health decision making at the local level and how NICE guidance can be made more applicable, timely and accessible in this new context.

scholarly journals Public health research in the UK: a report with a European perspective

2013 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 325-335 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. McCarthy ◽  
M. Dyakova ◽  
A. Clarke
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
European Perspective ◽  
The Uk

scholarly journals From deliberative dialogue to impact: envisioning kmowledge translation

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
O Hobden ◽  
R A J Borst ◽  
A Al-Metleq ◽  
M O Kok
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Research Impact ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Research Knowledge ◽  
Deliberative Dialogue ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Scenario Approach

Abstract Background The previous decades of research have contributed tremendously to the improvement of health. Nonetheless, problems remain regarding the use and relevance of public health research. Knowledge translation methods, such as deliberative dialogues, are believed to increase the use and relevance of such research. However, little is known about how they increase the impact of public health research. This study sought to trace the impact of deliberative dialogues through an actor-scenario approach. Actor-scenario mapping asks key actors to describe how and by whom research findings may potentially be used. This allows for constructing more concrete action plans. Methods This study used a qualitative case-study design with semi-structured interviews, participant observation, and a survey. The study focused on a Jordanian deliberative dialogue organised in April 2019. Interviews were conducted with 15 key stakeholders before and after the dialogue. Observations and surveys were collected during the dialogue. An abductive approach to thematic analysis was used to arrive at key themes for the report. Results The results show that dialogue participants found it difficult to propose concrete scenarios for action. They described that the sensitive nature of some research topics impairs action. Additionally, participants proposed that research funding should be earmarked for concrete actions. Overall, their scenarios proposed that high-level decision makers maintain involved in the knowledge to action process. Some participants mentioned that the articulation of scenarios for action contributes to research impact, since researchers usually do not engage with potential users. Conclusions Actor-scenario mapping is an innovative way of understanding how deliberative dialogues increase the impact of public health research. This scenario approach can inform the organisation of deliberative dialogues by actors such as EVIPNet. Key messages Actor-scenario mapping can trace the impact of deliberative dialogues. The scenario approach can better align the dialogues with policy and practice.

scholarly journals Protocol for the economic evaluation of a complex intervention to improve the mental health of maltreated infants and children in foster care in the UK (The BeST? services trial)

BMJ Open ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. e020066 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuela Deidda ◽  
Kathleen Anne Boyd ◽  
Helen Minnis ◽  
Julia Donaldson ◽  
Kevin Brown ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Economic ◽  
Economic Evaluation ◽  
Foster Care ◽  
Cost Effectiveness ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
The Uk

IntroductionChildren who have experienced abuse and neglect are at increased risk of mental and physical health problems throughout life. This places an enormous burden on individuals, families and society in terms of health services, education, social care and judiciary sectors. Evidence suggests that early intervention can mitigate the negative consequences of child maltreatment, exerting long-term positive effects on the health of maltreated children entering foster care. However, evidence on cost-effectiveness of such complex interventions is limited. This protocol describes the first economic evaluation of its kind in the UK.Methods and analysisAn economic evaluation alongside the Best Services Trial (BeST?) has been prospectively designed to identify, measure and value key resource and outcome impacts arising from the New Orleans intervention model (NIM) (an infant mental health service) compared with case management (CM) (enhanced social work services as usual). A within-trial economic evaluation and long-term model from a National Health Service/Personal Social Service and a broader societal perspective will be undertaken alongside the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)–Public Health Research Unit (PHRU)-funded randomised multicentre BeST?. BeST? aims to evaluate NIM compared with CM for maltreated children entering foster care in a UK context. Collection of Paediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL) and the recent mapping of PedsQL to EuroQol-5-Dimensions (EQ-5D) will facilitate the estimation of quality-adjusted life years specific to the infant population for a cost–utility analysis. Other effectiveness outcomes will be incorporated into a cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) and cost-consequences analysis (CCA). A long-term economic model and multiple economic evaluation frameworks will provide decision-makers with a comprehensive, multiperspective guide regarding cost-effectiveness of NIM. The long-term population health economic model will be developed to synthesise trial data with routine linked data and key government sector parameters informed by literature. Methods guidance for population health economic evaluation will be adopted (lifetime horizon, 1.5% discount rate for costs and benefits, CCA framework, multisector perspective).Ethics and disseminationEthics approval was obtained by the West of Scotland Ethics Committee. Results of the main trial and economic evaluation will be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal as well as published in the peer-reviewed NIHR journals library (Public Health Research Programme).Trial registration numberNCT02653716; Pre-results.

scholarly journals Social Media as a Tool to Increase the Impact of Public Health Research

2017 ◽  
Vol 107 (12) ◽  
pp. 1890-1891 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Y. Breland ◽  
Lisa M. Quintiliani ◽  
Kristin L. Schneider ◽  
Christine N. May ◽  
Sherry Pagoto
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals Workshop: Cohorts: coordinated tools for decision support

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Decision Support ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Policy Decision ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
Care Patient ◽  
Health Data ◽  
Healthcare Intervention ◽  
Health Events ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Longitudinal cohorts, by allowing to follow over the time a group of persons with common characteristics to identify the occurrence of health events, have proven to be very valuable instruments in medical and public health research. For instance, it is possible to investigate links between exposures (demographic, biological, behavioral, environmental, or genetic) and the occurrence of observed health events. And indeed the applications of the cohorts are multiple: besides public health research (links between risk factors or exposures and disease, health effects of unusual or still unknown exposures), it is possible, for example, to investigate the impact of a therapeutic strategy or complex healthcare intervention on the population status. Therefore, observations resulting from cohort studies are now often at the heart of public policy decision-making. In addition, health-data collections are increasingly broad in our societies (data from research, care, patient communities, or using personal initiatives such as smartphone applications and connected objects) and heterogeneous (genomic, physiological, biological, clinical, social and environmental). However, the efficiency of these epidemiological studies is limited by many factors, while resources required to develop them are very important. The lack of knowledge of the European landscape, the lack of harmonization of practices or governance or the lack of communication between various stakeholders, have an impact on the strategy to adopt. It would be essential to consider procedures to optimize resources, harmonize methodologies and coordination between structures, in such a context where epidemiological expertise is sometimes scarce and under-resourced. Furthermore, possibilities of international cross-cohorts linkages and collaborations could allow for unique and fruitful research opportunities, impossible to achieve in the setting of a stand-alone cohort. During this workshop, we propose to present different European initiatives and coordination models, but also to highlight collaborations between these cohorts. This brainstorming would allow us 1) to expose methodologies and best practices, which are developed by the various stakeholders; 2) to identify common or transposable procedures in order to participate in sustainable European strategy and at last, to address the challenges of developing future cohorts and using personal health data. For this purpose, four speakers will present the French landscape developed over the past ten years and three models of cohort coordination and data mining in Europe: the French cohort Constances, the Swedish consortium Cohorts.se and the German National Cohort. Each participant will speak for 15 minutes. Then the chairperson will lead the workshop’s joint discussion with the four speakers and the audience. Key messages cohorts are one of the reference instruments for epidemiological and public health research, and represent a significant advantage in decision support. efforts are need to improve the coordination of these cohorts, both nationally and internationally, to sustain these expensive instruments and foster the development of international collaborations.

scholarly journals Understanding “Atmosome”, the Personal Atmospheric Exposome: Comprehensive Approach

10.2196/28920 ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. e28920
Author(s):  
Hari Bhimaraju ◽  
Nitish Nag ◽  
Vaibhav Pandey ◽  
Ramesh Jain
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Indoor Air Quality ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
The Impact

Background Modern environmental health research extensively focuses on outdoor air pollutants and their effects on public health. However, research on monitoring and enhancing individual indoor air quality is lacking. The field of exposomics encompasses the totality of human environmental exposures and its effects on health. A subset of this exposome deals with atmospheric exposure, termed the “atmosome.” The atmosome plays a pivotal role in health and has significant effects on DNA, metabolism, skin integrity, and lung health. Objective The aim of this work is to develop a low-cost, comprehensive measurement system for collecting and analyzing atmosomic factors. The research explores the significance of the atmosome in personalized and preventive care for public health. Methods An internet of things microcontroller-based system is introduced and demonstrated. The system collects real-time indoor air quality data and posts it to the cloud for immediate access. Results The experimental results yield air quality measurements with an accuracy of 90% when compared with precalibrated commercial devices and demonstrate a direct correlation between lifestyle and air quality. Conclusions Quantifying the individual atmosome is a monumental step in advancing personalized health, medical research, and epidemiological research. The 2 main goals in this work are to present the atmosome as a measurable concept and to demonstrate how to implement it using low-cost electronics. By enabling atmosome measurements at a communal scale, this work also opens up potential new directions for public health research. Researchers will now have the data to model the impact of indoor air pollutants on the health of individuals, communities, and specific demographics, leading to novel approaches for predicting and preventing diseases.

scholarly journals Understanding “Atmosome”, the Personal Atmospheric Exposome: Comprehensive Approach (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hari Bhimaraju ◽  
Nitish Nag ◽  
Vaibhav Pandey ◽  
Ramesh Jain
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Indoor Air Quality ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND Modern environmental health research extensively focuses on outdoor air pollutants and their effects on public health. However, research on monitoring and enhancing individual indoor air quality is lacking. The field of exposomics encompasses the totality of human environmental exposures and its effects on health. A subset of this exposome deals with atmospheric exposure, termed the “atmosome.” The atmosome plays a pivotal role in health and has significant effects on DNA, metabolism, skin integrity, and lung health. OBJECTIVE The aim of this work is to develop a low-cost, comprehensive measurement system for collecting and analyzing atmosomic factors. The research explores the significance of the atmosome in personalized and preventive care for public health. METHODS An internet of things microcontroller-based system is introduced and demonstrated. The system collects real-time indoor air quality data and posts it to the cloud for immediate access. RESULTS The experimental results yield air quality measurements with an accuracy of 90% when compared with precalibrated commercial devices and demonstrate a direct correlation between lifestyle and air quality. CONCLUSIONS Quantifying the individual atmosome is a monumental step in advancing personalized health, medical research, and epidemiological research. The 2 main goals in this work are to present the atmosome as a measurable concept and to demonstrate how to implement it using low-cost electronics. By enabling atmosome measurements at a communal scale, this work also opens up potential new directions for public health research. Researchers will now have the data to model the impact of indoor air pollutants on the health of individuals, communities, and specific demographics, leading to novel approaches for predicting and preventing diseases.

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