Exploring the use of digital technology to deliver healthcare services with explicit consideration of health inequalities in UK settings: A scoping review.

Objective: To map and explore existing evidence on the use of digital technology to deliver healthcare services with explicit consideration of health inequalities in UK settings. Methods: We searched six bibliographic databases, and the National Health Service (NHS) websites of each UK nation (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland). Restrictions were applied on publication date (2013-2021) and publication language (English). Records were independently screened against eligibility criteria by pairs of reviewers from the team. Articles reporting relevant qualitative and/or quantitative research were included. Data were synthesised narratively. Results: Eleven articles, reporting data from nine interventions, were included. Articles reported findings from quantitative (n = 5), qualitative (n = 5), and mixed-methods (n = 1) studies. Study settings were mainly community based, with only one hospital based. Two interventions targeted service users, and seven interventions targeted healthcare providers. Two studies were explicitly and directly aimed at (and designed for) addressing health inequalities, with the remaining studies addressing them indirectly (e.g. study population can be classed as disadvantaged). Seven articles reported data on implementation outcomes (acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility) and four articles reported data on effectiveness outcomes, with only one intervention demonstrating cost-effectiveness. Conclusions: It is not yet clear if digital health interventions/services in the UK work for those most at risk of health inequalities. The current evidence base is significantly underdeveloped, and research/intervention efforts have been largely driven by healthcare provider/system needs, rather than those of service users. Digital health interventions can help address health inequalities, but a range of barriers persist, alongside a potential for exacerbation of health inequalities.

Enhancing Community Participation through Age-Friendly Ecosystems: A Rapid Realist Review.

This rapid realist review explored the key components of age-friendly ecosystems that promote community participation among older adults. The study (undertaken in 2021 and updated in 2023) synthesized evidence from 10 peer-reviewed and grey literature databases to identify the underlying mechanisms and contextual factors that shape why, under what circumstances, and for whom an age-friendly ecosystems might be effective as well as the intervention outcomes. A total of 2823 records were initially identified after deduplication. Title and abstract screening produced a potential dataset of 126 articles, reducing to 14 articles after full text screening. Data extraction focused on the contexts, mechanisms, and outcomes of ecosystems for older adults' community participation. Analysis suggested that age-friendly ecosystems that aim to promote community participation are characterized by the provision of accessible and inclusive physical environments, the availability of supportive social networks and services, and the creation of opportunities for meaningful engagement in community life. The review also highlighted the importance of recognizing the diverse needs and preferences of older adults and involving them in the design and implementation of age-friendly ecosystems. Overall, the study has provided valuable insights into the mechanisms and contextual factors that contribute to the success of age-friendly ecosystems. Ecosystem outcomes were not well discussed in the literature. The analysis has important implications for policy and practice, emphasizing the need to develop interventions that are tailored to the specific needs and contexts of older adults, and that promote community participation as a means of enhancing health, wellbeing, and quality of life in later life.

Academic LGBTQ+ Terminology 1900-2021: Increasing Variety, Increasing Inclusivity?

LGBTQ+ labels and terminology in society embed ideological assumptions and affect who gains community support and protection. In academia, terminology is also needed to help define study objects, methods, and goals. Academics therefore need to choose their words to be both precise and appropriate, adjusting to changes in societal language. This article assesses the evolution of LGBTQ+ terminology in the titles and abstracts of academic journal articles since 1900 to identify the main trends. Based on a search of 74 LGBTQ+ terms in Scopus, LGBTQ+ related journal articles have almost continually increased in prevalence since 1900. In parallel, the concept of homosexuality that dominated early research has almost disappeared, being replaced by the word gay or more specific terms, such as lesbian or bisexual. Transexual terminology has also been supplanted by transgender and trans* terminology. At various points in time other LGBTQ+ terms have emerged with activist, health professional and academic origins. These include multiple acronyms, inclusive phrases, and activity-specific phrases (e.g., men who have sex with men) that are not used by the LGBTQ+ community. Currently, no terminologies are dominant, with this plurality probably reflecting differing research needs.

The role of sexual orientation, age, living arrangements and self-rated health in planning for end-of-life care for lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) older people in the UK.

This article reports on findings from the quantitative phase of a two-year research project designed to explore end-of-life care experiences and needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. We draw on a subset of the sample (N = 180/237) to analyse the relationship between advance care planning, sexual orientation, living arrangements and self-rated health. The results contribute to a growing body of evidence on how sexual minorities approach and make decisions on advance care planning. A greater understanding of such patterns could help inform the way healthcare professionals engage in conversations about end-of-life care planning with older LGB people.

Mental Health Discourses on Twitter during Mental Health Awareness Week.

Promoting health-related campaigns on Twitter has increasingly become a world-wide choice to raise awareness and disseminate health information. Data retrieved from Twitter are now being used to explore how users express their views, attitudes and personal experiences of health-related issues. We focused on Twitter discourse reproduced during Mental Health Awareness Week 2017 by examining 1,200 tweets containing the keywords 'mental health', 'mental illness', 'mental disorders' and '#MHAW'. The analysis revealed 'awareness and advocacy', 'stigmatization', and 'personal experience of mental health/illness' as the central discourses within the sample. The article concludes with some recommendations for future research on digitally-mediated health communication.

Country Indicators Moderating the Relationship Between Phubbing and Psychological Distress: A Study in 20 Countries.

Problematic mobile phone use can be related to negative mental states. Some studies indicate that behavioural dependency is related to variables associated with the country of origin. The aim of our study was to investigate if country indicators moderated the relationship between phubbing and psychological distress. Our sample consisted of 7,315 individuals from 20 countries, who completed the Phubbing Scale and the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6). The analyses also included country indicators: the Gender Gap Index (GGI), the Human Development Index (HDI), the Social Progress Index (SPI), Hofstede's dimensions of culture, and the World Happiness Index (WHI). Our results showed that psychological distress was related to at least one dimension of phubbing (i.e., to communication disturbance or phone obsession) in all countries, which means this relationship is culturally universal. The results of the study demonstrate the importance of testing measurement invariance to determine what type of analysis and what type of conclusion are valid in a given study or comparison. Moreover, the increasing or decreasing correlation between phubbing and distress is related to some culture-level indices.

Is useful research data usually shared? An investigation of genome-wide association study summary statistics.

Primary data collected during a research study is often shared and may be reused for new studies. To assess the extent of data sharing in favourable circumstances and whether data sharing checks can be automated, this article investigates summary statistics from primary human genome-wide association studies (GWAS). This type of data is highly suitable for sharing because it is a standard research output, is straightforward to use in future studies (e.g., for secondary analysis), and may be already stored in a standard format for internal sharing within multi-site research projects. Manual checks of 1799 articles from 2010 and 2017 matching a simple PubMed query for molecular epidemiology GWAS were used to identify 314 primary human GWAS papers. Of these, only 13% reported the location of a complete set of GWAS summary data, increasing from 3% in 2010 to 23% in 2017. Whilst information about whether data was shared was typically located clearly within a data availability statement, the exact nature of the shared data was usually unspecified. Thus, data sharing is the exception even in suitable research fields with relatively strong data sharing norms. Moreover, the lack of clear data descriptions within data sharing statements greatly complicates the task of automatically characterising shared data sets.