Patient journey and timeliness of care for patients with breast cancer in Africa: a scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide, with breast cancer being one of the most commonly diagnosed types. Low-income and middle-income countries account for nearly half of all breast cancer cases and related fatalities. In Africa, mortality rates are higher and survival rates are lower compared with developed countries. Timeliness of care is a critical aspect of healthcare, but various studies and healthcare systems use different criteria and methods to measure it. Assessing the breast cancer care pathway and understanding the determinants of delayed care are essential for effective interventions. Therefore, this scoping review aims to evaluate the methods used to measure the timeliness of breast cancer care, identify specific points in the care pathway where delays are most frequently reported, and examine the factors affecting the timeliness of breast cancer care in Africa. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We will conduct this scoping review using the Arksey and O'Malley framework endorsed by the Joanna Briggs Institute. A scoping review of articles written in English concerning the timeliness of breast cancer care in the African context will be undertaken. Six electronic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, SCOPUS, WEB Of SCIENCE and PsycINFO) will be searched to identify published literature on timeliness of breast care in Africa. Two reviewers will independently screen the articles at both the abstract and full-text stages, guided by predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The full texts of identified studies will be further examined and charted using a data extraction form guided by the Model of Pathways to Treatment framework. Publications describing the time to diagnosis and its associated factors in the contexts of breast cancer will be considered for inclusion, with no restrictions based on date of publication. Studies that are published in languages other than English and that do not focus on the timeliness of care or time-related aspects within the care pathway will be excluded. Evidence will be narratively synthesised and analysed. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval is not needed as this scoping review does not involve collecting data from human participants. The results produced from this review will be submitted to a scientific peer-reviewed journal for publication and will be presented at scientific meetings.

Literature reviews and global neurosurgery: a powerful way of doing more with less.

INTRODUCTION: Neurosurgery is an intensely competitive field. With the USMLE Step 1 transitioning to a pass/fail system, research has become a crucial component of the neurosurgery residency application process. This emphasis on research is particularly critical for international medical graduates (IMGs), who often face greater challenges compared to their U.S. counterparts. IMGs typically need more publications and higher H-indices to stand out. However, accessing quality research opportunities is significantly more difficult for those from low- and middle-income countries. This mini-review aims to provide a new perspective for IMGs, demonstrating that publishing in prestigious neurosurgical journals is possible even with limited resources. METHODS: We searched Scopus and reviewed Brazilian publications from 2014 to 2023 in Neurosurgery and the Journal of Neurosurgery. We extracted the methodological designs of the studies and the graduation status of the first authors. RESULTS: In 2023-2024, four Brazilian medical students published systematic reviews in major neurosurgical journals as first authors, marking a revolutionary change in the Brazilian neurosurgical landscape not seen in the past decade. These achievements illustrate that high-impact publications are attainable without geographical proximity, substantial financial support, or access to extensive institutional databases. Letters to the editor also represented a considerable Brazilian contribution. CONCLUSION: Literature reviews and letters to the editor are accessible methods for IMGs to engage in impactful research. IMGs can maximize their abilities and significantly contribute to neurosurgery by embracing literature reviews and meta-analyses. These approaches can open doors for those without other avenues to begin their research careers.

Fatherhood and men's participation in antenatal care in rural sub-Saharan Africa: a scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Men's participation is imperative for improving antenatal care (ANC) access and mother and child health outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Research looking at improving men's participation in ANC often focuses on their instrumental and psychosocial roles and on biomedical ANC systems. There is limited understanding of how context-specific cultural experiences of fatherhood influence men's participation in ANC within broader communal support networks and across different ANC systems in SSA. Against this background, and to understand how local communities in SSA conceive men's participation in ANC, a scoping review will be undertaken to synthesise existing literature around local cultural experiences of fatherhood and men's participation in ANC in rural settings in SSA. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The classical scoping review methodology developed by Arksey and O'Malley will be used to conduct the scoping review described above. Empirical studies published between 1 January 2000 and 31 August 2024 will be systematically searched for in key online databases (eg, PubMed/MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, African Index Medicus, African Journals Online) and grey literature (eg, reports from key organisations like UNICEF and the WHO). Literature reviews, personal opinion articles and theoretical or conceptual articles that do not systematically analyse data, and non-English texts, will be excluded. Data will be extracted from the included texts in the form of study characteristics, which will be analysed using descriptive statistics, and key issues to be analysed thematically. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: No ethical approvals are needed for this scoping review since data will be abstracted from already-published literature and no additional data will be collected. The findings will be shared with policymakers, practitioners, researchers, students and local communities through peer-reviewed journal publication(s), conference presentations, public lectures and policy-focused stakeholder and community meetings in and outside SSA.

Screening instruments for mental disorders in primary healthcare: a scoping review protocol (SCREENING-MD).

INTRODUCTION: When mental disorders go undetected until later stages, they can result in poorer health outcomes for patients. Primary healthcare (PHC) stands as a strategic setting for the early identification and management of these mental disorders, given its role as the primary care environment for health service users. This scoping review has the objective of mapping and assessing screening instruments validated for mental disorders that are applicable in PHC, particularly regarding their measurement properties. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This scoping review will include studies that have developed and validated screening instruments for mental disorders in the PHC context, irrespective of the age group. Searches will be conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, LILACS, CINAHL and PsycInfo without imposing restrictions on publication status, publication year or language. Additionally, we will scrutinise the references cited in the selected studies. Our inclusion criteria encompass studies examining any measurement property recommended by the COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) taxonomy. The selection process, data extraction and quality assessment of studies will be performed independently by pairs of reviewers. To evaluate the risk of bias within the selected studies, we will employ the COSMIN Risk of Bias 2 tools. The collected data will undergo analysis using descriptive statistics and will be presented in an evidence gap map format for each specific mental disorder. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The findings from this review will be discussed through deliberative dialogue with stakeholders and disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations. The project was approved by the Ethics Committee for Research at the University of Sorocaba (number: 66993323.9.0000.5500). TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: Open Science Framework - 10.17605/OSF.IO/Z6T5M.

Examining attitudes to uptake and sustainment of technology among care aides in the delivery of care: a scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Care aides are health workers who deliver hands-on care to patients across the healthcare continuum. The use of technology in healthcare delivery is increasing, and evidence regarding how care aides' attitudes may either facilitate or hinder the adoption of healthcare technologies is lacking.The aim of the proposed scoping review is to examine available evidence regarding care aides' attitudes towards the adoption of innovation and factors that may influence the sustainable use of technology in healthcare delivery. Published studies, grey literature and review articles that identify a method for the review, conference abstracts and website publications regarding the attitude, uptake and sustainable use of technology in care delivery by care aides will be included. For abstracts that have resulted in publications, the full publications will be included. The search for evidence commenced in June 2023 and will end in March 2024. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) method will be used to conduct the review. The CINAHL, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, MEDLINE, ProQuest, PubMed, SCOPUS, PROSPERO, Web of Science and JBI Evidence Synthesis databases will be searched using keywords for publications within the last 20 years to examine trends in health technology and attitudes of care aides towards innovation over the last two decades. A search of grey literature and websites will be conducted. The reference list of the retrieved articles will be used to identify additional literature. The search results will be exported into a literature management tool for screening and analysis. Article screening will be performed by two authors and if a third is needed to resolve any differences. Data analysis will be guided by two theoretical frameworks. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: No ethics approval is required. The findings will be disseminated in a peer-reviewed journal and presented in conferences. REGISTRATION DETAILS: https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/CZQUP.

E-participation in policy-making for health: a scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: For the general public, e-participation represents a potential solution to the challenges associated with in-person participation in health policy-making processes. By fostering democratic engagement, e-participation can enhance civic legitimacy and trust in public institutions. However, despite its importance, there is currently a gap in the literature regarding a comprehensive synthesis of studies on various aspects of e-participation in the health policy domain. These aspects include levels of participation, underlying mechanisms, barriers, facilitators, values and outcomes. To address this gap, our proposed scoping review aims to systematically investigate and classify the available literature related to e-participation in policy-making for health. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We will employ the Population, Concept and Context framework developed by Arksey and O'Malley (2005). Our population of interest will consist of participants involved in policy-making for health, including both government organisers of e-participation and participating citizens (the governed). To identify relevant studies, we will systematically search databases such as CINAHL (EBSCO), Academic Search Premier (EBSCO), Social Services Abstracts (ProQuest), Scopus (Elsevier), EMBASE (Elsevier), The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Campbell Collaboration, JBI Evidence Synthesis and PubMed using a predefined search strategy. Two independent reviewers will conduct a three-tiered screening process for identified articles, with a third reviewer resolving any discrepancies. Data extraction will follow a predefined yet flexible form. The results will be summarised in a narrative format, presented either in tabular or diagrammatic form. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The National Institute of Health Research of the Islamic Republic of Iran's ethics committee has approved this review study. Our findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations and targeted knowledge-sharing sessions with relevant stakeholders.

Patient satisfaction and digital health in primary health care: a scoping review protocol.

Introduction: Using digital health in primary health care (PHC) contributes to reducing costs and travel time, achieving global development goals, improving access, quality and longitudinality of care, and managing health crises. Its evaluation must go beyond the technical-operational aspects to include patient satisfaction, a key element in assessing the quality of care. Objective: To identify and map patient satisfaction (expectations, desires, cultural values) about the adoption of digital health strategies and assess their impact on the quality of care in PHC. Methods: The review will follow the recommendations proposed by the Joanna's Briggs Institute (JBI) manual, the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) and the methodology proposed by Arksey and O'Malley and Levac et al. and will be conducted in nine stages. The search will be conducted in health studies databases (MEDLINE via PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Web of Science, and BVS), gray literature, and preprint repositories (Google Scholar and MedRxiv). Two reviewers will select the studies, and the third will analyze possible conflicts. The inclusion criteria comprise studies that have been made available in their entirety, whether they are primary studies or short communications, as well as the following materials extracted from the gray literature: preprints, manuals, government documents, books, guidelines, theses and dissertations. Exclusion criteria include literature reviews, abstracts, books, conference archives, letters to the editor, duplicates and opinion articles. Data will be analyzed by content analysis and inferential statistics. This protocol is registered on the Open Science Framework (OSF) under DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/PUJDB. Results: The study aims to understand aspects related to the expectations, desires, and cultural values of patients from different countries, as well as the strengths and critical nodes of the use of digital health on the quality of care in PHC.

Animations to communicate public health prevention messages: a realist review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: With digital and social media advances, animated health communications (health animations) are highly prevalent globally, yet the evidence base underpinning them remains unclear and limited. While individual studies have attempted to explore the effectiveness, acceptability and usability of specific features of health animations, there is substantial heterogeneity in study design, comparators and the animation design and content. Consequently, there is a need to synthesise evidence of health animations using an approach that recognises this contextual complexity, which may affect their impact. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This project aims to understand why, how, for whom, to what extent and in which contexts health animations are expected to promote preventive health behaviours. We will conduct a realist review following Pawson's five iterative stages to (1) define the review scope and locate existing theories; (2) search for evidence; (3) select and appraise evidence; (4) extract data and (5) synthesise data and refine theory. Engagement with stakeholders involved in developing, testing, implementing or commissioning health communications, including animations, will allow the initial programme theory to be tested and refined. The findings will be reported in accordance with Realist and Meta-narrative Evidence Syntheses: Evolving Standards. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval for the public stakeholder work was provided by the Northumbria University Research Ethics Committee. We will disseminate the findings widely through outputs tailored to target specific professional, public and patient audiences. Dissemination will occur through stakeholder engagement as part of the research, a peer-reviewed publication and conference presentations. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42023447127.

Barriers and facilitators to implementing psychosocial digital health interventions for older adults presenting to emergency departments: a scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Older adults can face challenges when seeking care from emergency departments (EDs) due to presenting with multiple comorbidities and non-specific symptoms. Psychosocial care is a possible target to help improve ED care for this population. It is possible that digital health technologies can be implemented within emergency settings to improve the provision of psychosocial care. However, it is unclear what the barriers and facilitators are to implementing digital psychosocial interventions for older adults presenting to the ED. Therefore, the scoping review aims to determine what are these barriers and facilitators. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The scoping review will be conducted in line with the Joanna Briggs Institute guidelines and will use the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) checklist. The databases Medline, Embase, PsycINFO and Scopus will be searched. The search strategy will be developed in consultation with a specialist research librarian and will cover three key concepts: EDs, digital health technologies and older adults. Additionally, the first 100 hits of a Google Scholar search will be screened for inclusion. We will include both qualitative and quantitative studies that investigate ED digital interventions for psychosocial care where the primary focus is the views, attitudes, experiences and perceptions of patients, families and staff. After extracting all data, analysis and synthesis will follow the 'best-fit framework synthesis' approach and the Theoretical Domains Framework will be used to identify barriers and facilitators. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics approval is not required for this scoping review since only publicly available data will be analysed and appraised. The findings of the scoping review will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations.

Mapping the existing evidence of the effects of school food policies on health, acceptance and affordability of secondary school children in Europe: a scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Unhealthy diets pose a significant public health risk among European children, contributing to the increasing prevalence of overweight and non-communicable diseases. Children spend a substantial amount of time at school daily, including lunchtime, so the school setting becomes crucial for promoting healthy diets and lifestyle habits. While there is a large body of literature on the impact of school food policies on health and non-health outcomes, it is essential to identify which policies are effective and can be recommended for implementation to ensure the efficient use of resources. This article presents a protocol for a scoping review that aims to map the current published literature on the effects of school food policies on health outcomes, acceptance and affordability in secondary school children in Europe. Moreover, the scoping review will map the measurements used to assess health outcomes, acceptance and affordability. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The scoping review protocol and review follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Review. To identify eligible studies, we will search MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL and Web of Science. The reference lists of the included articles will be checked for additional studies. In addition, country-specific ministry reports from Member States of the European Union, the UK, Norway, Iceland and Switzerland will be identified. The WHO and European Commission websites will also be searched for relevant reports. The scoping review will include literature published until 20 September 2023. No restrictions to study design and language will be applied. Screening and data extraction will be carried out independently by three reviewers. Disagreements will be resolved by discussion. A pretested data charting table will be used to extract key information. Findings will be presented in tabular and visualised summaries and a narrative summary. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This scoping review does not require ethical approval. Our dissemination strategy comprises peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations and recommendations to policy-makers.

Barriers to and enablers of the transition from child and adolescent to adult mental health services for autistic young people and/or those with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: protocol for a scoping review.

INTRODUCTION: Autistic young people and/or those with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) who have co-occurring mental health conditions experience significant challenges when transitioning from child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) to adult mental health services (AMHS). However, barriers and facilitators to this service transition are poorly understood for this population. This scoping review aims to synthesise the available evidence on barriers and enablers to the transition from CAMHS to AMHS for autistic young people and/or those with ADHD. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Arksey and O'Malley's six-step framework for scoping reviews will be used. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews checklist will guide the reporting of this review. Electronic databases of Medline, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Scopus, ProQuest Central and Google Scholar will be searched for relevant articles published in English with no date limitations. Title, abstract and full-text screening will be completed by two independent reviewers. Studies will be eligible for inclusion if the article focuses on (1) adolescents and/or young people (aged 18-24) with a primary diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder and/or ADHD (population) and (2) describes factors associated with service or care transitions (concept) (3) from CAMHS to AMHS (context). Study quality will be evaluated using the Standard Quality Assessment Criteria for Evaluating Primary Research Papers from a Variety of Fields. Data describing the factors that enable or inhibit the transition from CAMHS to AMHS will be extracted and synthesised using the Bronfenbrenner's social ecological model as a framework for organising and reporting results. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics approval is not required. Findings will be disseminated via peer-reviewed publications and presented at conferences. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/BZPQF.