"We are not stray leaves blowing about in the wind": exploring the impact of Family Wellbeing empowerment research, 1998-2021.

BACKGROUND: An Aboriginal-developed empowerment and social and emotional wellbeing program, known as Family Wellbeing (FWB), has been found to strengthen the protective factors that help Indigenous Australians to deal with the legacy of colonisation and intergenerational trauma. This article reviews the research that has accompanied the implementation of the program, over a 23 year period. The aim is to assess the long-term impact of FWB research and identify the key enablers of research impact and the limitations of the impact assessment exercise. This will inform more comprehensive monitoring of research impact into the future. METHODS: To assess impact, the study took an implementation science approach, incorporating theory of change and service utilisation frameworks, to create a logic model underpinned by Indigenous research principles. A research impact narrative was developed based on mixed methods analysis of publicly available data on: 1) FWB program participation; 2) research program funding; 3) program outcome evaluation (nine studies); and 4) accounts of research utilisation (seven studies). RESULTS: Starting from a need for research on empowerment identified by research users, an investment of $2.3 million in research activities over 23 years produced a range of research outputs that evidenced social and emotional wellbeing benefits arising from participation in the FWB program. Accounts of research utilisation confirmed the role of research outputs in educating participants about the program, and thus, facilitating more demand (and funding acquisition) for FWB. Overall research contributed to 5,405 recorded participants accessing the intervention. The key enablers of research impact were; 1) the research was user- and community-driven; 2) a long-term mutually beneficial partnership between research users and researchers; 3) the creation of a body of knowledge that demonstrated the impact of the FWB intervention via different research methods; 4) the universality of the FWB approach which led to widespread application. CONCLUSIONS: The FWB research impact exercise reinforced the view that assessing research impact is best approached as a "wicked problem" for which there are no easy fixes. It requires flexible, open-ended, collaborative learning-by-doing approaches to build the evidence base over time. Steps and approaches that research groups might take to build the research impact knowledge base within their disciplines are discussed.

The modules of mental health programs implemented in schools in low- and middle-income countries: findings from a systematic literature review.

BACKGROUND: Secondary schools in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) provide health promotion, preventive, and early intervention services. Nevertheless, literature indicates that the modules of these services are either adapted or modified from existing mental health programs in developed countries. The literature also highlights the provision of non-comprehensive services (mental health promotion, prevention, and early intervention), in LMICs. These findings inform the need for undertaking this systematic literature review. The aim of this review was thus to identify the modules of school-based mental health programs (SBMHP) that have been implemented in LMICs to guide the development of a culturally sensitive comprehensive mental health program for adolescents in a LMIC country. METHODS: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement was used to guide this review. The following databases were searched in September 2018, to identify the relevant literature: PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, and ERIC. The search was conducted by the first author and reviewed by the authors. RESULTS: Following the screening process, a total of 11 papers were identified and reviewed for quality. The systematic review highlighted that the mental health programs provided in schools included: an introduction module, a communication and relationship module, a psychoeducation module, a cognitive skills module, a behavioral skills module, establishing social networks for recovery and help seeking behavioral activities and a summary/conclusion module. CONCLUSION: This review sheds light on the characteristics of the programs in LMICs. Two programs were found to be universal in nature. Five programs were directed at key risk factors or at-risk groups, and four were early intervention programs. The review also revealed that only one program out of the 11 programs included modules for parents. The synthesis indicated that all the identified programs were adapted or modified from existing programs. The dearth of comprehensive programs in LMICs was also revealed. Lastly, the review revealed seven modules that can be useful for developing a SBMHP.

Health Literacy Environment of Breast and Cervical Cancer among Black African Women Globally: A Systematic Review Protocol of Mixed Methods.

Adequate health literacy is a necessity to enable effective decision making to seek, access and utilise appropriate health care service. Evidence exists indicating a low level of general health literacy among Black African women, especially those with a refugee background. Breast and cervical are the most common cancers, with Black African women or women with African ethnicity being disproportionately overrepresented. The level of health literacy specific to breast and cervical cancer among Black African women, especially those with a refugee background, has not been reviewed systematically. The present study describes a protocol for a systematic review of the available evidence on the level of health literacy specific to breast and cervical cancer among Black African women globally. We will perform a systematic review of the available quantitative and qualitative studies. The search will include studies that describe the level of health literacy specific to breast and cervical cancer among Black African women. We will conduct a preliminary search on Google scholar to build the concepts for search terms, and a full search strategy using the identified concepts and keywords across four databases namely PubMed, SCOPUS, CINAHL and Web of Sciences. We will use Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) to schematically present the search strategy. We will use the standardized Joanna Briggs Institute quality appraisal and selection tool to recruit studies, and the data extraction tool to synthesise the information extracted from the recruited studies. We will be guided by socioecological theory and Indigenous epistemology to synthesise the non-quantifiable information thematically, and pool the quantitative information using meta-analysis, based on the availability of information.