Female genital mutilation and cutting in the Arab League and diaspora: A systematic review of preventive interventions

Objectives Female Genital Mutilation and Cutting (FGM/C) is an act of gender-based violence (GBV) and a global public health issue with well-documented adverse outcomes. With the rise in global migration, there is an increasing prevalence of FGM/C among Arab diaspora living in the West and Global South. What remains unclear is how to reduce the practice. This study was designed to identify interventions exerting an effect on reducing the practice of FGM/C. Methods A systematic review of peer-reviewed articles was conducted on interventions targeting individuals and/or the broader community to prevent FGM/C within the Arab League and its diaspora, up to December 2021. Databases searched included PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, PsycINFO, EMBASE, CINAHL, BIOSIS, ASSIA, and Scopus. Quality assessment used the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) 2018. Results Twelve of 896 studies met the inclusion criteria. Eight interventions relied entirely on education with short-term gains but unchanged practices. Three interventions used social marketing and mixed media. Only one study took a multi-sectoral approach. Conclusions At a macro level, opportunities to reduce or end the practice of FGM/C exist through legislation, policy, a public-health approach grounded in gender equality and human rights. Using multi-sectoral actions that consider the social context and challenge social norms at macro, meso and micro levels appears more effective than individual-level interventions. Promoting advocacy and developing supportive environments to reduce GBV, enhance gender equality and empower communities is crucial for interventions to succeed and achieve the Sustainable Development Goal target of FGM/C abandonment by 2030

COVID-19 public health measures and patient and public involvement in health and social care research: An umbrella review

An umbrella review of previously published systematic reviews was conducted to determine the nature and extent of the patient and public involvement (PPI) in COVID-19 health and social care research and identify how PPI has been used to develop public health measures (PHM). In recent years, there has been a growing emphasis on PPI in research as it offers alternative perspectives and insight into the needs of healthcare users to improve the quality and relevance of research. In January 2022, nine databases were searched from 2020–2022, and records were filtered to identify peer-reviewed articles published in English. From a total of 1437 unique records, 54 full-text articles were initially evaluated, and six articles met the inclusion criteria. The included studies suggest that PHM should be attuned to communities within a sociocultural context. Based on the evidence included, it is evident that PPI in COVID-19-related research is varied. The existing evidence includes written feedback, conversations with stakeholders, and working groups/task forces. An inconsistent evidence base exists in the application and use of PPI in PHM. Successful mitigation efforts must be community specific while making PPI an integral component of shared decision-making

COVID-19 Public Health Measures and Patient and Public Involvement in Health and Social Care Research: An Umbrella Review

An umbrella review of previously published systematic reviews was conducted to determine the nature and extent of the patient and public involvement (PPI) in COVID-19 health and social care research and identify how PPI has been used to develop public health measures (PHM). In recent years, there has been a growing emphasis on PPI in research as it offers alternative perspectives and insight into the needs of healthcare users to improve the quality and relevance of research. In January 2022, nine databases were searched from 2020–2022, and records were filtered to identify peer-reviewed articles published in English. From a total of 1437 unique records, 54 full-text articles were initially evaluated, and six articles met the inclusion criteria. The included studies suggest that PHM should be attuned to communities within a sociocultural context. Based on the evidence included, it is evident that PPI in COVID-19-related research is varied. The existing evidence includes written feedback, conversations with stakeholders, and working groups/task forces. An inconsistent evidence base exists in the application and use of PPI in PHM. Successful mitigation efforts must be community specific while making PPI an integral component of shared decision-making

Translating knowledge into action: Information needs of decision-makers in healthcare

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the healthcare information needs of decision-makers in a local US healthcare setting in efforts to promote the translation of knowledge into action. The focus was on the perceptions and preferences of decision-makers regarding usable information in making decisions as to identify strategies to maximize the contribution of healthcare findings to policy and practice. Methods: This study utilized a qualitative data collection and analysis strategy. Data was collected via open-ended key-informant interviews from a sample of 37 public and private-sector healthcare decision-makers in the Houston/Harris County safety net. The sample was comprised of high-level decision-makers, including legislators, executive managers, service providers, and healthcare funders. Decision-makers were asked to identify the types of information, the level of collaboration with outside agencies, useful attributes of information, and the sources, formats/styles, and modes of information preferred in making important decisions and the basis for their preferences. Results: Decision-makers report acquiring information, categorizing information as usable knowledge, and selecting information for use based on the application of four cross-cutting thought processes or cognitive frameworks. In order of apparent preference, these are time orientation, followed by information seeking directionality, selection of validation processes, and centrality of credibility/reliability. In applying the frameworks, decision-makers are influenced by numerous factors associated with their perceptions of the utility of information and the importance of collaboration with outside agencies in making decisions as well as professional and organizational characteristics. Conclusion: An approach based on the elucidated cognitive framework may be valuable in identifying the reported contextual determinants of information use by decision-makers in US healthcare settings. Such an approach can facilitate active producer/user collaborations and promote the production of mutually valued, comprehensible, and usable findings leading to sustainable knowledge translation efforts long-term.

Lessons for emerging state Children\u27s Health Insurance Premium Assistance programs: Case study of the Massachusetts Masshealth Family Assistance Program (MHFAP)

Providing health insurance coverage for vulnerable populations such as low-income high-risk children with limited access to health care is a challenge for many states. Over the past decade, higher private insurance premiums and unpredictable labor markets have increased the number of uninsured and underinsured children nationwide. Due to recent economic downfalls, many states such as Texas, have expressed interest in using premium assistance programs to increase enrollment of low income children and families in private coverage through employer sponsored health insurance. Massachusetts has been especially successful in reducing the number of uninsured children through the implementation of MassHealth Family Assistance Program (MHFAP), an employer based premium assistance program. The purpose of this study is to identify key implementation factors of a fully established premium assistance program which may provide lessons and facilitate implementation of emerging premium assistance programs. The case study of the fully established MassHealth Family Assistance Program (MHFAP) has illustrated the ability of states to expand their Medicaid and SCHIP programs in order to provide affordable health coverage to uninsured and underinsured low income children and their families. As demonstrated by MHFAP, the success of a premium assistance program depends on four key factors: (1) determination of participant and employer eligibility; (2) determination of employer benefits meeting benchmark equivalency (Medicaid or State Children\u27s Health Insurance Program); (3) the use of appropriate marketing and outreach strategies; and (4) establishment of adequate monitoring and reporting techniques. Successful implementation strategies, revealed by the case study of the Massachusetts MassHealth Family Assistance Program, may be used by emerging premium assistance programs, such as Texas Children\u27s Health Insurance Premium Assistance Program (CHIP-PA) toward establishment of an effective, efficient, and equitable employer sponsored health program

Investigation of the subsurface structural behaviour in the Surat Basin using SAR interferometry deformation maps

Mapping subsurface structural behaviour and volume change in the underlying reservoir due to resource extraction are of prime importance in both conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon reservoirs. The structurally fractured or faulted zones that often occur around collapsed features are permeable zones for hydrocarbon accumulations and weak zones for infrastructure development. Therefore, knowledge of subsurface structural behaviour is a key priority for both geoscientists and reservoir engineers. In-situ geophysical observations such as seismic testing and well-logging are the most commonly used methods for determining subsurface structure, by marrying time and depth measurements of seismic surveys and wells. Volumetric techniques are also able to indirectly estimate the hydrocarbon in place based on a geological model, but due to technical limitations such as sparse sampling in time and a need for detailed down-hole information, enhanced mapping of subsurface behaviour requires costly data and software, and expertise in geological modelling and interpretation. Interferometric SAR remote sensing provides a non-contact observation technique for monitoring large hydrocarbon basins with much higher spatial/temporal coverage and lower cost than traditional methods. While it allows for measuring the ground surface deformation with high vertical accuracy, it does not give any direct information on subsurface structure. Consequently, this thesis investigates the novel idea of using InSAR deformation maps, complemented with geological modelling to extract reservoir volume change and to infer the structural behaviour of the subsurface for an unconventional hydrocarbon field with no access to a dynamic model. This study first presents the outcome of two different InSAR processing algorithms using a unique combination of satellite acquisitions to detect and analyse ground surface deformation due to man-made interactions in an operational hydrocarbon extraction basin located in eastern Australian. For the last five years, the north-eastern part of this basin, containing coal seam gas mining operations and accompanied groundwater extraction, has drawn the attention of local operating companies and water commissions for its gradual depressurization and subsequent land surface deformation. Contrary to a previous study, which used a different interferometric technique, three regions above coal seam gas mining districts were identified as having an ongoing downward motion. As a proof-of-concept study, the sub-basin with a maximum settlement risk and limited seismic measurements was selected for evaluating its subsurface structural behaviour and reservoir volume change. This research presents a unique approach to comprehensively assess the viscoelastic multi-layer source model for the selected area with significant deformation overlaying an unconventional reservoir. This model was previously tested on conventional hydrocarbon resources with no access to 3D geological modelling. Tuning elastic properties of underlying formations in a stratified coal seam gas reservoir with more than approximately 300m thickness of overburden and several fresh-water aquifers was conducted by integrating down-hole logs and seismic interpretation through property modelling and source inversion. The outcomes of the inverse modelling in this coal seam gas reservoir include the retrieval of stress components and fractional volume change. Analysing volume change results revealed that the dense network of extraction wells was the main cause for ground surface deformation and subsequent volume change. Moreover, the two-lobe pattern and NW-SE trend of volumetric change were found to be the controlling effect of an underlying structure, such as an aperture or a fault that affects subsurface behaviour and was not identified in the 3D geological model due to the absence of seismic acquisition in this area

Female genital mutilation and cutting in the Arab League and diaspora: A systematic review of preventive interventions

Objectives Female Genital Mutilation and Cutting (FGM/C) is an act of gender-based violence (GBV) and a global public health issue with well-documented adverse outcomes. With the rise in global migration, there is an increasing prevalence of FGM/C among Arab diaspora living in the West and Global South. What remains unclear is how to reduce the practice. This study was designed to identify interventions exerting an effect on reducing the practice of FGM/C. Methods A systematic review of peer-reviewed articles was conducted on interventions targeting individuals and/or the broader community to prevent FGM/C within the Arab League and its diaspora, up to December 2021. Databases searched included PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, PsycINFO, EMBASE, CINAHL, BIOSIS, ASSIA, and Scopus. Quality assessment used the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) 2018. Results Twelve of 896 studies met the inclusion criteria. Eight interventions relied entirely on education with short-term gains but unchanged practices. Three interventions used social marketing and mixed media. Only one study took a multi-sectoral approach. Conclusions At a macro level, opportunities to reduce or end the practice of FGM/C exist through legislation, policy, a public-health approach grounded in gender equality and human rights. Using multi-sectoral actions that consider the social context and challenge social norms at macro, meso and micro levels appears more effective than individual-level interventions. Promoting advocacy and developing supportive environments to reduce GBV, enhance gender equality and empower communities is crucial for interventions to succeed and achieve the Sustainable Development Goal target of FGM/C abandonment by 2030

Female genital mutilation and cutting in the Arab League and diaspora: A systematic review of preventive interventions.

OBJECTIVES: Female Genital Mutilation and Cutting (FGM/C) is an act of gender-based violence (GBV) and a global public health issue with well-documented adverse outcomes. With the rise in global migration, there is an increasing prevalence of FGM/C among Arab diaspora living in the West and Global South. What remains unclear is how to reduce the practice. This study was designed to identify interventions exerting an effect on reducing the practice of FGM/C. METHODS: A systematic review of peer-reviewed articles was conducted on interventions targeting individuals and/or the broader community to prevent FGM/C within the Arab League and its diaspora, up to December 2021. Databases searched included PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, PsycINFO, EMBASE, CINAHL, BIOSIS, ASSIA and Scopus. Quality assessment used the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) 2018. RESULTS: Twelve of 896 studies met the inclusion criteria. Eight interventions relied entirely on education with short-term gains but unchanged practices. Three interventions used social marketing and mixed media. Only one study took a multi-sectoral approach. CONCLUSIONS: At a macro level, opportunities to reduce or to end the practice of FGM/C exist through legislation, policy, a public health approach grounded in gender equality and human rights. Using multi-sectoral actions that consider the social context and challenge social norms at macro, meso and micro levels appears more effective than individual-level interventions. Promoting advocacy and developing supportive environments to reduce GBV, enhance gender equality and empower communities is crucial for interventions to succeed and achieve the Sustainable Development Goal target of FGM/C abandonment by 2030