Ministry of Health Library

Health Improvement and Innovation Digest

Issue 224 - 17 December 2020

Welcome to the fortnightly Health Improvement and Innovation Digest (formerly the HIIRC digest). The Digest has links to key evidence of interest, with access to new content arranged by topic.

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Thank you for reading the Health Improvement and Innovation Digest this year. Our next issue will be sent on the 21st of January 2021. Wishing you all the best over the holidays!

Article access

For articles that aren't open access, contact your DHB library, or organisational or local library for assistance in accessing the full text. If your organisation has a subscription, you may be able to use the icon under full text links in PubMed to access the full article.

Māori Innovation

Knowing, Being and Co-Constructing an Age-Friendly Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland
A third of Aotearoa New Zealand’s increasingly ageing population resides in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. This most populous cosmopolitan urban area in the country is also home to the largest Polynesian population of any global city. Sprawling across a North Island isthmus inclusive of Hauraki Gulf islands, 70% of the city region is rural, whilst almost 90% of the ethnically diverse residents live in urban areas. Members of Auckland Council’s Seniors Advisory Panel (SAP) advocated for, and in 2018 secured unanimous support from the governing body to resource an Age-friendly City (AFC) Project. This case study inquiry, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, applied bricolage methodology to provide diverse contextual perspectives of this unique Polynesian setting, prior to exploring interview narratives of three SAP members who served two consecutive terms (six years) as AFC advocates.

Health Equity (New Zealand)

Climate Change Mitigation Policies and Co-Impacts on Indigenous Health: A Scoping Review
Climate change mitigation policies can either facilitate or hinder progress towards health equity, and can have particular implications for Indigenous health. This review, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, sought to summarize current knowledge about the potential impacts (co-benefits and co-harms) of climate mitigation policies and interventions on Indigenous health.

Māori and Tauiwi nurses’ perspectives of anti-racism praxis: findings from a qualitative pilot study
This pilot study, published in AlterNative, explored Māori (Indigenous peoples of Aotearoa (New Zealand)) and Tauiwi (non-Māori) nurses’ perspectives of anti-racism.

Wellbeing recovery inequity following the 2010/2011 Canterbury earthquake sequence: repeated cross‐sectional studies
The objective of this article, published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, was to track population mental wellbeing following the 2010/2011 Christchurch earthquakes and after‐shocks.

Quality Improvement (International)

Patient involvement in quality improvement – a ‘tug of war’ or a dialogue in a learning process to improve healthcare?
Co-production and co-design approaches to quality improvement (QI) efforts are gaining momentum in healthcare. Yet, these approaches can be challenging, not least when it comes to patient involvement. The aim of this study, published in BMC Health Services Research, was to examine what might influence QI efforts in which patients are involved, as experienced by the patients and the healthcare professionals involved.

Interventions to increase patient and family involvement in escalation of care for acute life‐threatening illness in community health and hospital settings
There is now a rising commitment to acknowledge the role patients and families play in contributing to their safety. This Cochrane Review focuses on one type of involvement in safety ‐ patient and family involvement in escalation of care for serious life‐threatening conditions i.e. helping secure a step‐up to urgent or emergency care ‐ which has been receiving increasing policy and practice attention. This review was concerned with the negotiation work that patient and family members undertake across the emergency care escalation pathway, once contact has been made with healthcare staff. It includes interventions aiming to improve detection of symptoms, communication of concerns and staff response to these concerns.

Shorter Waits in Emergency Departments (New Zealand)

Emergency department crowding and mortality for patients presenting to emergency departments in New Zealand
The association between ED crowding and mortality has been established internationally, but not in New Zealand. The aim of this study, published in Emergency Medicine Australasia, was to determine which measures of crowding were associated with mortality for new patients presenting to New Zealand EDs. The primary outcome was mortality for patients within 7 days of arrival in the ED.

Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes (New Zealand)

New Zealand hospital stroke service provision
The aim of this study, published in the New Zealand Medical Journal, was to describe stroke services currently offered in New Zealand hospitals and compare service provision in urban and non-urban settings.

Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes (International)

A systematic review of illness perception interventions in type 2 diabetes: Effects on glycaemic control and illness perceptions
This systematic review, published in Diabetic Medicine, sought to synthesize the evidence regarding the effectiveness of illness perception interventions compared with control conditions at changing illness perceptions and improving glycaemic control in individuals with Type 2 diabetes.

Adequacy of health literacy and its effect on diabetes self-management: a meta-analysis
This study, published in the Australian Journal of Primary Health, evaluated the role of health literacy (HL) in the self-management of diabetes.

Primary Mental Health (New Zealand)

Understanding Pasifika Mental Health in New Zealand: A review of the literature
Pasifika mental health continues to be a growing concern in New Zealand. This article, published in MAI Journal, reviews and presents online available research concerning the mental health of Pasifika in New Zealand.

Primary Mental Health (International)

Evidence based models of care for the treatment of alcohol use disorder in primary health care settings: a systematic review
Pharmacological and behavioural treatments for alcohol use disorders (AUDs) are effective but the uptake is limited. Primary care could be a key setting for identification and continuous care for AUD due to accessibility, low cost and acceptability to patients. This systematic review, published in BMC Family Practice, aimed to synthesise the literature regarding differential models of care for the management of AUD in primary health care settings.

Better Help for smokers to Quit (International)

Effectiveness of mobile applications to quit smoking: Systematic review and meta-analysis
Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable mortality. The use of mobile phones has grown exponentially, becoming a powerful tool to be used in health care. This review, published in Tobacco Cessation and Prevention, assesses the effectiveness of mobile phones to quit smoking.

Interventions to reduce tobacco use in people experiencing homelessness
Populations experiencing homelessness have high rates of tobacco use and experience substantial barriers to cessation. Tobacco‐caused conditions are among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among people experiencing homelessness, highlighting an urgent need for interventions to reduce the burden of tobacco use in this population. The objective of this Cochrane Review was to assess whether interventions designed to improve access to tobacco cessation interventions for adults experiencing homelessness lead to increased numbers engaging in or receiving treatment, and whether interventions designed to help adults experiencing homelessness to quit tobacco lead to increased tobacco abstinence. To also assess whether tobacco cessation interventions for adults experiencing homelessness affect substance use and mental health.

Weight Management (International)

Body weight management in overweight and obese breast cancer survivors
Studies suggest that overweight and obese breast cancer survivors are at increased risk of cancer recurrence and have higher all‐cause mortality. Obesity has an impact on breast cancer survivor's quality of life (QOL) and increases the risk of longer‐term morbidities such as type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease. Many cancer guidelines recommend survivors maintain a healthy weight but there is a lack of evidence regarding which weight loss method to recommend. The objective of this Cochrane Review was to assess the effects of different body weight loss approaches in breast cancer survivors who are overweight or obese.

Childhood Obesity (New Zealand)

Rights-based approaches to improving food availability for tamariki Māori
Food availability refers to the adequacy of the supply of healthy food. It is a key concern for the wellbeing of tamariki Māori today. This paper, published in MAI Journal, examined the literature and identify influences that enable the availability of healthy food for tamariki.

Oral Health (International)

Dental Care Access and the Elderly: What Is the Role of Teledentistry? A Systematic Review
A high level of unmet oral health needs is very common among elderly people. In a society that is getting older and that has been hit so hard by the coronavirus pandemic, the development of new strategies aimed at enhancing general and oral health status should be crucial in order to promote healthy aging. The aim of this systematic review, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, was to assess the feasibility of Teledentistry in communities or in a domiciliary setting where elderly people live.

Key Ministry of Health Publications

Eating and Activity Guidelines for New Zealand Adults
This document provides evidence-based population health advice on healthy eating and being physically active.

New Zealand Aotearoa’s guidance on contraception
Ensuring good access for all people to their preferred contraceptive method(s) supports a range of positive health, social and individual outcomes. Most women will use some type of contraception during their lifetime, often for long periods of time. New Zealand Aotearoa’s Guidance on Contraception is intended for use by health professionals who provide contraception and contraceptive advice to individuals. The guidance covers any setting in which individuals receive contraceptive advice including primary and secondary care, community health services and maternity services (including an individual home if maternity services are delivered there).

COVID-19 disruptions to hospital and general practice activity
This publication uses national, regional, ethnicity and disability data to identify the extent to which COVID-19 and the lockdown had a disproportionate impact on certain communities in relation to health service delivery and access to health care services. This is a working report developed to assist with recovery planning. We will undertake further analysis as more data becomes available.

District Health Board Initiative

New programme based on traditional role of kuia in whānau
Lakes DHB and Tipu Ora have launched a new Well Child Tamariki Ora (WCTO) Enhanced Support Pilot. Young pregnant mums and their whānau will get intensive support to improve their whānau wellbeing with a new kaupapa Māori approach to the Well Child Tamariki Ora (WCTO) programme. 

The information available on or through this newsletter does not represent Ministry of Health policy. It is intended to provide general information to the health sector and the public, and is not intended to address specific circumstances of any particular individual or entity.