Co-developing a theory of change for a personalised multimodal cancer prehabilitation programme in South Wales.

Background: Evidence suggests that prehabilitation interventions, which optimise physical and mental health prior to treatment, can improve outcomes for surgical cancer patients and save costs to the health system through faster recovery and fewer complications. However, robust, theory-based evaluations of these programmes are needed. Using a theory of change (ToC) approach can guide evaluation plans by describing how and why a programme is expected to work.

Profiles of tobacco smokers and ex-smokers in a large-scale random sample survey across Wales: an unsupervised machine-learning cluster analysis.

Background: The Welsh government recently set a target to be smoke-free by 2030, which means reducing the prevalence of tobacco smoking in adults to 5% by then. The goal is to improve health and population life expectancy. To support this strategy, we identified profile groups with different sets of socioeconomic and demographic characteristics within the population of smokers.

Health of unpaid carers in Wales, UK: a population data linkage study.

Background: The population of unpaid carers in Wales increased to record. There is no systematic approach to record unpaid caring status, resulting in limited quantitative evidence on unpaid carers' health. The aim of this study is to: (i) create an e-cohort of unpaid carers by linking routinely collected health and administrative datasets in Wales, UK.

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of clinically extremely vulnerable children and children living with clinically extremely vulnerable people in Wales: a data linkage study.

Objectives: To determine whether clinically extremely vulnerable (CEV) children or children living with a CEV person in Wales were at greater risk of presenting with anxiety or depression in primary or secondary care during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with children in the general population and to compare patterns of anxiety and depression during the pandemic (23 March 2020-31 January 2021, referred to as 2020/2021) and before the pandemic (23 March 2019-31 January 2020, referred to as 2019/2020), between CEV children and the general population.

Design: Population-based cross-sectional cohort study using anonymised, linked, routinely collected health and administrative data held in the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage Databank. CEV individuals were identified using the COVID-19 shielded patient list.

Mapping Inequities in Digital Health Technology Within the World Health Organization's European Region Using PROGRESS PLUS: Scoping Review.

Background: The use of digital technologies within health care rapidly increased as services transferred to web-based platforms during the COVID-19 pandemic. Inequalities in digital health across the domains of equity are not routinely examined; yet, the long-term integration of digitally delivered services needs to consider such inequalities to ensure equitable benefits.

Objective: This scoping review aimed to map inequities in access, use, and engagement with digital health technologies across equity domains.

Inequalities in colorectal cancer screening uptake in Wales: an examination of the impact of the temporary suspension of the screening programme during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Response to the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the temporary disruption of cancer screening in the UK, and strong public messaging to stay safe and to protect NHS capacity. Following reintroduction in services, we explored the impact on inequalities in uptake of the Bowel Screening Wales (BSW) programme to identify groups who may benefit from tailored interventions.

Methods: Records within the BSW were linked to electronic health records (EHR) and administrative data within the Secured Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank.

Mental health of the nursing and midwifery workforce in Wales during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional analysis.

Background: The mental health of the nursing and midwifery workforce in the UK became a public health concern before the COVID-19 pandemic. Poor mental health is a known factor for those considering leaving the profession, and workforce retention of younger members is crucial for the future of the sector. The aim of this study was to provide up-to-date estimates of mental wellbeing in this workforce in Wales during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Impact of the temporary suspension of the Bowel Screening Wales programme on inequalities during the COVID-19 pandemic: a retrospective register-based study.

Background: Response to the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the temporary disruption of routine services in the UK National Health Service, including cancer screening. Following the reintroduction of services, we explored the impact on inequalities in uptake of the Bowel Screening Wales (BSW) programme to identify groups who might benefit from tailored intervention.

Methods: BSW records were linked to electronic health record and administrative data within the Secured Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank Trusted Research Environment.

Shifting priorities and employment choices among workers in Wales during the COVID-19 pandemic: a longitudinal analysis.

Background: Employment is a determinant of health. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted working lives, forcing individuals to adapt to new ways of working. These shifts might shape people's priorities and their consideration of changes for future work.

Seeking Good Work in the COVID-19 Recovery: Shifting Priorities and Employment Choices Among Workers.

Objective: Disruption to working lives spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic may shape people's preferences for future employment. We aimed to identify the components of work prioritized by a UK sample and the employment changes they had considered since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: A nationally representative longitudinal household survey was conducted in Wales at two time points between 2020 and 2021.

Exploring the Health Impacts and Inequalities of the New Way of Working: Findings From a Cross-Sectional Study.

Objective: The aim of the study is to provide insights into the working Welsh adult population's perceptions of the health impacts of working from home (WFH), their ability to WFH, and their WFH preferences.

Methods: Data were collected from 615 working adults in Wales between November 2020 and January 2021 in a household survey.

Results: More than 45% of those able to WFH reported worsened mental well-being and loneliness.

Challenges to self-isolation among contacts of cases of COVID-19: a national telephone survey in Wales.

Background: Self-isolation is challenging and adherence is dependent on a range of psychological, social and economic factors. We aimed to identify the challenges experienced by contacts of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases to better target support and minimize the harms of self-isolation.

Methods: The Contact Adherence Behavioural Insights Study (CABINS) was a 15-minute telephone survey conducted with confirmed contacts of COVID-19 (N = 2027), identified through the NHS Wales Test Trace Protect (TTP) database.

Long-term cost-effectiveness of interventions for obesity: A mendelian randomisation study.

Background: The prevalence of obesity has increased in the United Kingdom, and reliably measuring the impact on quality of life and the total healthcare cost from obesity is key to informing the cost-effectiveness of interventions that target obesity, and determining healthcare funding. Current methods for estimating cost-effectiveness of interventions for obesity may be subject to confounding and reverse causation. The aim of this study is to apply a new approach using mendelian randomisation for estimating the cost-effectiveness of interventions that target body mass index (BMI), which may be less affected by confounding and reverse causation than previous approaches.

Factors influencing initiation of health behaviour conversations with patients: Cross-sectional study of nurses, midwives, and healthcare support workers in Wales.

Aim: To identify factors influencing healthcare professionals' engagement in health behaviour conversations with patients.

Design: Cross-sectional survey.

Methods: Between April and June 2019, an online survey of 1338 nurses, midwives and healthcare support workers was conducted.

Digital Overuse and Addictive Traits and Their Relationship With Mental Well-Being and Socio-Demographic Factors: A National Population Survey for Wales.

Population health concerns have been raised about negative impacts from overuse of digital technologies. We examine patterns of online activity predictive of Digital Overuse and Addictive Traits (DOAT). We explore associations between DOAT and mental well-being and analyse how both relate to self-reported changes in self-esteem, perceived isolation, and anxiety about health when individuals use the internet for health purposes.

Characteristics of those most vulnerable to employment changes during the COVID-19 pandemic: a nationally representative cross-sectional study in Wales.

Background: The public health response to the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a detrimental impact on employment and there are concerns the impact may be greatest among the most vulnerable. We examined the characteristics of those who experienced changes in employment status during the early months of the pandemic.

Methods: Data were collected from a cross-sectional, nationally representative household survey of the working age population (18-64 years) in Wales in May/June 2020 (n=1379).

Adult support during childhood: a retrospective study of trusted adult relationships, sources of personal adult support and their association with childhood resilience resources.

Background: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can affect health and well-being across the life course. Resilience is an individual characteristic that is known to help negate the effect of adversities and potentially transform toxic stress into tolerable stress. Having access to a trusted adult during childhood is critical to helping children build resiliency.

Creating an e-cohort of individuals with lived experience of homelessness and subsequent mortality in Wales, UK.

Background: Homelessness is an extreme form of social exclusion, with homeless people experiencing considerable social and health inequities. Estimates of morbidity and mortality amongst homeless populations is limited due to the lack of recording of housing status across health datasets. The aim of this study is to: (i) identify a homelessness e-cohort by linking routine health data in Wales, and (ii) explore whether a period of reported past homelessness, places this population at greater risk of morbidity and mortality.

Addressing the Digital Inverse Care Law in the Time of COVID-19: Potential for Digital Technology to Exacerbate or Mitigate Health Inequalities.

Digital technologies have been transforming methods of health care delivery and have been embraced within the health, social, and public response to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this has directed attention to the "inverse information law" (also called "digital inverse care law") and digital inequalities, as people who are most in need of support (in particular, older people and those experiencing social deprivation) are often least likely to engage with digital platforms. The response to the COVID-19 pandemic represents a sustained shift to the adoption of digital approaches to working and engaging with populations, which will continue beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

The causal effects of health conditions and risk factors on social and socioeconomic outcomes: Mendelian randomization in UK Biobank.

Background: We aimed to estimate the causal effect of health conditions and risk factors on social and socioeconomic outcomes in UK Biobank. Evidence on socioeconomic impacts is important to understand because it can help governments, policy makers and decision makers allocate resources efficiently and effectively.

Methods: We used Mendelian randomization to estimate the causal effects of eight health conditions (asthma, breast cancer, coronary heart disease, depression, eczema, migraine, osteoarthritis, type 2 diabetes) and five health risk factors [alcohol intake, body mass index (BMI), cholesterol, systolic blood pressure, smoking] on 19 social and socioeconomic outcomes in 336 997 men and women of White British ancestry in UK Biobank, aged between 39 and 72 years.

Welsh Primary Schoolchildren's Perceptions of Electronic Cigarettes: A Mixed Methods Study.

There are concerns that the growing popularity of e-cigarettes promotes experimentation among children. Given the influence of the early years on attitude and habit formation, better understanding of how younger children perceive vaping before experimentation begins is needed, to prevent uptake and inform tobacco control strategies. We explored Welsh primary schoolchildren's (aged 7-11) awareness of e-cigarettes relative to tobacco smoking, their understanding of the perceived risks and benefits and their intentions and beliefs about vaping.

Mental health selection: common mental disorder and migration between multiple states of deprivation in a UK cohort.

Objectives: To assess whether the direction of movement along the social gradient was associated with changes in mental health status.

Design: Longitudinal record-linkage study using a multistate model.

Setting: Caerphilly, Wales, UK between 2001 and 2015.

Effects of body mass index on relationship status, social contact and socio-economic position: Mendelian randomization and within-sibling study in UK Biobank.

Background: We assessed whether body mass index (BMI) affects social and socio-economic outcomes.

Methods: We used Mendelian randomization (MR), non-linear MR and non-genetic and MR within-sibling analyses, to estimate relationships of BMI with six socio-economic and four social outcomes in 378 244 people of European ancestry in UK Biobank.

Results: In MR of minimally related individuals, higher BMI was related to higher deprivation, lower income, fewer years of education, lower odds of degree-level education and skilled employment.

The evidence base for routine enquiry into adverse childhood experiences: A scoping review.

Background: Exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs; e.g., maltreatment, household dysfunction) is associated with a multiplicity of negative outcomes throughout the life course.

Learning across the UK: a review of public health systems and policy approaches to early child development since political devolution.

Background: Giving children the best start in life is critical for their future health and wellbeing. Political devolution in the UK provides a natural experiment to explore how public health systems contribute to children's early developmental outcomes across four countries.

Method: A systematic literature review and input from a stakeholder group was used to develop a public health systems framework.