"I Felt Supported, Empowered, and Encouraged": Early Findings from a Community Initiative to Strengthen and Support Families Through the First 1,000 Days of Life.

Purpose: Evaluation of the First 1,000 Days Suncoast Family Navigation program aimed to (1) describe the social needs of families in Southwest Florida and (2) measure the program's impact on client-reported mental health and social support outcomes.

Design: A multi-method design was employed, including quantitative data collected through an online social care referral network and longitudinal surveys, supplemented by qualitative key informant interview data.

Methods: A convenience sample of 538 parents who submitted online assistance request forms to First 1,000 Days between August 2020 and January 2024 were included.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on medical office assistants (MOAs) Working in Primary Care: A Qualitative Study.

Background: Medical Office Assistants (MOAs), also known as receptionists and clerks, are front line workers and the most accessible member of the primary care team. Historically, their contributions to primary care have been unrecognised and undervalued. The COVID-19 pandemic put pressure on existing roles and systems in primary care: how MOAs adapted is unknown.

The role of the primary healthcare research community in addressing the social and structural determinants of health: a call to action from NAPCRG 2023.

The need for effective primary healthcare to address social and structural determinants of health and to mitigate health inequalities has been well established. Here, we report on the international forum of the 2023 NAPCRG (formerly known as North American Primary Care Research Group) Annual Meeting. The aim of the forum was to develop principles for action for the primary healthcare research community on addressing social and structural determinants of health.

"Family doctors are also people": a qualitative analysis of how family physicians managed competing personal and professional responsibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Family physicians (FPs) fill an essential role in public health emergencies yet have frequently been neglected in pandemic response plans. This exclusion harms FPs in their clinical roles and has unintended consequences in the management of concurrent personal responsibilities, many of which were amplified by the pandemic. The objective of our study was to explore the experiences of FPs during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic to better understand how they managed their competing professional and personal priorities.

Understanding data provenance when using electronic medical records for research: Lessons learned from the Deliver Primary Healthcare Information (DELPHI) database.

Introduction: We set out to assess the impact of Choosing Wisely Canada recommendations (2014) on reducing unnecessary health investigations and interventions in primary care across Southwestern Ontario.

Methods: We used the Deliver Primary Healthcare Information (DELPHI) database, which stores deidentified electronic medical records (EMR) of nearly 65,000 primary care patients across Southwestern Ontario. When conducting research using EMR data, data provenance (i.

Predictors of Multimorbidity (Defined as Diabetes + Hypertension) Amongst Males Aged 15-54 in India: An Urban/Rural Split Analysis.

This study aimed to determine which sociodemographic and lifestyle factors may act as predictors of multimorbidity (defined as diabetes + hypertension) amongst men aged 15-54 within urban and rural areas of India. Data from the latest 2019-2021 India NFHS-5 survey were utilized. Presumed cases of multimorbidity were defined as men who had DM + HTN.

Psychosocial Care for Youth with Type 1 Diabetes: Summary of Reviews to Inform Clinical Practice.

The intensive demands of diabetes care can be difficult for youth with type 1 diabetes and their families to integrate into daily life. Standards of care in pediatric diabetes highlight the importance of evidence-based psychosocial interventions to optimize self-management behaviors and psychological well-being. The current review summarizes select systematic reviews and meta-analyses on evidence-based behavioral health interventions in pediatric diabetes.

Understanding intersectional inequality in access to primary care providers using multilevel analysis of individual heterogeneity and discriminatory accuracy.

Background: Despite the Canadian healthcare system's commitment to equity, evidence for disparate access to primary care (PC) providers exists across individual social identities/positions. Intersectionality allows us to reflect the realities of how social power shapes healthcare experiences at an individual's interdependent and intersecting social identities/positions. The objectives of this study were to determine: (1) the extent to which intersections can be used classify those who had/did not have a PC provider; (2) the degree to which each social identity/position contributes to the ability to classify individuals as having a PC provider; and (3) predicted probabilities of having a PC provider for each intersection.

Arts and Culture: A Necessary Component to Address Unmet Social Needs and Advance Individual and Community Well-Being.

U.S. healthcare institutions increasingly integrate screenings for social needs into standard care, and help meet those needs by referring patients to community-based resources.

Sex differences in the clinical presentation of early psychosis in a primary care setting.

Primary care is an important part of the help-seeking pathway for young people experiencing early psychosis, but sex differences in clinical presentation in these settings are unexplored. We aimed to identify sex differences in clinical presentation to primary care services in the 1-year period prior to a first diagnosis of psychotic disorder. We identified first-onset cases of non-affective psychotic disorder over a 10-year period (2005-2015) using health administrative data linked with electronic medical records (EMRs) from primary care (n = 465).

Patients' experiences with a community fruit and vegetable box program prescribed by their health provider.

Background: Food insecurity is "the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food". Observational studies have associated food insecurity with many negative health effects including the development and exacerbations of chronic diseases, higher health care use and increased mortality. Health care providers prescribing food is a growing area of interest and research, however it is not known how patients feel about receiving fruit and vegetable prescriptions (FVRx) from their health provider versus other means of food provision.

Perceptions of Artificial Intelligence Use in Primary Care: A Qualitative Study with Providers and Staff of Ontario Community Health Centres.

Purpose: To understand staff and health care providers' views on potential use of artificial intelligence (AI)-driven tools to help care for patients within a primary care setting.

Methods: We conducted a qualitative descriptive study using individual semistructured interviews. As part of province-wide Learning Health Organization, Community Health Centres (CHCs) are a community-governed, team-based delivery model providing primary care for people who experience marginalization in Ontario, Canada.

Family physicians' responses to personal protective equipment shortages in four regions in Canada: a qualitative study.

Background: Despite well-documented increased demands and shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) during previous disease outbreaks, health systems in Canada were poorly prepared to meet the need for PPE during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the primary care sector, PPE shortages impacted the delivery of health services and contributed to increased workload, fear, and anxiety among primary care providers. This study examines family physicians' (FPs) response to PPE shortages during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic to inform future pandemic planning.

Training and capacity development in patient-oriented research: Ontario SPOR SUPPORT Unit (OSSU) initiatives.

Background: In Canada, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research launched the Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR) in 2011. The strategy defines 'patient-oriented research' as a continuum of research that engages patients as partners, focuses on patient priorities, and leads to improved patient outcomes. The overarching term 'patient' is inclusive of individuals with personal experience of a health issue as well as informal caregivers including family and friends.

Family physician virtual care during COVID-19 in London-Middlesex, Ontario, Canada: a mixed methods exploration.

Context: On March 14, 2020, the Ontario, Canada health insurance plan approved COVID-19 physician virtual billing codes; family physicians (FPs) rapidly adopted a new model of care. Virtual care may remain post-pandemic; however, its future should be informed by evidence that considers access and continuity. Objective: 1) to determine FP virtual visit volumes and patient characteristics and 2) to explore FPs' perspectives on virtual visit adoption and implementation.

Focused practice in family medicine: Quantitative study.

Objective: To determine factors associated with having a focused practice among a sample of family medicine graduates in Canada and to assess the characteristics of FPs with focused practices and the range of services provided by these FPs in relation to the full scope of office-based care.

Design: Secondary analyses of cross-sectional data from the 2013-2014 Western Family Medicine Resident Follow-Up Survey.

Setting: Western University in London, Ont.

Virtual family physician care during COVID-19: a mixed methods study using health administrative data and qualitative interviews.

Background: The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a rapid shift in primary health care from predominantly in-person to high volumes of virtual care. The pandemic afforded the opportunity to conduct a deep regional examination of virtual care by family physicians in London and Middlesex County, Ontario, Canada that would inform the foundation for virtual care in our region post-pandemic.

Objectives: (1) to determine volumes of in-person and virtual family physicians visits and characteristics of the family physicians and patients using them during the early COVID-19 pandemic; (2) to determine how virtual visit volumes changed over the pandemic, compared to in-person; and (3) to explore family physicians' experience in virtual visit adoption and implementation.

Is primary health care ready for artificial intelligence? What do primary health care stakeholders say?

Background: Effective deployment of AI tools in primary health care requires the engagement of practitioners in the development and testing of these tools, and a match between the resulting AI tools and clinical/system needs in primary health care. To set the stage for these developments, we must gain a more in-depth understanding of the views of practitioners and decision-makers about the use of AI in primary health care. The objective of this study was to identify key issues regarding the use of AI tools in primary health care by exploring the views of primary health care and digital health stakeholders.

Equity in Psychosocial Outcomes and Care for Racial and Ethnic Minorities and Socioeconomically Disadvantaged People With Diabetes.

The role of social determinants of health (SDOH) in promoting equity in diabetes prevalence, incidence, and outcomes continues to be documented in the literature. Less attention has focused on disparities in psychosocial aspects of living with diabetes and the role of SDOH in promoting equity in psychosocial outcomes and care. In this review, the authors describe racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in psychosocial aspects of living with diabetes, discuss promising approaches to promote equity in psychosocial care, and provide future research directions.

Family physician leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic: roles, functions and key supports.

Purpose: Strong leadership in primary care is necessary to coordinate an effective pandemic response; however, descriptions of leadership roles for family physicians are absent from previous pandemic plans. This study aims to describe the leadership roles and functions family physicians played during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada and identify supports and barriers to formalizing these roles in future pandemic plans.

Design/methodology/approach: This study conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews with family physicians across four regions in Canada as part of a multiple case study.

Complex skills are required for new primary health care researchers: a training program responds.

Background: Current dimensions of the primary health care research (PHC) context, including the need for contextualized research methods to address complex questions, and the co-creation of knowledge through partnerships with stakeholders - require PHC researchers to have a comprehensive set of skills for engaging effectively in high impact research.

Main Body: In 2002 we developed a unique program to respond to these needs - Transdisciplinary Understanding and Training on Research - Primary Health Care (TUTOR-PHC). The program's goals are to train a cadre of PHC researchers, clinicians, and decision makers in interdisciplinary research to aid them in tackling current and future challenges in PHC and in leading collaborative interdisciplinary research teams.

Sex and gender differences in symptoms of early psychosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

First-episode psychosis (FEP) can be quite variable in clinical presentation, and both sex and gender may account for some of this variability. Prior literature on sex or gender differences in symptoms of psychosis have been inconclusive, and a comprehensive summary of evidence on the early course of illness is lacking. The objective of this study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of the literature to summarize prior evidence on the sex and gender differences in the symptoms of early psychosis.

Identifying priorities for artificial intelligence and primary care in ontario: A multi-stakeholder engagement event.

CONTEXT: Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being recognized as having potential importance to primary care (PC). However, there is a gap in our understanding about where to focus efforts related to AI for PC settings, especially given the current COVID-19 pandemic. OBJECTIVE: To identify current priority areas for AI and PC in Ontario, Canada.

Is primary health care ready for artificial intelligence? Stakeholder perspectives: Worth the risk as long as you do it well.

Context: The effective deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) in primary health care requires a match between the AI tools that are being developed and the needs of primary health care practitioners and patients. Currently, the majority of AI development targeted toward potential application in primary care is being conducted without the involvement of these stakeholders. Objective: To identify key issues regarding the use of AI tools in primary health care by exploring the views of primary health care and digital health stakeholders.

Connecting artificial intelligence and primary care challenges: findings from a multi stakeholder collaborative consultation.

Unlabelled: Despite widespread advancements in and envisioned uses for artificial intelligence (AI), few examples of successfully implemented AI innovations exist in primary care (PC) settings.

Objectives: To identify priority areas for AI and PC in Ontario, Canada.

Methods: A collaborative consultation event engaged multiple stakeholders in a nominal group technique process to generate, discuss and rank ideas for how AI can support Ontario PC.