Navigating intersectoral collaboration in nutrition programming: implementors' perspectives from Assam, India.

Background: There is a growing interest in the use of intersectoral collaborative (ISC) approaches to address complex health-related issues. However, relatively little empirical research exists on the challenges of implementing, fostering and sustaining these approaches. Our study explores the perceptions and experiences of programme implementers regarding the implementation of an ISC approach, focusing on a case study of nutrition programming in Assam, India.

Advancing Gender Equality in Healthcare Leadership: Protocol to Co-Design and Evaluate a Leadership and Mentoring Intervention in Tanzania.

Background: Women constitute almost two thirds of the health and social workforce. Yet, the proportion of women in decision-making positions remains significantly low leading to gender inequities in access to and appropriateness of healthcare. Several barriers which limit women's advancement to leadership positions have been documented and they generally constitute of gender stereotypes, discrimination and inhibiting systems; these hinderances are compounded by intersection with other social identities.

Realist evaluation of maternity waiting home intervention models in Inhambane, Mozambique: protocol for a comparative embedded case study, the Mozambique-Canada Maternal Health Project.

Introduction: This is a study protocol that tests and refines realist theories regarding the uptake and scale-up of the linked maternity waiting home (hereafter MWH) and facility birth intervention in the Mozambican context. The theories were developed through a realist review of MWH-facility birth literature from low-income and middle-income countries. The aim of the proposed study is to contribute to a contextually refined understanding of the causal chains underlying MWH-facility birth adoption by pregnant women and their families, communities, the health system and donors.

Exploring the needs and experiences of contact tracing staff during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ireland.

Background: Contact tracing is a key component in controlling the spread of COVID-19, however little research has focused on learning from the experiences of contact tracing staff. Harnessing learning from those in this role can provide valuable insights into the process of contact tracing and how best to support staff in this crucial role.

Methods: Thematic analysis was used to analyse 47 semi-structured interviews conducted with contact tracing staff via telephone or Zoom at three time points in 2021: March, May and September-October.

Understanding communication in community engagement for maternal and newborn health programmes in low- and middle-income countries: a realist review.

As community engagement (CE) is implemented for sustainable maternal and newborn health (MNH) programming, it is important to determine how these approaches work. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have become a particular focus for MNH CE activities due to their high burden of maternal and neonatal deaths. MNH messaging and communication to engage communities are likely to differ by context, but how these approaches are actually developed and implemented within CE is not well understood.

A framework for community health worker optimisation in conflict settings: prerequisites and possibilities from Northwest Syria.

Background: The world will face a human resource gap of 10 million health workers in 2030. Community health workers (CHWs) can contribute to mitigating this workforce gap while improving equitable access to care and health outcomes. However, questions on how to best implement and optimise CHW programmes, especially across varied contexts, remain.

Exploring the psychological impact of contact tracing work on staff during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Contact tracing is a key control measure in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. While quantitative research has been conducted on the psychological impact of the pandemic on other frontline healthcare workers, none has explored the impact on contact tracing staff.

Methods: A longitudinal study was conducted using two repeated measures with contact tracing staff employed in Ireland during the COVID-19 pandemic using two-tailed independent samples t tests and exploratory linear mixed models.

Institutionalising community engagement for quality of care: moving beyond the rhetoric.

Community engagement has the potential to improve quality of care but is poorly represented in policy and the literature; its institutionalisation in health systems must be supported, argue

Applying and reporting relevance, richness and rigour in realist evidence appraisals: Advancing key concepts in realist reviews.

The realist review/synthesis has become an increasingly prominent methodological approach to evidence synthesis that can inform policy and practice. While there are publication standards and guidelines for the conduct of realist reviews, published reviews often provide minimal detail regarding how they have conducted some methodological steps. This includes selecting and appraising evidence sources, which are often considered for their 'relevance, richness and rigour.

Impact of COVID-19 on the private and professional lives of highly educated women working in global health in Europe-A qualitative study.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a deepening of existing inequalities and a rollback of achievements made in gender equality. Women in Global Health (WGH) is a global movement that aims to achieve gender equality in health and increase female leadership in global health. Here, the aim was to understand how the pandemic affects the private and professional lives of women working in global health in different European countries.

What's in a name? Unpacking 'Community ' terminology in reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health: a scoping review.

Introduction: Engaging the community as actors within reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health (RMNCH) programmes (referred to as 'community ) has seen increased implementation in recent years. While evidence suggests these approaches are effective, terminology (such as 'community 'community 'community and '') is often used interchangeably across published literature, contributing to a lack of conceptual clarity in practice. The purpose of this review was to describe and clarify varying uses of these terms in the literature by documenting what authors and implementers report they are doing when they use these terms.

Understanding maternity waiting home uptake and scale-up within low-income and middle-income countries: a programme theory from a realist review and synthesis.

Introduction: Maternity waiting homes (MWHs) link pregnant women to skilled birth attendance at health facilities. Research suggests that some MWH-facility birth interventions are more success at meeting the needs and expectations of their intended users than others. We aimed to develop theory regarding what resources work to support uptake and scale-up of MHW-facility birth interventions, how, for whom, in what contexts and why.

Community engagement to support COVID-19 vaccine uptake: a living systematic review protocol.

Introduction: Widespread vaccination against COVID-19 is one of the most effective ways to control, and ideally, end the global COVID-19 pandemic. Vaccine hesitancy and vaccine rates vary widely across countries and populations and are influenced by complex sociocultural, political, economic and psychological factors. Community engagement is an integral strategy within immunisation campaigns and has been shown to improve vaccine acceptance.

A realist review protocol on communications for community engagement in maternal and newborn health programmes in low- and middle-income countries.

Background: Community engagement (CE) has been increasingly implemented across health interventions, including for maternal and newborn health (MNH). This may take various forms, from participatory women's groups and community health committees to public advocacy days. While research suggests a positive influence of CE on MNH outcomes, such as mortality or care-seeking behaviour, there is a need for further evidence on the processes of CE in different settings in order to inform the future development and implementation of CE across programmes.

The role of psychosocial factors in explaining sex differences in major depression and generalized anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Understanding how pandemics differentially impact on the socio-protective and psychological outcomes of males and females is important to develop more equitable public health policies. We assessed whether males and females differed on measures of major depression and generalized anxiety during the COVID-19 the pandemic, and if so, which sociodemographic, pandemic, and psychological variables may affect sex differences in depression and anxiety.

Methods: Participants were a nationally representative sample of Irish adults (N = 1,032) assessed between April 30 to May 19, 2020, during Ireland's first COVID-19 nationwide quarantine.

Community mobilization to strengthen support for appropriate and timely use of antenatal and postnatal care: A review of reviews.

Background: Antenatal care (ANC) and postnatal care (PNC) are critical opportunities for women, babies and parents/families to receive quality care and support from health services. Community-based interventions may improve the accessibility, availability, and acceptance of this vital care. For example, community mobilization strategies have been used to involve and collaborate with women, families and communities to improve maternal and newborn health.

Contact tracing during the COVID-19 outbreak: a protocol for enabling rapid learning from experiences and exploring the psychological impact on contact tracers.

Given the unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Irish health system required the redeployment of public sector staff and the recruitment of dedicated contact tracing staff in the effort to contain the spread of the virus. Contact tracing is crucial for effective disease control and is normally carried out by public health teams. Contact tracing staff are provided with rapid intensive training but are operating in a dynamic environment where processes and advice are adapting continuously.

A mapping and synthesis of tools for stakeholder and community engagement in quality improvement initiatives for reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health.

Background: Stakeholder and community engagement promotes collaboration and gives service users an opportunity to actively participate in the care they receive. Recognizing this potential, The Network for Improving Quality of Care for maternal, newborn and child health aimed to identify tools and operational guidance to integrate stakeholder and community engagement into quality improvement (QI) implementation.

Methods: A mapping, consisting of a literature review and an open call through email and listservers, for implementation tools was conducted.

A Rapid Realist Review of Group Psychological First Aid for Humanitarian Workers and Volunteers.

Humanitarian workers are at an elevated risk of occupational trauma exposure and its associated psychological consequences, and experience increased levels of anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) compared to the general population. Psychological first aid (PFA) aims to prevent acute distress reactions from developing into long-term distress by instilling feelings of safety, calmness, self- and community efficacy, connectedness and hope. Group PFA (GPFA) delivers PFA in a group or team setting.

What do we mean by individual capacity strengthening for primary health care in low- and middle-income countries? A systematic scoping review to improve conceptual clarity.

Background: Capacity strengthening of primary health care workers is widely used as a means to strengthen health service delivery, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Despite the widespread recognition of the importance of capacity strengthening to improve access to quality health care, how the term 'capacity strengthening' is both used and measured varies substantially across the literature. This scoping review sought to identify the most common domains of individual capacity strengthening, as well as their most common forms of measurement, to generate a better understanding of what is meant by the term 'capacity strengthening' for primary health care workers.

Sexual Violence and Its Associated Psychosocial Effects in Ireland.

Current data on the prevalence and psychosocial correlates of sexual violence in the Republic of Ireland is lacking, with the most recent sexual abuse and violence survey dating back to 2001. The current study sought to identify what proportion of Irish adults have experienced sexual violence, if there are sex differences in exposure to different forms of sexual violence, and to what extent different forms of sexual violence are associated with adverse psychosocial outcomes. To achieve these objectives, we carried out a nationally representative sample of Irish adults ( = 1,020) completed self-report measures of history of sexual violence and mental health.

Community engagement for COVID-19 prevention and control: a rapid evidence synthesis.

Introduction: Community engagement has been considered a fundamental component of past outbreaks, such as Ebola. However, there is concern over the lack of involvement of communities and 'bottom-up' approaches used within COVID-19 responses thus far. Identifying how community engagement approaches have been used in past epidemics may support more robust implementation within the COVID-19 response.

Measuring motivation among close-to-community health workers: developing the CTC Provider Motivational Indicator Scale across six countries.

Background: Close-to-community (CTC) health service providers are a cost-effective and important resource in the promotion of and increasing access to health services. However, many CTC provider programmes suffer from high rates of de-motivation and attrition due to inadequate support systems. Recent literature has identified the lack of rigorous approaches towards measuring and monitoring motivation among CTC providers as an important gap.

Realist evaluations in low- and middle-income countries: reflections and recommendations from the experiences of a foreign researcher.

Realist evaluation, a methodology for exploring generative causation within complex health interventions to understand 'how, why and for whom' programmes work, is experiencing a surge of interest. Trends indicate that the proliferation in the use of this methodology also applies to research in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The value of using realist evaluation for project evaluation is also being noticed by non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and other programme implementers within such contexts.