Participatory Systems Thinking to Elucidate Drivers of Food Access and Diet Disparities among Minoritized Urban Populations.

The purpose of this study was to use participatory systems thinking to develop a dynamic conceptual framework of racial/ethnic and other intersecting disparities (e.g., income) in food access and diet in Philadelphia and to identify policy levers to address these disparities.

Spatial Heterogeneity in Fatal Overdose Rate Trends in Mexican Cities: 2005-2021.

To describe national and city-level fatal drug overdose trends between 2005 and 2021 in Mexico. We calculated fatal overdose rates at the city level in 3-year periods from 2005 to 2021 and annually at the national level for people aged 15 to 64 years in Mexico. We calculated rate differences and rate ratios for each city between periods.

Associated factors to non-medical and medical use of psychoactive medication among Mexican adolescents and adults in a national household survey.

Background: Non-medical use of psychoactive medication is a public health problem. Studies in other contexts indicate that individual sociodemographic characteristics are associated with non-medical use, but these associations have not been assessed in the Mexican context.

Objectives: To estimate the prevalence non-medical and medical use of psychoactive medication among Mexican adolescents and adults' medication users and to estimate the associations between sociodemographic characteristics and non-medical use of psychoactive medication, using data from a nationally representative sample.

Methods and measures to evaluate the impact of participatory model building on public policymakers: a scoping review protocol.

Introduction: Public policymakers are increasingly engaged in participatory model building processes, such as group model building. Understanding the impacts of policymaker participation in these processes on policymakers is important given that their decisions often have significant influence on the dynamics of complex systems that affect health. Little is known about the extent to which the impacts of participatory model building on public policymakers have been evaluated or the methods and measures used to evaluate these impacts.

Use of qualitative systems mapping and causal loop diagrams to understand food environments, diet and obesity: a scoping review protocol.

Introduction: Food systems can shape dietary behaviour and obesity outcomes in complex ways. Qualitative systems mapping using causal loop diagrams (CLDs) can depict how people understand the complex dynamics, inter-relationships and feedback characteristic of food systems in ways that can support policy planning and action. To date, there has been no attempt to review this literature.

Simulating the role of knowledge brokers in policy making in state agencies: An agent-based model.

Objective: To model children's mental health policy making dynamics and simulate the impacts of knowledge broker interventions.

Data Sources: Primary data from surveys (n = 221) and interviews (n = 64) conducted in 2019-2021 with mental health agency (MHA) officials in state agencies.

Study Design: A prototype agent-based model (ABM) was developed using the PARTE (Properties, Actions, Rules, Time, Environment) framework and informed through primary data collection.

Urban scaling of opioid overdose deaths in the USA: a cross-sectional study in three periods between 2005 and 2017.

Objectives: To describe the association between population size, population growth and opioid overdose deaths-overall and by type of opioid-in US commuting zones (CZs) in three periods between 2005 and 2017.

Settings: 741 CZs covering the entirety of the US CZs are aggregations of counties based on commuting patterns that reflect local economies.

Participants: We used mortality data at the county level from 2005 to 2017 from the National Center for Health Statistics.

Policy Makers' Priorities for Addressing Youth Substance Use and Factors That Influence Priorities.

Objective: Understanding public policy makers' priorities for addressing youth substance use and the factors that influence these priorities can inform the dissemination and implementation of strategies that promote evidence-based decision making. This study characterized the priorities of policy makers in substance use agencies of U.S.

Linking Data on Constituent Health with Elected Officials' Opinions: Associations Between Urban Health Disparities and Mayoral Officials' Beliefs About Health Disparities in Their Cities.

Unlabelled: Policy Points Mayoral officials' opinions about the existence and fairness of health disparities in their city are positively associated with the magnitude of income-based life expectancy disparity in their city. Associations between mayoral officials' opinions about health disparities in their city and the magnitude of life expectancy disparity in their city are not moderated by the social or fiscal ideology of mayoral officials or the ideology of their constituents. Highly visible and publicized information about mortality disparities, such as that related to COVID-19 disparities, has potential to elevate elected officials' perceptions of the severity of health disparities and influence their opinions about the issue.

Evaluating the health effects of place-based slum upgrading physical environment interventions: A systematic review (2012-2018).

Rapid urbanization in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) is associated with increasing population living in informal settlements. Inadequate infrastructure and disenfranchisement in settlements can create environments hazardous to health. Placed-based physical environment upgrading interventions have potential to improve environmental and economic conditions linked to health outcomes.

Big City Health Officials' Conceptualizations of Health Equity.

Context: Senior health officials of local health departments are uniquely positioned to provide transformational leadership on health disparities and inequities.

Objective: This study aimed to understand how senior health officials in large US cities define health equity and its relationship with disparities and characterize these senior health officials' perceptions of using health equity and disparity language in local public health practice.

Design: In 2016, we used a general inductive qualitative design and conducted 23 semistructured interviews with leaders of large local health departments.

US Mayors' and Health Commissioners' Opinions About Health Disparities in Their Cities.

Objectives: To characterize US mayors' and health commissioners' opinions about health disparities in their cities and identify factors associated with these opinions.

Methods: We conducted a multimodal survey of mayors and health commissioners in fall-winter 2016 (n = 535; response rate = 45.2%).

The Role Of Nonprofit Hospitals In Identifying And Addressing Health Inequities In Cities.

For nonprofit hospitals to maintain their tax-exempt status, the Affordable Care Act requires them to conduct a community health needs assessment, in which they evaluate the health needs of the community they serve, and to create an implementation strategy, in which they propose ways to address these needs. We explored the extent to which nonprofit urban hospitals identified equity among the health needs of their communities and proposed health equity strategies to address this need. We conducted a content analysis of publicly available community health needs assessments and implementation strategies from 179 hospitals in twenty-eight US cities in the period August-December 2016.