April 2011 - June 2012
Annual Activities Report Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy (SCPHRP)
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
2
John Frank, Director Ruth Jepson, Senior Scientific Advisor (August 2011-) Sally Haw, Senior Scientific Advisor (to May 2011) Helen Frost, Career Development Fellow Rosemary Geddes, Career Development Fellow Caroline Jackson, Career Development Fellow (to January 2012) John McAteer, Career Development Fellow (January 2012-) John Mooney, Career Development Fellow Sam Bain: Project Co-ordinator Renee Ingram: Office manager Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy 20 West Richmond Street Edinburgh EH8 9DX
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
3
CONTENTS Executive summary
5
Background 7 Major milestones and achievements
8
Seed funding for Pilot Projects
8
Commissioned research and population health data-system development projects
9
Participation as co-investigators in major national grant applications
11
Broader policy-advisory and research-advisory activities
14
Other scholarly contributions by SCPHRP
15
SCPHRP training and capacity-building activites
16
SCPHRP planning for future activities
17
Appendix 22
FOREWARD
4
Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy (SCPHRP) Annual Activities Report April 2011 - June 2012 Dear SCPHRP Stakeholders and Colleagues: The staff and trainees of SCPHRP are pleased to present this Annual Report of our 2011-12 activities. We apologize for its lateness, which is due to the lengthy and demanding renewal process for SCPHRP, recently successfully completed, to obtain our funding for 2013-18. That process required very complete reporting, in a different and less readable format, of all we had accomplished in 2008-12, for review by our funders: MRC and the Chief Scientist Office in Scotland. Thus it is only now that we have been able to put together this more readable Annual Report for the period ending June 2012. Clearly, as our fourth year of operations, 2011-12 was critical to the evidence of SCPHRP’s successes that led to our funding being renewed in early 2013. We hope this detailed record of our activities that year will be of interest. Best wishes. John Frank Director
John Frank, Director of SCPHRP
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
5
Executive summary In its fourth year of operations, April 2011 to June 2012, the SCPHRP has achieved the following milestones set out in its initial Five-Year Strategic Plan (2008-13):
Identifying key areas of opportunity for developing novel public health interventions
Fostering collaboration between government, researchers and the public health community
• Managed the submission, peer review, and commissioning of a second wave of competitively awarded pilot development grants to WG members and their affiliates. (Eight of the 14 submissions received were funded.)
• Supported and sustained four Working Groups (WGs), created by the Collaboration in early 2009, which span Scottish public health expertise in the research, professional and policy sectors, with a total core membership of over 75 people.
• Received final reports for two of the seven one-year seed-funded pilot projects that were initiated in 2010. (Three of the seven were submitted during 2010-11. The final two will report in 2012-13)
• Hosted two joint meetings of all four WGs (November 2011 and May 2012) with the aim of establishing priorities for collaborative activity across and within WGs over the next period (Appendix A2 and A3).
• Progressed commissioned work on population health and data systems.
• Built and maintained an extensive network of approximately 250 key contacts in the Scottish public and voluntary sectors, who have a strong interest in public health policies and programmes; developed and launched a quarterly ‘push-email newsletter’; and established a Twitter feed @SCPHRP to provide real-time public health news, research and events via Twitter
• Co-authored, as part of the Scottish Health Informatics Programme (SHIP) Scientific Management Group an E-Health grant proposal for £4million+; co-authored with Stirling’s David Bell as lead, an NIH-NIA grant application for a Scottish Longitudinal Study of Ageing.
• Provided advice to Scottish Government in a range of key areas including the evaluation of the Change Fund, the introduction of universal health checks, the Data Linkage Initiative, and the impact of environmental influences on children’s’ health (Good Places, Better Health project) • Began work on a review of parenting interventions in the teenage years, to be used as part of the National Parenting Strategy
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
6
Building capacity within the public health community for collaborative research • Supervised four MRC/CSO Career Development Fellows during the publication and dissemination (Appendix A1) of Environmental Scans (Rapid Reviews/Review of Reviews) of the global evidence for the effectiveness of “promising” public health programmes and policies to equitably tackle a major, potentially remediable health problem, in each of four life-course stages reviews. A range of academic papers and publications based on these environmental scans are now available on www.scphrp.ac.uk/ publications. • Hosted a public lecture on realist evaluation with contributions by international experts and co-sponsored and co-hosted two seminars with NHS Health Scotland (on facilitating evidence informed public health decision making and on adolescent health and risky behaviours). • Developed collaborative relationships with both the (new) Scottish School of Public Health Research and with the Evaluation team at NHS Health Scotland to ensure best use of public health research capacity across Scotland Built research capacity by supporting career development fellows, and other individuals attached to the Collaboration and by delivering a second round of 10 hour CPD courses on Critical Appraisal for Public Health to approx 30 employees of NHS Health Scotland and SG Health Analytic Services .
• Successfully recruited a replacement Senior Scientific Advisor and a Career Development Fellow following staff moves. • Developed a novel research and capacity building project for evaluating Alcohol Brief Interventions in partnership with NHS Health Scotland and Scottish Government In addition, SCPHRP started the process of drafting a renewal bid, building on the independent stakeholder consultation conducted in early 2011, discussions with the Advisory Board, an event ‘Reflections and Next Steps’ held in November 2011 and a meeting of the Joint Working Groups in May 2012 (Appendix A2 and A3)
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
7
Background The Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research & Policy was set up in July 2008, under the Directorship of Professor John Frank, formerly Scientific Director of the CIHR Institute of Population & Public Health in Toronto. In October 2008, public health specialist Sally Haw was seconded to the Collaboration from NHS Health Scotland. Four MRC/CSO Career Development Fellows then took up three year fellowships between July and September 2009. Sally was appointed to a Research Chair in Public Health and Population Health at the University of Stirling in June 2011. Ruth Jepson, who has specialist expertise in structured review methods and experience in applied community based projects, was seconded as Senior Scientific Advisor to the Collaboration in August 2011.
The Collaboration’s core mandate is to: • Identify key areas of opportunity for developing novel public health interventions that equitably address major health problems in Scotland, and move those forward. • Foster collaboration between government, researchers and the public health community in Scotland to develop a national programme of intervention development, large-scale implementation and robust evaluation.
The Career Development Fellows led the preparation of four environmental scans (rapid reviews/review of reviews) of the global evidence for the effectiveness of “promising” public health programmes and policies to equitably tackle a major, potentially remediable health problem, in each of four life-course stages reviews. – one for each Working Group. • Interventions for Promoting Early Child Development for Health: An environmental scan with special reference to Scotland.
• Build capacity within the public health community for collaborative research of the highest quality, with maximum impact on Scottish policies, programs and practice.
• Adolescent and Young Adult Health in Scotland: Interventions that address multiple risk behaviours or take a generic approach to risk in youth.
An Inaugural Workshop held in January 2009 led to the establishment of four ongoing Working Groups organised around the life course – Early Life; Adolescence and Young Adulthood; Early to MidWorking Life; and Later Life. Each Working Group has 15 to 20 members representing both public health decision-makers and researchers from across Scotland. Each Working Group is supported by SCPHRP staff, the four Career Development Fellows and other trainees on a portfolio of work.
• Policy Interventions to Tackle the Obesogenic Environment: Focusing on adults of working age in Scotland. • Promoting Health and Wellbeing in Later Life: Interventions in Primary Care and Community Settings. The findings from each of the scans have been presented to the Working Groups and their implications discussed. Findings have also been widely disseminated through presentations to the Scottish Government and other key stakeholders, and at conferences and seminars and a number of academic publications and reports arising from the environmental scans have now been published (See Appendix A). The four environmental scans (and shorter journal-article versions) can be downloaded free from www.scphrp.ac.uk:
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
8
Major milestones and achievements April 2011 to June 2012
1. Seed Funding for Pilot Projects In 2010, 7 pilot projects submitted by WG members were peer reviewed and approved for funding, with work beginning in April 2010 (see Appendix B). Three of these projects were of one year’s duration and were reported in our 2010-2011 Annual Activities Report. Two more have been completed in the current year; the final two projects have received an extension and will report in late 2012. Abstracts of the two reports completed this year are available on the SCPHRP website; (https://www.scphrp.ac.uk/node/45; https://www. scphrp.ac.uk/node/51). In 2011, a second wave of eight competitively awarded Demonstration / Pilot grants were peer reviewed and approved for funding, with work beginning in November 2011. All these eight projects are scheduled to complete by 2013, to coincide with the completion of the Collaboration’s initial funding allocation. (See Appendix C)
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
9
2. Commissioned Research and Population Health Data-System Development Projects Seven projects in total have been funded as commissioned research. Four of these projects were finished in the period preceding this report. A brief summary is provided below for the final three projects.
a. The EDI project Phases 1 and 2 of the EDI pilot, which aimed to use an internationally validated tool to assess global development in Scottish children at school entry, are nearing completion. The phase 1 objective was to test and adapt the Canadian-designed EDI for the Scottish context. Phase 2’s objective was to implement the EDI in one local authority to provide the community with information about their children’s strengths and vulnerabilities. In both phases, the psychometric and discriminatory properties of the EDI were tested. The phase 1 qualitative work demonstrated that the majority of teachers found the EDI to be easy to use, acceptable, feasible and appropriate to the Scottish context. Only minor adjustments in terminology had to be made to the Canadian version. During phase 2, conducted with 70 P1 teachers and 1180 P1 children, the mean scores in each of the five developmental domains were linked to socioeconomic status (SES) based on Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation datazones. Results for geographic areas were mapped using GIS mapping. The ‘overall vulnerability’ of the P1 children in the pilot area, defined as scoring at or below the 10th percentile on at least one developmental domain, was 27%. A clear SES gradient was observed across all five domains. ‘Overall vulnerability’ was higher in: boys (34%) compared with girls (20%), and younger children (34%) compared with older children (20%). All five domains of the EDI exhibited good internal consistency. During the next phase local community groups will utilise EDI findings for local decision-making around early years’ services and resources
b. Fast food environments surrounding five Glasgow secondary schools One area of institutional catering which has improved in recent years is the standards for school meals. This is largely driven by the introduction of statutory guidance measures for school caterers in Scotland regarding the nutritional content of school meals. However, making improvements to school dining menus has no impact on the types of food pupils might purchase ‘off-premises’ during lunch time. Building upon an on-going programme of work by the Glasgow Centre for Population Health (GCPH), SCPHRP and GCPH have jointly funded a pilot study looking at the fast food environments surrounding five Glasgow secondary schools. A nutritional analysis was undertaken which compared the popular savoury items purchased by pupils at lunch time against the nutritional standards set for schools. Findings showed that over 80% of the samples tested did not comply with one or more of the nutrient standards (which include standards for fat, saturated fat and total energy content). If the findings from this ‘snapshot project’ are genuinely reflective of what pupils are buying on a daily basis it is clear that, as well as suffering the short term consequences of sub-optimal nutrition, there are likely to be adverse health consequences in the medium to longer term. The full final report will shortly be available and several key aspects of the results are in preparation for journal submission.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
10
c. Nairn Anticipatory Care Pilot ‘Extension Analysis, and Ramped-Up Trial SampleSize Preparation, for the Nairn ACP Pilot’s Effects on Institutionalization Outcomes’ project led by Dr Josie Evans and Dr Iain Atherton from the University of Stirling. The Nairn anticipatory care pilot was a complex intervention delivered in primary care in a single General Practice in Nairn, with a population of 10,860 patients. Its aim was to reduce the unplanned hospitalisations of frail, older patients. The intervention centred upon drawing up an anticipatory care plan, alongside other measures, and it was delivered to patients who were identified as being most at risk of the outcome using a computer algorithm. A recent paper by the lead GP, Dr Adrian Baker, and published in the British Journal of General Practice, describes how the intervention did indeed lead to reductions in unplanned hospital admissions. Josie and Iain have now been tasked to investigate whether the intervention had an effect on another important outcome: institutionalisation. Josie and Iain expect to complete the project by the end of the year.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
3. Participation as Co-Investigators in Major National Grant Applications In collaboration with Working Group members and others, three full grant applications were successful in attracting competitively awarded NIHR Public Health Research funding during this period. One proposal is currently in the review process(THRIVE: A controlled trial of a novel parenting intervention PI: Marion Henderson, MRC, SPHSU Glasgow)
a. Determining the Impact of Smoking Point of Sale Legislation Among Youth (DISPLAY) Study PI: Prof Sally Haw, University of Stirling
In collaboration with members of Adolescence and Young Adulthood Working Group and others, the (then) Senior Scientific Advisor led a team of experienced co-investigators, in the development a successful grant application to the NIHR Public Health Research programme. The study will assess the impact of measures in the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Act 2010 that will, in 2013 and 2015, ban ‘point of sale advertising’ and ‘proxy sales’ on the following outcomes: access to tobacco products, attitudes towards smoking and smoking behaviour in young people aged 12 to 17. This novel quasi-experimental evaluation will utilize the natural variation in pre-legislation availability of illegal or socially acquired tobacco, across six Scottish communities, to attempt to detect a doseresponse gradient in each of two phases of the impending legislation’s impact, thus strengthening the traditional before-after design, in terms of causal inference. The proposal was funded in June 2011. The SCPHRP Director is a co-investigator on this grant.
b. Social and Emotional Education and Development (SEED): a Stratified, Cluster Randomised Trial of a MultiComponent Primary School Intervention that Follows the Pupils’ Transition into Secondary School PIs: Danny Wight and Marion Henderson, MRC SPHSU Glasgow
In response to a call for bids from NIHR, Caroline Jackson and the Senior Scientific Advisor worked with members of Adolescence and Young Adulthood Working Group to develop and submit an outline proposal to evaluate the impact of a school-based programme, which aims to promote emotional and social wellbeing in primary school pupils. In February 2011, a full proposal was invited and this was submitted in early May 2011. The planned intervention combines elements from three promising programmes internationally: Growing Confidence, the Gatehouse Project and the Seattle Social Development Project (now known as Raising Healthy Children) and will be delivered to children in P2 and P6. The two cohorts will be followed up for three years. The primary outcome is pupils’ emotional and social wellbeing, measured annually using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire for three consecutive years. In addition, a range of other outcomes will be measured, including pupils’ attitudes to school and school academic performance. Risk-related behaviour in the P6 cohort will be assessed when they reach S2. The research team is working closely with Chris Scott from Dundee Education Department which has agreed to participate in the trial, and David Hawkins (Seattle Social Development Project) to help tailor the intervention to Scotland, and develop the linked in-service training package for teachers. More details can be found on the SEED website. (http://www. sphsu.mrc.ac.uk/research-programmes/sh/shvg/seedtr.html)
11
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
12
c. E-Health Grant to Build Capacity in Data Linkage for Scottish applied Public Health and Health Services Research Co-Investigators: John Frank and Ruth Jepson, SCPHRP
A highly successful national workshop on ‘Scottish Cross-Sectoral Record Linkage: Envisioning the Future’ was co hosted by the Collaboration in March 2011, and attracted 73 participants. Following this, and after further discussions with the Scottish Government’s Chief Statistician, an E-health grant proposal for £4million+ to build capacity for data linkage in applied public health and health services research, was coauthored by SCPHRP staff as part of the Scottish Health Informatics Programme (SHIP) Scientific Management Group. This proposal was one of four successful bids across the UK and will commence in January 2013. The Director and Senior Scientific Advisor are both cograntholders. E-Health Informatics Research Centres (E-HIRCs) initiative will create new high-energy health informatics research environments in London, North England, Scotland and Wales/SW England. Each will house together world-leading informatics scientists and engineers, experimental clinicians, NHS data experts, governance leaders and commercially-based IT companies, all ‘breathing the same air’ to add real value to one another’s science and outputs. Health informatics by its very nature is interdisciplinary, and to be successful requires real-time exchange of ideas and methods to advance knowledge for human health. This is in line with previous government policy directions, for example a key recommendation of the Genomic Medicine Report (House of Lords Science and Technology Committee, 2009), was to create a UK biomedical informatics Institute. In each of the four Centres we propose to establish physical Farr Institutes that bring together key people: • Academics from multiple disciplines: including clinician scientists, computer scientists, engineers, health informaticians, bioinformaticians,
epidemiologists, social scientists, ethicists and lawyers. This will, for the first time, allow convergence of the established discipline of bioinformatics with underinvested areas of medical and public health informatics. • NHS staff responsible for innovation in informatics (linking primary with secondary care approaches). • Industry (including IT, pharma, device) partners in substantive, and exchange, positions. • Doctoral and masters students embedded with academics and researchers to provide an immersive and supportive environment for training the next generation of health informaticians. • Public, to both listen to their views and ensure that knowledge is increased about how health informatics and electronic health records research is undertaken and its benefits to society. Through co-location at Centre physical sites, this inter-disciplinary mix of people will drive our Institute strategy and delivery of each of our shared objectives. These locations will be highly visible nationally and internationally and come to be seen as the ‘homes’ of next generation population-wide translational research built on data integration across clinical conditions, in primary and secondary care. The physical Centres will catalyse the development of: • Informatics infrastructure: These physical locations will support the safe haven physical infrastructure; environments for population-based research and statistical analysis in which the risk of identifying individuals is minimised. In these environments, data are linked and anonymised for research use. • Interdisciplinary research: Collaborative, world-class research, with accelerated impact on health and social care and public health, translating discoveries from data into clinical practice and patient benefit. • Capacity: the physical institutes will become magnets for recruiting outstanding staff and critical masses for national advancement in health informatics capacity so that we build an internationally competitive skills base. Outstanding teaching through multi-disciplinary postgraduate programmes in collaboration with Doctorial Training Centres. • Public engagement: transforming the relationship between clinician, patient and citizen, and their health data.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
13
d. The Scottish Longitudinal Survey of Ageing (THSLS) pilot (under review) The Collaboration has co-authored (with Professor David Bell of Stirling University as lead) an invited application to NIH-NIA for The Scottish Longitudinal Survey of Ageing (THSLS) pilot. Scotland is of considerable interest internationally in the field of older people’s health and social policy, due to its recent adoption of policies designed to improve universal access to various forms of community care, as opposed to institutional care, in later life: free personal care and free prescriptions past age 65; and the £300M Change Fund (2011-15) initiative to reduce emergency hospital and carehome admissions, and use the savings to improve home-based care (the evaluation of which involves the Director). There is great merit in developing a Scottish longitudinal study of ageing (there isn’t one) to allow valid comparisons between a Scottish cohort and existing longitudinal studies of ageing elsewhere (e.g.: ELSA (England), TILDA (Eire), NICOLA (Northern Ireland)). John Frank, SCPHRP Director is on a multidisciplinary team, led by economist David Bell (University of Stirling), which recently submitted an invited bid to the National Institute of Aging in the USA, to design and execute a pilot for THe Scottish Longitudinal Survey of ageing (THSLS) – scheduled to begin in 2013.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
14
4. Broader Policy-Advisory and Research-Advisory Activities The Director, Senior Scientific Advisor, and Fellows are also regularly asked to provide confidential expert review of internal government policy or programme documents, prior to their release, and/or to serve on advisory structures to the Scottish Government that relate to public health problems and their solution. During the period 2011 -2012 the following inputs are relevant.
John Frank: • Reviewer, Grants submitted to the Chief Scientist Office, and Scottish Funding Council (2009-present). • Member, Evaluation Group of the “Good Places, Better Health” project, funded by the Scottish Government to synthesize current global knowledge on the environmental influences on major children’s health problems such as obesity, asthma, mental health and well-being, and unintentional injuries (2010-present). • Reviewer, Universal Health Checks initiative (epidemiological aspects), including sample size and cost guidelines for a proposed SG call for proposals, for a very large proposed RCT of basic cardiovascular risk factor screening (2011-present). • Member, Triple P Parenting Intervention Trial Scientific Advisory Group to Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS Public Health (2011-present). • Member, Scottish Health Informatics Programme (SHIP) Scientific Management Group (2011-present). • Evaluation Advisor, £300m Scottish Government “Change Fund” initiative, to prevent emergency elderly admissions: novel design Lead (2011-present)
Sally Haw: • Member, Ministerial Working Group on Tobacco (2005 - present) • Member, Research Sub-group of Ministerial Working Group on Tobacco (2009 – present)
• Member, Health Scotland Scottish Prevention Action Plan Monitoring & Evaluation Group (SPAMEG) (2008 – present) • Member, Health Scotland Monitoring, Evaluation & Research Group on Alcohol (MERGA) (2008 – present)
Ruth Jepson: • Member, NICE Programme Development Group for Behaviour Change (2011-)
Rosemary Geddes: • Invited member of an expert committee, set up by the Scottish Government’s Children, Young People and Social Care Directorate, to plan for targeted spending in the early years in Scotland. On 18 August 2010 the group met and RG presented and explained the table (page 62 of report, Interventions for Promoting Early Child Development for Health) she had created to recommend an approach for provision of early years interventions. This resulted in the report The Financial Impact of Early Years Part 2, publishing the SCPHRP table, which is available at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/ Research/by-topic/children-and-young-people/ FinancialImpactPDF2 (2010 - 11) • Member of Scottish Government Early Years Taskforce Subgroup: Evidence Based Interventions (2012 -)
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
15
5. Other Scholarly Contributions by SCPHRP The Director, Senior Scientific Advisor and Fellows are frequent invited to: i) address academic/research, professional, and policy-maker audiences on the work of the Collaboration and on the nature of Scottish health status, and inequalities in health more generally; ii) sit on a number of national and international advisory and oversight bodies for public health research.
These activities together with publications, teaching and other scholarly are listed in Appendix D.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
16
6. Scphrp Training and Capacity-Building Activities As part of its core mandate, the Collaboration is charged with building Scottish capacity, over the long term, to develop and test novel public health programs and policies. Our activities in relation to this part of our mandate are described below.
In addition to the four Career Development Fellow posts already described, the Collaboration has formally been accredited as an accredited placement for SpR trainees working towards medical specialist qualifications within the Faculty of Public Health (UK). From February 2011, a trainee, Dr Tara Shivaji from Highlands NHS, is attached to SCPHRP for two days per week for one year. She is actively involved in phase 1 of the Early Development Instrument pilot study in East Lothian. Tara has been engaged in those phases of the project that involve qualitative research methods, critical appraisal and literature review. MRC-ESRC Post-Doctoral Fellowship: Novel Approaches to Understanding Research to Policy Processes in Public Health: Dr Katherine Smith, University of Edinburgh, received this highly competitive two-year award on the strength of her doctoral work and several influential papers based on it, some of which champion the novel use of “tracer” ideas by which the influence of any particular scientific body of evidence, or individual researcher, can be traced within policy contexts. As her secondary post-doc supervisor, with Prof. Richard Freeman at University of Edinburgh, where she is based as of January 2011, John Frank will participate in her mixed-methods studies of how various influences on public health policy come about, including via the efforts of this Collaboration in Scotland.
Jackie Nguyen, an MSc Global Health &
Anthropology student at the University of Edinburgh, whose interests include the social determinants of health, health inequalities, and policy responses, is working with the Collaboration’s Adolescent and Young People Working Group. Jackie is focusing on parenting interventions and youth engagement. Finally, in Spring 2011, to help increase a scientific absorptive capacity in Scottish public health they delivered a ten-hour CPD course: “Critical Appraisal for Public Health” to staff at SG Health Analytic Services and NHS Health Scotland, based on a successful pilot course first delivered to public health staff at NHS Lothian in 2010. The course was very well attended and has had high approval ratings from participants. The programme core syllabus is given in Appendix E.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
17 7. SCPHRP Planning for Future Activities During this period we have had extensive discussions with advisors and stakeholders about the most fruitful strategic direction for the Collaboration to take in its 2012-13 renewal bid proposal to its funders for a second five-year tranche of funding. These discussions built on the findings of a stakeholder consultation which we conducted in early 2011; on the logic model and draft indicators which we have developed; and on the insights generated through the material collected through the extensive MRC e-Val database which we have completed on an annual basis since 2010. An approach to the SCPHRP Vision for 2013-18 was developed by staff and reviewed by the Advisory Council in 2011-12, and a seminar on ‘Reflections and Next Steps’ was hosted by the Collaboration in November 2011 which is described in detail in Section A as well as Joint Working group planning meeting in May 2012 in Section B.
A. Reflections and Next Steps for SCPHRP On November 21, 2011, SCPHRP hosted a “REFLECTIONS AND NEXT STEPS” meeting of our Working Group members, grantees and other collaborators, in Edinburgh. This meeting was planned as an opportunity to collectively reflect on the first three years of the Collaboration’s operations, and to plan our future. Attached in Appendix A2 is the agenda for the day. About 80 persons attended, representing a wide range of stakeholder organizations, professions, and roles in Scotland’s public health system and research communities. The occasion was intended to serve two related purposes. First, we wanted attendees to provide input on specific future objectives for the Collaboration, and on how best to organize itself and its Working Groups to achieve them. This input has since been utilized to help SCPHRP staff draft a Renewal Bid to our funders MRC and CSO, for a second half-decade of funding, 2013-18. Secondly, November 21st was viewed as a special opportunity for creative interaction between SCPHRP stakeholders who come from policy, programme and practice backgrounds, and those from the applied public health research community, across Scotland, to discuss mutual topics of interest and potential future collaborations.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
18
Summary of Discussions Optimum future plan for SCPHRP Working Groups
Importance of continuing seed and pilot/ demonstration grants
The general consensus in all of the breakout groups was that the life course Working Groups, should remain; there was discussion of the following issues: • An additional, overarching group (or some other vehicle) could be created to provide better links between the Working Groups (for example, around health inequalities) • Smaller more topic-focused groups could be set up in addition to the main WGs, in line with emerging new SG policies. • The merits were discussed of short-term topicfocused WGs, versus groups that maintain a focus on the longer-term issues. The consensus was that a balance was needed.
There was consensus that soliciting and funding seed and pilot/demonstration grants from WG members and their colleagues has been one of the key roles of the SCPHRP. [Subsequent discussions with SCPHRP funders, CSO and MRC, have revealed that they would strongly prefer future seed/pilot grants to be applied for and issued via established CSO granting procedures, but that SCPHRP and its WGs should have a key role in nurturing such CSO grant applications.] SCPHRP successfully performs a facilitator role, bringing together people from research, practice and policy, and promoting more interdisciplinary/trans-disciplinary evaluative research.
Recommendations
Recommendations
1. Continue existing Working Group model but broaden membership to include relevant stakeholders from third sector and local authorities, perhaps encouraging WG members to contribute to discussions on-line. 2. Focus on over-arching “big questions” rather than working purely inside stages of the lifecourse per se (e.g. the underlying reasons behind the ‘Scottish effect’ mortality gap, and the persisting large inequalities in health by SES in Scotland).
Continue with facilitating the funding by external agencies (e.g. CSO) of seed and pilot demonstration grants, ensuring that project collaborators come from policy and practice, as well as from researcher communities.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
19
Best model for post-doctoral training
Definitions of the SCPHRP niche
Stakeholder opinions varied over the new SCPHRP outline-proposal, presented on November 21st, for a new programme of part-time CPD (Continuing Professional Development) training of selected NHS public health professional staff to improve research literacy skills. Questions were raised over who exactly should be eligible /targeted for this training. It was felt that training needed to be at the “front line” operational level as well as the managerial level, engaging public health practitioners in organisations broader than just the NHS. SCPHRP’s added value was thought to focus on the knowledge translation component of CPD, rather than all elements of research literacy. However, SCPHRP resource levels and the preference of its funders (MRC and CSO) -- to focus instead on training for future full-time researchers -- will mean that expanding this role will rely on partnership with other organisations.
The unique role of SCPHRP was discussed, in terms of how it should clearly define its niche. For example, in terms of data linkage activities, In a difficult resource climate, NHS-Scotland’s Information and Statistics Division (ISD) has concentrated its efforts recently on minimising the impact of forthcoming cuts and writing large-scale grant applications in house, such as the current ‘Burden of Disease’ study application. SCPHRP, on the other hand, has deliberately played a largely facilitative role, linking existing record-linkage expertise, such as SHIP/ISD, with a broader set of interested researchers and policy-makers.
Recommendations Further discussion is required to determine SCPHRP’s a role – likely as a partner rather than major player - in offering CPD-type or part-time Fellowships training.
Groups discussed potential overlap between SCPHRP activities and those of other organisations such as NHS Health Scotland, which is particularly strong in knowledge synthesis and programme/ policy evaluation. However, it was commented that SCPHRP was currently the only venue which provided academic researchers with easy contact with policy makers and service providers, and viceversa. Suggestions for positioning SCPHRP in the future included: • Support change of culture in local public health settings where evidence-based practises have not always been part of their original training. • Use WGs to bring people from different organisations together to generate new ideas for interventions. • Apply knowledge transfer and exchange principles to improve implementation and evaluation of evidence- based policies.
Recommendations SCPHRP needs to further develop and refine its precise niche in Scotland. Some overlap with other organisations is inevitable, but there need to be some distinct and unique features of this role, based on SCPHRP success to date.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
20
Partnering with other key stakeholders • The Research Development Groups of the DECIPHer Centre in Wales, as described by Laurence Moore, were thought to be a good model, although the 90 such groups which are apparently active there implied much greater resources than are currently available to SCPHRP. • Additional partnerships, e.g. with Public Health Network in Scotland, could better connect SCPHRP with various other stakeholder groups. • A need to widen membership was discussed, for example, to include relevant staff in Local Authorities and Third Sector organisations. [Although current SCPHRP resources could not cope with such a major expansion of role, perhaps partnering with other organizations could help build these links.]
Recommendations SCPHRP needs to seek partnerships and resources to include more NHS and non-NHS partners involved in development or delivery of public health services and interventions.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
21
B. Joint SCPHRP Working Group Meeting (May 2012) This was the first-ever Joint Meeting of our Working Groups. This meeting was the first formal interaction of our Working Groups since they each held a series of four separate meetings over two years, ending in late 2010. The main goal of the May 23rd meeting was to allow Working Group members, old and new, to deliberate together their priorities for proposed collaborative activity, within and cross the Groups, over the next few years. This meeting welcomed new WG members, and was open not only to previous WG members, grantees and other collaborators, but also to public health researchers and professionals involved in the delivery of services, as well as policy makers, throughout Scotland. May 23rd provided an opportunity to discuss with other Collaboration stakeholders the SCPHRP Working Groups’ future substantive foci, modus operandi, and ideas for resourcing their work together.
for more detailed minutes please go to https://www.scphrp.ac.uk/node/317
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
22
Appendix
Appendix A1:
Dissemination Activities and Publications based on the Environmental Scans
Appendix A2:
Agenda for Reflections event November 2011
Appendix A3:
Agenda for Joint Working Group planning meeting May 2012
Appendix B:
Reports of seed funded projects initiated in 2010 which completed in 2011
Appendix C:
Descriptions of seed funded projects initiated in 2011
Appendix D:
Summary of Scholarly Contributions (April 2011 – March 2012) John Frank Ruth Jepson MRC/CSO career development fellows
Appendix E: Appendix F:
SCPHRP CPD materials
Public lectures and seminars hosted by SCPHRP
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
23
Appendix A1: Dissemination Activities and
Publications Based on the Environmental Scans scan: 1 Environmental Interventions for promoting early child development for health
Publications
• Geddes R, Frank J, Haw S. A rapid review of key strategies to improve the cognitive and social development of children in Scotland. Health Policy. 2011 Jun; 101(1): 20-28.
Dissemination Activities Academic Audiences
• Rosemary Geddes Presentation: Evidence for Community Action: the Early Development Instrument pilot in Scotland. International Society for the Study of Behavioural Development Conference, Edmonton, Canada, 8-12 July 2012. [Joint symposium with academics from Ireland, Brazil, Malaysia, Canada and Australia] • Rosemary Geddes Presentation: Challenges to implementation of population-level measurement of child development: The Early Development Instrument pilot in Scotland. MRC Population Health Sciences Research Network &UKCRC Public Health Research Centres of Excellence’s Public Health Research - Methods and Challenges Conference, Birmingham, UK, 2426 April 2012. • Rosemary Geddes Presentation: Measuring Early Child Development: the Early Development Instrument pilot in Scotland. Faculty of Public Health Conference, Aviemore, Scotland, November 2011. Non-Academic Audiences • 28 June 2011: Scottish Government and GUS (Growing Up in Scotland) event - ‘Supporting
parents to be all they can be- using Scottish evidence to influence Scottish solutions for supporting parents’ - Rosemary Geddes “Measuring effectiveness of early childhood interventions”. Attended by SG staff, public health practitioners, voluntary sector workers and others, see http://www.crfr.ac.uk/gus/ events.html • 26 September 2011: Scottish Government CPD session – Rosemary Geddes “Measuring early child development”. Attended by SG staff including economists, civil servants and others • 24 October 2011: Rosemary Geddes Trained 68 P1 school teachers in use of a child development tool, for the Early Development Instrument pilot – training included presenting scientific evidence of early childhood brain development, and interventions which could influence development. • 7 February 2012 Support from the Start “Healthy Happy Bairns” Conference , Musselburgh, Scotland. Key speaker “Early year’s development in East Lothian Communities”. See http:// edubuzz.org/equallywell/2011/09/21/healthyhappy-bairns-the-conference/ • 31 May 2012 East Lothian Head Teachers Conference , Prestonpans, Scotland. Rosemary Geddes, Key speaker “Early Development Instrument: Preliminary results of the East Lothian Pilot”, attended by 35 head teachers from East Lothian, educational psychologists, East Lothian council CEO and Head of Department of Education and Children’s Services and other education and health practitioners.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
24
scan: 2 Environmental Adolescent and young adult health in Scotland
Publications
• Jackson C, Geddes R, Haw S, Frank J. Interventions to prevent substance use and risky sexual behaviour in young people: a systematic review. Addiction. 2012 Apr;107(4):733-47. • Jackson C, Geddes R, Haw S, Frank JW. A systematic review of interventions to prevent or reduce substance use and sexual risk behaviour in young people Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 2011; 65: Suppl 1 pA427.
Dissemination Activities Non-Academic Audiences
SCPHRP Event: Adolescent Health and Risk Behaviours Symposium: Policy, Research and Practice https://www.scphrp.ac.uk/node/280
scan: Policy 3 Environmental interventions to tackle the obesogenic environment: focusing on adults of working age in Scotland
Dissemination Activities
Satellite NICE Meeting May 2011: John Mooney: Conducting a rapid review of Obesity Interventions using the ANGELO Framework.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
25
scan: Review 4 Environmental of interventions to promote health and wellbeing and prevent disablement in older people
Publications
• Frost H, Haw SJ, Frank J. Interventions in community settings that prevent or delay disablement in later life: an overview of the evidence. Quality in Ageing and Older Adults. 2012 13[3], 212-230. • Frost H, Geddes R, Jackson CA, Mooney JD, Haw SJ, Jepson R, Frank J. Experiences of knowledge brokering for evidence-informed public health policy and practice: three years of the Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy. Evidence & Policy 2012; 8[3], 347-359. • Frost H, Haw SJ, Frank J. Interventions in community settings that prevent or delay disablement in later life: an overview of the evidence. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity. 2012; Vol 20, S229. • Frost H, Haw S, Frank J. Promoting health and well-being in older people. Interventions in primary care and community settings. www. scphrp.ac.uk 2011 • Frost H, Haw S, Frank J. Interventions in community settings that prevent or delay disablement and promote healthy ageing in later life. Age and Ageing 2011 Vol 40; suppl (2) ii-28.
Dissemination Activities Academic Audiences
• Helen Frost Invited speaker. GCU Research Institutes Seminar Series – October 2011 Unpicking the evidence behind interventions to prevent or delay disablement in later life • Helen Frost Invited speaker NIHR Age and Ageing Specialty Group meeting, Dundee, January 2012. Presenting evidence for prevention of functional decline in later life. • British Geriatric Society, Liverpool, UK, May 2011. Helen Frost: Promoting Health and Wellbeing in Later Life. Population Health methods and Challenges Conference 24th – 26th April 2012 • World Congress for Active Ageing, Glasgow August 2012. Helen Frost: Interventions in community settings that prevent or delay disablement and promote healthy ageing in later life
Non-Academic Audiences
• Helen Frost: Presentation at World Congress for Active Ageing, Glasgow August 2012 specifically aimed at stakeholders including lay people and policy makers • Helen Frost: Invited speaker. Presentation of review of Interventions in Primary Care and Community Settings to NHS staff working in care of older , Royal Victoria Hospital, Dundee, April 2011
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
26
Appendix A2: Agenda for Reflections Event November 2011
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
27
Appendix A3:
Invitation to the Joint Working Group Planning Meeting May 2012
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
28
Appendix A3:
Agenda for the Joint Working Group Planning Meeting May 2012 cont..
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
29
Appendix B:
Reports of Seed Funded Projects Initiated in 2010 which Completed in 2011
 
Institution
Principle Investigator
Project Title
Funding period
General Practice and Primary Care, University of Glasgow
Dr Phil Wilson
Setting up data linkage systems for children in Glasgow
June 2010 - June 2011
University of Stirling
Professor Sally Wyke
Preventing or delaying disablement amongst older adults: mapping the Scottish landscape to identify promising programmes
April 2010 - December 2010
University of Aberdeen
Professor Anne Ludbrook
Feasibility Study of Use of Direct Payments for Informal Care
April 2010 - March 2011
Glasgow Centre for Population Health
Bruce Whyte
Investigation of observed April 2010 - March 2011 increases in breastfeeding rates in deprived areas
University of Dundee
Professor Peter Donnan
Development of a Risk March 2010 - February Prediction tool for 2011 entering a Nursing Home in those aged 65 and over in a Scottish Population
MRC/CSO Social & Public Health Sciences Unit
Professor Lyndal Bond
Whole School interventions addressing multiple adolescent risk behaviours in Scotland: a feasibility study
February 2010 December 2010
University of St Andrews
Professor Peter Donnelly
Youth male violence in Scotland: Understanding antecedents
January 2010 - July 2011
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
Appendix C:
Descriptions of Seed Funded Projects Initiated in 2011 Institution
Principle investigator Project title
Funding period
Institute for Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow
Professor Sally Wyke
Enabling health and wellbeing among older people: capitalising on resources in deprived areas through general practice
February 2012 March 2013
University of Glasgow
Professor Jill Pell
Impact of health interventions January 2012 on educational outcomes: an December 2012 exemplar study of the management of breech infants
University of Dundee
Professor Annie S. Anderson
Feasibility trial of a Price Incentive Intervention to promote the uptake of healthy eating options in workplace canteens in Scotland
January 2012 September 2012
University of Edinburgh
Dr Niamh Shortt
Youth Tobacco and alcohol environments in Scotland and the relationships with risky behaviours
January 2012 March 2013
Glasgow Centre for Population Health
Mr Bruce Whyte
Infant feeding in Scotland: exploring the influence of hospital on infant feeding choices (within Glasgow) and the potential health and economic benefits of breastfeeding on child health
January 2012 December 2012
University of Dundee
Dr Miles D Witham
Combining Health, Social Services and Functional data for older people in Tayside – a multisource, interdisciplinary record linkage project
December 2011 November 2012
University of Glasgow
Professor Ewan Macdonald OBE
Reducing sickness absence in Scotland – applying the lessons from a pilot NHS intervention
December 2011 March 2013
University of Glasgow
Dr Phil Wilson
Antenatal parenting support for women vulnerable in pregnancy: an exploratory randomised controlled trial of Mellow Bumps
November 2011 March 2013
30
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
Appendix D:
Summary of Scholarly Contributions (April 2011 – March 2012) John Frank Publications (2011-12) Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles: 1. Smith P, Bielecky A, Frank JW. Commentary: Intervention research on working conditions and mental health: persistent challenges, new directions, and opportunities to integrate research agendas. Health Care Papers 2011; VII (Sept): 67-72. 2. Griffith LE, Shannon HS, Wells RP, Walter SD, Cole DC, Cote P, Frank J, Hogg-Johnson S, Langlois L. Individual participant data (IPD) of mechanical workplace risk factors and low back pain with assessment of confounding and heterogeneity of effect measures. American Journal of Public Health 2012; 12(2): 309-318. 3. Frank JW, Haw S. Best-Practice Guidelines for Monitoring Socioeconomic Inequalities in Health Status: Lessons from Scotland. The Milbank Quarterly 2011; 89(4):658-93. 4. Frost H, Haw S, Frank J. Interventions in community settings that prevent or delay disablement and promote healthy ageing in later life. Age and Ageing 2011; 40 suppl (2): ii-28. 5. Jackson CA, Henderson M, Frank J, Haw S. Prevention of multiple risk behaviour in adolescence and young adulthood. Journal of Public Health 2012; 34(S1): i31 – i40. 6. Jackson C, Geddes R, Haw S, Frank J. Interventions to prevent multiple risk behaviour in young people: a systematic review. Addiction 2012; doi:10.1111/j.1360-0443.2011.03751.x.
7. Urquia M, Moineddin R, Frank JW. A mixture model to correct misclassification of gestational age. Annals of Epidemiology 2012; 22:151-159.
8. Frost H, Haw S, Frank JW. Interventions in community settings that prevent or delay
disablement in later life: An overview of the evidence (In press, Quality in Ageing and Older Adults, 2012).
9. Frost H, Geddes R, Haw S, Jackson C, Jepson R, Mooney J, Frank JW. Experiences of knowledge brokering for evidence-informed public health, policy and practice: three years of the Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy. (In press, Evidence and Policy, September, 2012).
Additional papers by SCPHRP trainees acknowledging JWF’s contribution as mentor: Jackson CA, Sweeting H, Haw S. Clustering of substance use and sexual risk behaviour in adolescence: analysis of two cohort studies. (In press, BMJ Open, 2012).
Non-peer-reviewed Papers and Reports: 1. Haw S, Frank JW, Geddes R, et al. Our Health in the Future: Effective interventions to reduce the future burden of disease. In: Annual Report of the Director of Public Health, NHS Lothian (2011). Edinburgh: NHS Lothian. 2. Frank JW. Invited Commentary for Special Issue on Public Health Intervention Research. Accepted for publication, Can J Public Health, 2012
31
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
32
Books, Monographs and Chapters (* = peer-reviewed):
Frank JW, Jepson R. High-Risk Versus Population Prevention Strategies For Chronic Disease: Geoffrey Rose Revisited In The 21st Century. In: McQueen, D. (ed) Global Handbook on Non- communicable Disease and Health Promotion. Accepted for publication, Springer, 2012.*
Published as Working Paper/Submitted/ In Progress:
1. Cowcroft NS, Hamid JS, Deeks S, Frank J. Human papilloma virus vaccination programs reduce health inequity in most scenarios. (Submitted, July 2012). 2. Mooney J, Jepson R, Haw S, Frank JW. Policy prioritisation for obesity prevention: an evidence synthesis. Journal of Public Health Policy. (Submitted, March 2012, with revision encouraged and underway).
Courses Taught: 2011-12
Guest lecturer (total of FOUR lectures annually) to: a) MSc Programs in Global Health, Public Policy, Health Inequalities, and Health Systems; b) international visitors (Rwanda), and c) undergraduates in Geography – all at the University of Edinburgh
2011
Guest lecturer (three half-days): MPH students, University of Crete (Heraklion): The Bio-PsychoSocial Determinants of Health; Pitfalls and Tips (see below); Critical Appraisal of an RCT of Screening (PSA Testing for Prostate Cancer)
2011-12
Guest lecturer (half-day annually): The Bio-PsychoSocial Determinants of Health – An Overview; Pitfalls and Tips (see below) to International Health Summer School post-graduate trainees from developing countries – University of Dundee
2011
Pitfalls and Tips in Interpreting Measures of Population Health Status: designed/taught second half-day CPD session for nearly forty SG policy analysts and public health professionals.
Supervisorships:
January 2011- June 2012: MRC-ESRC Post-Doctoral Fellow Katherine Smith (based at the University of Edinburgh) – Topic: Novel Approaches to Understanding Research to Policy Processes in Public Health January 2011- June 2012 (Part-time): Specialist Registrar Dr. Tara Shivaji – Topic: Adapting the Early Development Instrument to Scotland (Qualitative Teacher Pilot Sub-Study, Assistance with Full Pilot, and Design of Follow-Up Participatory Action Research Study with East Lothian Community) Mid-2009 to mid- 2012 (precise dates vary): Four SCPHRP Career Development Fellows (Year 3): see website: www.scphrp.ac.uk
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
33
Invited Scholarly Presentations (2011-12):
1. Invited Speaker, Annual Conference of Canadian Public Health Association, Montreal, June 2011.” Current Challenges and Future Prospects in Public Health” 2. Invited Plenary Address, North American Congress of Epidemiology, Montreal, June 2011. “Monitoring Health Inequalities by SES: Lessons from Scotland”. 3. Invited Speaker, Scottish Cardiovascular Disease Policy Model Workshop, Edinburgh, August 2011: “When Would a Population Approach to CVD Work Best and Why? Geoffrey Rose Revisited.” 4. Invited Keynote Speaker, Education Scotland Continuing Professional Education Conference, Glasgow, August 2011. “Achieving Our Potential: Making the Health Connection.” 5. Invited Keynote Speaker, Public Health Improvement Research Network Conference , Toronto, September 2011. “Monitoring Health Inequalities by SES: Lessons from Scotland.” 6. Invited Speaker, Institute for Health and Social Policy, McGill University, Montreal, November 2011. “Monitoring Health Inequalities by SES: Lessons from Scotland.” 7. Invited Speaker, Seminar Series, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Centre Hospitalier, Universite de Vaud, Lausanne, Switzerland, November 2011. “Monitoring Health Inequalities by SES: Lessons from Scotland. 8. Invited Speaker, Queen Mary University and Barts Medical School, London, December 2011. “Monitoring Health Inequalities by SES: Lessons from Scotland.”
9. Invited Speaker, Scottish School of Public Health Research Launch, March 2012. “Welcome from the Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy.” 10. Invited Speaker, Best Brains Event - Sponsored by CIHR Institute of Population and Public Health, Toronto, March 2012. “Public Health Reform in England: What Can We Learn from It?” 11. Invited Speaker, Centre for Research on Inner City Health (CRICH) Seminar, Toronto, March 2012. “Monitoring Health Inequalities by SES: Lessons from Scotland.” 12. Keynote Speaker, Conference in Public Health Interventions Research hosted by CDC Atlanta and Canadian Institutes of Health Research - Institute of Population and Public Health (CIHR- IPPH), Montreal, March 2012. “High-Level Policy Interventions Are Sometimes Critical to Improving the Health of the Public.” 13. Invited Speaker, International Data Linkage Conference, Perth, Australia, May 2012. “How Much Does Fine-Grained Ecological Assessment of SES Attenuate Gradients in Health?” 14. Invited Speaker, Swiss School of Public Health Workshop: Taking Action Against Health Inequalities, Bern, June 2012. “Geoffrey Rose Revisited: Population-Level Strategies in Prevention Reduce Health Inequalities Best (but sometimes no one’s listening).”
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
34
Ruth Jepson Peer reviewed publications 1. Robertson R, Robertson A, Jepson RG, Maxwell M. Walking as a treatment for people with depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis. 2012 Mental health and Physical Activity http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j. mhpa.2012.03.002 2. Shepherd A, Jepson RG, Watterston A, Evans J. Risk perceptions of Environmental Hazards and Human Reproduction: A Community Based Survey. vol. 2012, Article ID 748080, 2012. doi:10.5402/2012/748080. 3. Robertson R, Jepson R, Shepherd A, McInnes R. Recommendations by Queensland general practitioners to be more physically active: which patients, how many and are they receptive to the advice? Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health 2011 DOI: 10.1111/j.17536405.2011.00779.x 4. Entwistle VA, France EF, Wyke S, Jepson R, Hunt K, Ziebland S, Thompson A. How information about other people’s personal experiences can help with healthcare decision-making: a qualitative study. Patient Education and Counseling 2011 Jun 6. 5. Ring N, Jepson R, Ritchie K. Methods of synthesising qualitative research studies for Health Technology Assessment. International Journal of Health Technology Assessment. 2011 Oct;27(4):384-90. 6. Ring N, Jepson R, Hoskins G, Wilson C, Pinnock H, Sheikh A, Wyke S. Asthma plans: Understanding what we mean. Linguistic analysis of terminology as used in published texts. Primary Care Respiratory Journal 2011 http://www.thepcrj. org/journ/aop/pcrj-2010-01-0006-R2.pdf
7. Ring N, Jepson R, Hoskins G, Wilson C, Pinnock H, Sheikh A, Wyke S. Understanding what helps or hinders asthma action plan use: a systematic review and synthesis of the qualitative literature. Patient Education and Counseling. 2011 doi:10.1016/j.pec.2011.01.025 8. Everett T, Bryant A, Griffin MF, Martin-Hirsch PPL, Forbes CA, Jepson RG. Interventions targeted at women to encourage the uptake of cervical screening. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2011, Issue 5. Art. No.: CD002834. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD002834. pub2.
Published reports: 1. Watterson A, Doi L, Gray C, Jepson R, Tyler A, Mackison D, Wakeford T, Young J. International Literature Review to Support the Development of a Health and Environmental Sustainability Framework for Scotland. Funder: Scottish Government. 2011 www.scotland.gov.uk/ Publications/2011/12/21144556/7 2. Jepson RG, Doi L, Robertson, R,. Audit of Exercise referral schemes, phase II. 2011. Edinburgh, NHS Health Scotland. 3. Ring N, Ritchie K, Jepson R. A guide to synthesising qualitative research for researchers undertaking health technology assessments and systematic reviews. 2011 Glasgow. QIS 4. Wyke S, Ziebland S, Entwistle V, Thompson A, Hunt K, Jepson R. Information for choice: what people need, prefer and use. 2011 NHS Service, Delivery and Organisation Research Programme. http://www.sdo.nihr.ac.uk/projdetails. php?ref=08-1710-153
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
35
Supervision PhD students 1. Sejlo Koshoedo (University of Aberdeen): Physical Activity among Black Minority Ethnic Groups Supervisors: D Mags Watson, Dr Ruth Jepson 2. Di Blackmore (commenced 2010): Exploring the health effects of horticulture and gardening on general and vulnerable populations. Supervisors: Dr Ruth Jepson (principal), Ms Fiona Thackeray (Trellis) 3. Margaret Edwards (commenced October 2008): Confidence in breast feeding initiation Supervisors: Dr Ruth Jepson (principal), Dr Rhona McInnes, Professor Andrew Watterson 4. Mhairi Simpson (Clin Doc, commenced 2006): Exploring the experiences of carers of people with lung cancer Supervisors: Dr Ruth Jepson (principal), Ms Sandra Menzies, Dr Carol Bugge 5. Lawrence Doi (completed 2012): Alcohol consumption and alcohol brief interventions in pregnancy Supervisors: Dr Ruth Jepson (principal), Dr Helen Cheyne, and Professor Sally Wyke 6. Nicola Ring (completed 2013, PhD by publication) : A critical analysis of evidence based practice in nursing Supervisors: Mr John Paley (principal), Dr Ruth Jepson (second)
Grants 1. Jepson RG, Thackeray F. Investigating the health effects of therapeutic gardening. Funder: University of Stirling (PhD studentship) £52,668 (current, 2010-2013). 2. Hughes A, Gilinsky A, McInnes R, Jepson R. A qualitative study to explore the experiences of postnatal women participating in a physical activity intervention: Process evaluation of the More Active MuMs in Stirling (MAMMiS) study. Funder: CSO. £43,169 (2011-12) 3. Bowes A, Jepson R, McCabe L. Physical activity for people with dementia (a realist synthesis). Funder: CSO. £48,190 (2010-2011) 4. Jepson RG, Doi L, Robertson, R,. Audit of Exercise referral schemes Phase 2. Funder: NHS Health Scotland. £9980 (2010-2011) 5. Shepherd A, Jepson RG, McInnes R. Evaluation of a midwife led walking intervention for pregnant women. Funder: Paths to Health & University of Stirling. £5000. (March 2010-Sept 2011) 6. Watterson A, Doi L, Gray C, Jepson R, Tyler A, Mackison D, Wakeford T, Young J. International Literature Review to Support the Development of a Health and Environmental Sustainability Framework for Scotland. Funder: Scottish Government. £25,000 (2010-11) 7. Ring N, Wilson C, Jepson R, Hoskins G, Pinnock H, Sheikh A, Wyke S. Assessing the appropriateness and accountability of a new multi-level taxonomy of asthma care plans. Funder: QIS £25,000 (current 2011-12)
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
36
Invited presentations:
Courses taught:
1. British Society of Gerontology (BSG) Scotland Symposium: Keeping Fit in Later Life. March 2012 Glasgow. Title of presentation: The evidence for physical activity and depression.
Co-ordinator for MRes module NURP20 (The Practice of Health Research 1) 2010-2011
2. Evaluation of ABIs in the non-health settings. Dunblane Hydro. May 2012 Multiple presentations. 3. Adolescent Health and Risk Behaviours Symposium, February 2012, Edinburgh. Title of presentation. Adolescent risk behaviour 4. Wellbeing in Sexual Health (WISH) Conference, Scotland January 2012. Title of presentation: The learning from US based youth development programmes 5. Trellis National Conference, Perth 2011. Title of presentation: The story so far. Workshop presented by Di Blackmore (PhD student) and Ruth Jepson 6. Scottish network for the generation and exchange of knowledge in evidence synthesis. Glasgow 2011. Title of presentation: Methods of synthesising qualitative evidence. Nicola Ring and Ruth Jepson
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
37
MRC/CSO Career Development Fellows Publications (2011-12) Peer-reviewed journal articles: 1. Frost H, Geddes R, Haw S, Jackson C, Jepson R, Mooney JD, Frank J. Experiences of knowledge brokering for evidence-informed public health policy and practice: three years of the Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy. Evidence & Policy. 2012 Aug; 8(3): 347359. 2. Geddes R, Giddy J, Butler LM, Van Wyk E, Crankshaw T, Esterhuizen TM, Knight S. Dual and triple therapy to prevent motherto-child transmission of HIV in a resourcelimited setting - lessons from a South African programme. S Afr Med J. 2011 Sep 5;101(9):651-4. 3. Geddes R, Frank J, Haw S. A rapid review of key strategies to improve the cognitive and social development of children in Scotland. Health Policy. 2011 Jun; 101(1): 20-28. 4. Frost H, Haw SJ, Frank J. Interventions in community settings that prevent or delay disablement in later life: an overview of the evidence. Quality in Ageing and Older Adults. 2012 13[3], 212-230. 5. Haw SJ, Frank JW, Frost H, Geddes RV, Jackson CA, Mooney JD. Public health programme and policy options for improving health equitably. J R Coll Physicians EDinb. 2011 Mar: 41 (1): 3-4.
Conference abstracts: 1. Jackson C, Geddes R, Haw S, Frank JW. A systematic review of interventions to prevent or reduce substance use and sexual risk behaviour in young people Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 2011; 65: Suppl 1 pA427. 2. Rosemary Geddes Poster: Use of complex regimens for prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV in a resource-limited setting: outcomes and lessons learnt as a programme evolved. 6th International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention in Rome, Italy, 1720 July 2011. 3. Presentation and workshop: Knowledge Exchange (KE) and the Equitable Improvement of Population Health: Challenges and opportunities. FUSE Knowledge Exchange in Public Health Conference, Durham, April 2011 4. Frost H. Haw S and Frank J. Interventions in community settings that prevent or delay disablement and promote healthy ageing in later life. World Congress for Active Ageing, Glasgow August 2012.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
38
Conference abstracts cont..
Teaching
1. Frost H, Haw S and Frank J Promoting Health and Wellbeing in Later Life. Population Health Methods and Challenges Conference, Birmingham , April 2012
1. Mooney J, Session lecturer on Dundee University Medical School Second Year Module: Obesity: Aetiology, Comorbidities and prevention. February 2012.
2. Frost H, Haw S and Frank J Promoting Health and Wellbeing in Later Life. An overview of the evidence. British Geriatric Society, Liverpool, UK, May 2011. (Best presentation prize)
2. Mooney J, Frost H, Jackson C, Geddes R Assistant tutor on critical appraisal teaching sessions organised for staff at Lothian Public Health, SG Health Analytic Services and NHS Health Scotland (Epidemiology for Public Health, Aspects of Study Design and Measuring Health Inequalities) [May/June 2010- March/April 2011].
3. Evidence into policy: Three years of the Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy at Public Health Research - Methods and Challenges:, Birmingham International Conference Centre. 4. Satellite NICE Meeting May 2011: Conducting a rapid review of Obesity Interventions using the ANGELO Framework. 5. Nov 2011 Scottish Faculty of Public Health conference at Aviemore: Policy interventions to tackle the obesogenic environment: a prioritisation framework for Scotland.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
39
Appendix E: SCPHRP CPD Materials: ‘Critical Appraisal for Public Health’ Course Outline
Developed and presented by John Frank and Sally Haw and Career Development Fellows, Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy: john.frank@ed.ac.uk/ s.j.haw@stir. ac.uk Background and Rationale: Public Health
professionals internationally are being asked by their employers and professional organizations to engage in increased continuing personal development activities, including those that build skills in assessing scientific evidence that should inform policies, programs and practice. In recognition of this need, the Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy, a small unit in Edinburgh funded by the MRC and Chief Scientist Office for Scotland (www.scphrp.ac.uk), is offering a brand new course in critical appraisal for public health, which focuses not on the usual clinical epidemiological approach to critically appraising quantitative scientific studies, but rather a public health approach. This course is intended for those public health professionals who have never had critical appraisal training, or only had the usual clinically oriented epidemiological training (which is typically provided internationally to all physicians and nurses in current undergraduate or post-graduate training, as well as to some public health Masters-level students.)
Format and Prerequisites: The core
course has four sessions, held over a number of weeks usually billed as a continuing professional development offering for professional staff in public health decision-making roles. While the course can be appreciated by staff with no prior preparation in epidemiology, those with at least one prior course – usually at the Masters level -will benefit the most.
Time Requirements: Typically four 90-minute sessions, not less than a half-week apart, to facilitate one to two hours of learner preparation required for each session, in order that the learners get the most out of the course.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
40
Format: Each session, the course will be based
on three parts of a critical appraisal package – one package each session, covering a particular type of epidemiological/health-economic research study, widely used as evidence in public health decisionmaking (see course outline, below.) Each participant will be expected to have read the three documents: 1. A one-to-two-page form, composed of key “Critical Appraisal Questions,” and space for the learner to fill in short answers to each, based on quality-assessment criteria widely used internationally in the peer-reviewed literature, to be applied to studies of the specific type being covered in that session; 2. For sessions requiring it, a short “Users’ Guide” (sometimes in the form of a published paper) to applying the Questions, which explains in detail what they mean, and gives examples of what sorts of flaws are commonly found in published studies of this kind; 1. ONE carefully selected public health study of this kind, from the peer-reviewed global literature, addressing a current public health controversy, to which the learner can apply the questions.
Consequently, each session will require a commitment from participants not only to attend, but also to do one to two hours of preparatory work, since each session is best taught by having participants informally present, in small tutor-led groups, their own answers to the critical appraisal questions, followed by small group discussion. [Since there is a brief introductory slide presentation but no lecture per se, learners do not get very much out of attending if they have not taken time beforehand to read the materials, and attempted to answer the critical appraisal questions for the selected paper.] The course was piloted in Lothian Public Health, with about a dozen learners, in the spring of 2010, in the hopes that it could be rolled out to other NHS Boards and SG public health professional staff, if there is wider interest, perhaps with some Lothian participants as trainers. It was offered a second term, in early 2011, to about 30 employees of NHS Health Scotland and SG Health Analytical Services.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
41
Detailed Course Outline:The topics covered,
and the carefully selected Teaching Papers for each, will be: Week 1: Quasi-Experimental (non-RCT) Effectiveness Studies Evaluating Public Health Interventions – the example of smoke-free legislation in Scotland (a “natural experiment”): Pell J. et al. New Engl J Med 2008; 359: 482-91. Week 2: Experimental Studies of Intervention Effectiveness (RCTs) - the example of PSA screening for prostate cancer, based on the most conclusive RCT to date, and one of the best-described in a single paper: Schroder F. et al. New Engl J Med 2009; 360:1320-1328. Week 3: Establishing Etiology (Causation) in Environmental Health -- appraisal of systematic reviews and meta-analyses of multiple studies of causation, across a range of study designs, using the example of second-hand smoke and breast cancer: Miller M.D. et al. Preventive Medicine 2007; 44: 93106. Week 4: Complex Causation Evidence: Cohort Studies – appraisal of a single, massive, complex and fairly conclusive cohort study of nutrition (fruits and vegetable consumption) and cancer – but one which may have missed the trees for the forest: Boffetta P. et al. J Nat Cancer Inst 2010; 102: 529-537.
Optional Additional Sessions (To Be Prepared On Request) Optional Extra Week 5: Measuring and Monitoring Health Inequalities: Scottish Examples: a critical look at current methods for measuring and monitoring, at the population-level, socioeconomic status inequalities in mortality, hospitalization, low birth weight, cancer incidence, and other routinely collected statistics, based on the NHS Scotland Analytical Services Division’s Sept. 2009 Report: “Long-term Monitoring of Health Inequalities: Headline Indicators.” Optional Extra Week 6: Calculating the Burden of Illness for a Condition in a Population: based on the Oxford Health Associates 2007 study: “Burden of Disease and Illness in the U.K.” (Focus mainly on Chapter 9, pages 117-129: Executive Summary.) Optional Extra Week 7: Health Economics Critical Appraisal: Cost-Effectiveness Studies [including summary league tables of competing interventions’ cost-effectiveness]: paper to be decided.
SCPHRP: Annual Activity Report April 2011 - June 2012
42
Appendix F: Public Lectures and Seminars Hosted by SCPHRP 2011-12
DATE
EVENT
07/04/2011
TITLE
ORGANISATION/ AFFILIATION/ POSITION
VENUE
Sally Brinkman The Early Public Lecture Series Development Instrument - lessons from Australia and beyond
Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Child Health Research, Perth, Australia, and Visiting Research Fellow, Australian Institute for Social Research, University of Adelaide
The Seminar Room, HGU
01/12/2011
Maureen Dobbins Facilitating Public Lecture Series evidence-informed public health decision making: Lessons learned from a Canadian journey
Associate Professor in the School of Nursing, McMaster University, Canada
Iris Murdoch Building, University of Stirling
29/02/2012
Adolescent Health and Risk Behaviours Symposium
SCPHRP and NHS Health Scotland
Royal Society Edinburgh
16/04/2012
Realist Evaluation Realist Evaluation: Public Lecture Series With keynote speaker Dr Gill Westhorp
Director of Community Matters, a consultancy business based in South Australia
Iris Murdoch Building, University of Stirling
Adolescent Health and Risk Behaviours Symposium
ANNUAL ACTIVITY REPORT SCPHRP 2011 - 2012