Research prioritization in migrant health in Ireland: toward a participatory arts-based paradigm for academic primary care.

Abstract

Context: People are experts in their own health and need to be involved in health-related decisions, including decisions about what issues should be researched. Underserved communities, such as refugees and migrants, are often excluded from having a voice in relation to their priorities for health research. To avoid tokenistic participation, it is important to develop and test innovative methodologies that are culturally attuned and that can offer 'whole person' (affective, creative and cognitive) engagement. The Participatory Irish World Music Café, first developed in the context of the Irish Refugee Protection Programme in 2015, uses music and singing to develop inclusive, social and creative spaces to support social integration. It has been adapted during COVID-19 as an on-line café. While the café has sustained a strong community presence for five years, its potential adaptation and use to support research health prioritisation processes is unknown. Objective: Explore the use of an on-line, participatory Irish World Music Café to generate research priorities about migrant health in Ireland. Study Design: Participatory health research study co-designed with community partners, using a qualitative ethnographic and arts-based framework. Data from six 1.5 hour on-line cafes includes interviews, focus groups and arts-based documentation generated during the cafes. Analysis follows principles of thematic analysis. Setting or Dataset: Community-based participatory study in Ireland Population studied: Refugees, migrants, primary care providers, national health service planners, artists and academics working in the field of migrant health (n=25) Intervention/Instrument (for interventional studies): n/a Outcome Measures: n/a. Results: Analysis is underway and will describe participants' shared and differential experiences of (i) the research prioritisation sessions with particular attention to their experience of using music and other artistic practices (ii) cultural attunement and whole person engagement and (iii) generating identified research priorities. Conclusions: Findings will inform the evidence base about music as an arts-based method to support a new, inclusive participatory arts-based paradigm for migrants' involvement in research prioritisation. The work will be disseminated in Ireland and in the 53 Member States of the WHO Euro region.