Abstract
BackgroundThe United Nations Sustainable Development Goals stress the importance of equitable partnerships in research and practice that integrate grass-roots knowledge, leadership, and expertise. However, priorities for health research in low-and-middle income countries are set almost exclusively by external parties and priorities, while end-users remain "researched on" not "researched with". This paper presents the first stage of a Community-Based Participatory Research-inspired project to engage communities and public-health end-users in setting a research agenda to improve health in their community.MethodsPhotovoice was used in Kuc, Gulu District, Uganda to engage community members in the selection of a research topic for future public health research and intervention. Alcohol-Use Disorders emerged from this process the health issue that most negatively impacts the community. Following identification of this issue, a cross-sectional survey was conducted using the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (n = 327) to triangulate Photovoice findings and to estimate the prevalence of Alcohol-Use Disorders in Kuc. Logistic regression was used to test for associations with demographic characteristics and Alcohol-Use Disorders.ResultsPhotovoice generated four prominent themes, including alcohol related issues, sanitation and compound cleanliness, water quality and access, and infrastructure. Alcohol-Use Disorders were identified by the community as the most important driver of poor health. Survey results indicated that 23.55% of adults in Kuc had a probable Alcohol Use Disorder, 16.45 percentage points higher than World Health Organization estimates for Uganda.ConclusionsCommunity members engaged in the participatory, bottom-up approach offered by the research team to develop a research agenda to improve health in the community. Participants honed in on the under-researched and underfunded topic of Alcohol-Use Disorders. The findings from Photovoice were validated by survey results, thereby solidifying the high prevalence of Alcohol-Use Disorders as the health outcome that will be targeted through future long-term research and partnership.
Highlights
Survey results indicated that 23.55% of adults in Kuc had a probable Alcohol Use Disorder, 16.45 percentage points higher than World Health Organization estimates for Uganda
Community members engaged in the participatory, bottom-up approach offered by the research team to develop a research agenda to improve health in the community
Public health issues in Low-Middle Income Countries (LMICs) are integral to many of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) [1], as illustrated by a recent special section devoted to the topic in the official Journal of the American Academy of Nursing, Nursing Outlook [2,3,4,5]
Summary
Public health issues in Low-Middle Income Countries (LMICs) are integral to many of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) [1], as illustrated by a recent special section devoted to the topic in the official Journal of the American Academy of Nursing, Nursing Outlook [2,3,4,5]. Sustainable Development Goal 17.16 outlines the need to "enhance the global partnership for sustainable development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology and financial resources, to support the achievement of the SDGs in all countries, in particular developing countries [6]." health and development research remains an area where priorities are set almost exclusively by a researcher’s individual interests or by funding organization priorities, while end-users (especially those from marginalized communities) remain "researched on" and not "researched with" [7,8,9,10,11]. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals stress the importance of equitable partnerships in research and practice that integrate grass-roots knowledge, leadership, and expertise. This paper presents the first stage of a Community-Based Participatory Research-inspired project to engage communities and public-health end-users in setting a research agenda to improve health in their community.
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