Multi-agency Partnership Research Articles

Integrated management of lakes, reservoirs, and their basins is critical for a climate-resilient planet: an urgent wake-up call from collective amnesia

ABSTRACT Integrated management of lakes and reservoirs and their basins is vital for preserving their significant socioeconomic and ecological benefits, which are essential for climate resilience. Lakes and reservoirs store 88% of the Earth's fresh surface water, providing water, food, energy security, flood protection, drought mitigation, and ecosystem services. This article highlights the rapid depletion and deterioration of these Lentic (standing) waters and the consequent loss of valuable benefits, threatening the global water supply and exacerbating environmental and climate crises. It discusses the evolution of lake management practices and contrasts these with strategies for managing lotic (flowing) waters. It summarizes collaborative best practices for Lake Basin Governance developed through a multiagency partnership. It reviews recent global initiatives to sustainably manage lakes, integrate storage, address aging dams, and foster partnerships and cooperation. It highlights the widespread failures across international water and environmental policies and institutions. The article calls on the global water and environmental community to awaken from collective amnesia, act, and implement best practices for governing lakes, reservoirs, and basins. Our companion article examines the institutional inertia hindering integrated action and offers collaborative opportunities for integrating land and water management in lake and reservoir basins to enhance climate resilience.

Meeting social welfare legal needs in end-of-life care: co-creation of a system-wide research partnership.

Social welfare legal needs (matters of daily life, such as finances, housing and employment with legal rights, entitlements or protections) are prevalent towards end of life, creating significant difficulties for both patients and carers. Most people do not know where to go, although a range of services provide advice and support for addressing social welfare legal problems. Navigating this complex and fragmented system across health, social care and social welfare legal support is very challenging. Healthcare professionals are often the first contact for social welfare legal needs, although these are often overlooked and their impact on health and well-being unrecognised. Interprofessional learning can increase awareness of social welfare legal needs and build connections between service providers, offering a more holistic and cohesive multiagency response to the complex needs around end of life. The aim of the research was to co-create a robust foundation for cross-agency research investigating the impact of interprofessional learning on social welfare legal needs towards end of life in the North East England region. Convene a research partnership group across academics, multiagency service providers and members of the public with lived experience. Consider and agree key issues for successful place-based multiagency research in this area. Co-create a complexity-appropriate research proposal with interprofessional learning as an intervention. A series of research activities was implemented to convene a multiagency partnership group and consider the key issues for successful place-based multiagency research. Data were collected from two online workshops, an optional reflective workbook, and a modified Delphi technique. Initial participants were selectively recruited from our established stakeholder and patient and public involvement groups. Increasing diversity of the partnership continued throughout the project, using contacts provided by group members. Representation of services supporting underserved groups was a priority. All invited participants were recruited to the partnership, although contribution to research activities was variable. The partnership bridged knowledge gaps between services and united diverse perspectives, expertise and experience. A greater understanding of the barriers and opportunities for place-based multiagency working was generated, such as considering the importance of language in facilitating collaboration and responding to concerns around capacity. A non-hierarchical partnership was meaningful, with both personal and professional insights viewed as equally important. Facilitators to engagement with interprofessional learning were identified including the need for leadership endorsement. A non-traditional, mixed-method approach to interprofessional learning evaluation was favoured, with both qualitative and quantitative measures at three levels: patient and carer, professional learners and organisations. Important outcomes included raising awareness, connectedness and space to reflect. The partnership group expanded throughout the course of the project. While this extended diversity, variable participation hindered depth of discussion, with participants engaging at different points and with different understanding levels of the project. Supplementary materials provided some mitigation. Capacity and funding constraints limited engagement for some participants. Convening a multiagency partnership generated insights into the benefits, barriers and facilitators to research co-design and potential measures of success of interprofessional learning. Learning from this project has informed a complexity-appropriate research proposal to evaluate the impact of interprofessional learning as an intervention across different stakeholders. This article presents independent research funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Health and Social Care Delivery Research programme as award number NIHR135276.

Toward better pandemic governance and preparedness: South Korea’s whole-of-nation approach to COVID-19

BackgroundThe profound impact of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has led to an increased demand for sustainable pandemic governance practices. This study explored emerging hybrid governance practices that provide robust evidence on how to address the complex challenges of pandemics effectively. South Korea, which was severely affected by COVID-19, has implemented a novel governance approach using a whole-of-nation (WoN) model. This hybrid pandemic governance approach, which integrates both whole-of-government and whole-of-society approaches, has enabled synergistic and cohesive multi-sectoral coordination among all stakeholders (public authorities, private enterprises, and civil society) to address multifaceted challenges collectively and strengthen their resilience capacity. This study investigated South Korea’s WoN practices and their embedded context and identified key governance enablers facilitating this approach.MethodsThis study employed a case study design based on an extensive analysis of policy and program documents, drawing on South Korea’s publicly available data from January 1, 2020 to March 30, 2023. It assessed six system-level collaborative pandemic governance practices and key enablers, all of which were intended to fortify the country’s pandemic response.ResultsThe primary areas of the country’s WoN governance practices for COVID-19 control were (i) whole-of-government policy-making and response, (ii) COVID-19 testing system, (iii) digital surveillance of COVID-19, (iv) COVID-19 triage and treatment system, (v) domestic vaccine production, and (vi) community engagement. Key governance enablers for implementing the WoN model were establishing a legal foundation, ensuring decisive and strong governance and leadership, increasing public investment, applying a whole-of-health approach with augmented investment in public health, enhancing crisis communication, and mobilizing local leaders and civil society organizations in the national public health response.ConclusionsIn exploring innovative approaches to pandemic governance for increased efficacy, responsiveness, and impact, the WoN approach emerged as highly relevant. This example of emerging practice allows policy-makers to re-evaluate their governance strategies and initiatives to improve multi-agency partnerships across the country in their pandemic-preparedness planning.

Outbreak of Ralstonia pickettii associated with contamination of saline products distributed internationally, the United Kingdom, 2024.

We describe an outbreak of Ralstonia pickettii in the United Kingdom, with isolates genetically indistinguishable from a 2023 Australian outbreak linked to internationally distributed saline solutions. Confirmed cases (n = 3) had bacteraemia, clinically relevant infection, indwelling venous lines and frequent healthcare contact. Multi-stakeholder intervention was required including product recall and risk communications. We recommend a low threshold for investigating clusters of Ralstonia species and similar opportunistic pathogens, considering contaminated product sources. Effective mitigation requires multi-agency partnership and international collaboration.

‘It was a challenge to look at things from a perpetrator perspective’. The problem of holding domestically abusive men to account in multi-agency partnership work

One of the most challenging aspects of multi-agency partnership work aimed at reducing domestic abuse is the problem of holding perpetrators to account. Drawing on findings from our recent mixed methods evaluation of a revised approach to multi-agency policing of domestic abuse, this article explores this problem from the perspective of the multi-agency practitioner stakeholders. We present evidence attesting to the challenge these stakeholders are experiencing as they strive to ensure they play their part in ensuring the perpetrator is accountable for their behaviour. We review what is known about male perpetrators and perpetrator programmes and examine our findings in the context of the wider challenges of engaging perpetrators in behavioural change. We argue that the perpetrator is the elusive stakeholder in multi-agency partnership work to reduce domestic abuse and that the web of accountability requires strengthening if domestically abusive men are to be held to account.

Sex work, multi-agency governance and industries of protection: towards an increased recognition and resistance of the carceral

This article focuses on sex work governance within multi-agency partnerships and initiatives in Wales. By engaging with notions of carceral humanism, this article seeks to make tangible the ways in which multi-agency partnerships co-opt and assimilate criminologists, activists, third-sector and community organisations, so that partisan commitments to advancing sex workers’ rights are transformed to bipartisan support for non-competing carceral frameworks and solutions. It argues that there is a process of carceral bifurcation that enables narratives of safeguarding and sex work to be utilised to strengthen non-competing carceral conceptualisations of, and solutions to, sex work.

Preventing prosecution: Narratives on proactive policing

Multi-agency partnerships and intelligence-led policing are among the proactive policing strategies used to manage and prevent crime outside the criminal justice process. Drawing on narrative criminology, this article studies the co-constitution of concrete proactive policing methods and the populations and crimes that they are directed at. Further, the article illuminates the variety of distinct approaches that are understood in the studied policing context as ‘preventive’, a term found to be applicable to any police strategy or method that does not involve investigation and is not aimed at building a criminal case for prosecution. Whereas crime prevention effects are considered desirable and achievable, at least in theory, the internal organisational aim to prevent prosecution exerts an influence on how crimes as well as the crime prevention mandate are made sense of and rendered actionable.

From behaviour-based to ecological: Multi-agency partnership responses to extra-familial harm

Summary In the United Kingdom (UK), inquiries into the abuse of adolescents harmed in contexts beyond their families frequently document failures in multi-agency arrangements. Forms of extra-familial harm, such as criminal and sexual exploitation, often feature near-fatal violence and serious abuse. UK welfare policy has shifted towards place-based approaches to harm, leading to safeguarding partnerships forming between welfare agencies and neighbourhood crime reduction agencies. However, forming partnerships between those who have differing epistemological underpinnings raises challenges. This article explores these by drawing on a research project implementing contextual safeguarding theory and practice within five child welfare social care departments in England and Wales. Data is presented from 10 pilots (33 focus groups, 24 interviews, 59 meeting observations, 36 reviews of cases, review of 100 documents). Findings Multi-agency partnerships prioritise safeguarding practice that targets behaviour, over addressing the social conditions of abuse. Assumptions that partnerships will automatically align means that there is little space for negotiating a shared conceptual/ideological approach. Particularly in high-risk situations, welfare agencies defer to policing methods that target individuals rather than environments. Where ecological approaches are utilised, this is experienced as ‘against the grain’ and requiring support. Applications To advance contextual approaches to safeguarding young people, multi-agency partnerships must go beyond altering the behaviour of those who are harmed. Partnerships that engage in reflective discussion about their conceptual approach are more likely to build the awareness and trust required for ecological methods to succeed. Enhancing ecological social work leadership within partnerships responding to extra-familial harm is a key factor.

Galvanizing Local Anti-Trafficking Partnership Work Using Intelligence: Profiling the Problem and Building Resilience

Prior research has evidenced the importance of collaboration and multi-agency partnership work in responding to human trafficking in both the UK and US. Three previous key studies are synthesized in this paper. We situate multi-agency anti-trafficking collaborative work within conceptualizations of “resilience” and mechanisms by which to achieve it, and draw comparisons between the structure, organization, and activities of anti-trafficking partnerships in the UK and US. We present results, reflections, and discussion regarding the utility of local-problem diagnosis and multi-agency, using collaborative intelligence analysis as a mechanism to galvanize and organize local partnership action, resulting from action research conducted in one police force area. We posit the replication of this “problem profile” exercise as a mechanism for anti-trafficking collaborators to galvanize their aims and day-to-day efforts to make their communities resilient to human trafficking. We close by arguing for resilience as a framing for this mechanism and for local collaborative efforts.

Understanding support systems for Parkinson's disease management in community settings: A cross-national qualitative study.

Health and social care systems face difficulties in managing multimorbidity, disease burden and complex needs in long-term conditions such as Parkinson's disease. This study aimed to develop a European understanding of how health and social care professionals can collaborate with stakeholders from different organizations and sectors to enhance the management of Parkinson's disease in a community setting by identifying the existing gaps in this process and how people with Parkinson's disease and their family carers could benefit from these partnerships. A mixed-methods sequential study was conducted in Denmark, Norway, Spain and the United Kingdom. The findings from the qualitative phase are presented. Individual semistructured interviews were analysed using Braun's and Clarke's thematic analysis. A meta-ethnography approach was used to analyse and synthesize cross-national findings. A total of 41 healthcare professionals and 39 stakeholders from different disciplines and sectors were interviewed in the four countries. The participants acknowledged a lack of awareness of available resources and poor communication between the different support systems in the management of Parkinson's disease. To promote multiagency collaborations, the participants highlighted the need to organize services along the Parkinson's disease journey, patient involvement and strategic involvement of carers in organizing resources and Parkinson's disease care pathways. According to the participants, the benefits from multiagency partnerships could lead to an enhanced continuity of care and specialized knowledge, mobilization of resources in the community, personalized support and improved access to services. Policymakers are called upon to create formal structures that facilitate multisectoral collaborations to promote an integrated system of care for the management of Parkinson's disease in the community. To address this challenge, we propose five strategies showing how organizations can work together to optimize the use of resources and enhance the management of Parkinson's disease throughout the illness trajectory. Patient and Public Involvement groups made up of stakeholders, healthcare professionals, patients with Parkinson's disease and family carers participated in the design of the study, the development of the interview guides and the validation of the findings.

Inter-Professional Education and Collaborative Practice in Social Work: Associations between Youth Work Practitioners’ Experience in Inter-Professional Learning, Creative Self-Efficacy and Innovative Behaviour

Abstract A rising trend is being observed in enhancing Inter-Professional Education and Collaborative Practice (IPECP) in health care settings. Empirical evidence on its effects, particularly in youth settings, remains limited. This study examined the moderating role of inter-professional learning in the relation between youth work practitioners’ self-efficacy in social work and their creative self-efficacy and innovative behaviour. A total of 227 youth work practitioners from sixteen district-based youth services in Hong Kong were invited to participate in a survey. The results of regression analyses indicate a positive association between practitioners’ sense of self-efficacy in social work and their creative self-efficacy and innovative behaviour. They also show a positive association between practitioners’ inter-professional learning experience and their creative self-efficacy and innovative behaviour. However, concerning the interaction effect between self-efficacy in social work and inter-professional learning, the results indicate that the positive relationship between self-efficacy in social work and creative self-efficacy and innovative behaviour was weaker for practitioners who had a higher level of inter-professional learning. The promotion of IPECP and the preparation of social workers to be collaboration-ready were deemed essential in fostering an effective multi-agency and multi-profession partnership, especially for seasoned practitioners who were more likely to possess a silo mentality.

“Abusers are Using COVID to Enhance Abuse”: Domestic Abuse Helpline Workers’ Perspectives on the Impact of COVID-19 Restrictions on those Living with Domestic Abuse

Background: Mobility restrictions enforced by the UK Government in March 2020 as a response to COVID-19 resulted in those vulnerable to domestic abuse being confined in isolation with their abusers, deprived of safe spaces and many of their usual sources of support. Domestic abuse helplines therefore became an increasingly vital avenue for victim support, seeing a substantial increase in service demand during lockdown periods. Purpose: This project examined the nature and frequency of calls received by domestic abuse helplines since the first COVID-19 lockdown period. Design and Sample: Through semi-structured interviews with 11 domestic abuse helpline workers across UK services dedicated to a diverse range of populations. Results: Key themes identified through thematic analysis were: (1) Abusers weaponising government guidelines to justify and intensify abuse, and restrictions acting as both a barrier and facilitator to leaving an abusive relationship; (2) A loss of previously accessed support, with users uncertain about what help was available and issues around engaging with new forms of support; and (3) Isolation from social support networks, with callers reporting a loss of respite, lack of emotional and practical support, removal of third-party abuse monitoring opportunities, and subsequent mental health implications. Conclusions: These findings will act as a crucial guide for policy decision-making regarding support needs emerging from the pandemic and beyond, highlighting the importance of multi-agency partnerships and clear referral pathways to share the increasing financial burden of domestic abuse amongst services. The longer-term integration of more diverse options for remote support to reduce the risk of detection will be paramount as we emerge from the pandemic, but these should serve to offer a wider range of support routes for abuse victims rather than a replacement for face-to-face provision.

Mechanisms of Interaction of Subjects in the field of Preventing and Combating Domestic Violence at The Regional and Local Level

Violence against women and girls is not limited to any culture, region, country, or specific group of women. It happens in times of peace and war. The EU and its Member States have long demonstrated a commitment to eradicating violence against women by creating policies and contributing to international treaties that work towards this goal. Preventing and combating violence against women is a precondition for equitable and inclusive sustainable development. Violence against women, including domestic violence, cannot be considered simply a violation of women’s human rights, because it has a direct impact on the entire society. Co-ordinated measures and multi-agency partnerships are necessary to address the root causes of these problems. Interventions tackling violence against women and domestic violence need to be concentrated on the needs and the rights of the victims, and multi-agency co-operation is crucial in effectively preventing domestic violence against women and their children.

Reducing the drivers of drug demand in English towns by understanding risk and resilience in the community and developing a framework for partnership action: a mixed methods analysis

BackgroundSubstance misuse has extensive effects on individuals and communities, ranging from the poor health of people who use drugs to the pressure placed on health care, social services, and the criminal justice system. Strategies to curtail the supply and demand of drugs and reduce these effects typically focus on supply, with less emphasis placed on the drivers of demand. We piloted and evaluated a public health approach for understanding the drivers and effects of substance misuse in a local area, and how these might be targeted for prevention through multi-agency partnership action. MethodsA cross-sectional mixed methods analysis was conducted, using multi-agency data. 3 years of data provided by criminal justice agencies (police, youth justice, and probation), drug treatment services, social care, education, and hospitals were used to profile the local demand and effect of drugs on individuals and communities in a coastal town in southern England. The experiences of local professionals who support people who misuse drugs, or people affected by drug misuse, were collected via an online survey that was disseminated to relevant partnership organisations, including homelessness charities and drug treatment providers. A public health framework identifying relevant risk and resilience factors in the community was developed by combining the multi-agency data and survey responses The methodological efficacy of this approach to inform partnership action was evaluated via a survey with the project's stakeholders. FindingsCommunity housing, mental health, and cycles entrenching substance misuse were identified as risk factors that increase individual-level, interpersonal-level, and community-level vulnerabilities to the harms of drug misuse, violence, and exploitation. Evaluation found this mixed-methods analysis for understanding risk and resilience to be a valuable approach to enable public health and community safety leaders to develop a framework for partnership action to reduce the negative effects of drug demand in the community. InterpretationAnalysis of multi-agency data helped to further a shared understanding in local partners of the drivers and effects of drug demand at a local level; and, through a public health lens, clearly identified the role that local organisations can play in minimising the harms of substance misuse and exploitation. FundingNo funding received.

11.H. Round table: Timely access to quality-assured medicines worldwide

Abstract A key aspect of achieving UHC and reducing health inequity is ensuring the timely access to high-quality, safe and effective medicines across the world. The regulatory approval of such products in countries with limited regulatory resources can be lengthy, often compromising patients’ timely access to much-needed medicines. This resource-demanding process extends well beyond marketing authorisation, incl. for post-approval changes. The WHO Collaborative Registration Procedure uses the Stringent Regulatory Authorities’ medicines evaluations (SRA CRP), a procedure that allows National Regulatory Authorities (NRAs) to leverage the work performed by Stringent Regulatory Authorities (SRAs) on scientific evaluations to decide on medical products approvals within their jurisdiction, through the concept of reliance. Reliance allows an authority to leverage the work performed by other authorities, such as scientific evaluations, to decide on medical products approval within their jurisdiction. This reduces duplication of regulatory efforts, resources and time, while maintaining national sovereignty. In the context of these processes, multi-agency partnerships and cross-border collaboration the role of European bodies, and specifically that of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) as a Stringent Regulatory Authority will be explored. The SRA CRP and its pilot has been evaluated, based on data and stakeholders’ perceptions. The evaluation indicates that the procedure delivers on expected objectives and benefits, including shortened timelines (from submission to approval), reduced duplication of efforts and resources (human and financial). It also shows significant and long-term positive impact for the LMICs involved. Additional benefits include greater application of international harmonized standards, an added capacity-building component and an informed and high-quality decision-making at the NRA. The impact of the procedure can be seen through 59 approvals for 16 medicines in 23 countries. The key areas for improvement and recommendations include greater collaboration, communication and transparency between NRAs, applicants, SRAs and WHO, to facilitate interactions and regular sharing of information between stakeholders. It is key to optimise resource utilisation and to leverage synergies, and to this end, a centralized, live platform could be developed to share the status, progress and challenges of applications in real time including information related to post-approval changes. This panel will present the SRA CRP pilots and its evaluation, bringing together experts from regulatory agencies and multilateral bodies to elucidate the current degree and extent of collaboration, whilst attempting to role of the EU and of the EMA in these processes. The panelists will also have an opportunity to take questions from the audience and to discuss the contribution of the EU to global health, incl., timely access for people across the world. Key messages • The SRA CRP facilitates and accelerates the regulatory approval of quality-assured, safe and effective medicines by reliance on SRAs, while maintaining decision-making national sovereignty. • The EU, via the EMA and the EUM4all and SRA CRP mechanisms, promotes international collaboration and reliance pathways for earlier access to medicines and contributing to global public health and UHC. Speakers/Panellists Victoria Palmi European Medicines Agency, Amsterdam, Netherlands Mariana Roldão Santos WHO, Geneve, Switzerland Richard Pilsudski Sanofi, Paris, France

From local prices to the global economy: A unique global collaboration that underpins the International Comparison Program

The International Comparison Program (ICP) is a unique example of enduring statistical cooperation and collaboration across national, regional, and global agencies. For over fifty years, the Program has delivered a vital public good: purchasing power parities (PPPs) and price level indexes (PLIs) for economies across the globe. PPPs enable a wealth of metrics on economic output, material well-being, and consumption, as well as a host of PPP-based indicators across the socioeconomic spectrum, many of which are used for monitoring progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. Fundamental to these data and metrics is cross-country comparability, and the ICP’s multi-agency partnership ensures that this is achieved through agreement on common statistical standards and methods in price data collection, in national accounts expenditure data compilation, in quality assurance, and in the calculation and dissemination of results. Working within a comprehensive governance structure overseen by the United Nations Statistical Commission, the ICP Global Office at the World Bank, and five regional agencies, together with Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat) and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), collaborate with over 170 national agencies to ensure that the work carried out across all economies adheres to these established benchmarks and processes, resulting in both bespoke ICP price collections that reflect both nationally relevant and globally comparable goods and services, and expenditure data that follow international standards. This paper presents an overview of this unique global partnership and highlights how different challenges and processes are addressed by stakeholders working with shared knowledge towards a common goal.

A model for effective partnership working to support programme evaluation

The use of multi-agency partnerships, including research-practice partnerships, to facilitate the development, implementation and evaluation of public health interventions has expanded in recent years. However, gaps remain in the understanding of influences on partnership working, and their capacity to facilitate and use evaluation, as well as the characteristics which lead to partnership effectiveness. We applied qualitative methods to explore experiences of stakeholders who were involved in partnerships to deliver and evaluate a national physical activity programme. We combined thematic and network analysis, and drew on concepts of evaluation use, knowledge exchange and organisational systems to interpret our findings and develop a conceptual model of the relationships between partnership characteristics and processes. Our model identifies key partnership characteristics such as high levels of engagement, regular communication and continuity. Furthermore, it highlights the importance of implementing organisational structures and systems to support effective partnership working, knowledge exchange and capacity building.

Treating and managing stalking offenders: findings from a multi-agency clinical intervention

ABSTRACT The Multi-Agency Stalking Intervention Programme (MASIP), piloted in three police forces in England, delivered a range of risk management interventions, including bespoke psychological treatment to a subset of convicted stalkers. The interim aim was to equip offenders with tools to address their behaviour, as well as to support their transition towards full desistance. This study explores how offender-related interventions were conceived and implemented by stakeholders in this multi-agency partnership and examines whether the personal journeys of stalking offenders involved fulfilled the intended aims. Semi-structured interviews conducted with six clinicians, who delivered direct interventions, and six stalking offenders, who received such interventions, were analysed thematically. Clinicians conveyed that the multi-agency partnership working informed risk assessment, and design and delivery of bespoke therapeutic interventions. Offenders reported improvements in their own reflective, problem-solving, and decision-making skills. Additionally, therapeutic interventions assisted them in recognizing the seriousness of their behaviour; its impact on their own lives and their victims; in developing motivations to desist; and self-regulating with learned coping mechanisms. These findings are discussed and give rise to important considerations for practitioners with regards to targeted treatment and risk management of stalking offenders.

Enabling Collaboration and Communication Across Law Enforcement Jurisdictions: Data Sharing in a Multiagency Partnership

Offenders do not always operate within jurisdictional boundaries and, as such, neighboring law enforcement agencies can benefit from sharing crime data and other investigation-related information with one another, with the shared goal of reducing crime throughout their region. In 2016, one such partnership was formed with seven law enforcement agencies, the District Attorney’s Office, and public health officials in King County, Washington. As part of a larger evaluation of this regional collaboration, the authors assessed the data and intelligence-sharing behaviors of key personnel from each participating agency over an 18-month period. This was done through a series of interviews with key personnel and the use of social network analysis. Results suggest that, although data-sharing networks increased in size and project personnel were able to identify benefits to sharing crime data with one another (e.g., seeing the “bigger picture” regarding crime in their region, using shared crime data to track and combat violent crime), they also identified a number of obstacles associated with cross-jurisdictional data sharing. Findings from this evaluation contribute to the collective understanding and implementation of a regional approach to crime control. If criminal justice agencies plan to work together to reduce crime, data and information sharing are essential. Therefore, it is imperative that agencies are aware of the positive outcomes associated with regional data sharing and the challenges that can arise throughout this collaborative effort.

ARE WE DOING ENOUGH IN PROMOTING BREAST CANCER SCREENING: AN EVALUATION OF MALAYSIA BREAST CANCER SCREENING PROGRAM

Breast cancer is the most common cancer affecting women globally. Several ways of breast cancer screening tools are available. This study aims to evaluate Malaysia's breast cancer screening program using the national database based on participation and performance indicators for the past five years. A retrospective cumulative analysis of clinical breast examination and mammogram screening services were performed using the national dataset of 2016-2020 obtained from the Health Informatics Centres, Ministry of Health Malaysia. The performance indicator represents the percentage of breast abnormality detected during clinical breast examination and the proportion of confirmed cancer through mammogram screening. A reduction in the participation rate for clinical breast examination was noted from 2016 (25.8%) to 2020(25.1%). However, a high participation rate in 2019 (29.1%) was noted following active health promotion intervention. The rate of high-risk women who underwent mammogram screening fluctuated by years according to active breast awareness campaign. The average rate of confirmed breast cancer annually was 0.7% and was noted highest in 2020 (1.17%). Improving early diagnosis is an eminent strategy for cancer control in all settings, including strengthening health systems and providing universal health coverage. Successful breast cancer prevention and control programs require intersectoral planning and active community participation. Ensuring sustainability and accessibility of breast cancer screening programs is highly needed. Fostering good collaborative multiagency partnership and community participation for the cancer control program urges an innovative approach through a policy formulation.