A retrospective descriptive review of community-engaged research projects addressing rural health priorities.

Autor: Nasir BF; Mayne Academy of Rural and Remote Medicine, Rural and Remote Medicine Clinical Unit, Medical School, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Theodore 4719, QLD, Australia. b.nasir@uq.edu.au.; Toowoomba Regional Clinical Unit, Medical School, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland Toowoomba, 6 Range Street, Mount Lofty, Toowoomba, QLD, 4350, Australia. b.nasir@uq.edu.au., Chater B; Mayne Academy of Rural and Remote Medicine, Rural and Remote Medicine Clinical Unit, Medical School, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Theodore 4719, QLD, Australia., McGrail M; Rockhampton Regional Clinical Unit Medical School, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Rockhampton 4700, QLD, Australia., Kondalsamy-Chennakesavan S; Toowoomba Regional Clinical Unit, Medical School, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland Toowoomba, 6 Range Street, Mount Lofty, Toowoomba, QLD, 4350, Australia.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: BMC medical education [BMC Med Educ] 2024 Jul 29; Vol. 24 (1), pp. 805. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Jul 29.
DOI: 10.1186/s12909-024-05791-7
Abstrakt: Background: Most rural populations experience significant health disadvantage. Community-engaged research can facilitate research activities towards addressing health issues of priority to local communities. Connecting scholars with community based frontline practices that are addressing local health and medical needs helps establish a robust pipeline for research that can inform gaps in health provision. Rural Health Projects (RHPs) are conducted as part of the Doctor of Medicine program at the University of Queensland. This study aims to describe the geographic coverage of RHPs, the health topic areas covered and the different types of RHP research activities conducted. It also provides meaningful insight of the health priorities for local rural communities in Queensland, Australia.
Methods: This study conducted a retrospective review of RHPs conducted between 2011 and 2021 in rural and remote Australian communities. Descriptive analyses were used to describe RHP locations by their geographical classification and disease/research categorisation using the International Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems - 10th Revision (ICD-10) codes and the Human Research Classification System (HRCS) categories.
Results: There were a total of 2806 eligible RHPs conducted between 2011 and 2021, predominantly in Queensland (n = 2728, 97·2%). These were mostly conducted in small rural towns (under 5,000 population, n = 1044, 37·2%) or other rural towns up to 15,000 population (n = 842, 30·0%). Projects mostly addressed individual care needs (n = 1233, 43·9%) according to HRCS categories, or were related to factors influencing health status and contact with health services (n = 1012, 36·1%) according to ICD-10 classification.
Conclusions: Conducting community focused RHPs demonstrates a valuable method to address community-specific rural health priorities by engaging medical students in research projects while simultaneously enhancing their research skills.
(© 2024. The Author(s).)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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