Issue 338 - 19 March 2026

Welcome to the fortnightly Health Improvement and Innovation Digest. The Digest has links to key evidence of interest, with access to new content arranged by topic.

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Article Access

For articles that aren't open access, contact your Health NZ district library, or organisational or local library for assistance in accessing the full text. If your organisation has a subscription, you may be able to use the icon under full text links in PubMed to access the full article.

Māori Innovation

Poipoia Te Kākano Kia Puāwai: The Operationalisation of Māori Data Sovereignty in Aotearoa-A Scoping Literature Review
Māori Data Sovereignty and Māori Data Governance are articulationsand expressions of our Māori rights to be self-determining as sovereign peoples. Over the last decade, there has been considerable growth in scholarship, theorising and advocacy around Māori Data Sovereignty with a number of frameworks, models and sets of principles developed. Underpinned by Kaupapa Māori theory and informed by the PRISMA and CONSIDER guidelines, this scoping literature review, published in the Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, examined the application of Te Ao Māori concepts, values, principles and/or practices to operationalisation of Māori Data Sovereignty and/or Māori Data Governance.

Health Equity (New Zealand)

Understanding Pacific Peoples Health and Wellbeing Challenges in Aotearoa New Zealand
In this open access book, published by Lived Places Publishing, editors Sir Collin Tukuitonga, Roannie Ng Shiu, and Patrick Thomsen bring together Pacific scholars to establish foundational markers for understanding the complex factors impacting community wellbeing.

Organization and implementation of social prescribing in the Western Pacific Region: a scoping review
Social prescribing (SP) connects individuals to non-clinical community resources to address social determinants of health (SDH). This review, published in The Lancet Regional Health: Western Pacific, aimed to map and categorise SP models to inform adaptation and implementation across the Western Pacific Region.

Nutrition & Physical Activity (New Zealand)

Storytelling TO promote appetite self-Regulation in Young children (STORY): results of a pilot study to reduce parental persuasive feeding behaviours
Appetite self-regulation is the process by which we stop eating when we are no longer hungry and is a resilience-informed approach to promoting a healthy bodyweight. The objective of this study, published in Appetite, was to develop and investigate the acceptability and preliminarily short-term effectiveness of ‘Feeding with HEART’, a parent communication tool designed to reduce parental persuasive feeding behaviours, which are associated with developing appetite self-regulation in children aged 3–6 years, using value-based messaging, storytelling, and metaphor.

Quality Improvement (New Zealand)

A window on quality 2022 (Part 2) | Whakarāpopototanga matua: He tirohanga kounga 2022 (Wāhanga 2)
This report, published by the Health Quality & Safety Commission, updates the effect of the pandemic on our health system and expands its lens to include the impact on our population’s mental health, health care workforce and experience of care for disabled people.

The Relationship Between Indigenous Health and Relevant Sector Standards in Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia and Canada: A Scoping Review
Health sector Standards in Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia and Canada increasingly acknowledge the importance of culturally appropriate care for Indigenous populations. Despite this, inequities persist. This review, published in the International Journal for Quality in Health Care, explores how national health Standards intersect with Indigenous health, focusing on Cultural Safety, Indigenous-led governance, Indigenous knowledge, and anti-racism.

Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes (International)

Effectiveness of Nurse‐Led Intervention on the Management of Patients With Stroke: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis
Stroke remains a leading cause of mortality and long‐term disability worldwide, with timely intervention critical for reducing brain injury. Nurse‐led interventions may streamline care and improve outcomes in stroke management. This study, published in the International Journal of Nursing Practice, aimed to synthesise current evidence on the effectiveness of nurse‐led interventions on the management of patients with stroke.

Primary Health Care (New Zealand)

Pharmacists' experiences of implementing ethnicity-based eligibility criteria services in community pharmacy
Pharmacists are integral to advancing equitable healthcare, implementing culturally safe practices that address power imbalances, racism, and institutional barriers. Ethnicity-based eligibility criteria (EBEC) have improved treatment access in some settings, but little is known about how community pharmacists experience and implement these criteria in practice. This study, published in The International Journal of Pharmacy Practice, aimed to explore pharmacists' perceptions of applying EBEC in community pharmacy; the extent to which the provision of education or resources would be useful in the future.

Consumer's experiences with emergency contraception in Aotearoa New Zealand: a qualitative study
Effective emergency contraception (EC) must be available to prevent unintended pregnancy after unprotected sexual intercourse. In Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ), approved EC options include an oral levonorgestrel emergency contraceptive pill and the copper IUD. There is currently no published qualitative research about EC in NZ. This study, published in the Journal of Primary Health Care, aimed to explore consumers' experiences with EC in NZ.

Participant experiences of the Knee Care for Arthritis through Pharmacy Service (KneeCAPS): A personalised hīkoi (journey) through care
Community-based Osteoarthritis Management Programmes may empower people to self-manage and alter their disease trajectory, reducing burden on individuals and communities, particularly for those with current health inequity such as Māori (Indigenous New Zealanders). The objective of this study, published in Osteoarthritis and Cartilage Open, was to explore the perceptions of people with knee osteoarthritis receiving an interprofessional, community pharmacist-led intervention involving personalised education and referral for evidence-based care in community settings.

Primary Mental Health (New Zealand)

The mediating effects of maternal mental health and bullying victimisation on the association between material hardship and mental health in young people
Experiencing material hardship is a significant risk factor for developing depression and anxiety in adolescents. This study, published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, investigates the potential mediator roles of maternal mental health and bullying victimisation in the association between material hardship and adolescent depression and anxiety symptoms.

Primary Mental Health (International)

Mobile app-based psychological interventions for depression and anxiety in primary care: A systematic review and meta-analysis
This systematic review and meta-analysis, published in General Hospital Psychiatry, evaluated the effectiveness of mobile app-based psychological interventions in reducing distress (depressive and anxiety symptoms) and improving quality of life among adults in primary care.

Increased Immunisation (International)

Impact of pharmacy-based interventions on vaccination coverage among vulnerable and underserved populations: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Vaccination coverage remains suboptimal among vulnerable and underserved adult populations. This review, published in Vaccine, investigated the effectiveness of pharmacy-based interventions in improving vaccine uptake in high-risk groups and the most effective strategies.

Smoking Cessation (New Zealand)

Poipoia te kākano kia puāwai: Māori perceptions of rolled tobacco harm
This article, published in AlterNative, seeks to understand Māori experiences of roll your own tobacco and how these experiences align with current on-pack warning messages.

Smoking Cessation (International)

The Role of Community Health Workers in Tobacco Cessation: A Scoping Review
The objective of this paper, published in the American Journal of Health Promotion, was to review literature on Community Health Workers' (CHW) role in providing tobacco cessation programming and offer recommendations for future research and programming based on findings.

Health Sector Initiative

Indigenous tools help whānau understand assisted dying
Senior Research Fellow Dr Tess Moeke Maxwell and the Te Ārai Palliative Care and End of Life Research Group have launched new Indigenous tools and conceptualised an assisted dying framework.

The information available on or through this newsletter does not represent Ministry of Health policy. It is intended to provide general information to the health sector and the public, and is not intended to address specific circumstances of any particular individual or entity.