OBJECTIVE: The aim of this work was to systematically scope the evidence on opportunistic tobacco smoking cessation interventions for people accessing financial support settings.
METHODS: We searched MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO and the Cochrane Tobacco Addiction Group specialized register to 21 March 2023. We duplicate screened 20% of titles/abstracts and all full texts. We included primary studies investigating smoking cessation interventions delivered opportunistically to people who smoked tobacco, within settings offering support for problems caused by financial hardship, for example homeless support services, social housing and food banks. Data were charted by one reviewer, checked by another and narratively synthesized.
RESULTS: We included 25 studies conducted in a range of financial support settings using qualitative (e.g. interviews and focus groups) and quantitative (e.g. randomized controlled trials, surveys and single arm intervention studies) methodologies. Evidence on the acceptability and feasibility of opportunistic smoking cessation advice was investigated among both clients and providers. Approximately 90% of service providers supported such interventions; however, lack of resources, staff training and a belief that tobacco smoking reduced illicit substance use were perceived barriers. Clients welcomed being asked about smoking and offered assistance to quit and expressed interest in interventions including the provision of nicotine replacement therapy, e-cigarettes and incentives to quit smoking. Six studies investigated the comparative effectiveness of opportunistic smoking cessation interventions on quitting success, with five comparing more to less intensive interventions, with mixed results.
CONCLUSIONS: Most studies investigating opportunistic smoking cessation interventions in financial support settings have not measured their effectiveness. Where they have, settings, populations, interventions and findings have varied. There is more evidence investigating acceptability, with promising results.

Background: The financial burden resulting from cancers on families is higher when it arises in young people compared with older adults. Previous research has provided insight into the financial toxicities associated with childhood cancer, but less is known about the efficacy of financial aid systems in reducing the financial burden on families. We conducted a scoping review to identify the determinants of success and failure of financial aid. Methods: Five databases were searched for articles published between January 1, 2000 and December 1, 2022. Dual processes were used to screen and select studies. Through thematic content analysis, we identified barriers and enablers of financial aid, categorised by country income level. Results: From 17 articles, which were evenly split between high-income countries and upper middle- to low-income countries, four major themes emerged: (1) accessibility of support, (2) delivery of support, (3) administration, and (4) psychosocial factors. Within these themes, the enablers identified were (1) support navigators, (2) establishing a direct contact between donors and beneficiaries, (3) implementation of digital solutions to improve outreach, and (4) using cultural and community values to encourage donor engagement. Conclusions: This scoping review identified the determinants of success and failure of financial aid in supporting families in the context of childhood, adolescent, and young adult (CAYA) cancers. By understanding the barriers and enablers identified in this review, organizations could develop pragmatic evidence-based care models and policies to ensure access to assistance is equitable and appropriate for families experiencing CAYA cancers.

Tuberculosis (TB) still represents a major public health problem in many regions of the world. TB control can only be achieved through a comprehensive and inclusive response which takes into account both upstream and downstream coordinated interventions related to structural determinants such as poverty, nutrition, sanitation, housing and access to healthcare as well as timely diagnosis and support throughout the course of treatment. Several social and financial support strategies have been proposed to improve TB treatment adherence, including conditional cash transfers (CCTs). In this context, demonstrating that social protection directly improves a specific health outcome using routinely collected data, incomplete registries or surveillance reports brings about many methodological challenges. We briefly discuss this paper and some limitations, describe main findings from our own research in this area and make a call to expand social protection interventions to address structural conditions of those most affected.

A large literature has demonstrated the link between poverty and mental ill-health. Yet, the potential causal effects of poverty alleviation measures on mental disorders are not well-understood. In this systematic review, we summarize the evidence of the effects of a particular kind of poverty alleviation mechanism on mental health: the provision of cash transfers in low- and middle-income countries. We searched eleven databases and websites and assessed over 4,000 studies for eligibility. Randomized controlled trials evaluating the effects of cash transfers on depression, anxiety, and stress were included. All programs targeted adults or adolescents living in poverty. Overall, 17 studies, comprising 26,794 participants in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and South Asia, met the inclusion criteria of this review. Studies were critically appraised using Cochrane\'s Risk of Bias tool and publication bias was tested using funnel plots, egger\'s regression, and sensitivity analyses. The review was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42020186955). Meta-analysis showed that cash transfers significantly reduced depression and anxiety of recipients (dpooled = -0.10; 95%-CI: -0.15, -0.05; p<0.01). However, improvements may not be sustained 2-9 years after program cessation (dpooled = -0.05; 95%-CI: -0.14, 0.04; ns). Meta-regression indicates that impacts were larger for unconditional transfers (dpooled = -0.14; 95%-CI: -0.17, -0.10; p<0.01) than for conditional programs (dpooled = 0.10; 95%-CI: 0.07, 0.13; p<0.01). Effects on stress were insignificant and confidence intervals include both the possibility of meaningful reductions and small increases in stress (dpooled = -0.10; 95%-CI: -0.32, 0.12; ns). Overall, our findings suggest that cash transfers can play a role in alleviating depression and anxiety disorders. Yet, continued financial support may be necessary to enable longer-term improvements. Impacts are comparable in size to the effects of cash transfers on, e.g., children\'s test scores and child labor. Our findings further raise caution about potential adverse effects of conditionality on mental health, although more evidence is needed to draw robust conclusions.

Refining experiments and housing conditions so as to cause the minimum possible pain and distress is one of the three principles (3Rs) on which Directive 2010/63/EU is based. In this systematic review, we aimed to identify and summarize published advances in the refinement protocols made by European Union-based research groups from 2011 to 2021, and to determine whether or not said research was supported by European or national grants. We included 48 articles, the majority of which were related to improvements in experimental procedures (37/77.1%) for mice (26/54.2%) and were written by research groups belonging to universities (36/57.1%) and from the United Kingdom (21/33.9%). More than two thirds (35/72.9%) of the studies received financial support, 26 (mostly British) at a national level and 8 at a European level. Our results indicated a clear willingness among the scientific community to improve the welfare of laboratory animals, as although funding was not always available or was not specifically granted for this purpose, studies were published nonetheless. However, in addition to institutional support based on legislation, more financial support is needed. We believe that more progress would have been made in refinement during these years if there had been more specific financial support available at both the national and European Union levels since our data suggest that countries investing in refinement have the greatest productivity in successfully publishing refinements.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a worldwide public health problem. Many proposals aiming to eliminate its occurrence include the empowerment of women through their socio-economic development. In this context, some studies suggested that microcredit programs (MP) and cash transfer programs (CTP) are initiatives that can also reduce the risk of IPV. Others pointed to an opposite effect. The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of women\'s economic empowerment in MP and CTP on the risk of physical, psychological and sexual violence through a systematic review. Papers/documents selection was conducted by two researchers according to the following criteria: published in English, Portuguese or Spanish; primary data; assessing the effect of MP or CTP on IPV; in heterosexual couples; on women beneficiaries of the intervention; using a comparator group eligible for an MP or CTP; and focusing on risk IPV as the outcomes. Our results showed that the impact of MP are mixed when it comes to physical and physical/sexual violence. Even so, the review suggests that the effect of MP on sexual violence is trivial or nonexistent. Regarding the impact of CTPs, the present study showed that the effects on physical, physical/sexual, psychological, and sexual violence were also heterogeneous. Women more empowered and with some autonomy could be at risk. Despite that, participation in the empowerment program should be encouraged for poor women and families. However, parallel interventions to lead with IPV should be addressed to the main actions to reduce the risk of increasing IPV prevalence in certain scenarios.

Professional paediatrics associations play an important role in promoting the highest standard of care for women and children. Education and guidelines must be made in the best interests of patients. Given the importance of breastfeeding for the health, development and survival of infants, children and mothers, paediatric associations have a particular responsibility to avoid conflicts of interest with companies that manufacture breast-milk substitutes (BMSs). The objective of this study was to investigate the extent to which national and regional paediatric associations are sponsored by BMS companies.
Data were collected on national paediatric associations based on online searches of websites and Facebook pages. Sites were examined for evidence of financial sponsorship by the BMS industry, including funding of journals, newsletters or other publications, conferences and events, scholarships, fellowship, grants and awards. Payment for services, such as exhibitor space at conferences or events and paid advertisements in publications, was also noted.
Overall, 68 (60%) of the 114 paediatric associations with a website or Facebook account documented receiving financial support from BMS companies. Sponsorship, particularly of conferences or other events, was the most common type of financial support. The prevalence of conference sponsorship is highest in Europe and the Americas, where about half of the associations have BMS company-sponsored conferences. Thirty-one associations (27%) indicated that they received funding from BMS companies as payment for advertisements or exhibitor space. Only 18 associations (16%) have conflict of interest policies, guidelines, or criteria posted online.
Despite the well-documented importance of breastfeeding and the widespread recognition that commercial influences can shape the behaviours of healthcare professionals, national and regional paediatric associations commonly accept funding from companies that manufacture and distribute BMS. Paediatric associations should function without the influence of commercial interests.

Healthcare budgets are limited, and therefore, research funds should be wisely allocated to ensure high-quality, useful and cost-effective research. We aimed to critically review the criteria considered by major Australian organisations in prioritising and selecting health research projects for funding.
We reviewed all grant schemes listed on the Australian Competitive Grants Register that were health-related, active in 2017 and with publicly available selection criteria on the funders\' websites. Data extracted included scheme name, funding organisation, selection criteria and the relative weight assigned to each criterion. Selection criteria were grouped into five representative domains: relevance, appropriateness, significance, feasibility (including team quality) and cost-effectiveness (ie, value for money).
Thirty-six schemes were included from 158 identified. One-half of the schemes were under the National Health and Medical Research Council. The most commonly used criteria were research team quality and capability (94%), research plan clarity (94%), scientific quality (92%) and research impact (92%). Criteria considered less commonly were existing knowledge (22%), fostering collaboration (22%), research environment (19%), value for money (14%), disease burden (8%) and ethical/moral considerations (3%). In terms of representative domains, relevance was considered in 72% of the schemes, appropriateness in 92%, significance in 94%, feasibility in 100% and cost-effectiveness in 17%. The relative weights for the selection criteria varied across schemes with 5%-30% for relevance, 20%-60% for each appropriateness and significance, 20%-75% for feasibility and 15%-33% for cost-effectiveness.
In selecting research projects for funding, Australian research organisations focus largely on research appropriateness, significance and feasibility; however, value for money is most often overlooked. Research funding decisions should include an assessment of value for money in order to maximise return on research investment.

OBJECTIVE: To assess cash transfer interventions for improving treatment outcomes of active pulmonary tuberculosis in low- and middle-income countries.
METHODS: We searched PubMed®, Embase®, Cochrane Library and ClinicalTrials.gov for studies published until 4 August 2017 that reported on cash transfer interventions during the treatment of active pulmonary tuberculosis in low- and middle-income countries. Our primary outcome was a positive clinical outcome, defined as treatment success, treatment completion or microbiologic cure. Using the purchasing power parity conversion factor, we converted the amount of cash received per patient within each study into international dollars (Int$). We calculated odds ratio (OR) for the primary outcome using a random effects meta-analysis.
RESULTS: Eight studies met eligibility criteria for review inclusion. Seven studies assessed a tuberculosis-specific intervention, with average amount of cash ranging from Int$ 193-858. One study assessed a tuberculosis-sensitive intervention, with average amount of Int$ 101. Four studies included non-cash co-interventions. All studies showed better primary outcome for the intervention group than the control group. After excluding three studies with high risk of bias, patients receiving tuberculosis-specific cash transfer were more likely to have a positive clinical outcome than patients in the control groups (OR: 1.77; 95% confidence interval: 1.57-2.01).
CONCLUSIONS: The evidence available suggests that patients in low- and middle-income countries receiving cash during treatment for active pulmonary tuberculosis are more likely to have a positive clinical outcome. These findings support the incorporation of cash transfer interventions into social protection schemes within tuberculosis treatment programmes.
OBJECTIVE: Évaluer le rôle des interventions de transfert de fonds pour améliorer les résultats du traitement de la tuberculose pulmonaire active dans les pays à revenu faible et intermédiaire.
UNASSIGNED: Nous avons recherché, dans les bases de données de PubMed®, d\'Embase®, de ClinicalTrials.gov et de la Cochrane Library, des études publiées jusqu\'au 4 août 2017 qui mentionnaient des interventions de transfert de fonds durant le traitement de la tuberculose pulmonaire active dans des pays à revenu faible et intermédiaire. Le critère principal pris en compte était l\'obtention d\'un résultat clinique positif, défini comme la réussite du traitement, l\'achèvement du traitement ou la guérison microbiologique. À l\'aide du taux de conversion en parité de pouvoir d\'achat, nous avons converti le montant des fonds versés par patient dans chaque étude en dollars internationaux ($ int.). Nous avons calculé le rapport des cotes (RC) pour le critère principal au moyen d\'une méta-analyse à effets aléatoires.
UNASSIGNED: Huit études remplissaient les critères d\'admissibilité permettant d\'être incluses dans notre revue. Sept études évaluaient une intervention spécifique à la tuberculose, avec un montant moyen versé compris entre 193 et 858 $ int. Une étude évaluait une intervention prenant en compte la tuberculose, avec un montant moyen de 101 $ int. Quatre études comprenaient des co-interventions non financières. Toutes les études montraient un critère principal plus souvent atteint dans le groupe expérimental que dans le groupe témoin. Après avoir exclu trois études qui présentaient un risque de biais important, il est ressorti que les patients qui bénéficiaient de transferts de fonds spécifiques à la tuberculose étaient plus susceptibles d\'avoir un résultat clinique positif que les patients des groupes témoins (RC: 1,77; intervalle de confiance de 95%: 1,57-2,01).
CONCLUSIONS: Les données disponibles suggèrent que les patients des pays à revenu faible et intermédiaire qui reçoivent des sommes d\'argent durant leur traitement contre la tuberculose pulmonaire active sont plus susceptibles d\'avoir un résultat clinique positif. Ces conclusions vont dans le sens de l\'intégration d\'interventions de transfert de fonds dans les plans de protection sociale des programmes de traitement de la tuberculose.
OBJECTIVE: Evaluar las intervenciones de transferencias de efectivo para mejorar los resultados del tratamiento de la tuberculosis pulmonar activa en los países con ingresos entre bajos y medios.
UNASSIGNED: Se realizaron búsquedas en PubMed®, Embase®, Cochrane Library y ClinicalTrials.gov en busca de estudios publicados hasta el 4 de agosto de 2017 que informaran sobre intervenciones de transferencias de efectivo durante el tratamiento de la tuberculosis pulmonar activa en países con ingresos entre bajos y medios. El resultado principal fue un resultado clínico positivo, definido como éxito del tratamiento, finalización del tratamiento o curación microbiológica. Con el factor de conversión de paridad del poder adquisitivo, se convirtió la cantidad de dinero en efectivo recibido por paciente dentro de cada estudio en dólares internacionales. Se calculó el cociente de posibilidades (CP) para el resultado principal mediante un metanálisis de efectos aleatorios.
RESULTS: Ocho estudios cumplieron los criterios de elegibilidad para ser incluidos en la revisión. Siete estudios evaluaron una intervención específica para la tuberculosis, con una cantidad promedio de efectivo que osciló entre 193 e 858 dólares internacionales. Un estudio evaluó una intervención sensible a la tuberculosis, con una cantidad promedio de 101 dólares internacionales. Cuatro estudios incluían cointervenciones no monetarias. Todos los estudios mostraron mejores resultados principales para el grupo de intervención que para el grupo control. Después de excluir tres estudios con alto riesgo de sesgo, los pacientes que recibieron una transferencia de efectivo específica para la tuberculosis tuvieron mayores probabilidades de obtener un resultado clínico positivo que los pacientes de los grupos control (CP: 1,77; intervalo de confianza (IC) del 95%: 1,57 a 2,01).
UNASSIGNED: Las pruebas disponibles indican que los pacientes de países con ingresos entre bajos y medios que reciben dinero en efectivo durante el tratamiento de la tuberculosis pulmonar activa tienen más probabilidades de obtener un resultado clínico positivo. Estas conclusiones apoyan la incorporación de las intervenciones de transferencias de efectivo en los planes de protección social dentro de los programas para el tratamiento de la tuberculosis.
UNASSIGNED: تقييم تدخلات التحويلات النقدية الساعية إلى تحسين نتائج علاج السل الرئوي النشط في البلدان ذات الدخل المنخفض والمتوسط.
UNASSIGNED: لقد قمنا بالبحث في كل من PubMed®، وEmbase®، ومكتبة Cochrane Library، وClinicalTrials.gov، عن الدراسات المنشورة حتى 4 أغسطس/آب 2017، والتي تناولت تدخلات التحويلات النقدية أثناء علاج السل الرئوي النشط في البلدان ذات الدخل المنخفض والمتوسط. وكانت نتائجنا الأولية نتيجة سريرية إيجابية، تم تعريفها بأنها نجاح العلاج، أو إكمال العلاج، أو التعافي الميكروبيولوجي. وباستخدام معامل تحويل تعادل القوة الشرائية، قمنا بتحويل المبلغ النقدي المستلم لكل مريض في كل دراسة إلى دولار دولي. حسبنا نسبة الاحتمال (OR) للنتائج الأولية باستخدام التحليل التلوي العشوائي.
UNASSIGNED: توافقت ثماني دراسات مع معايير الأهلية لتضمينها في المراجعة. قامت سبع دراسات بتقييم التدخل الخاص بمرض السل، مع متوسط مبلغ نقدي يتراوح من 193 إلى 858 دولاراً دولياً. وقيمت إحدى الدراسات التدخل الحساس لمرض السل، بمتوسط مبلغ قدره 101 دولاراً دولياً. شملت أربع دراسات التدخلات غير النقدية المشتركة. أظهرت جميع الدراسات نتائج أولية أفضل لمجموعة التدخل من المجموعة المرجعية. بعد استبعاد ثلاث دراسات ذات خطورة عالية للتحيز، كان المرضى الذين يتلقون تحويلات نقدية خاصة بالسل أكثر عرضة لتحقيق نتائج سريرية إيجابية من المرضى في المجموعات المرجعية (نسبة الأرجحية: 1.77؛ فاصل الثقة 95٪: من 1.57 إلى 2.01).
UNASSIGNED: تشير الأدلة المتاحة إلى أن المرضى في البلدان ذات الدخل المنخفض والمتوسط ، الذين يتلقون مبالغ نقدية أثناء علاجهم من مرض السل الرئوي النشط، هم أكثر عرضة لتحقيق نتائج سريرية إيجابية. تدعم هذه النتائج الاتجاه لدمج تدخلات التحويلات النقدية في نظم الحماية الاجتماعية ضمن برامج علاج مرض السل.
UNASSIGNED: 评估通过现金转移干预措施以改善中低收入国家活动性肺结核的治疗效果。.
UNASSIGNED: 在 PubMed®、Embase®、考克兰图书馆和美国临床试验数据库 (ClinicalTrials.gov) 搜索截至 2017 年 8 月 4 日发表的研究时，我们发现了报道的中低收入国家活动性肺结核治疗期间的现金转移干预。我们的主要成果是积极的临床疗效，因此而被定义为治疗成功、治疗完成或微生物学治疗。通过使用购买力平价换算，我们将每项研究中每名患者接收的现金数额换算成国际美元 (Int$)。我们采用随机效应荟萃分析法为主要结果计算了优势比。.
UNASSIGNED: 其中，有八项研究符合纳入审查的资格标准。有七项研究评估了结核病专项干预，其平均现金数额从 193 至 858 国际美元不等。有一项研究评估了结核病敏感干预，其平均现金数额为 101 国际美元。有四项研究包含非现金共同干预。所有研究均表明干预组的主要结果优于对照组。通过排除三项具有高度偏见风险的研究，接收结核病专项现金转移的患者比控制组中的患者更可能出现积极的临床疗效（或：1.77；95% 置信区间：1.57–2.01)。.
UNASSIGNED: 有效证据显示中低收入国家的患者在治疗活动性肺结核期间接收现金干预更有可能拥有积极的临床疗效。这些发现支持将结核病治疗方案中的现金转移干预纳入社会保障计划中。.
UNASSIGNED: Оценить влияние финансовой помощи на улучшение результатов лечения активного туберкулеза легких в странах с низким и средним уровнем дохода.
UNASSIGNED: Авторы провели поиск в базах данных PubMed®, Embase®, Кохрановской библиотеке (Cochrane Library) и в реестре ClinicalTrials.gov на предмет исследований, опубликованных до 4 августа 2017 года, в которых сообщалось об оказании финансовой помощи в ходе лечения активного туберкулеза легких в странах с низким и средним уровнем дохода. В качестве основного результата рассматривался положительный клинический исход, определяемый как эффективное лечение, завершение лечения или микробиологическое излечение. Используя коэффициент пересчета паритета покупательной способности, авторы перевели количество денежных средств, полученных каждым пациентом в рамках каждого исследования, в международные доллары. Авторы рассчитали отношение шансов (ОШ) для основного результата, используя метаанализ случайных эффектов.
UNASSIGNED: Восемь исследований соответствовали критериям приемлемости для включения в обзор. В семи исследованиях оценивалась финансовая помощь, связанная с лечением туберкулеза, со средним количеством денежных средств в диапазоне от 193 до 858 международных долларов. В одном исследовании оценивалась финансовая помощь, связанная с лечением туберкулеза, со средним количеством денежных средств, равным 101 международному доллару. Четыре исследования включали неденежные совместные вмешательства. Во всех исследованиях для группы вмешательства наблюдался лучший основной результат по сравнению с контрольной группой. После исключения трех исследований с высоким риском систематической ошибки было обнаружено, что у пациентов, получающих финансовую помощь, связанную с лечением туберкулеза, чаще наблюдался положительный клинический исход, чем у пациентов в контрольных группах (ОШ: 1,77; 95%-й ДИ: 1,57–2,01).
UNASSIGNED: Имеющиеся данные свидетельствуют о том, что у пациентов в странах с низким и средним уровнем дохода, получающих финансовую помощь во время лечения активного туберкулеза легких, чаще наблюдается положительный клинический исход. Эти результаты подтверждают рациональность включения финансовой помощи в схемы социальной защиты в рамках программ лечения туберкулеза.

Cash transfers (CTs) are now high on the agenda of most governments in low- and middle-income countries. Within the field of health promotion, CTs constitute a healthy public policy initiative as they have the potential to address the social determinants of health (SDoH) and health inequalities. A systematic review was conducted to synthesise the evidence on CTs\' impacts on SDoH and health inequalities in sub-Saharan Africa, and to identify the barriers and facilitators of effective CTs. Twenty-one electronic databases and the websites of 14 key organizations were searched in addition to grey literature and hand searching of selected journals for quantitative and qualitative studies on CTs\' impacts on SDoH and health outcomes. Out of 182 full texts screened for eligibility, 79 reports that reported findings from 53 studies were included in the final review. The studies were undertaken within 24 CTs comprising 11 unconditional CTs (UCTs), 8 conditional CTs (CCTs) and 5 combined UCTs and CCTs. The review found that CTs can be effective in tackling structural determinants of health such as financial poverty, education, household resilience, child labour, social capital and social cohesion, civic participation, and birth registration. The review further found that CTs modify intermediate determinants such as nutrition, dietary diversity, child deprivation, sexual risk behaviours, teen pregnancy and early marriage. In conjunction with their influence on SDoH, there is moderate evidence from the review that CTs impact on health and quality of life outcomes. The review also found many factors relating to intervention design features, macro-economic stability, household dynamics and community acceptance of programs that could influence the effectiveness of CTs. The external validity of the review findings is strong as the findings are largely consistent with those from Latin America. The findings thus provide useful insights to policy makers and managers and can be used to optimise CTs to reduce health inequalities.