OBJECTIVE: Patient-centredness of care during wait time before surgery can be improved. In this study we aimed to assess (1) patients\' experiences with and preferences regarding wait time before surgery; (2) the impact of wait time on quality of life (QoL) and (3) which factors influence patients\' wait time experience.
METHODS: We performed an exploratory sequential mixed-methods study among women with gynaecological cancer in two tertiary hospitals. We conducted semistructured interviews and identified aspects of QoL and factors that influenced wait time acceptability through thematic analysis. We developed a questionnaire from this thematic analysis which was completed by 97 women. Descriptive statistics and univariate and multivariate regression analyses were performed.
RESULTS: Average ideal wait time was 3.5 weeks (±1.7 weeks), minimum and maximum acceptable wait times were 2.2 and 5.6 weeks. Many patients scored above the threshold of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale for anxiety (48%) or depression (34%), had sleeping problems (56%) or experienced pain (54%). A number of factors were more common in patients who indicated that their wait time had been too long: low education level (OR 7.4, 95% CI 0.5 to 5.0, p=0.007), time to surgery >4 weeks (OR 7.0, 95% CI 0.8 to 4.4, p=0.002) and experienced sleep disturbance (OR 3.27, 95% CI 0.0 to 3.1, p=0.05). If patients expectation of wait time was >4 weeks (OR 0.20, 95% CI -4.0 to -0.5 p=0008) or if patients experienced pain (OR 0.26, 95% CI -3.6 to -0.3, p=0.03), they less frequently indicated that wait time had been too long.
CONCLUSIONS: To improve patient-centredness of care, healthcare providers should aim to reduce wait time to 3-4 weeks and ensure that patients are well informed about the length of wait time and are aware of high levels of anxiety, depression and pain during this time. Future studies should evaluate what interventions can improve QoL during wait time.

OBJECTIVE: To describe a new co-design framework termed Evidence-informed, Experience-based Co-design (E2CD).
BACKGROUND: Involving consumers and clinicians in planning, designing and implementing services results in the end-product being more likely to meet the needs of end-users and increases the likelihood of their uptake and sustainability. Different forms and definitions of co-design have been described in the literature and have had varying levels of success in health service redesign. However, many fall short of including people with lived experience in all aspects of the process, particularly in setting priorities for service (re)design. In addition, health services need to deliver evidence-based care as well as care that meets the needs of users, yet few ways of integrating research evidence into co-design processes are described. This paper describes a new framework to approach co-design which addresses these issues. We believe that it offers a roadmap to address some of healthcare\'s most wicked problems and potentially improve outcomes for some of the most vulnerable people in our society. We use improving services for people with high healthcare service utilisation as a working example of the Framework\'s application.
CONCLUSIONS: Evidence-informed experience-based co-design has the potential to be used as a framework for co-design that integrates research evidence with lived experience and provides people with lived experience a central role in decision-making about prioritising and designing services to meet their needs.

OBJECTIVE: In 2023, Australian government emergency medical services (EMS) responded to over 4 million consumers, of which over 56% were not classified as an \'emergency\', at the cost of AU$5.5 billion. We explored the viewpoints of politicians, policymakers, clinicians and consumers on how these non-emergency requests should be managed.
METHODS: A realist framework was adopted; a multidisciplinary team (including paramedicine, medicine and nursing) was formed; data were collected via semistructured focus groups or interviews, and thematic analysis was performed.
METHODS: 56 participants were selected purposefully and via open advertisement: national and state parliamentarians (n=3); government heads of healthcare disciplines (n=3); government policymakers (n=5); industry policymakers in emergency medicine, general practice and paramedicine (n=6); EMS chief executive officers, medical directors and managers (n=7); academics (n=8), frontline clinicians in medicine, nursing and paramedicine (n=8); and consumers (n=16).
RESULTS: Three themes emerged: first, the reality of the EMS workload (theme titled \'facing reality\'); second, perceptions of what direction policy should take to manage this (\'no silver bullet\') and finally, what the future role of EMS in society should be (\'finding the right space\'). Participants provided 16 policy suggestions, of which 10 were widely supported: increasing public health literacy, removing the Medical Priority Dispatch System, supporting multidisciplinary teams, increasing 24-hour virtual emergency departments, revising undergraduate paramedic university education to reflect the reality of the contemporary role, increasing use of management plans for frequent consumers, better paramedic integration with the healthcare system, empowering callers by providing estimated wait times, reducing ineffective media campaigns to \'save EMS for emergencies\' and EMS moving away from hospital referrals and towards community care.
CONCLUSIONS: There is a need to establish consensus on the role of EMS within society and, particularly, on whether the scope should continue expanding beyond emergency care. This research reports 16 possible ideas, each of which may warrant consideration, and maps them onto the standard patient journey.

OBJECTIVE: Increasingly, healthcare and public health strategists invite us to look at healthcare organisations as not just care providers but as anchor institutions (ie, large community-rooted organisations with significant impact in the local economy, social fabric and overall community well-being). In response, this study explores the mechanisms through which healthcare organisations can impact social determinants of health and communities in their local areas.
METHODS: We conducted case studies with interviews and synthesised the findings using a realist approach to produce a set of explanations (programme theory) of how healthcare organisations can have a positive impact on the overall well-being of local communities by operating as anchor institutions.
METHODS: Secondary healthcare organisations in England, including mental health and community services.
METHODS: Staff from case study sites which were directly employed or actively engaged in the organisation\'s anchor institution strategy. Data collection took place from early June to the end of August 2023.
RESULTS: We found four building blocks for effective anchor activity including employment, spending, estates and sustainability. Healthcare organisations-as anchor institutions-can improve the social determinants of health for their local communities through enabling accessible paths for local community recruitment and career progression; empowering local businesses to join supply chains boosting income and wealth; transforming organisational spaces into community assets; and supporting local innovation and technology to achieve their sustainability goals. These blocks need to be integrated across organisations on the basis of a population health approach promoted by supportive leadership, and in collaboration with a diverse range of local partners.
CONCLUSIONS: Healthcare organisations have the potential for a positive impact on the overall well-being of local communities. Policymakers should support healthcare organisations to leverage employment, spending, estates and sustainability to help address the unequal distribution of the social determinants of health.

OBJECTIVE: There has not been a theoretical test run in Germany that compares different navigation systems with an industry solution (MapTrip112). The aim of this study was to compare navigation systems to elucidate whether the emergency response time (ERT) was reduced and, consequently, whether the adherence to the travel time improved.
METHODS: Prospective, simulation study, cross-sectional study.
METHODS: Offices of the Institute of Occupational Medicine, Social Medicine and Environmental Medicine, Goethe University Frankfurt (60 590 Frankfurt am Main, Germany). The situation-adaptable industry navigation solution MapTrip112 was tested in its \'Lights and Siren(s) (L&S)\' mode in comparison to the TomTom and Google Maps navigation systems. MapTrip112 was set to calculate a route that takes special emergency rights of way into account.
METHODS: All three navigation systems simultaneously calculated the distances and durations of fictitious routes. Three scenarios were tested: the University Hospital Frankfurt (60 596 Frankfurt am Main, Germany) and the Central Fire Station 1 (60435 Frankfurt am Main, Germany) served as the starting points for the urban routes, while the Odenwald Health Centre (64 711 Erbach, Germany) served as the starting point for rural routes. The routes\' endpoints were arbitrarily chosen locations inside the customary operational radius. The routes were selected for short and long distances as well as for different periods, including weekdays, weekends and evening rush hour (4-7 pm), in the German cities of Frankfurt am Main and Odenwaldkreis (Southern Hesse).
RESULTS: The time and distance were calculated for a total of 4650 trips. When comparing travel times and distances between rural and urban areas as well as between weekdays and weekends, statistically significant results were obtained (p<0.001). With time advantages ranging from 23.5 s to 300.5 s (4.75% to 50% of the travel time) on weekdays and weekends, MapTrip112 consistently outperformed both TomTom and Google Maps. For city missions, MapTrip112 achieved time gains of up to 50% over its competitors, with significant advantages during the rush hours and around specific locations such as the University Hospital Frankfurt and Fire Station 1.
CONCLUSIONS: MapTrip112 always achieved the fastest routes although these were not always accompanied by a shortened distance. These findings underscore MapTrip112\'s superiority in providing efficient routing solutions across various scenarios. For this reason, the use of this software should be considered in practice and investigated in real-world conditions in further studies.

BACKGROUND: Transitioning patients from their paediatric centres to adulthood is an important subject for many of these patients living with different chronic pathologies. There are few studies that assess its effectiveness in paediatric surgical pathologies. The overall objective of this scoping review is to assess the extent of the literature describing transitional programmes dedicated to young patients living with surgical conditions. The primary question will look to assess what transitional programmes are available for young patients living with surgical conditions either operated or not.
METHODS: The proposed scoping review will follow guidelines described by the Joanna Briggs Institute manual described by Peters et al in 2020. This protocol will employ the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic review and Meta-Analysis Protocols checklist. The concept that will be included in this review is the exposure of these patients to a transition of care pathway or care programmes. Patients between the ages of 16 and 30 with a surgical condition will be included. There will be no comparator. No specific outcomes will be assessed, however, the outcomes that will be found from the transition programmes will be reviewed. A knowledge synthesis librarian will search MEDLINE All (Ovid), Embase (Ovid), Web of Science Core Collection (Clarivate) and CINAHL Complete (EBSCOhost). The literature search will be limited to 2000 onwards publications. No language or age group limitation will be applied. The reference list of all included sources of evidence will be screened for additional studies. Screening of search results and data extraction from included studies will be completed in Covidence by two independent reviewers. We will also use the PAGER (Patterns, Advances, Gaps, Evidence for practice and Research recommendations) framework to report and summarise the results.
BACKGROUND: This review does not require ethics approval. Our dissemination strategy includes peer review publication, conference presentation, co-constructed guidelines with stakeholders and policymakers.
BACKGROUND: This review is registered on OSF.

OBJECTIVE: To assess healthcare workers\' (HCWs) confidence level in diagnosing and managing mpox disease and its associated factors in hospitals in the Amhara Region.
METHODS: Institution-based cross-sectional study.
METHODS: Hospitals in the Amhara Region, Northwest Ethiopia.
METHODS: A total of 640 HCWs, with a response rate of 96.9%, participated from 1 October to 30 December 2022. A multistage stratified random sampling technique with proportional allocation was used to recruit study participants. Data were collected using the KoboCollect toolbox and exported to STATA V.17 for analysis. Descriptive statistics were used to describe data. Ordinal logistic regression analysis was used to identify predictors of confidence level to diagnose and manage mpox at p<0.05.
METHODS: HCWs\' confidence level in diagnosing and managing mpox disease and its associated factors.
RESULTS: The overall proportion of HCWs who had high confidence level in diagnosing and managing mpox disease was found to be 31.5% (95% CI: 27.9%, 35.2%). Similarly, 26.8% (95% CI: 23.2%, 30.3%) and 41.8% (95% CI: 38.1%, 45.4%) of HCWs expressed medium and low confidence level to diagnose and manage the disease, respectively. The odds of higher confidence versus lower or medium confidence level in diagnosing and managing mpox were greater for HCWs who regularly visit amenable websites (adjusted OR (AOR)=1.59, 95% CI: 1.16, 2.2), were physicians (AOR=1.9, 95% CI: 1.32, 2.73), were aged 30-35 years old (AOR=1.64, 95% CI: 1.12, 2.39), had got public health emergency epidemic disease management training (AOR=2.8, 95% CI: 1.94, 4.04) and had positive attitudes (AOR=1.72, 95% CI: 1.26, 2.36) compared with their counterparts.
CONCLUSIONS: The overall confidence level of HCWs in diagnosing and managing mpox disease in the study area was low. Therefore, the HCWs should be regularly updated about mpox disease through morning sessions and training in the diagnosis and clinical management of mpox disease including infection prevention and control.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to develop a patient-centred approach to the burden of acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) through modelling. The main objective was to identify potential improvements in managing this life-threatening cardiovascular condition and to provide evidence-based recommendations to optimise outcomes.
METHODS: We developed a predictive model along patient pathways to estimate the burden of ATAAD through the years of life lost (YLLs) metric. The model was created based on a systematic review of the literature and was parameterised using demographic data from the German healthcare environment. The model was designed to allow interactive simulation of different scenarios resulting from changes in key impact factors.
METHODS: The study was conducted using data from the German healthcare environment and results from the literature review.
METHODS: The study included a comprehensive modelling of ATAAD cases in Germany but did not directly involve participants.
METHODS: There were no specific interventions applied in this study based on the modelling design.
METHODS: The single outcome measure was the estimation of YLL due to ATAAD in Germany.
RESULTS: Our model estimated 102 791 YLL per year for ATAAD in Germany, with 62 432 and 40 359 YLL for men and women, respectively. Modelling an improved care setting yielded 93 191 YLL or 9.3% less YLL compared with the current standard while a worst-case scenario resulted in 113 023 or 10.0% more YLL. The model is accessible at https://acuteaorticdissection.com/ to estimate custom scenarios.
CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides an evidence-based approach to estimating the burden of ATAAD and identifying potential improvements in the management of pathways. This approach can be used by healthcare decision-makers to inform policy changes aimed at optimising patient outcomes. By considering patient-centred approaches in any healthcare environment, the model has the potential to improve efficient care for patients suffering from ATAAD.

BACKGROUND: Climate change poses a major threat to our health, livelihoods and the planet. In 2020, the UK National Health Service (NHS) committed to reducing its Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions to reach net zero by 2045. Although a net zero NHS would help to limit the consequences of climate change, little is known about the UK general public\'s values and preferences for the proposed service changes needed to reach net zero.
METHODS: This study will elicit the public\'s preferences for actions to help achieve net zero NHS in England and Scotland using a discrete choice experiment (DCE). The DCE attributes and levels describe actions that can be taken by the NHS across key areas: buildings and estates, outdoor space, travel and transport, provision of care, goods and services and food and catering. The survey was designed using online think-aloud interviews with 17 members of the public. Two versions of the survey will be administered to a sample of up to 2200 respondents. One will include a payment vehicle as income tax increases. We will estimate the relative importance of each attribute and, for the former survey, the monetary trade-offs which individuals are willing to make between attributes. Where possible, we will match both samples to gauge preference robustness with the inclusion of the monetary payment. We will test whether respondents\' preferences differ based on their socioeconomic circumstances and attitudes toward the NHS and climate change.
BACKGROUND: The University of Aberdeen\'s School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition Ethics Research Board has approved the study (reference: SERB/690090). All participants will provide informed consent. Results will be submitted to peer-reviewed publications and presented at relevant conferences and seminars. A lay summary of the research will be published on the Health Economics Research Unit website.

Veterans are not a demographically homogenous group, yet minority groups continue to be under-represented in research and report feeling less able to access clinical services to seek support. While veteran-specific healthcare has responded to the needs of the majority, the success of veteran mental health services is contingent on serving the whole veteran population. Key to the personalisation of healthcare is the question of access and a need to address specific inequalities and barriers to help-seeking behaviour. In this paper, we explore the issues of access to veteran healthcare at three levels: those barriers common to all veterans; those common to all minority groups of veterans; and those relevant to specific minority groups of veterans. Stigma, military attitudes and culture (eg, stoicism), and access to services and professionals with veteran-specific knowledge are universal barriers across veteran groups. Minority groups report a heightening of these barriers, alongside being \'othered\' in veteran care settings, a lack of representation of them or their experiences in service descriptions and advertising, a lack of professional cultural competencies on specific issue, and the veteran environment potentially being retraumatising. Finally, barriers specific to individual groups are discussed. Attending to these is essential in developing holistic approaches to personalised healthcare that meets the needs of all veterans.