부산대학교 도서관

Background: Although the practice of communication is often called upon when intervening and involving communities affected by NTDs, the disciplinary framework of health communication research has been largely absent from NTD strategies. To illustrate how practices conceptualized and developed within the communication field have been applied in the context of NTD elimination, we conducted a scoping review focusing on two diseases currently targeted for elimination by the WHO: lymphatic filariasis and Chagas disease. Methods: We examined studies published between 2012 and 2020 in five electronic databases. Selected articles were required to (i) have explicit references to communication in either the abstract, title, or key words; (ii) further elaborate on the search terms (communication, message, media, participation and health education) in the body of the article; and (iii) sufficiently describe communication actions associated to those terms. Using the C-Change Socio-Ecological Model for Social and Behavior Change Communication as a reference, the articles were analysed to identify communication activities, theoretical frameworks, and/or rationales involved in their design, as well as their intended level of influence (individual, interpersonal, community, or enabling environment). Results and implications: A total of 43 articles were analysed. Most interventions conceptualized communication as a set of support tools or supplemental activities delivering information and amplifying pre-defined messages aimed at increasing knowledge, encouraging community involvement, promoting individual behavior change, or securing some degree of acceptability of proposed strategies. Although important attempts at further exploring communication capabilities were identified, particularly in participation-based strategies, for most studies, communication consisted of an underdeveloped and under-theorized approach. We contend that a more complex understanding of the capacities offered by the health communication field could help attain the biomedical and social justice goals proposed in NTD elimination strategies. Three ways in which the field of health communication could further enhance NTD efforts are presented: informing interventions with theory-based frameworks, exploring the political complexity of community participation in specific contexts, and identifying conceptualizations of culture implied in interventions' design. Conclusion: This article is a call to action to consider the resources offered by the health communication field when researching, designing, or implementing NTD interventions. Author summary: Communication is often seen as a central tool in NTD elimination strategies. However, the disciplinary framework of communication research is rarely considered in interventions' design. To understand how communication action is conceived and practiced, we conducted a scoping review with a focus on two diseases currently targeted for elimination: lymphatic filariasis and Chagas disease. We examined 43 studies published between 2012 and 2020 to identify communication practices, theoretical frameworks informing communication action and levels of intended influence. Community participation was the goal most commonly pursued through communication action, both in LF and CD strategies; important attempts at expanding the scope and reach of this practice were identified. However, our results indicate that while the field of health communication has gained complexity in the understanding of the nature of communication ecologies in public health interventions, NTD research has maintained a superficial involvement with health communication theory and science. This article is a call to action to consider the resources offered by the health communication field when researching, designing, or implementing NTD interventions to enhance the possibilities of communication action in implementation settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]