A scoping review on Internet-based interventions for vulnerable rural populations
Creators: name: Robinson, Lauren
name: Yeager, Hannah
name: zelaya, carina
name: Schoenberg, Nancy
Publisher: name: Open Science Framework
Year: 2022
Subjects: subject: Medicine and Health Sciences
subject: Social and Behavioral Sciences
subject: Appalachia
subject: Central Appalachia
subject: eHealth
subject: health disparities
subject: Internet based interventions
subject: Kentucky
subject: mHealth
subject: Tennessee
subject: Virginia
subject: West Virginia

description: ABSTRACT Introduction Research has been increasing on internet-based interventions designed to improve health. Despite this greater research attention, marginalized communities have not been a significant focus of most studies. This lack of attention represents a missed opportunity, as vulnerable populations tend to experience a high prevalence of obesity, diabetes, and other chronic conditions. To increase the potential use of such interventions, researchers must build on each others’ work. Thus, we aim to take stock of the state of internet-based interventions among one segment of marginalized populations--rural Appalachians. Researchers will analyze the evidence available in the peer-reviewed literature in order to synthesize and report the nature, scope, and characteristics of Internet-based intervention research in Appalachia. We are particularly interested in focusing on research conducted in central Appalachia (Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia), a region that maintains some of the most egregious health and economic disparities in the nation. Rural residents in the central Appalachian region maintain extremely high rates of suboptimal diet and sedentary behaviors, placing them at elevated risk for cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, cancer, and other chronic conditions. Such adversity is exacerbated by and associated with inadequate community resources. Despite such inadequate personal and community resources, use of personal technology is expanding in the region. Such increased access to technology offers new opportunities to compensate for sparse healthcare provider availability. Moreover, residents in the region express interest in and support for such interventions. We therefore seek to better understand the regional landscape of internet-based health interventions, aiming to establish their feasibility and assess the practicality of implementing evidence-based internet-based interventions in this population. Methods and Analysis The researchers will conduct a scoping review to examine the literature on Internet-based interventions in Appalachia, with a particular emphasis on Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia. A scoping review was chosen due to its systematic methodological approach. The researchers will follow a systematic approach to track data on a given topic and establish central ideas, theories, sources and information gaps across the peer-reviewed literature. We will use the methodological framework developed by Arksey and O’Malley and expanded upon by Levac et al. This method will include (A) identifying and clearly defining the research question; (B) searching and identifying relevant studies; (C) study selection; (D) charting the data both quantitatively and thematically; and (E) summarizing and reporting the results. Strengths and Limitations of this Study ● Grey literature will not be examined in this scoping review. ● Researchers will only analyze internet-based interventions literature that pertains to the Appalachian region, while particularly highlighting Internet-based interventions in central Appalachian.