Abstract:Affordable access to safe drinking water is essential to community health, yet there is limited understanding of water insecurity among Native Americans. Therefore, the focus of this paper is to describe Apsáalooke (Crow Indian) tribal members’ experiences with water insecurity. For Apsáalooke people, local rivers and springs are still vitally important for traditional cultural activities. We interviewed 30 Native American adults living on the Crow Reservation in Southeastern Montana. Participants answered six… Show more
“…Nationwide studies or nationally representative samples were also common ( N = 50 [20%]). Seven studies were conducted among Indigenous peoples [ 43 , 54 – 59 ], including in Navajo Nation [ 54 , 55 ], Akwesasne Mohawk Nation [ 56 ], and the Crow Tribe [ 57 ]. For 37% ( n = 58) of non-US studies ( n = 157), the corresponding author’s institution was in a different country than the study site (Figures S3 – S4 ).…”
Section: Resultsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Examples include stratifying the overall model evaluating the association between moving to a greener neighborhood and change in physical activity by area-based income [ 152 ], or as Buck Louis et al [ 153 ] included, an interaction term between birthing person race/ethnicity and chemical plasma concentration in a model testing the main effect between chemical concentration and neonatal anthropometric measurements. Authors rarely used qualitative ( n = 4 [2%] [ 41 , 57 , 65 , 154 ]) or mediation ( n = 1 [< 1%] [ 64 ]) methods. Fig.…”
Section: Resultsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…In this scoping review, we identified limited exposure studies utilizing CBPR or community-engaged methods. Only 10 of the 208 (3%) exposure studies in this scoping review acknowledged using a CBPR approach [ 57 , 66 , 67 , 130 , 145 , 154 , 160 – 163 ]. Among these 10 studies, seven [ 57 , 66 , 67 , 145 , 154 , 160 , 161 ] discussed the extensive community and partnership building process typical of CBPR studies.…”
Purpose of Review
The volume of public health environmental justice (EJ) research produced by academic institutions increased through 2022. However, the methods used for evaluating EJ in exposure science and epidemiologic studies have not been catalogued. Here, we completed a scoping review of EJ studies published in 19 environmental science and epidemiologic journals from 2018 to 2021 to summarize research types, frameworks, and methods.
Recent Findings
We identified 402 articles that included populations with health disparities as a part of EJ research question and met other inclusion criteria. Most studies (60%) evaluated EJ questions related to socioeconomic status (SES) or race/ethnicity. EJ studies took place in 69 countries, led by the US (n = 246 [61%]). Only 50% of studies explicitly described a theoretical EJ framework in the background, methods, or discussion and just 10% explicitly stated a framework in all three sections. Among exposure studies, the most common area-level exposure was air pollution (40%), whereas chemicals predominated personal exposure studies (35%). Overall, the most common method used for exposure-only EJ analyses was main effect regression modeling (50%); for epidemiologic studies the most common method was effect modification (58%), where an analysis evaluated a health disparity variable as an effect modifier.
Summary
Based on the results of this scoping review, current methods in public health EJ studies could be bolstered by integrating expertise from other fields (e.g., sociology), conducting community-based participatory research and intervention studies, and using more rigorous, theory-based, and solution-oriented statistical research methods.
“…Nationwide studies or nationally representative samples were also common ( N = 50 [20%]). Seven studies were conducted among Indigenous peoples [ 43 , 54 – 59 ], including in Navajo Nation [ 54 , 55 ], Akwesasne Mohawk Nation [ 56 ], and the Crow Tribe [ 57 ]. For 37% ( n = 58) of non-US studies ( n = 157), the corresponding author’s institution was in a different country than the study site (Figures S3 – S4 ).…”
Section: Resultsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Examples include stratifying the overall model evaluating the association between moving to a greener neighborhood and change in physical activity by area-based income [ 152 ], or as Buck Louis et al [ 153 ] included, an interaction term between birthing person race/ethnicity and chemical plasma concentration in a model testing the main effect between chemical concentration and neonatal anthropometric measurements. Authors rarely used qualitative ( n = 4 [2%] [ 41 , 57 , 65 , 154 ]) or mediation ( n = 1 [< 1%] [ 64 ]) methods. Fig.…”
Section: Resultsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…In this scoping review, we identified limited exposure studies utilizing CBPR or community-engaged methods. Only 10 of the 208 (3%) exposure studies in this scoping review acknowledged using a CBPR approach [ 57 , 66 , 67 , 130 , 145 , 154 , 160 – 163 ]. Among these 10 studies, seven [ 57 , 66 , 67 , 145 , 154 , 160 , 161 ] discussed the extensive community and partnership building process typical of CBPR studies.…”
Purpose of Review
The volume of public health environmental justice (EJ) research produced by academic institutions increased through 2022. However, the methods used for evaluating EJ in exposure science and epidemiologic studies have not been catalogued. Here, we completed a scoping review of EJ studies published in 19 environmental science and epidemiologic journals from 2018 to 2021 to summarize research types, frameworks, and methods.
Recent Findings
We identified 402 articles that included populations with health disparities as a part of EJ research question and met other inclusion criteria. Most studies (60%) evaluated EJ questions related to socioeconomic status (SES) or race/ethnicity. EJ studies took place in 69 countries, led by the US (n = 246 [61%]). Only 50% of studies explicitly described a theoretical EJ framework in the background, methods, or discussion and just 10% explicitly stated a framework in all three sections. Among exposure studies, the most common area-level exposure was air pollution (40%), whereas chemicals predominated personal exposure studies (35%). Overall, the most common method used for exposure-only EJ analyses was main effect regression modeling (50%); for epidemiologic studies the most common method was effect modification (58%), where an analysis evaluated a health disparity variable as an effect modifier.
Summary
Based on the results of this scoping review, current methods in public health EJ studies could be bolstered by integrating expertise from other fields (e.g., sociology), conducting community-based participatory research and intervention studies, and using more rigorous, theory-based, and solution-oriented statistical research methods.
“…3 ). Unfortunately, the opportunity for stagnation in cisterns is high as families, including the First Nations households participating in this study, persevere to conserve water so to not run out before the delivery of new water ( 4 , 46 ). This lack of water movement and refreshment leads to the dissipation of the residual chlorine, bacterial regrowth, and potentially unsafe drinking water.…”
The microbiological content of water is an ongoing concern in First Nations communities in Canada. Many communities lack water treatment plants and continue to be under drinking water advisories. However, lack of access to treatment plants is only a part of the problem as poor water distribution systems also contribute to the failure to provide safe drinking water. Here, we studied the microbial diversity and antibiotic resistome from water stored in cisterns from two First Nations communities in Manitoba, Canada. We found that the cistern water contained a high number of bacteria and showed the presence of diverse antimicrobial resistance genes. Interestingly, the bacterial diversity and antimicrobial resistance genes varied considerably from that of the untreated source water, indicating that the origin of contamination in the cistern water came from within the treatment plant or along the delivery route to the homes. Our study highlights the importance of proper maintenance of the water distribution system in addition to access to water treatment facilities to ensure a supply of safe water to First Nations communities in Canada.
IMPORTANCE
The work described addresses a critical issue in First Nations communities in Canada—the microbiological content of water. Many of these communities lack access to water treatment plants and frequently experience drinking water advisories. This study focused on the microbial diversity and antibiotic resistome in water stored in cisterns within two First Nations communities in Manitoba, Canada. These findings reveal that cistern water, a common source of drinking water in these communities, contains a high number of bacteria and a wide range of antimicrobial resistance genes. This highlights a serious health risk as exposure to such water can lead to the spread of drug-resistant infections, posing a threat to the well-being of the residents.
“…As previously mentioned, people may be situated in areas where their water sources are contaminated by outside mines and radiation [21,23,26,27]. Indigenous communities such as the Hopi Tribe in Arizona [30] and the Crow Tribe in Montana are situated in regions with difficult access to safe drinking water [31]. This is not an isolated problem as water security has long been discussed as an issue among global Indigenous populations [32][33][34][35].…”
Section: The Built Environment and Watermentioning
Gastric cancer is a worldwide concern, particularly for Indigenous populations who face greater disparities in healthcare. With decreased access to screening and critical treatment delays, this group is experiencing adverse health effects. To determine what factors drive these disparities, a systematic review was performed in PubMed. This revealed a lack of research on gastric cancer specific to this population. The literature primarily focused on subset analyses and biological aspects with sparse focus on determinants of health. The results informed this presentation on factors related to Indigenous gastric cancer, which are influenced by colonialism. Indigenous populations encounter high rates of food shortage, exposure to harmful environmental agents, structural racism in the built environment, H. pylori, and compromised healthcare quality as an effect of colonialism, which all contribute to the gastric cancer burden. Putting gastric cancer into a cultural context is a potential means to respond to colonial perspectives and their negative impact on Indigenous patients. The objective of this manuscript is to examine the current state of gastric cancer literature from a global perspective, describe what is currently known based on this literature review, supplemented with additional resources due to lack of published works in PubMed, and to present a model of gastric cancer through the lens of a modified medicine wheel as a potential tool to counter colonial healthcare perspectives and to honor Indigenous culture.
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