SCOPING REVIEW PROTOCOL OF E-HEALTH INTERVENTIONS TARGETING INDIGENOUS POPULATIONS

Introduction

Electronic Health (E-Health) technologies present a valuable opportunity to enhance healthcare access and outcomes for Indigenous populations by addressing persistent, often structurally determined, health disparities. Despite increasing recognition of the potential of E-Health interventions, there remains a lack of comprehensive synthesis of their modalities, cultural appropriateness, and implementation within Indigenous communities globally. This scoping review aims to systematically map the landscape of E-Health interventions for Indigenous populations, identifying effective strategies and gaps in current research and practice. By documenting global evidence, this review contributes to broader efforts to integrate Indigenous health considerations into policy and practice, supporting health equity and realising the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Methods and Analysis

This scoping review will follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) Guidelines. A comprehensive search of multiple databases will be conducted to identify studies on E-Health interventions in Indigenous communities between 2013 and 2024. The review will focus on interventions targeting Indigenous populations published in English. A two-stage screening process, comprising abstract/title screening followed by full-text screening, will be independently conducted by two reviewers. A standardised data extraction template will be used, and qualitative data will be synthesised using thematic analysis. Quantitative data will be presented descriptively using graphs, diagrams, or tables.

Ethics and dissemination

As the study relied on publicly available research, institutional review board (IRB) approval is not required. Findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations.

Strengths and limitations of this study

• Comprehensive Scope: This review will encompass a broad spectrum of E-Health interventions, providing a holistic understanding of current practices within Indigenous communities globally.

• Cultural Evaluation: By examining cultural appropriateness alongside efficacy, this review will offer deeper insights into how interventions align with Indigenous values, traditions, and health practices.

• Framework-Driven Rigour: The methodology, guided by PRISMA-P and Arksey and O’Malley’s framework, ensures a systematic, transparent, and reproducible research process.

• Identification of Barriers: In addition to highlighting effective interventions, this review will uncover challenges and obstacles to adopting E-Health technologies, offering valuable information for policymakers, health professionals, and community stakeholders.

• Language Restrictions and exclusion of Grey literature: The findings will be limited to English publications, potentially restricting the inclusion of relevant studies published in other languages. Grey literature will be excluded from this scoping review, which may result in the omission of relevant unpublished or non-peer-reviewed research.