Frank De Vocht
Dados Biográficos
| ID | 1742591 |
|---|---|
| NOME | Frank De Vocht |
| PRENOMES | Frank |
| SOBRENOME | De Vocht |
| ASSINATURA | DE VOCHT F |
| AFILIAÇÕES | University of Bristol |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-3631-627X |
| VERIFICADO | Sim |
| TOTAL DE OBRAS | 51 |
| TOTAL DE CITAÇÕES | 19 |
| TOTAL COMO AUTOR | 51 |
| TOTAL COMO EDITOR | 0 |
| PRIMEIRO ANO DE PUBLICAÇÃO | 2011 |
| ANO MAIS RECENTE DE PUBLICAÇÃO | 2026 |
| ÍNDICE H | 3 |
Harms and Health Inequalities in the Night-Time Economy
Goods and services consumed in the night-time economy (NTE) are associated with adverse health outcomes. These outcomes are more prevalent in areas with greater deprivation and among minoritized population subgroups. This study was aimed at exploring the views of local authority stakeholders on the harms and health inequalities in the NTE. We focused on inequalities from alcohol and gambling, their relationship with the NTE and how different form…
Primary school physical activity culture in the UK
Introduction: Physical activity is fundamental for children's health and well-being, yet most children are not active enough. School-based interventions aiming to increase children's physical activity have largely been ineffective, perhaps due to a lack of consideration of the unique culture within each school. The aim of this paper is to understand the key aspects of physical activity culture in English primary schools using the organizational c…
Community‐Led Adaptation, Weather Extremes, and Health and Wellbeing
Community‐led action is of increasing interest for policy, local government, and the design of adaptation under a changing climate. Previous research has shown how community‐led responses to climate impacts, such as flooding and heat, can be important in mitigating their ill health and wellbeing effects. But the evidence base on the character and nature of such actions by communities is at present scattered. In this paper, we review the internati…
‘Very’ selective licensing – An exploration of English local authorities’ adoption of a discretionary landlord licensing scheme, 2006-2019
Since 2006 English Local Authorities (LA) have had discretionary powers to implement a type of landlord licensing scheme, Selective Licensing (SL), in the private rental sector. The scheme is intended to improve housing standards in areas marked by antisocial behaviour, poor housing conditions, low housing demand, and high levels of migration, deprivation, and crime. Yet up to 2019, only 15% of LA had adopted SL. We examine temporal, socio-econom…
Opportunities and challenges in community-led action on weather extremes for health and wellbeing
Communities play critical roles in mitigating health and wellbeing impacts from weather extremes such as heat, cold and flood events. Community-led actions in affected localities have been shown to be an important part of effective planning and response, particularly in supporting socially and economically marginalised populations. They have also been suggested to face multiple challenges limiting their ability to ensure continuity, scale up, and…
Electrohypersensitivity
Electrohypersensitivity (EHS), or idiopathic environmental intolerance attributed to electromagnetic fields (IEI-EMF), is a condition with fluid and transient symptoms associated to exposure to non-ionizing radiation by people claiming to suffer from it. However, the scientific evidence linking the exposure to the reported effects to datwe has eluded researchers, and may not even exist. In the current perspective we outline what is objectively kn…
Using group model building to frame the commercial determinants of dietary behaviour in adolescence – findings from online system mapping workshops with adolescents, policymakers and public health pra…
This study highlights the need for public health policymaking processes to provide youth with a space to voice influential elements and consequences, thereby co-creating policies and designing interventions to buffer risk factors and increase well-being in this critical transitional stage
A qualitative exploration of community kitchens to reduce household food waste as a public health intervention
A refocus of the community kitchens as a scheme to provide social benefits, is likely to improve the scheme's reach and subsequent contribution to the health and wellbeing of socially isolated individuals
We just have to work with what we’ve got”
The presence of facilities or resources alone does not determine pupil physical activity at primary school. Factors such as the social context of the school, logistical and timetabling challenges, seasonality, and how fit for purpose facilities are for that school, are important factors in school staff and pupils' use and management of these facilities, and whether their potential is maximised or undermined. Future research and policy must broade…
The complexity of promoting physical activity in English state primary schools
Revisions to school regulatory systems and policies are needed to enable schools to prioritise physical activity so it is not dependent on "passionate" individuals. Senior leadership plays a key role in prioritising physical activity in the high pressure state primary school environment. It is important that practitioners and researchers consider these diverse and challenging social contextual factors within English state primary schools in inter…
Designing context-specific physical activity interventions for English primary schools
This study underscores the importance of context-specific approaches to promoting physical activity in primary schools. Context-specific intervention design should closely consider school context to ensure strategies are appropriate. Intervention designs should also include steps to understand different stakeholder goals, PTA funding disparities, and the appropriate areas of physical activity to target
The Value in Rapid, Multi-Site Team Ethnography for Understanding Context to Design Public Health Interventions
Low levels of physical activity is a global public health challenge, and children are not taking part in recommended amounts of physical activity. To date, the majority of school-based physical activity interventions have not yielded increases in pupils’ physical activity levels, and it is suggested that this is partly due to traditional intervention approaches ignoring the role of individual school context. By context we mean the school setting,…
A synthesis of explanations for spatial inequalities in gambling harm
Place matters for understanding patterns of gambling harm as shown by the spatial clustering of both 'vulnerable' people and gambling outlets. Harms are experienced at a community level (and never restricted to individuals) and are spread unequally across communities of place. Following the liberalisation of gambling laws in the UK in the 1990s, gambling outlets and advertising have proliferated in many economically disadvantaged places, with the…
Physical activity interventions in European primary schools
Introduction: Schools provide a unique environment to facilitate physical activity for children. However, many school-based physical activity interventions have not been effective. We propose a new approach, which allows schools to tailor interventions to their specific context. This scoping review aimed to identify intervention components from previous school-based physical activity interventions to form the basis of a tailored approach in a Eur…
Commentary
Perceived impacts of a school-based growth mindset programme ‘Mindset Teams’ in Scotland
Findings provide support for Mindset programmes focusing on the development of teachers' mindsets, highlighting the resultant perceived impacts this can have on both teachers and pupils alike. Future research should seek to capture health and wellbeing measures alongside attainment data to fully explore programme impacts
Natural experiments for the evaluation of place-based public health interventions
Introduction Place-based public health evaluations are increasingly making use of natural experiments. This scoping review aimed to provide an overview of the design and use of natural experiment evaluations (NEEs), and an assessment of the plausibility of the as-if randomization assumption. Methods A systematic search of three bibliographic databases (Pubmed, Web of Science and Ovid-Medline) was conducted in January 2020 to capture publications …
Rethinking children’s physical activity interventions at school
Physical activity is important for children’s health. However, evidence suggests that many children and adults do not meet international physical activity recommendations. Current school-based interventions have had limited effect on physical activity and alternative approaches are needed. Context, which includes school setting, ethos, staff, and sociodemographic factors, is a key and largely ignored contributing factor to school-based physical a…
Typology of how ‘harmful commodity industries’ interact with local governments in England
INTRODUCTION: Industries that produce and market potentially harmful commodities or services (eg, tobacco, alcohol, gambling, less healthy foods and beverages) are a major influence on the drivers of behavioural risk factors for non-communicable diseases. The nature and impact of interactions between public bodies and 'harmful commodity industries' (HCIs) has been widely recognised and discussed at national and international levels, but to date l…
The new normal for children’s physical activity and screen viewing
There is a new normal for children's physical activity that is characterised by increased dependence on structured and organised physical activities, such as active clubs, and less on unstructured and spontaneous physical activities, such as physical play. While this may suit many children, girls and children from lower socio-economic households face barriers to participating in the new normal. It is important that affordable and equitable opport…
Assessing exposure to outdoor advertisement for products high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS); is self-reported exposure a useful exposure metric
Self-reported outdoor advertisement exposure is correlated with measured exposure, making this a useful methodology for population studies. It has the added advantage that it correlates with consumption. However, given that measurement error can be significant and self-reported exposure is known to be susceptible to various biases, inferences from studies using this exposure metric should be made with caution
Implementing a regional School Health Research Network in England to improve adolescent health and well-being, a qualitative process evaluation
This study identifies several barriers to be addressed and facilitators to be enhanced in order to achieve successful implementation of School Health Research Networks in England which include providing a unique offering to schools that is not too burdensome, supporting schools to take meaningful action with their data and to work closely with existing organisations, services and providers to become meaningfully embedded in the system
Advertisement of unhealthy commodities in Bristol and South Gloucestershire and rationale for a new advertisement policy
Unhealthy product advertisements, particularly for unhealthy food and drinks, were observed more by younger people and those living in more deprived areas. Policies that specifically restrict such advertisements, therefore, have the potential to reduce health inequalities, as was the hope when this policy was developed. Future evaluation of the policy will provide evidence of any public health impact
Screen-viewing behaviours of children before and after the 2020–21 Covid-19 lockdowns in the UK
Although screen-viewing was higher post-lockdown compared to pre-COVID-19, the high increases reported during lockdowns were not, on average, sustained post-lockdown. This may be attributed to a combination of short-term fluctuations during periods of strict restrictions, parental support in regulating post-lockdown behaviour and age-related, rather than COVID-19-specific, increases in screen-viewing. However, socio-economic differences in our sa…
Using systems thinking to understand how the South West - School Health Research Network can improve adolescent health and well-being
Schools offer a valuable setting to promote good health and mental well-being amongst young people. Schools are complex systems and therefore systems interventions are needed to improve pupil health and well-being. This paper presents a qualitative process evaluation of the South West- School Health Research Network, a systems level intervention. The evaluation is based on interviews with school staff, local authorities and wider stakeholders. Gi…
Restricting the advertising of high fat, salt and sugar foods on the Transport for London estate
Testing the impact of local alcohol licencing policies on reported crime rates in England
BACKGROUND: Excessive alcohol use contributes to public nuisance, antisocial behaviour, and domestic, interpersonal and sexual violence. We test whether licencing policies aimed at restricting its spatial and/or temporal availability, including cumulative impact zones, are associated with reductions in alcohol-related crime. METHODS: Reported crimes at English lower tier local authority (LTLA) level were used to calculate the rates of reported cr…
Local policies to tackle a national problem
Measurable effects of local alcohol licensing policies on population health in England
BACKGROUND: English alcohol policy is implemented at local government level, leading to variations in how it is put into practice. We evaluated whether differences in the presence or absence of cumulative impact zones and the 'intensity' of licensing enforcement--both aimed at regulating the availability of alcohol and modifying the drinking environment--were associated with harm as measured by alcohol-related hospital admissions. METHODS: Premis…
The intervention effect of local alcohol licensing policies on hospital admission and crime
BACKGROUND: Control of alcohol licensing at local government level is a key component of alcohol policy in England. There is, however, only weak evidence of any public health improvement. We used a novel natural experiment design to estimate the impact of new local alcohol licensing policies on hospital admissions and crime. METHODS: We used Home Office licensing data (2007-2012) to identify (1) interventions: local areas where both a cumulative …
Effects of long-term exposure to PM 10 and NO 2 on asthma and wheeze in a prospective birth cohort
BACKGROUND: Epidemiological studies on the effect of urban air pollution on childhood asthma have shown conflicting results and so far no consistent association has emerged. However, a common limitation in previous studies has been exposure misclassification leading to uncertainties in risk estimates.The aim of this study was to analyse the effects of long-term exposure to particulate matter (PM10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) on the prevalence of …
Using systems thinking to understand how the South West - School Health Research Network can improve adolescent health and well-being
Schools offer a valuable setting to promote good health and mental well-being amongst young people. Schools are complex systems and therefore systems interventions are needed to improve pupil health and well-being. This paper presents a qualitative process evaluation of the South West- School Health Research Network, a systems level intervention. The evaluation is based on interviews with school staff, local authorities and wider stakeholders. Gi…
Processes of local alcohol policy-making in England
PP70 Knowledge Brokers or Policy Entrepreneurs? Strategies to Influence the Policy Process
Background Understanding the impact and process of evidence-use in policy has been a major focus for researchers in recent years. Researchers often focus on (a) how to increase uptake of research, (b) validating models of knowledge transfer and (c) advocating for the use of knowledge brokers. Several ‘job descriptions’ for knowledge brokers have been published. However, the influence and impact of knowledge brokers is unclear. Policy actors who a…
Incorporating uncertainty in aggregate burden of disease measures
BACKGROUND: Summary measures of population health (SMPH) combine information about morbidity and mortality as a means of describing the health of a population and allow for the comparison between otherwise incomparable health problems. Despite the widespread use of SMPHs in global public health policy, the uncertainty in their calculation, inherent due to the variable quality and availability of data from different sources required to calculate S…
OP76 Who Runs Public Health
Background Persistent health inequalities encourage researchers to identify new ways of understanding the policy process. Research shows that informal relationships are implicated in finding evidence and making decisions for public health policy. However, few studies use specialised methods such a network analysis to identify key relationships and actors in the policy process. Furthermore, little is known about the strategies used by these influe…
PP70 Knowledge Brokers or Policy Entrepreneurs? Strategies to Influence the Policy Process
Background Understanding the impact and process of evidence-use in policy has been a major focus for researchers in recent years. Researchers often focus on (a) how to increase uptake of research, (b) validating models of knowledge transfer and (c) advocating for the use of knowledge brokers. Several ‘job descriptions’ for knowledge brokers have been published. However, the influence and impact of knowledge brokers is unclear. Policy actors who a…
Effects of long-term exposure to PM 10 and NO 2 on asthma and wheeze in a prospective birth cohort
BACKGROUND: Epidemiological studies on the effect of urban air pollution on childhood asthma have shown conflicting results and so far no consistent association has emerged. However, a common limitation in previous studies has been exposure misclassification leading to uncertainties in risk estimates.The aim of this study was to analyse the effects of long-term exposure to particulate matter (PM10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) on the prevalence of …
Assessment of Offspring DNA Methylation across the Lifecourse Associated with Prenatal Maternal Smoking Using Bayesian Mixture Modelling
A growing body of research has implicated DNA methylation as a potential mediator of the effects of maternal smoking in pregnancy on offspring ill-health. Data were available from a UK birth cohort of children with DNA methylation measured at birth, age 7 and 17. One issue when analysing genome-wide DNA methylation data is the correlation of methylation levels between CpG sites, though this can be crudely bypassed using a data reduction method. I…
Temporal patterns of alcohol consumption and attempts to reduce alcohol intake in England
January is associated with moderate increased attempts to reduce alcohol consumption. However, we find little evidence of a change in alcohol consumption. In part, this may be due to temporal insensitivity of the AUDIT questions
Local policies to tackle a national problem
Measurable effects of local alcohol licensing policies on population health in England
BACKGROUND: English alcohol policy is implemented at local government level, leading to variations in how it is put into practice. We evaluated whether differences in the presence or absence of cumulative impact zones and the 'intensity' of licensing enforcement--both aimed at regulating the availability of alcohol and modifying the drinking environment--were associated with harm as measured by alcohol-related hospital admissions. METHODS: Premis…
Investigating local policy drivers for alcohol harm prevention
New powers over alcohol policy for LAs in England can produce markedly different policies for reducing alcohol-related harm. These difference are rooted in economic, opportunistic, organisational and personnel factors particular to the LAs themselves and may lead to closely tailored solutions in some policy areas and poorer co-ordination and attention in others
Processes of local alcohol policy-making in England
The intervention effect of local alcohol licensing policies on hospital admission and crime
BACKGROUND: Control of alcohol licensing at local government level is a key component of alcohol policy in England. There is, however, only weak evidence of any public health improvement. We used a novel natural experiment design to estimate the impact of new local alcohol licensing policies on hospital admissions and crime. METHODS: We used Home Office licensing data (2007-2012) to identify (1) interventions: local areas where both a cumulative …
Testing the impact of local alcohol licencing policies on reported crime rates in England
BACKGROUND: Excessive alcohol use contributes to public nuisance, antisocial behaviour, and domestic, interpersonal and sexual violence. We test whether licencing policies aimed at restricting its spatial and/or temporal availability, including cumulative impact zones, are associated with reductions in alcohol-related crime. METHODS: Reported crimes at English lower tier local authority (LTLA) level were used to calculate the rates of reported cr…
Communities in charge of alcohol (Cica)
ISRCTN 81942890 , date of registration 12/09/2017
Response to
[no abstract]
What to Do When Accumulated Exposure Affects Health but Only Its Duration Was Measured? A Case of Linear Regression
Background : We considered a problem of inference in epidemiology when cumulative exposure is the true dose metric for disease, but investigators are only able to measure its duration on each subject. Methods : We undertook theoretical analysis of the problem in the context of a continuous response caused by cumulative exposure, when duration and intensity of exposure follow log-normal distributions, such that analysis by linear regression is nat…
The Invisible Rainbow
Does electricity have any detrimental effects on plants, humans and other animals, and if so how much of a problem is this and why is it not a much bigger concern to us, are the main questions which Arthur Firstenberg aims to answer in his book ’The Invisible Rainbow. A History of Electricity and Life’. To understand the raison d’etre for writing this book, it is important to realise that its writer, a researcher, journalist and consultant, as we…
Media representations of opposition to the ‘junk food advertising ban’ on the Transport for London (TfL) network
The discursive tactics used in media sources to argue against the ban draw on frames widely used by unhealthy commodities industries in response to structural public health interventions. Our analyses highlight the need for interventions to be framed in ways that can pre-emptively counter common criticisms
Association between cigarette smoking status and voting intentions
Controlling for a range of other factors, current as compared with never-smokers appear more likely to intend not to vote, to be undecided, to vote for Labour or a non-mainstream party, and less likely to vote for the Liberal Democrats, compared with the Conservative party
How can communities influence alcohol licensing at a local level? Licensing officers’ perspectives of the barriers and facilitators to sustaining engagement in a volunteer-led alcohol harm reduction a…
Despite the World Health Organization's assertion that communities need to become involved in reducing alcohol harm, evidence of community engagement in alcohol licensing decision-making in England remains limited. The evaluation of the Communities in Charge of Alcohol (CICA) programme offers policymakers, Licensing authorities and public health practitioners, evidence regarding a specific volunteer-led, place-based approach, designed to enable c…
Evaluation of public health interventions from a complex systems perspective
INTRODUCTION: Applying a complex systems perspective to public health evaluation may increase the relevance and strength of evidence to improve health and reduce health inequalities. In this review of methods, we aimed to: (i) classify and describe different complex systems methods in evaluation applied to public health; and (ii) examine the kinds of evaluative evidence generated by these different methods. METHODS: We adapted critical review met…
The population health effects from 5G
The development and implementation of the fifth-generation wireless technology (5G) are currently ongoing and have largely been met with enthusiasm from the telecommunication industry, applications industries, national governments, and the public. However, 5G has also been met with resistance from anti-5G campaigning organizations supported by pockets of the general public. Concerns relate to the perception that 5G might increase total exposure t…
Creation of a Pilot School Health Research Network in an English Education Infrastructure to Improve Adolescent Health and Well-Being
Schools play a significant role in promoting health and well-being and the reciprocal links between health and educational attainment are well-evidenced. Despite recognition of the beneficial impact of school-based health improvement programmes, significant barriers to improving health and well-being within schools remain. This study pilots a School Health Research Network in the South West of England (SW-SHRN), a systems-based health interventio…
Exploring the Potential of a School-Based Online Health and Wellbeing Screening Tool
Despite high levels of need, many young people who experience health issues do not seek, access or receive support. Between May and November 2021, using semi-structured interviews, we explored the perspectives of 51 young people (aged 13-14) from two schools who had taken part in a novel online health and wellbeing screening programme, the Digital Health Contact (DHC). One school delivered the DHC during home-learning due to COVID-19 restrictions…
Exploring the potential of a school-based online health and wellbeing screening tool
The DHC, as a universal school-based health and wellbeing screening tool with linked follow-up intervention, has great potential in identifying and supporting unmet health needs among CYP. The perspectives and experiences of those involved in delivering the DHC highlight important considerations which may enable effective implementation and delivery of school screening programmes across other areas
A priori’ external contextual factors and relationships with process indicators
ISRCTN81942890, date of registration 12/09/2017
Medicine (37 obras) · Public health (28 obras) · Nursing (23 obras) · Environmental health (19 obras) · Psychology (17 obras) · Psychological intervention (16 obras) · Biostatistics (15 obras) · Political science (15 obras) · Sociology (12 obras) · Medical education (11 obras)