Data_Sheet_1_Impact of Urbanization on Health and Well-Being in Ghana. Status of Research, Intervention Strategies and Future Directions: A Rapid Review.pdf

IntroductionGhana like other African countries is facing multiple health threats due to expansion of urban populations. Globally, the urbanization phenomenon has received considerable attention and modest steps have been undertaken to address it. Ghana is stalling on implementation of policies and interventions targeted at alleviating the menace.ObjectivesThis review examined research evidence, interventions, and policies relating to urbanization and threats to health and well-being of people living in Ghana. The review focused on three areas including urbanization threats to health and well-being, health risks associated with urbanization, and interventions and policies.Materials and MethodsThe search spanned from year 2000 to February 2022 covering documents related to urbanization, health, and well-being. Databases used for the search include African Journals Online, Annual Reviews (Biomedical, Life & Physical sciences, Social Sciences), BioMedCentral, BioOne, BLDS digital library, Cambridge University Press, ClinicalKey, CINAHL, University of Ghana Digital Collections/UGSpace, JSTOR, Medline and Wiley Online Library.ResultsEnvironmental risk factors, urban planning, water-related, behavior-related, and socioeconomic factors were important urbanization threats to health and well-being. Health risks identified include airborne diseases, waterborne diseases, malaria, and non-communicable diseases such as hypertension and lung cancer. Additionally, there is evidence of non-implementation and/or non-enforcement of existing interventions and policies.Conclusion and RecommendationEvidence from this rapid review shows that urbanization impacts on health and well-being of people in Ghana. Urbanization threats that expose populations to health risks could be reduced through commitment to implementation, surveillance and monitoring of policies and interventions. Communities and individuals must be equipped to take control of their health and well-being.

引言加纳如同其他非洲国家，正面临着因城市人口扩张而带来的多重健康威胁。全球范围内，城市化现象已经引起了广泛关注，并已采取了一定的措施来应对这一问题。然而，加纳在实施旨在缓解这一危害的政策和干预措施方面却进展缓慢。目标本次综述旨在审视与加纳城市化和居民健康及福祉相关的研究证据、干预措施和政策。综述聚焦于三个领域，包括城市化对健康及福祉的威胁、与城市化相关的健康风险，以及干预措施和政策。材料与方法研究范围涵盖从2000年到2022年2月的相关文献，涉及城市化、健康和福祉等领域。所使用的数据库包括非洲在线期刊、年度评论（生物医学、生命科学及自然科学、社会科学）、生物医学中心、生物一体、BLDS数字图书馆、剑桥大学出版社、ClinicalKey、CINAHL、加纳大学数字收藏/UGSpace、JSTOR、Medline和Wiley在线图书馆。结果环境风险因素、城市规划、与水相关的因素、与行为相关的因素以及社会经济因素是影响健康及福祉的重要城市化威胁。识别出的健康风险包括空气传播疾病、水传播疾病、疟疾以及非传染性疾病，如高血压和肺癌。此外，还发现现有干预措施和政策的实施和/或执行存在不足。结论与建议本次快速综述的证据表明，城市化对加纳居民的健康及福祉产生了影响。通过承诺实施、政策和干预措施的监控与监督，可以降低暴露于健康风险的城市化威胁。社区和个人必须具备掌控自身健康及福祉的能力。