Health Education, NCD Policies and Governance: Developing a Trilingual Search Strategy for a Scoping Review
ESTÊVÃO CUBAS ROLIM
UNIVERSITY OF BRASÍLIA
BRAZIL
The Educational Challenge: Health Science Education and NCDs
Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) account for the majority of preventable morbidity and mortality worldwide. Scientific knowledge about prevention and self-care is widely available — yet implementation remains deeply uneven. The core problem is not a lack of scientific knowledge, but the persistent difficulty of transforming that knowledge into action across diverse populations and policy contexts.
SCOPING REVIEW · PRIMARY HEALTH CARE · SCIENCE EDUCATION
Context: Primary Health Care and Educational Innovation
Learning from the Experience of Escola de Pacientes DF
Escola de Pacientes DF represents a living laboratory for educational innovation within Primary Health Care. It demonstrates how low-cost educational technologies, health literacy promotion, and patient empowerment can converge to produce measurable improvements in self-management and community health outcomes.
Education
Structured learning experiences grounded in evidence
Health Literacy
Building comprehension and critical engagement
Self-Care
Empowering daily health decisions
Health Outcomes
Measurable improvements in chronic disease management
Health Science Education
Why This Matters for Science Education
The Core Argument
Science education is also applied public policy. When learners understand the evidence behind NCD prevention and can act on it in daily life, education becomes a mechanism for equity-oriented health outcomes.
Real-World Relevance
Contemporary science education must address societal challenges, not just abstract concepts.
Health Literacy as Outcome
Health literacy is increasingly recognized as a legitimate science education competency.
Policy as Enabler
Public policies shape how educational interventions reach and affect populations.
What Is Missing in Current Literature?
Identifying the Research Gap
Individual domains — health education, NCD policy, and governance — each have substantial bodies of research. However, the connections between these domains remain fragmented. Little evidence explains how educational strategies are systematically incorporated into policy implementation, creating a critical blind spot for both researchers and practitioners.
The central intersection — where education, policy, and governance converge — is precisely where this scoping review aims to generate new knowledge.
Building an Integrative Knowledge Framework
Objective of the Scoping Review
This scoping review seeks to create a structured, integrative framework that bridges science education and NCD policy. By mapping existing evidence and identifying critical gaps, the review will support curriculum development, professional training, and evidence-informed policy implementation.
1
Map Relationships
Chart the connections between health education interventions and NCD policy frameworks.
2
Identify Mechanisms
Surface governance and regulatory mechanisms that enable or constrain implementation.
3
Explore Evidence
Examine implementation and evaluation evidence across diverse settings and populations.
4
Analyze Equity
Assess how equity perspectives are incorporated — or overlooked — in existing programs.
5
Support Training
Generate actionable insights for curriculum development and professional education.
Methodology: A Trilingual Search Strategy
Development of a Reproducible Conceptual Framework
Three Languages
Portuguese, English, and Spanish — ensuring comprehensive coverage of the Global South and North literature.
Five Thematic Blocks
Structured to capture the full conceptual landscape of the review.
Block 1
Health Education & Literacy
Block 2
Public Policies & PHC
Block 3
NCDs & Chronic Conditions
Block 4
Equity & Social Determinants
Block 5
Governance & Legal-Institutional
From Conceptual Mapping to Final Syntax
The Search Refinement Process
The search strategy underwent iterative refinement to ensure both broad sensitivity and conceptual coherence. Synonyms, orthographic variants, and equivalent descriptors were identified and validated across all three languages — producing a robust, reproducible methodology that can be adapted by future reviews.
Conceptual Map
Synonym Find
Orthographic Align
Final Validate
132
Descriptors & Terms
Equivalent terms mapped across three languages
5
Thematic Blocks
Structured conceptual domains guiding the search
3
Languages
Portuguese, English, and Spanish coverage
What Will the Review Reveal?
Expected Findings Across the Evidence Landscape
The review will characterize what is known, partially known, and unknown at the intersection of health education, NCD policy, and governance — providing a clear roadmap for future research and policy action.
Known
Partially Known
Unknown / Evidence Gaps
Policy instruments linked to educational interventions
Evaluation strategies currently in use
How educational strategies are incorporated into policy implementation
Governance mechanisms supporting program sustainability
Equity dimensions incorporated into existing programs
Comparative effectiveness of different educational approaches across policy contexts
NCD prevention frameworks in PHC settings
Integration of health literacy into professional training curricula
Long-term impact of educational interventions on policy outcomes
Implications for Curriculum and Professional Training
Potential Contributions to Science and Health Education
Findings from this review will directly inform how health professions are trained, how continuing education is structured, and how community-based interventions are designed — translating evidence into professional formation.
Curriculum Development
Evidence-informed curricula for health professions education, integrating NCD prevention and health literacy competencies.
Competency-Based Education
Frameworks that define and assess the practical competencies needed for effective NCD education in PHC.
Community-Based Interventions
Design principles for educational programs that engage communities as active partners in health management.
Digital Educational Technologies
Low-cost, scalable digital tools for health communication and continuing professional development in PHC.
Proposed Integrative Framework
Connecting Science Education, Health Policy, and Governance
This framework synthesizes six interconnected components into a unified model for educational innovation in NCD prevention. It is designed to be scalable, adaptable across contexts, and grounded in the principles of equity and evidence-informed practice.
Expected Contributions
Core Message: Science education, when integrated with health policy and governance, becomes a powerful lever for equitable, sustainable NCD prevention — transforming knowledge into action at scale.