Health Interactions

Health Interactions is intended to be a broad scope, international, interdisciplinary, peer-reviewed Open Access journal which publishes research focusing on health from a wide range of disciplines, including, economics, public health, policy, psychology, and sociology and is part of our Elevate Series. This means that you will receive a concierge-level publishing experience, including dedicated support from our expert in-house Editorial team, with guaranteed response times of within 48 hours, an initial decision on whether your article will be peer reviewed within 5 working days, and a first decision on your research within an average of 22 working days. 

Authors are invited to submit papers to the following sections below.

Public Health – Section Editor: Ariful Haque, PhD, MD, MBBS, MPH, Kunming Medical University, China
Public Health is a specialized branch of Health Interactions that focuses only on disseminating relevant findings in the realm of public health.

The journal primarily emphasizes the social factors that influence health, such as the environment, behavior, and occupation, as well as the effects of health policies, practices, and interventions on the community. The journal will publish articles that are rigorous and adhere to ethical standards, regardless of the research type, as long as they align with our objective. This encompasses a wide range of things but is not limited to:

• Epidemiology
• The aging process and public health
• Children and health
• Digital public health and technology
• Disaster and emergency medicine
• Infectious diseases
• Injury prevention and control
• Planetary health
• Public health education and promotion
• Public health and nutrition
• Radiation and healthcare
• Mental health
• Pandemic preparedness and response
• Emerging trends
• Global health issues

We publish a range of content types, including Articles, reviews, Comments and Correspondence that can advance public health policies and outcomes.
 
Health Economics - Mihajlo Jakovljevic, University of Kragujevac, Serbia; UNESCO-TWAS Trieste, Italy
The Journal of Health Interactions and its Special Section Health Economics is going to explore rising socioeconomic challenges affecting medical care provision, that remained in the shadow of scientific debate throughout the most of XX century. We shall particularly welcome evidence at the forefront of health systems evolution including but not limited to:

• Sustainability challenge to health financing worldwide, since most contemporary health systems were built in the Era of demographic growth
• Reshaping global morbidity and mortality landscape moving from affordable-to-treat infectious diseases and injuries towards expensive noncommunicable ones, particularly in the Global South
• Exponential expansion of participation of Low-and-Middle-Income countries in the world’s health expenditure and global demand for medical services, devices and pharmaceuticals
• Gradual movement of innovation frontier towards South-East Asia in terms of patents in medical technology
• Growing significance of Emerging Markets in long-term investment strategies by the Big Pharma manufacturing companies as the leaders of brand-name drug innovation
• Evolving trade routes of medical goods challenging traditional demand-and-supply patterns worldwide
• 4.0 Industrial Revolution and exponential growth of medical robotics applied for home-born medical care
• Implications of the Green Agenda and UN Sustainable Millenium Goals to the global healthcare sector
• Chain reaction of development of Artificial Intelligence algorithms applicable to medical conditions
• An array of traditional health econometric studies ranging from health technology assessment, cost-effectiveness, budget impact analysis, quality of life explorations and health policy research in the field of resource allocation, affordable and equitable medical care provision

Social Determinants of Health from epidemiology to implementation – Lee Smith, Public Health, Anglia Ruskin University, UK
Social determinants of health may be defined as the non-medical factors that influence health outcomes. These impact on all populations, across all age groups and are of global importance in the prevention and management of physical and mental health complications.

Examples of social determinants of health include:

• Income and social protection
• Education
• Unemployment and job insecurity
• Working life conditions
• Food insecurity
• Housing, basic amenities and the environment
• Early childhood development
• Social inclusion and non-discrimination
• Structural conflict
• Access to affordable health services of decent quality

Identifying and understanding the role of social determinants of health inform intervention, policy and practice in the prevention and management of multiple detrimental health outcomes. Research in relation to the social determinants of health utilises multiple methodological approaches from traditional epidemiology to intervention development, implementation, and evaluation.

This section of Health Interactions is interested in all methodological designs in the investigation of social determinants of health and welcomes submissions including systematic reviews and meta-analyses, epidemiological investigations, qualitative approaches, intervention development, implementation and evaluation.
 
Health Psychology - Sarah Snuggs, School of Psychology & Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading
The Health Psychology Section of Health Interactions seeks to publish innovative health psychology research which is exciting to its readers, with particular emphasis on drawing research and practice together to inform practical inter-disciplinary approaches to solving public health challenges. The traditional biopsychosocial model remains core to the field but there have also been shifts in approaches in recent years with increasing emphasis on patient and public involvement (PPI) and on feasibility and acceptability. This highlights a need for healthcare intervention which suits the individual, not just academic theory, to achieve successful behaviour change and satisfied patients/clients.

As such, we seek articles which capture the evolving landscape of Health Psychology. Topic examples might include:

• Health behaviour and behaviour change in disadvantaged communities (e.g. food insecurity, medication access)
• Evolving challenges in policy and practice (e.g. adolescent vaping, prescription drug dependence, menopause)
• Psychological approaches to well-being (e.g. resilience, social support, transitional life periods)
• Novel methodological approaches (e.g. co-creation, innovative experimental methods, N=1 studies, AI-supported work, multi-disciplinary approaches)

Health and Well-being – Sarah Snuggs, School of Psychology & Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading
The role of wellbeing in our health has seen an increase in attention in recent years. According to the World Health Organization, ‘health is a state of complete physical and social wellbeing, not merely the absence of disease’. In this section of Health Interactions, we seek to explore how wellbeing relates to physical, mental, social and emotional health.

Factors that contribute to our wellbeing include (but are not limited to) lifestyle, work and home environments, pastimes, social support, sleep quality, connection with nature and creativity, as well as physical activity and nutrition. In the Health & Wellbeing section of the journal we welcome contributions about any element of wellbeing with a particular focus on how it might interact with other elements of health (for example, influences on physiology or psychology).