Characterising the role and scope of Community Connectors for Older Adults Internationally: A Scoping Review Protocol

TL;DR

This paper outlines a scoping review protocol to explore how Community Connectors support older adults internationally, aiming to understand their roles and effectiveness.

Contribution

The study introduces a systematic approach to map and synthesize international models of Community Connectors for older adults.

Findings

The review will identify and characterize international models of Community Connectors and their interventions.

It will describe the populations served and summarize reported outcomes of these models.

The study will examine evaluation methods and potential for scaling up these models.

Abstract

As global populations age, there is an increasing need for community-based approaches that support older adults in maintaining independence, social connectedness, and access to services. One emerging model is the Community Connector (CC), an individual who facilitates older adults’ engagement with local supports that promote well-being. Despite growing references to this role in national and international practice, there is limited comprehensive understanding of how CC’s are defined, implemented, and evaluated across diverse contexts, and how these insights may inform adaptation within varying health and social care systems.

The objectives of the scoping review are to (1) identify and characterise international models of CC roles and their key interventions, including modes of delivery (2) describe key characteristics of populations they serve and (3) summarise reported outcomes.

This scoping review will follow the methodological framework of
Arksey and O’Malley (2005) and will be in accordance with the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. The study design was chosen due to its capacity to comprehensively map and synthesise the existing literature on international CC models, particularly given the limited nature of the evidence. A comprehensive search will be conducted from 2000 to present, across academic databases [CINAHL, Cochrane Library, EBSCO, Embase, PubMed, OVID, Scopus] and grey literature to identify CC’s models targeting older adults. Two reviewers will independently screen studies for inclusion based on the criteria of full-text, qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods studies. Data on programme characteristics, target populations, measured outcomes and contextual factors will be extracted, charted, and synthesised using a narrative approach.

The review will characterise international community connector models, including their core functions, terminology, target population and implementation strategies. It will also examine evaluation methods and assess their potential for adaptation and scale-up across healthcare settings.

OSF
https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/6CZD8