Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

The health-related quality of life of Indigenous populations: a global systematic review

  • Review
  • Published:
Quality of Life Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

Indigenous conceptions of health have been shown to differ from that of their non-Indigenous counterparts. As a result, there remains uncertainty over the appropriateness and value of using existing health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) instruments in Indigenous communities. The objective of this review was to identify studies that either measure the HRQoL of an Indigenous population or validated a measure used to elicit the HRQoL in an Indigenous population.

Methods

A systematic review of the published literature was conducted to (1) investigate the extent to which HRQoL instruments are used in Indigenous populations; (2) to identify which instruments have been validated in which populations; and (3) to identify which instruments have been tailored for use with Indigenous populations.

Results

Forty-one studies were included in the review. Only three of the 41 studies utilised Indigenous-specific instruments. The remainder (38 studies) utilised generic population or disease-specific instruments. Four studies found specific HRQoL instruments to be valid in these populations and 32 estimated the HRQoL of an Indigenous population. The limited examples of Indigenous-specific instruments highlighted the potential importance to the HRQoL of these populations of domains that lie outside of traditional measures including social and community domains as well as domains relating to culture, diet and land use on top of more traditional HRQoL domains.

Conclusion

Ensuring that the HRQoL of Indigenous populations is being appropriately measured is vital to prioritising available resources to the most effective interventions. HRQoL instruments present an opportunity to directly elicit and incorporate Indigenous preferences and conceptions of health into these decisions. Further work is required in the field to ensure that this potential is realised.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Gracey, M., & King, M. (2009). Indigenous health part 1: Determinants and disease patterns. The Lancet, 374(9683), 65–75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. World Health Organisation (2014). Indigenous populations. 12 November 2014. http://www.who.int/topics/health_services_indigenous/en/.

  3. Mooney, G. H. (2009). Challenging health economics (pp. 1–250). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  4. Kunitz, S. J. (2007). The health of populations: General theories and particular realities. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  5. Maher, E., et al. (2005). Health-related quality of life of overweight and obese children. JAMA, 293(1), 70–76.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Chenhall, R. D., et al. (2010). Individual quality of life among at risk indigenous youth in Australia. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 5(3), 171–183.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Ring, L., et al. (2007). Individual quality of life: Can it be accounted for by psychological or subjective well-being? Social Indicators Research, 82(3), 443–461.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Nagel, T., Hinton, R., & Griffin, C. (2012). Yarning about Indigenous mental health: Translation of a recovery paradigm to practice. Advances in Mental Health, 10(3), 216–223.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Carson, B. (2007). Social determinants of indigenous health. Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin.

    Google Scholar 

  10. Senior, K. (2000). Testing the ICIDH-2 with indigenous Australians: Results of field work in two aboriginal communities in the northern territory., AIHW, ICIDH Collaborating Centre, and Department of Health and Family Services, Editors. Canberra.

  11. Al Sayah, F., et al. (2013). Health related quality of life measures in Arabic speaking populations: A systematic review on cross-cultural adaptation and measurement properties. Quality of Life Research, 22(1), 213–229.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Alghadeer, A., Newton, T., & Dunne, S. (2010). Cross cultural adaptation of oral health-related quality of life measures. Dental Update, 37(10), 706.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Guillemin, F., Bombardier, C., & Beaton, D. (1993). Cross-cultural adaptation of health-related quality of life measures: Literature review and proposed guidelines. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 46(12), 1417–1432.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Serhier, Z., et al. (2012). Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the knee and hip health-related quality of life (OAKHQoL) in a Moroccan Arabic-speaking population. Rheumatology International, 32(4), 1015–1023.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Chow, M. Y. K., et al. (2013). Condition-specific quality of life questionnaires for caregivers of children with pediatric conditions: A systematic review. Quality of Life Research, 22(8), 2183–2200.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Jardine, J., et al. (2014). Self-reported quality of life of young children with conditions from early infancy: A systematic review. Pediatrics, 134(4), e1129–e1148.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Stevens, K., & Ratcliffe, J. (2012). Measuring and valuing health benefits for economic evaluation in adolescence: An assessment of the practicality and validity of the child health utility 9D in the Australian adolescent population. Value in Health, 15(8), 1092.

  18. Bakas, T., et al. (2012). Systematic review of health-related quality of life models. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 10, 134.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  19. Angell, B. J., et al. (2014). Global systematic review of the cost-effectiveness of indigenous health interventions. PLoS One, 9(11), e111249.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  20. Allan, C. L., Flett, B., & Dean, H. J. (2008). Quality of life in first nation youth with type 2 diabetes. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 12(Suppl1), S103–S109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Barton, S. S., et al. (2005). Health and quality of life of aboriginal residential school survivors, bella Coola valley, 2001. Social Indicators Research, 73(2), 295–312.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Beals, J., et al. (2006). Different factor loadings for SF36: the strong heart study and the national survey of functional health status. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 59(2), 208–215.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Braun, P., et al. (2014). Caregiver reported oral health-related quality of life in young American Indian children. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 16(5), 951–958.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  24. Broughton, J. R., et al. (2012). Self-reported oral health and dental service-use of rangatahi within the rohe of Tainui. New Zealand Dental Journal, 108(3), 90–94.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Burhansstipanov, L., et al. (2012). Comparison of quality of life between native and non-native cancer survivors: Native and non-native cancer survivors’ QOL. Journal of Cancer Education, 27(1 Suppl), S106–S113.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  26. Chenhall, R., & Senior, K. (2012). Treating indigenous Australians with alcohol/drug problems: Assessing quality of life. Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly, 30(2), 130–145.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Chenhall, R. D., et al. (2010). Individual quality of life among at risk indigenous youth in Australia. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 5(3), 171–183.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Chowdhury, P. P., Balluz, L., & Strine, T. W. (2008). Health-related quality of life among minority populations in the United States, BRFSS 2001–2002. Ethnicity and Disease, 18(4), 483–487.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Daubs, M. D., et al. (2014). Scoliosis research society-22 results in 3052 healthy adolescents aged 10 to 19 years. Spine, 39(10), 826–832.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Divaris, K., et al. (2011). The relationship of oral health literacy with oral health-related quality of life in a multi-racial sample of low-income female caregivers. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 9, 108.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  31. Dyall, L., et al. (2014). Cultural and social factors and quality of life of Maori in advanced age. Te puawaitanga o nga tapuwae kia ora tonu: Life and living in advanced age: A cohort study in New Zealand (LiLACS NZ). New Zealand Medical Journal, 127(1393), 62–79.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Dyrbye, L. N., et al. (2007). Race, ethnicity, and medical student well-being in the United States. Archives of Internal Medicine, 167(19), 2103–2109.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  33. Edwards, S. L., et al. (2012). Construct validity of the SF-12 among American Indian and Alaska Native people using two known scoring methods. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 23(3), 1123–1136.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  34. Gupchup, G., et al. (2001). Developing a community-specific health-related quality of life (HRQOL) questionnaire for asthma: The asthma-specific quality of life questionnaire for native American adults (AQLQ-NAA). Journal of Asthma, 38(2), 169–178.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. Harwood, M., et al. (2012). An assessment of the Hua Oranga outcome instrument and comparison to other outcome measures in an intervention study with Maori and Pacific people following stroke. New Zealand Medical Journal, 125(1364), 57–67.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. Henderson, J. A., Buchwald, D., & Manson, S. M. (2006). Relationship of medication use to health-related quality of life among a group of older American Indians. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 25(1, Suppl), 89S–104S.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Holtz, C., et al. (2014). A quantitative study of factors influencing quality of life in rural Mexican women diagnosed with HIV. JANAC: Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care, 25(6), 555–567.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Jiang, L., et al. (2009). Health-related quality of life and help seeking among American Indians with diabetes and hypertension. Quality of Life Research, 18(6), 709–718.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  39. Johnson, J. A., Nowatzki, T. E., & Coons, S. J. (1996). Health-related quality of life of diabetic Pima Indians. Medical Care, 34(2), 97–102.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  40. Kaholokula, J. K., et al. (2006). Ethnic differences in the relationship between depressive symptoms and health-related quality of life in people with type 2 diabetes. Ethnicity and Health, 11(1), 59–80.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  41. Kant, S., et al. (2013). Social, cultural, and land use determinants of the health and well-being of Aboriginal peoples of Canada: A path analysis. Journal of Public Health Policy, 34(3), 461–476.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. Kit, J. A., et al. (2003). Chronic disease self-management in Aboriginal communities: Towards a sustainable program of care in rural communities. Australian Journal of Primary Health, 9(2–3), 168–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Lix, L. M., Metge, C., & Leslie, W. D. (2009). Measurement equivalence of osteoporosis-specific and general quality-of-life instruments in aboriginal and non-aboriginal women. Quality of Life Research, 18(5), 619–627.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  44. Lopes, A. A., et al. (2003). Health-related quality of life and associated outcomes among hemodialysis patients of different ethnicities in the United States: The dialysis outcomes and practice patterns study (DOPPS). American Journal of Kidney Diseases, 41(3), 605–615.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  45. Martin, L. J., et al. (2013). Poorer physical health-related quality of life among aboriginals and injection drug users treated with highly active antiretroviral therapy. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 104(1), e33–e38.

    Google Scholar 

  46. McClure, T. M., et al. (2009). The effect of visual impairment on vision-related quality of life in American Indian/Alaska Natives. Ophthalmic Epidemiology, 16(2), 128–135.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  47. McClure, T. M., et al. (2011). The impact of eyeglasses on vision-related quality of life in American Indian/Alaska natives. American Journal of Ophthalmology., 151(1), 175–182.e2.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  48. McFall, S. L., Solomon, T. G., & Smith, D. W. (2000). Health-related quality of life of older native American primary care patients. Research on Aging, 22(6), 692–714.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  49. Naughton, M. J., et al. (2008). Health-related quality of life of children and adolescents with type 1 or type 2 diabetes mellitus: SEARCH for diabetes in youth study. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 162(7), 649–657.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  50. Perkins, M., Devlin, N., & Hansen, P. (2004). The validity and reliability of EQ-5D health state valuations in a survey of Maori. Quality of Life Research, 13(1), 271–274.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  51. Poole, J. L., et al. (2007). Quality of life in American Indian and White women with and without rheumatoid arthritis. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 61(3), 280–289.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  52. Poole, J. L., et al. (2010). Quality of life in American Indian women with arthritis or diabetes. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 64(3), 496–505.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  53. Scott, K. M., et al. (2000). A challenge to the cross-cultural validity of the SF-36 health survey: Factor structure in Maori, Pacific and New Zealand European ethnic groups. Social Science and Medicine, 51(11), 1655–1664.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  54. Spencer, S., et al. (2013). Influence of caregiving on health-related quality of life among American Indians. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 61(9), 1615–1620.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  55. Syed Alwi, S. A. R., et al. (2009). The menopausal experience among indigenous women of Sarawak, Malaysia. Climacteric, 12(6), 548–556.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  56. Thommasen, H. V., et al. (2005). Understanding relationships between diabetes mellitus and health-related quality of life in a rural community. Rural and Remote Health, 5(3), 441.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  57. Traebert, J., et al. (2010). Differential item functioning related to ethnicity in an oral health-related quality of life measure. International Journal of Paediatric Dentistry, 20(6), 435–441.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  58. Ukra, A., et al. (2013). Impact of malocclusion on quality of life among New Zealand adolescents. The New Zealand Dental Journal, 109(1), 18–23.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  59. Wells, P. L., et al. (2010). An oral health survey of the Lumbee tribe in southeastern North Carolina. Journal of Dental Hygiene: JDH/American Dental Hygienists’ Association, 84(3), 137–144.

    Google Scholar 

  60. Williams, S. D., Parker, E. D., & Jamieson, L. M. (2010). Oral health-related quality of life among rural-dwelling indigenous Australians. Australian Dental Journal, 55(2), 170–176.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  61. Devlin, N., Hansen, P., & Herbison, P. (2000). Variations in self-reported health status: Results from a New Zealand survey. The New Zealand Medical Journal, 113(1123), 517.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  62. Ware, J. E., & Kosinski, M. (2001). Interpreting SF-36 summary health measures: A response. Quality of Life Research, 10(5), 405–413.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  63. Ware, J. E., & Gandek, B. (1998). Overview of the SF-36 health survey and the international quality of life assessment (IQOLA) project. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 51(11), 903–912.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  64. Gao, Y., et al. (2014). A cost-consequences analysis of a midwifery group practice for Aboriginal mothers and infants in the top end of the Northern Territory, Australia. Midwifery, 30(4), 447.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  65. Jan, S., et al. (2004). An holistic economic evaluation of an aboriginal community-controlled midwifery programme in Western Sydney. Journal of Health Services Research and Policy, 9(1), 14–21.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  66. Brazier, J., McCabe, C., & Edlin, R. (2004). Health economics and cost consequences analysis: A step back in time. BMJ, 329, 1233.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  67. Cantril, H. (1965). Patterns of human concerns. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press.

  68. Ferrell, B. R., Grant, M. M., Funk, B., OtisGreen, S., & Garcia, N. (1997). Quality of life in breast cancer survivors as identified by focus groups. Psychooncology, 6(1), 13–23.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  69. Huntington NL, et al. (2011). Development and validation of a measure of pediatric oral health-related quality of life: The POQL. Journal of Public Health Dentistry 71(3), 185–193.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The George Institute for Global Health, Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia

    Blake Angell, Janani Muhunthan, Anne-Marie Eades & Stephen Jan

  2. The Poche Centre for Indigenous Health, Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia

    Blake Angell & Stephen Jan

  3. The Australian Prevention Partnership Centre, Sydney, Australia

    Janani Muhunthan & Stephen Jan

  4. Menzies School of Health Research, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Australia

    Joan Cunningham, Gail Garvey & Alan Cass

  5. School of Public Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia

    Kirsten Howard & Sandra Eades

  6. Flinders Health Economics Group, School of Medicine, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia

    Julie Ratcliffe

  7. Aboriginal Health and Disadvantaged Communities, Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute, Sydney, Australia

    Sandra Eades

Authors
  1. Blake Angell
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Janani Muhunthan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Anne-Marie Eades
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Joan Cunningham
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Gail Garvey
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Alan Cass
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Kirsten Howard
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Julie Ratcliffe
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Sandra Eades
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Stephen Jan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Blake Angell.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Angell, B., Muhunthan, J., Eades, AM. et al. The health-related quality of life of Indigenous populations: a global systematic review. Qual Life Res 25, 2161–2178 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-016-1311-9

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-016-1311-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation