A regional gap analysis to inform the implementation of the Irish Healthy Campus Framework

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) constitute prudent ecological contexts for ‘whole-setting’ health promotion (HP) encompassing institutional policies, built environments, sociocultural norms, transdisciplinary research, and capacity-building curricula. As potent life course conduits for both monitoring and addressing public-health priorities, evidence-based HP within HEIs synergistically aligns with cross-sectoral agendas, including the UN SDGs, Okanagan Charter for Health Promoting Universities, and the EU Global Health Strategy. In Ireland, the health-enhancing potential of the higher education sector has been recognised, and validated, via the design and implementation of the Irish Healthy Campus Framework (IHCF). Concurrently, however, there remains a dearth of empirical evidence to underpin the efficacy of ecological HP interventions in contemporary HEIs. As the first inter-institutional collaboration of its kind to inform the implementation of the IHCF within two HEIs in Ireland (N > 37,000 students, N > 4,700 staff), this mixed-methods (QUAN-QUAL) research aims to examine the health and lifestyle profiles of inherently diverse campus populations, in addition to exploring the qualitative perspectives of cross-campus HP stakeholders. Pertinent measures will include two comprehensive web-based health instruments, comprised of iteratively devised items, in addition to a series of validated scales. Qualitative analyses will be rooted in an empirical model, which will be utilised to map and evaluate the ecological reach of HP services and interventions, serving as a regional gap analysis. This novel research will identify thematic priorities amongst a heterogeneous target population comprised of students and staff across two distinct universities, spanning seven regional campuses in the southwest of Ireland. Given the magnitude of HEIs as settings for health, these data will be of interest to a multitude of public health practitioners, academics, and policy makers. KEY MESSAGES: • This research is the first inter-institutional collaboration of its kind to inform the implementation of the Healthy Campus Framework within two HEIs in Ireland (N > 37,000 students, N > 4,700 staff). • Emerging international frameworks recognise universities as potent, and highly-scalable, life course conduits through which to monitor and address public health priorities.