key: cord-0701941-2c1yl3us authors: Klassen, Terry; Dalziel, Stuart R.; Babl, Franz E.; Benito, Javier; Bressan, Silvia; Chamberlain, James; Chang, Todd P.; Freedman, Stephen B.; Kohn-Loncarica, Guillermo; Lyttle, Mark D.; Mintegi, Santiago; Mistry, Rakesh D.; Nigrovic, Lise E.; Oostenbrink, Rianne; Plint, Amy C.; Rino, Pedro; Roland, Damian; Van De Mosselaer, Gregory; Kuppermann, Nathan title: The Pediatric Emergency Research Network: A Decade of Global Research Cooperation in Pediatric Emergency Care date: 2021-06-07 journal: Pediatr Emerg Care DOI: 10.1097/pec.0000000000002466 sha: 803a7ee3f42743499288dce76fd56a3ae63434a5 doc_id: 701941 cord_uid: 2c1yl3us OBJECTIVES: The Pediatric Emergency Research Network (PERN) was launched in 2009 with the intent for existing national and regional research networks in pediatric emergency care to organize globally for the conduct of collaborative research across networks. METHODS: The Pediatric Emergency Research Network has grown from 5- to 8-member networks over the past decade. With an executive committee comprising representatives from all member networks, PERN plays a supportive and collaborative rather than governing role. The full impact of PERN's facilitation of international collaborative research, although somewhat difficult to quantify empirically, can be measured indirectly by the observed growth of the field, the nature of the increasingly challenging research questions now being addressed, and the collective capacity to generate and implement new knowledge in treating acutely ill and injured children. RESULTS: Beginning as a pandemic response with a high-quality retrospective case-controlled study of H1N1 influenza risk factors, PERN research has progressed to multiple observational studies and ongoing global randomized controlled trials. As a recent example, PERN has developed sufficient network infrastructure to enable the rapid initiation of a prospective observational study in response to the current coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. In light of the ongoing need for translation of research knowledge into equitable clinical practice and to promote health equity, PERN is committed to a coordinated international effort to increase the uptake of evidence-based management of common and treatable acute conditions in all emergency department settings. CONCLUSIONS: The Pediatric Emergency Research Network's successes with global research, measured by prospective observational and interventional studies, mean that the network can now move to improve its ability to promote the implementation of scientific advances into everyday clinical practice. Achieving this goal will involve focus in 4 areas: (1) expanding the capacity for global randomized controlled trials; (2) deepening the focus on implementation science; (3) increasing attention to healthcare disparities and their origins, with growing momentum toward equity; and (4) expanding PERN's global reach through addition of sites and networks from resource-restricted regions. Through these actions, PERN will be able to build on successes to face the challenges ahead and meet the needs of acutely ill and injured children throughout the world. with global research, measured by prospective observational and interventional studies, mean that the network can now move to improve its ability to promote the implementation of scientific advances into everyday clinical practice. Achieving this goal will involve focus in 4 areas: (1) expanding the capacity for global randomized controlled trials; (2) deepening the focus on implementation science; (3) increasing attention to healthcare disparities and their origins, with growing momentum toward equity; and (4) expanding PERN's global reach through addition of sites and networks from resource-restricted regions. Through these actions, PERN will be able to build on successes to face the challenges ahead and meet the needs of acutely ill and injured children throughout the world. Key Words: multicenter randomized controlled trials, implementation, health care disparities, health equity (Pediatr Emer Care 2021;37: 389-396) C onducting high-quality research in pediatric care offers unique challenges related to the nature of the population and the diseases encountered in the hospital or clinic. Serious pediatric conditions may be uncommon and require extended consistent care (eg, cancers or metabolic disorders), or they may be relatively common and require a patient to be seen only once (eg, bronchiolitis, gastroenteritis, or acute injury). Regardless, generating sample sizes with sufficient statistical power to establish a clinical effect in treating any pediatric condition is difficult. Pediatric emergency care researchers have long understood the power of collaboration and multicenter studies (both retrospective and prospective) in meeting these challenges. National and regional networks have emerged in pediatric emergency care research over the past few decades, facilitating the conduct of multicenter studies. These have supported the recruitment of sufficient participants from diverse populations and resulted in research studies with adequate precision and generalizability. Despite these advances the individual networks have made in researching how to best treat acutely ill and injured children, there was a clear need to generate and generalize research evidence beyond the possibilities afforded by the existing geographically focused networks. In October of 2009, representatives of the 5 existing national and regional research networks in pediatric emergency care around the globe met as a part of the international standards initiative known as StaR Child Health. 1 The objectives of the meeting were (1) to learn about each network's mission, goals, infrastructure, and challenges; (2) to share important contributions each network had made to the creation of new knowledge; (3) to discuss best practices to improve each network's effectiveness; and (4) to explore the potential for a collaborative research project as proof of concept for the inception of a global network of networks in pediatric emergency care research. 2 This inaugural meeting of the Pediatric Emergency Research Network (PERN; https://pernglobal.com/) demonstrated a common desire for high-quality research and its dissemination to improve health and outcomes of acutely ill and injured children and youth throughout the world. Beginning as a pandemic response with a high-quality retrospective case-controlled study of H1N1 risk factors for severe disease, 3 PERN research has progressed to global randomized controlled trials (RCTs) 4, 5 and an invigorated network infrastructure to enable the rapid launch of a prospective observational study in response to the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID- 19) pandemic. 6 On the occasion of Emergency Medicine Day (https:// emergencymedicine-day.org/what-is-em-day/campaign-theme) and more than a decade into our existence, we review PERN's successes and challenges. Here we present a model for ongoing international collaboration in addressing global health issues in pediatric emergency care research along with a vision for the future that addresses healthcare disparities and maximizes the implementation of best practices. 10 and Research in European Pediatric Emergency Medicine (Europe and Middle East). 11, 12 The Pediatric Emergency Research Network has subsequently supported the creation and strengthening of regional efforts within Europe and Latin America, with the formation of Pediatric Emergency Research in the United Kingdom and Ireland, 13 Red de Investigación de la Sociedad Española de Urgencias de Pediatría/ Spanish Pediatric Emergency Research Group, 14 and, most recently, Red de Investigación y Desarrollo de la Emergencia Pediátrica Latinoamericana (RIDEPLA). 15 Of note, the creation of RIDEPLA coincided with the recognition of pediatric emergency medicine as a subspecialty in several countries of the region 16 and, some years later, with the creation of the regional academic society Sociedad Latinoamericana de Emergencia Pediátrica, in which RIDEPLA now resides. Table 1 details PERN's current member networks. Pediatric Emergency Research Network is governed by an executive committee consisting of 2 representatives from each of the member networks. The PERN executive meets quarterly to give regional and overall research study updates, share ideas, and consider new research proposals. Annual in-person meetings have occurred when possible, coinciding with major pediatric or emergency medicine international conferences. The executive elects the chair, who is a pediatric emergency care researcher, to a 4-to 5-year term. The intent has been to rotate the leadership between participating networks. An important consideration of PERN's structure is that it serves a supportive and collaborative role, rather than a governing function. A PERN study is defined simply as one in which 2 or more of its 8-member networks collaborate. Proposals are presented to the PERN executive for the purposes of consideration and approval, followed by networking and recruitment for those proposals that are endorsed. Pediatric Emergency Research Network has limited sources of funding for infrastructure, and regional networks are governed and managed as independent entities subject to the governing bodies within their respective nations or regions. National and regional networks consistently report that involvement with other networks through PERN has strengthened both the scope and quality of their research, to the benefit of all involved. The full impact of PERN's facilitation of international collaborative research, beyond the numbers of publications and ongoing projects, is somewhat difficult to measure empirically. However, indirectly, the impact can be measured by the observed growth of the field, the nature of the increasingly challenging research questions now being addressed, and the collective capacity to generate and implement new knowledge in treating acutely ill and injured children. The evolution of PERN research has mirrored that of other national or regional pediatric emergency care research networks, beginning with retrospective studies and moving to prospective observational studies and then RCTs. [8] [9] [10] The timing of the inaugural PERN meeting in 2009 coincided with the H1N1 influenza pandemic. The strong desire to initiate a relevant high-quality but low-budget volunteer-based research project between global networks led to a retrospective case-control study of children (<16 years old) who presented with influenza-like illness to 79 emergency departments (EDs) in 12 countries between April 16 and December 31, 2009. 3 At that time, the study was the largest study in pediatric emergency care as measured by the number of sites involved. The successful completion of that study formed a foundation for the international collaboration to follow. The study identified 6 independent risk factors for severe outcomes in children presenting to EDs with influenza-like illness during the H1N1 pandemic: chronic lung disease, cerebral palsy/developmental delay, dehydration, chest retractions, tachycardia, and requirement for oxygen. These risk factors could be used by clinicians to identify those children with influenza-like illness at highest risk for severe outcomes when presenting during this and possibly future pandemics. Prospective observational studies further enhanced the collaborative relationships and research capacity within PERN. After the H1N1 study, members sought to address other key globally relevant questions in pediatric emergency care, including bronchiolitis and acute poisoning. Retrospective 18 and prospective 19 observational studies as well as secondary analyses 20-23 revealed practice variations and substantial rates of nonindicated testing and inappropriate interventions in both these conditions. For infants with bronchiolitis, it was found that the use of evidence-based supportive care minimized unnecessary hospitalizations. An additional focus of PERN research has looked at professional skills and knowledge development: an online survey revealed a global knowledge gap among emergency care professionals in psychosocial care of injured children, 24 and a cross-sectional survey across 6 networks revealed consensus in practice frequency and modality for critical pediatric procedures. [25] [26] [27] Even as these observational studies were ongoing, research networks were joining together to fulfill PERN's long-term vision of conducting global RCTs. To date, at least 2 such efforts are underway. Pragmatic Pediatric Trial of Balanced Versus Normal Saline Fluid in Sepsis (PRoMPT BOLUS) 4 is a multicenter randomized, open-label, pragmatic trial to test the comparative effectiveness and relative safety of 2 common fluid types in the treatment of septic shock in children. This study will recruit 8800 children from more than 44 hospitals across the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. One of the unique challenges of this trial is the coordination of several regulatory bodies and funding sources. Each of the 3 participating networks (PECARN, PERC, and PREDICT) has secured its own ethical oversight and national funding, as no single government agency has the budget to support such a large study. A second PERN RCT in process relates to the treatment of bronchiolitis with epinephrine and dexamethasone. 5 Combination therapy will be compared with placebo in this double-blinded RCT, which aims to establish any impact of such treatment on hospitalizations over a 7-day period. This study, known as Bronchiolitis in Infants Placebo Versus Epinephrine and Dexamethasone (BIPED) will recruit 1616 infants from 12 hospitals across Canada, Australia, and New Zealand (PERC, PREDICT). The uniqueness of this trial is the coordination of manufacture of off-patent "old" pharmaceuticals (epinephrine and dexamethasone) across 3 regulatory bodies and the challenges of responding to concerns about the uncertainty of nebulization being considered an aerosol-generating procedure during the current COVID-19 pandemic. The achievement of global recruitment into definitive RCTs represents an important milestone in PERN's development and in global pediatric emergency care research. It is expected that the current focus on interventional studies will continue, as efforts are currently underway to generate a core outcome set in acute severe pediatric asthma 28 that will serve as the basis for future RCTs in this area. Observational studies also continue to benefit from PERN infrastructure and collaboration. An ongoing large-scale (~2600 9 Lyttle et al. 13 Babl et al. 10 participants) prospective cohort study of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) 29 will result in an accurate objective model of prognosis in pediatric CAP from a global cohort, from which adequate numbers with severe disease will ensure precision and generalizability to a worldwide population. Although the COVID-19 pandemic has reduced CAP presentations internationally, the network's established CAP infrastructure, with both research ethics and data sharing in place, has allowed a nimble response to the current global health crisis, with the rapid mobilization of a prospective cohort study to collect data on severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)-positive andnegative patients presenting to PERN study sites. 6 A second ongoing observational study is examining household transmission among asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2-infected children. The relative speed with which these 2 studies were launched compared with the retrospective study during the previous (H1N1) pandemic over a decade ago is a testament to the level of global infrastructure and efficiency that PERN has developed over time. In contrast to the first (H1N1) PERN study, which was unfunded, these 2 SARS-CoV-2 PERN studies have secured more than Can$1 million (US $790,000) in research funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and separate grant funding from the United States. Notwithstanding the generalizability of findings, a unique advantage of PERN's collaboration in observational studies is the ability to achieve adequate numbers of severe outcomes for frequent presentations (H1N1, bronchiolitis, CAP) or adequate numbers of infrequent presentations (intussusception). A summary of ongoing and published PERN research (also highlighted on PERN's Web site, http://www.pern-global.com/) can be found in Table 2 . The vision shared by those in attendance at the first PERN meeting in October 2009 was focused on answering globally relevant research questions through large collaborative research studies performed internationally with large sample populations assessed in diverse emergency contexts. Since that time, global prospective observational studies and RCTs have become a reality. However, more work needs to be done to fulfill PERN's potential: to remove barriers to allow more research networks to join a study, to extend PERN's reach into all 6 regions of the World Health Organization with a focus on including sites from resource-poor areas and studying marginalized populations, and to investigate disparities in care based on race and ethnicity to ensure that all children globally receive outstanding evidence-based care. A further aim will be to establish and grow a permanent infrastructure including, among other objectives, a data center and infrastructure funding to facilitate developing protocols for new prospective studies. All of these factors will increase the capacity for nimble responsiveness to the changing landscape in global pediatric emergency care. Connected to PERN's research focus since its inception is the recognized need for translation of research knowledge into clinical practice to ensure that all children and youth who present to an ED globally will benefit from high-quality research evidence. Pediatric Emergency Research Network therefore strives toward the goal to improve pediatric emergency care internationally such that a child in any ED across the globe has access to the most upto-date therapies and skills, regardless of the geographic, cultural, and resource contexts. 2 To address this challenge, it is important to recognize that the leading causes of child mortality worldwide are acute conditions often requiring urgent attention: acute respiratory infection, diarrheal disease, sepsis, and injury. 30 Many of these are highly treatable, and the research efforts of PERN and its 8 participating networks have focused on advancing best practices for these high-priority conditions. However, a coordinated international effort to improve emergency care for children by ensuring effective implementation of best practices for common and treatable acute conditions in all ED settings is warranted. The path to this goal is not straightforward. As an example, the fluid-based resuscitation question being addressed by the PRoMPT BOLUS study 4 seeks to establish best practices for the type of fluid used in fluid resuscitation for the treatment of pediatric sepsis globally. Even within resource-rich contexts, however, disparities exist in pediatric emergency care that can have devastating outcomes. 31 Unfortunately, what is likely an infrequent event that warrants investigation in a resource-rich country is a common daily occurrence elsewhere, and the worldwide rate of death from sepsis in children is likely grossly underestimated. 32 Although the estimated mortality rate for neonatal sepsis is 11% to 19% in middle-to high-income countries, 33 it is as high as 31% in Latin America, 34 in great part due to inadequately prepared providers. 35 In addition to variation in fluid type and mortality, management of pediatric sepsis is also complicated by the question of the amount of fluid resuscitation required. The highest-quality evidence that is available comes from the Fluid Expansion as Supportive Therapy (FEAST) study, an RCT of 3141 children presenting to hospitals in sub-Saharan Africa with sepsis randomized to receive fluid boluses or no fluid boluses. 36 Despite the no-bolus arm showing a benefit in terms of mortality, overall and in the subgroups with and without malaria, clinicians in resource-rich settings have struggled to integrate these findings into clinical practice, relying more on lower-quality evidence from settings similar to their own. If we are going to improve emergency care for children by increasing the use of evidence-based therapies, evidence needs to flow bidirectionally between resource-rich and resource-restricted settings. The movement of research-derived evidence into clinical practice has been addressed over the past 2 decades by advances in knowledge translation, which seeks to close the gap between what is known from scientific evidence and what is done in clinical practice. National knowledge mobilization initiatives such as Translating Emergency Knowledge for Kids (https://trekk.ca) in Canada and the Emergency Medical Services for Children Innovation and Improvement Center (https://emscimprovement. center/) in the United States have had some success in connecting general EDs across the country with expertise and best practices available through pediatric emergency care specialists. Furthermore, this established infrastructure has already been shown to shorten the process of moving research knowledge into the clinical setting from years to months, for example, in the mobilization in Canada of the results of a US clinical trial of fluid infusion rates for in the treatment of pediatric diabetic ketoacidosis 37 or the rapid adoption of results of studies into new antiepileptic medications individually from 3 of the PERN networks into treatment algorithms globally for the management of pediatric status epilepticus. [38] [39] [40] Pediatric Emergency Research Network has begun to disseminate its study findings globally in multiple languages through its Web site and associated digital media. This infrastructure to enhance rapid adoption of definitive evidence may be seen as the seed of international knowledge mobilization efforts that will grow within PERN. The field of implementation science (IS) has emerged as a means of rigorously designing and evaluating knowledge translation interventions (eg, educational tools, organizational change management strategies) by comparing the effectiveness of intervention strategies across a series of hospitals, clinics, and institutions, among others. The opportunities for IS in pediatrics have been discussed and explored 41 and should be rapidly adopted in pediatric emergency care. Effective implementation strategies are built on the behavioral sciences. Even with a clear path forward in the treatment of conditions such as sepsis or bronchiolitis, Largest global data set of children presenting to EDs with intussusception it is not appropriate to assume that a policy decision or practice guideline is equivalent to a change in behavior. The psychological and contextual reasons for this have been studied extensively and compiled into frameworks to help researchers understand and address them. 42 Identification of the barriers and facilitators of practice change are further facilitated by the engagement of not only health care providers but also patients and families. The realization of PERN's vision for the future will require expanding the model of collaboration beyond the geographical dimension into the disciplinary dimension, adding to the network experts in such disciplines as IS, behavioral science, health economics, and patient and public engagement. A well-designed implementation strategy could be evaluated with rigorous methods, for example, in a cluster RCT, currently considered the strongest design to test implementation interventions. 43 Pediatric Emergency Research Network researchers have a rich depth of experience and expertise in conducting such RCTs with children, including a study in Australia and New Zealand to develop and test implementation interventions in treating bronchiolitis in infants [44] [45] [46] and a cluster RCT of parent-shared decision making to test the implementation of a decision rule for computed tomography in children with minor blunt head trauma. 47 Based on the evolution of the PERN research to date, the global cluster RCT in pediatric emergency care is within reach. However, for any implementation strategy to be truly effective, it must take into consideration the principles of equity, diversity, and inclusion. It is increasingly clear that racial and ethnic disparities exist in pediatric emergency care, both within regions and globally (eg, imaging differences after minor head trauma and abdominal trauma, opiates for appendicitis, etc). 48-50 These disparities exist not only between countries but also between regions, even in high-income countries with well-developed health systems. For example, despite Canada's universal health care system, access to high-quality health care is not universal and is instead fraught with systemic racial bias. 51 This is reflected in poorer health outcomes for children and youth of indigenous and racialized minorities. 52 Racial disparities in health are salient in the United States 53 and New Zealand 54, 55 and are receiving increasing attention in Latin America, as socioeconomic considerations are taken into account. [56] [57] [58] To truly fulfill PERN's agenda for the next decade will require not only addressing implementation broadly but also working toward actively promoting health and healthcare equity. International collaborative research has been established for some decades in the subspecialties of neonatology and pediatric oncology, where global research is more feasible owing to relatively low patient volume, long-term hospital care for their patients, and a higher incidence of serious outcomes. By comparison, most emergency conditions are acute and resolve after a single visit to the ED. Even with PERN's success at laying the foundation for global multicenter trials, including those in which multiple networks participate, inefficiencies remain and the network must face the important challenge of implementing science into everyday clinical practice. Effecting the desired changes will require progress in 4 areas: (1) expanding the capacity for global RCTs; (2) deepening the focus on IS; (3) increasing attention to health care disparities and their origins, with growing momentum toward equity; and (4) expanding PERN's global reach to add sites and networks from resource-restricted regions. Continued international collaboration, with iterative gains in cooperation, knowledge generation, and implementation, as demonstrated by PERN over the last decade, has the ability to more rapidly "move the dial" and improve health and outcomes for acutely ill and injured children globally. StaR Child Health: an initiative for RCTs in children Pediatric Emergency Research Networks: a global initiative in pediatric emergency medicine Predictors of severe H1N1 infection in children presenting within Pediatric Emergency Research Networks (PERN): retrospective case-control study Pragmatic pediatric trial of balanced versus normal saline fluid in sepsis: the PRoMPT BOLUS randomized controlled trial pilot feasibility study A randomized controlled trial comparing epinephrine and dexamethasone to placebo in the treatment of infants with bronchiolitis Prospective cohort study of children with suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection presenting to paediatric emergency departments: a Paediatric Emergency Research Networks (PERN) study protocol The Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN): rationale, development, and first steps The Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network: progress and update Pediatric Emergency Research Canada: origins and evolution Paediatric Research in Emergency Departments International Collaborative (PREDICT): first steps towards the development of an Australian and New Zealand research network From cradle to adolescence: the development of Research in European Pediatric Emergency Medicine Research priorities for European paediatric emergency medicine Pediatric Emergency Research in the UK and Ireland (PERUKI): developing a collaborative for multicentre research Research in pediatric emergency medicine: the research network of the Spanish Society of Pediatric Emergencies Sociedad Latinoamericana de Emergencia Pediátrica (SLEPE) Pediatric emergency medicine specialty: welcome! Arch Argent Pediatr Pediatric emergency care in Europe: a descriptive survey of 53 tertiary medical centers Practice variation in acute bronchiolitis: a Pediatric Emergency Research Networks study International variability in gastrointestinal decontamination with acute poisonings Predicting escalated care in infants with bronchiolitis International epidemiological differences in acute poisonings in pediatric emergency departments International practice patterns of antibiotic therapy and laboratory testing in bronchiolitis Pediatric intentional self-poisoning evaluated in the emergency department: an international study Psychosocial care for injured children: worldwide survey among hospital emergency department staff Exposure and confidence across critical airway procedures in pediatric emergency medicine: an international survey study Preferred learning modalities and practice for critical skills: a global survey of paediatric emergency medicine clinicians Exposure and confidence with critical nonairway procedures: a global survey of pediatric emergency medicine physicians Acute severe paediatric asthma: Study protocol for the development of a core outcome set, a Pediatric Emergency Reserarch Networks (PERN) study Predicting severe pneumonia in the emergency department: a global study of the Pediatric Emergency Research Networks (PERN)-study protocol Causes of child death Report on inquest and recommendations of the honourable judge Don Slough in the matter of the Fatality Inquiries Act and in the matter of Drianna Ross (deceased) Pediatric sepsis in the developing world The global burden of paediatric and neonatal sepsis: a systematic review Epidemiological study of pediatric severe sepsis in Argentina How are clinicians treating children with sepsis in emergency departments in Latin America? An international multicenter survey Mortality after fluid bolus in African children with severe infection Clinical trial of fluid infusion rates for pediatric diabetic ketoacidosis Levetiracetam versus phenytoin for second-line treatment of paediatric convulsive status epilepticus (EcLiPSE): a multicentre, open-label, randomised trial Efficacy of levetiracetam, fosphenytoin, and valproate for established status epilepticus by age group (ESETT): a double-blind, responsive-adaptive, randomised controlled trial Levetiracetam versus phenytoin for second-line treatment of convulsive status epilepticus in children (ConSEPT): an open-label, multicentre, randomised controlled trial Implementation science in pediatric health care: Advances and opportunities A guide to using the Theoretical Domains Framework of behaviour change to investigate implementation problems Methodologies to evaluate the effectiveness of knowledge translation interventions: a primer for researchers and health care managers Implementing evidence-based practices in the care of infants with bronchiolitis in Australasian acute care settings: study protocol for a cluster randomised controlled study Understanding factors that contribute to variations in bronchiolitis management in acute care settings: a qualitative study in Australia and New Zealand using the Theoretical Domains Framework Effectiveness of targeted interventions on treatment of infants with bronchiolitis: a randomized clinical trial Effect of the head computed tomography choice decision aid in parents of children with minor head trauma: a cluster randomized trial Cranial computed tomography use among children with minor blunt head trauma: association with race/ethnicity Relationship of physician-identified patient race and ethnicity to use of computed tomography in pediatric blunt torso trauma Racial disparities in pain management of children with appendicitis in emergency departments Structures of Indifference: An Indigenous Life and Death in a Canadian City Honouring the truth, reconciling for the future: summary of the final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada The state of health disparities in the United States The pervasive effects of racism: experiences of racial discrimination in New Zealand over time and associations with multiple health domains Racism and health in New Zealand: prevalence over time and associations between recent experience of racism and health and wellbeing measures using national survey data Inequities in health among Latin American and Caribbean countries Available at: https:// publications.iadb.org/publications/english/document/Racial-and-Ethnic-Disparities-in-Health-in-Latin-America-and-the-Caribbean Trends in socioeconomic inequalities in stunting prevalence in Latin America and the Caribbean countries: Differences between quintiles and deciles The authors are grateful to Karen Limbert Rempel, MSc (consultant), for support in the preparation of this article, which was made possible by the Children's Hospital Research Institute of Manitoba. This article is co-published in the Journal of Emergency Medicine Australasia.