Short-term impact of a neighbourhood-based intervention on mental health and self-rated health in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

The Hamilton Neighbourhoods Study aimed to measure the short-term impact of a neighbourhood-based intervention known as the City of Hamilton's Neighbourhood Action Strategy on health and neighbourhood outcomes. A quasi-experimental study with 881 intervention participants across six targeted neighbourhoods and 173 control participants was conducted to investigate changes in self-rated health and mental health from baseline to follow-up. There was evidence of small improvements in mental health in two neighbourhoods, but there was no change in self-rated health. Place-based interventions aimed at high poverty neighbourhoods may have only modest impacts on health in the short-term.

Automated summary

The Hamilton Neighbourhoods Study aimed to assess the short-term impacts of the City of Hamilton's Neighbourhood Action Strategy on health and neighbourhood outcomes. A quasi-experimental study was conducted with 881 intervention participants and 173 control participants to investigate changes in self-rated health and mental health. The findings suggest that place-based interventions targeted at high poverty neighbourhoods may only have modest impacts on health in the short-term.