Abstract
BACKGROUND
Black, Caribbean, and African immigrant communities in Canada face compounding systemic inequities that undermine mental well-being and limit access to culturally grounded mental health promotion (MHP) strategies. Despite growing national policy attention to these disparities, the landscape of MHP programs and initiatives developed for, with, or by Black, Caribbean, and African populations remains fragmented and poorly synthesized.
OBJECTIVE
This scoping review aims to (1) map existing MHP strategies, programs, and activities targeting Black, Caribbean, and African immigrant communities in Canada; (2) identify barriers and facilitators influencing their implementation and uptake; and (3) illuminate gaps in current research, policy, and practice.
METHODS
Guided by Arksey and O'Malley's scoping review framework and the Joanna Briggs Institute Manual for Evidence Synthesis, the review draws on 6 databases: MEDLINE (OVID), APA PsycINFO (OVID), Embase (OVID), PubMed, CINAHL Plus (EBSCOhost), and Google Scholar. Gray literature sources include community reports and government-funded initiatives such as those supported by the Public Health Agency of Canada's Promoting Health Equity: Mental Health of Black Canadians Fund. Eligibility criteria focus on English-language sources addressing MHP or mental illness prevention within the Canadian Black, Caribbean, and African immigrant context. Data will be charted independently in duplicate using Covidence and analyzed through descriptive methods, including tabular summaries and narrative synthesis.
RESULTS
Preliminary searches were conducted in June 2025. Formal database searches were completed in October 2025, yielding 2349 records across 6 databases. Following automated and manual deduplication (n=1048), 1301 records proceeded to title and abstract screening. Of these, 193 studies were sought for retrieval and full-text assessment. Data extraction is underway, with full results expected for publication in late 2026.
CONCLUSIONS
This review will produce the first consolidated map of MHP strategies targeting Black, Caribbean, and African immigrant communities in Canada. Findings are expected to reveal heterogeneity in intervention design, with a concentration of reactive, treatment-adjacent programs and limited representation of upstream, community-led, and culturally rooted approaches. Results will inform equity-driven policy development, support culturally responsive service design, and provide a foundation for future participatory research that centers Black, Caribbean, and African communities as knowledge producers.