Mapping the landscape of digital nutrition knowledge repositories in Kenya and beyond: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Background: Many developed nations have created national digital nutrition and health repositories backed by science and are continuously updated. These health knowledge repositories serve as standardized, easily accessible reference points for healthcare workers and have formed the basis for evidence-based, patient-centered health guidelines. However, such digital health interventions are non-existent or highly inaccessible for clinical nutritionists in developing nations like Kenya. Health knowledge management in Sub-Saharan Africa often focuses on digitizing public health repositories on thematic areas such as food insecurity, malnutrition, or water, sanitation, and hygiene. This leaves the clinical sector with analog repositories, such as printed manuals, booklets, or charts, which are an inefficient way to access updated scientific guidelines and can lead to misinformation and non-standardization of practice among clinicians. Objective: This review examines global and regional frameworks for creating evidence-based nutrition or health knowledge repositories to understand the frameworks used, their benefits, challenges and implementation gaps. Methodology: The review analyzed 11 eligible studies identified through searches of Scopus, Elsevier Journal Finder, Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Emerald Publishing, Semantic Scholar and the Cochrane Library, supplemented by selected institutional websites. It highlights common themes in frameworks and design principles, drivers and benefits of digital health repositories, implementation barriers and challenges and cultural adaptation. Results: The review notes that common principles used are FAIR and TRUST principles, knowledge management frameworks, and consideration of cultural concepts. The key gap noted is limited empirical evidence from Kenya or East Africa. Conclusion: The review proposes conceptualizing a Kenyan digital clinical nutrition knowledge repository by connecting global evidence with local context to advance nutrition knowledge system innovations and health outcomes. Keywords: Nutrition knowledge repository; Digital health; Evidence-based practice; Knowledge management in clinical practices; Healthcare professional guidelines.