Sharenet Operational Resarch Meeting June 23rd. UvA, Amsterdam Danny de Vries, Ph.D. Center for Social Science & Global Health Department of Anthropology d.h.devries@uva.nl
Agenda What When Coffee and Tea 14.15 14.30 Welcome and agenda (Danny de Vries, Chair, UvA) 14:30-14:35 Brief round of introductions 14:35-14:40 Sharing OR research updates, with special 14:40-16:10 attention to how OR approach taken may influence how results are turned into evidence (10 min presentation + 5 min discussion) Brainstorm on constraints and opportunities of 16:10-16:55 turning OR data into evidence. Round of closing 16:55-17:00
Welcome to evidence Pang (2007) - Can it work? Will it work? Is it worth it? Last meeting systematic review: the golden evidence standard? Benzies et al. 2006 State-of-the-Evidence Reviews: Advantages and Challenges. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing Second Quarter Pang T. Evidence to action in the developing world: what evidence is needed? Bull World Health Organ 2007;85:247.
Evidence-based policy-making Evidence-based policy-making (EBPM) - a legitimate policy development approach based on scientific fact. Qualitative study Behague et al. (2009) with program managers in Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Malawi and Nepal: Limited impact on context-specific programmatic policy-development and implementation at the national and sub-national levels; Promotes uniformity of methodological and policy approaches, despite call for disciplinary diversity in public health literature; National evidence-based policies are found to hold little weight in countering global policy interests, which are legitimated, rather than informed, by evidence; Interpretations of research findings shaped donors priorities driven by the need to provide generalizable research recommendations based on scientifically replicable methods. D. Behague et al. Evidence-based policy-making: The implications of globally-applicable research for context-specific problem-solving in developing countries. Social Science & Medicine 69 (2009) 1539 1546
Policy relevant evidence? Pang (2007) & Bowen & Zwi (2005): Research is only one form of evidence for policy. In health policy emphasis on context-specific research for national decision-making. Context demands observational studies, qualitative research, experience, know-how, consensus and local knowledge Researchers often do not see or recognize contextual factors Different policy questions may require different types of evidence. Evidence interacts with context before it is fully adopted in policy and practice Effective knowledge transfer is not a one off event, rather it is a powerful and continuous process in which knowledge accumulates and influences thinking over time Policy-makers should be involved from the start in defining policy question, processes for developing the evidence base, and interpreting reviews and evidence summaries. Syeda & Hydera (2007): Conduct and utilization of stakeholder analyses to determine the strength of the evidence for policy interface. Shamsuzzoha B Syeda & Adnan A Hydera. Evidence to action needs. Research. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, Sept 2007, 85 (9)
Bowen & Zwi 2005 Evidence informed policy & practice pathway Bowen S, Zwi AB (2005) Pathways to evidence-informed policy and practice: A framework for action. PLoS Med 2(7): e166.
Member presentations
Brainstorm How to conduct a stakeholder analyses to determine the strength of the evidence for policy interface? in small groups discuss your evidence based using Bowen & Zwi s model on evidence informed policy & practice pathway
Publishing your evidence Publishing programmatic results remains very limited, particularly in low income countries. Rujumba & Byamugisha (2012) argue to publish because: A quality-control standard, Opportunity for implementers to contribute to policy change Sharing knowledge in more compressed and easy to read formats. Wider dissemination of knowledge Building skills of the individuals involved in the process of writing Promoting accountability Fostering more collaboration between programme implementers and the academia should be promoted (e.g. mentorship, shared learning). Rujumba & Byamugisha 2012, Publishing operational research from real life programme data: a better form of accountability. Tropical Medicine and International Health. Vol 7 (1):133-134.