Strong national research for health systems are key to new directions for research
Francisco Becerra-Posada, COHRED, Council on Health Research and Development
27 March 2011
The authors reflect on one of the very few commemoration conferences on the 20th anniversary of the Commission for Health Research for Development. The other we are aware of, is the COHRED Colloquium held last October in Geneva, Switzerland. As the authors say, much has changed in a positive way since the report was issued and thus, creating awareness and giving research for heath relevance and bringing it to be openly discussed and on finding ways on how to support countries to achieve the recommended investment to advance their ‘essential national health research’. The analysis both authors present on the advances and the gaps are accurate and there have been more advances after two key conferences on research for health, the one held in Mexico in 2004 (Dr Frenk was then Minster of Health), and the one in Bamako in 2008. On strengthening research for health systems, they fail to mention that the system, in order to support and facilitate all the needed capacity building, infrastructure, prioritised agenda for research for health, financing and support for researchers, needs to be integrated, coordinated, with a clear set of goals and objectives, with a sustainable and ongoing financing system and under good management in order to fulfil a defined Research for Health Policy or National Programme. Without all these elements, research in low and middle income countries will continue to face all the problems they have been facing all along. COHRED is not only, as the authors refer to, “a Geneva based initiative, to strengthen essential national research in the world’s poorest countries” (page 3). COHRED was born right after the Conference where the Commission presented its results, becoming the first and still existing organisation working in supporting and providing technical support to low and middle income countries to develop and/or strengthen their research for health systems. COHRED has been playing an advocacy and promotional role of national research for health systems and many countries have benefited from it. Just as an example, the 1st Latin American Conference on Research and Innovation for Health (Report of the 1st Latin American Conference on Research and Innovation for Health, available at http://www.cohred.org/sites/default/files/Rio_report_EN_low_res.pdf, accessed March 25th, 2010), 2008, Rio de Janeiro, and the support given to Paraguay in achieving a dedicated Policy on Research for Health. ( Política Nacional de Investigación, Desarrollo Tecnológico e Innovación para la Salud, Available at http://www.healthresearchweb.org/files/Politica_Nac__Inv__Salud_Paraguay_20101206_pr.pdf, , accessed March 25th, 2010 ) The Global Forum for Health Research –wrongly addressed by the authors as the “Global Health Research Forum” (page 4), is currently being integrated to COHRED, who is preparing the next Global Forum (on health research) where it is expected participants can discuss on the future for research for health as a global good and with equal gains and responsibilities from both rich and poor countries.
Francisco Becerra-Posada, COHRED, Head of Projects&Programmes. Becerra@cohred.org Carel IJsselmuiden, COHRED, Director; Global Forum for Health Research, Interim Executive Director. carel@cohred.org
Strong national research for health systems are key to new directions for research
27 March 2011
The authors reflect on one of the very few commemoration conferences on the 20th anniversary of the Commission for Health Research for Development. The other we are aware of, is the COHRED Colloquium held last October in Geneva, Switzerland. As the authors say, much has changed in a positive way since the report was issued and thus, creating awareness and giving research for heath relevance and bringing it to be openly discussed and on finding ways on how to support countries to achieve the recommended investment to advance their ‘essential national health research’. The analysis both authors present on the advances and the gaps are accurate and there have been more advances after two key conferences on research for health, the one held in Mexico in 2004 (Dr Frenk was then Minster of Health), and the one in Bamako in 2008.
On strengthening research for health systems, they fail to mention that the system, in order to support and facilitate all the needed capacity building, infrastructure, prioritised agenda for research for health, financing and support for researchers, needs to be integrated, coordinated, with a clear set of goals and objectives, with a sustainable and ongoing financing system and under good management in order to fulfil a defined Research for Health Policy or National Programme. Without all these elements, research in low and middle income countries will continue to face all the problems they have been facing all along.
COHRED is not only, as the authors refer to, “a Geneva based initiative, to strengthen essential national research in the world’s poorest countries” (page 3). COHRED was born right after the Conference where the Commission presented its results, becoming the first and still existing organisation working in supporting and providing technical support to low and middle income countries to develop and/or strengthen their research for health systems. COHRED has been playing an advocacy and promotional role of national research for health systems and many countries have benefited from it. Just as an example, the 1st Latin American Conference on Research and Innovation for Health (Report of the 1st Latin American Conference on Research and Innovation for Health, available at http://www.cohred.org/sites/default/files/Rio_report_EN_low_res.pdf, accessed March 25th, 2010), 2008, Rio de Janeiro, and the support given to Paraguay in achieving a dedicated Policy on Research for Health. ( Política Nacional de Investigación, Desarrollo Tecnológico e Innovación para la Salud, Available at http://www.healthresearchweb.org/files/Politica_Nac__Inv__Salud_Paraguay_20101206_pr.pdf, , accessed March 25th, 2010 )
The Global Forum for Health Research –wrongly addressed by the authors as the “Global Health Research Forum” (page 4), is currently being integrated to COHRED, who is preparing the next Global Forum (on health research) where it is expected participants can discuss on the future for research for health as a global good and with equal gains and responsibilities from both rich and poor countries.
Francisco Becerra-Posada, COHRED, Head of Projects&Programmes. Becerra@cohred.org
Carel IJsselmuiden, COHRED, Director; Global Forum for Health Research, Interim Executive Director. carel@cohred.org
Competing interests
Both authors work at COHRED