Policymakers and those supporting them may find themselves in a number of situations that will require them to characterise the costs and consequences of options to address a problem. For example, a decision may already have been taken and their role is to maximise the benefits of an option, minimise its harms, optimise the impacts achieved for the money spent, and (if there is substantial uncertainty about the likely costs and consequences of the option) to design a monitoring and evaluation plan. Research evidence, particularly about benefits, harms, and costs, can help to inform whether an option can be considered viable. This article offers questions that can be used to guide policymakers: Has an appropriate set of options been identified to address a problem? What benefits and harms are important to those who will be affected? What are the local costs of each option, including cost-effectiveness? What adaptations might be made? Which stakeholder views and experiences might influence an option's acceptability and its benefits, harms and costs?
Useful Resources
Evidence about local conditions is evidence that is available from the specific setting(s) in which a decision or action on a policy or programme option will be taken. Such evidence is always needed, together with other forms of evidence, in order to inform decisions about options. Global evidence is the best starting point for judgements about effects, factors that modify those effects, and insights into ways to approach and address problems. But local evidence is needed for most other judgements about what decisions and actions should be taken. This article suggests five questions that can help to identify and appraise the local evidence that is needed to inform a decision about policy or programme options: What local evidence is needed to inform a decision about options? How can the necessary local evidence be found? How should the quality of the available local evidence be assessed? Are there important variations in the availability, quality or results of local evidence? How should local evidence be incorporated with other information?
After a policy decision has been made, the next key challenge is transforming this stated policy position into practical actions. What strategies, for instance, are available to facilitate effective implementation, and what is known about the effectiveness of such strategies? This article suggests five questions that can be considered by policymakers when implementing a health policy or programme: What are the potential barriers to the successful implementation of a new policy? What strategies should be considered in planning the implementation of a new policy in order to facilitate the necessary behavioural changes among healthcare recipients and citizens? What strategies should be considered in planning the implementation of a new policy in order to facilitate the necessary behavioural changes in healthcare professionals? What strategies should be considered in planning the implementation of a new policy in order to facilitate the necessary organisational changes? What strategies should be considered in planning the implementation of a new policy in order to facilitate the necessary systems changes?
SURE is a collaborative project that builds on and supports the Evidence-Informed Policy Network (EVIPNet) in Africa and the Region of East Africa Community Health (REACH) Policy Initiative. These educational video and audio documentaries let people describe in their own words how the SURE project, a collaboration of EVIPNet Africa and REACH, is working to improve health systems in Africa by making better use of research evidence to inform decisions. The audience can hear this and see the context in which people are working. The documentaries can be downloaded and used in meetings or broadcasts to introduce concepts, raise awareness and generate discussion about evidence-informed health policymaking. They are targeted at a broad audience, including policymakers, researchers, stakeholders and the general public.
In developing countries, most medicines are paid out-of-pocket by individual patients rather than being subsidised through social insurance. High prices are a major barrier to the use of medicines and better health, yet too little is known about the prices that people pay for medicines in low- and middle-income countries. This manual and the accompanying workbook and database, produced by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and Health Action International (HAI), provide a new approach to measuring the prices of medicines. The survey is focused on thirty key medicines covering the spectrum of the global disease burden, particularly as it falls on low- and middle-income countries. This manual results from the widely-felt need for greater transparency on prices in the global medicines marketplace.
The Synergy APDIME Toolkit is a resource to support programme designers and managers in HIV/AIDS prevention, care and support programming in the developing world. It is a window through which you can learn about programme outcomes, training guides and research findings. Tools include worksheets, budget templates, survey instruments, data and software produced by HIV/AIDS organisations from around the world. It was developed in collaboration with the University of Washington and contains five modules covering Assessment, Planning, Design, Implementation Monitoring, and Evaluation. Each module outlines a comprehensive step-by-step method and weblinks to hundreds of resources for programming.
This is the fourth in a series of technical briefings, produced by the Association of Public Health Observatories (APHO), designed to support public health practitioners and analysts and to promote the use of public health intelligence in decision making. APHO Technical Briefings looks at key issues to consider when setting targets in a multi-agency environment, including the choice of appropriate methodologies, indicators and statistics, and consideration of the wider political and ethical context.
This Web site includes a searchable database of TB education and training resources that can be used by TB and other health care professionals, patients, and the general public.
The TB Information Guide, Version 2.0 CD-ROM is now available with updated content and improved usability. The CD-ROM provides ready access to education and training materials, major CDC TB guidelines, Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Reports, surveillance reports, slide sets, and publications ordering information.
Many low- and middle-income countries are seeking to reform their health financing systems to move towards universal coverage. This typically means that financing is based on people’s ability to pay while, for service use, benefits are based on the need for health care. Financing incidence analysis (FIA) and benefit incidence analysis (BIA) are two popular tools used to assess equity in health systems financing and service use. FIA studies examine who pays for the health sector and how these contributions are distributed according to socioeconomic status (SES). BIA determines who benefits from health care spending, with recipients ranked by their relative SES. In this article, the authors identify 10 resources to assist researchers and policy makers seeking to undertake or interpret findings from financing and benefit incidence analyses in the health sector. The article pays particular attention to the data requirements, computations, methodological challenges and country level experiences with these types of analyses.