Checklists of Good Practices and Recommendations for Developing National Policies and Agendas on Research for Health

Abstract

This publication is aimed at stakeholders' planning, developing, implementing, or updating national policies or agendas on research and innovation for health. It includes checklists to guide the development of these national documents, aligned with the guiding principles and values of the Policy on Research for Health of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and with recognized good practices. PAHO’s Policy on Research for Health was approved in 2009 for implementation by its Member States. The approval of the Policy on Research for Health, and of the Strategy on Research for Health of the World Health Organization in 2010, generated momentum. Since then, numerous countries have developed such policy documents, which need to be kept current as circumstances and governments change, and as a means to strengthen health research systems, governance, and the impact of research. Following the recommendations made by PAHO’s Advisory Committee on Health Research, PAHO mapped national policies and agendas on research for health and reported to its Governing Bodies. It also completed an Assessment of National Policies and Agendas on Research for Health in the Americas in 2019. These checklists offer a practical tool to assist the development of updates and future national policies and agendas that seek alignment with the regional and global policy frameworks, and are grounded in the same guiding principles: impact, quality, inclusiveness and communication, and accessibility.