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Brugnara L, Jaramillo C, Olarte-Peña M, Karl L, Deckert A, Marx M, Horstick O, Dambach P, Fehr A. Strengthening national public health institutes: a systematic review on institution building in the public sector. Front Public Health 2023; 11:1146655. [PMID: 37275484 PMCID: PMC10232799 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1146655] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2023] [Accepted: 04/18/2023] [Indexed: 06/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Strong and efficient institutions are vital to the development of well-functioning governments and strong societies. The term "institution building" encompasses the creation, support, development, and strengthening of organizations and institutions. Still, there is little aggregated evidence on "institution building" considering a wider system-thinking approach, best practices, or development cooperation specifically in the field of public health. In 2007, the International Association of National Public Health Institutes (IANPHI) created a guiding Framework that countries may use for developing National Public Health Institutes (NPHIs). This Framework is currently being revised. Methods In this context, we conducted a systematic review to facilitate this revision with recent evidence on institution building and its potential contribution to NPHI. We followed the PRISMA guidelines for systematic reviews, searching for relevant publications in seven scientific databases (Pubmed, VHL/LILACS, EconLit, Google Scholar, Web of Science, World Affairs Online, ECONBIZ) and four libraries (World Bank; European Health for All database of the World Health Organization European Region, WHO; Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD; and the African Union Common Repository). The search was carried out in October 2021. We used the "framework analysis" tool for systematically processing documents according to key themes. Results As a result, we identified 3,015 records, of which we included 62 documents in the final review. This systematic review fills a major gap of aggregated information on institution building in the field of public health and National Public Health Institutes. It is to our knowledge the first systematic review of this kind. The overriding result is the identification and definition of six domains of institution building in the health sector: "governance," "knowledge and innovation," "inter-institutional cooperation," "monitoring and control," "participation," and "sustainability and context-specific adaptability." Discussion Our results show that the described domains are highly relevant to the public health sector, and that managers and the scientific community recognize their importance. Still, they are often not applied consistently when creating or developing NPHIs. We conclude that organizations engaged in institution building of NPHIs, including IANPHI, may greatly benefit from state-of-the-art research on institution building as presented in this study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucia Brugnara
- evaplan GmbH at the University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
- Heidelberg Institute of Global Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | | | | | - Larissa Karl
- Faculty of Natural and Social Sciences, Heidelberg University of Education, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Andreas Deckert
- Heidelberg Institute of Global Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Michael Marx
- evaplan GmbH at the University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
- Heidelberg Institute of Global Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Olaf Horstick
- Heidelberg Institute of Global Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Peter Dambach
- Heidelberg Institute of Global Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Angela Fehr
- Centre for International Health Protection, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany
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Apiratwarakul K, Celebi I, Tiamkao S, Bhudhisawasdi V, Pearkao C, Ienghong K. Understanding of Development Emergency Medical Services in Laos Emergency Medicine Residents. Open Access Maced J Med Sci 2021. [DOI: 10.3889/oamjms.2021.7333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Rising death tolls from traffic accidents are quickly becoming an inescapable problem in almost all countries around the world. That being said, the World Health Organization has launched an ambitious campaign aimed at reducing the death rate from traffic accidents by 50% in the next 10 years. Development of emergency medical services (EMSs) was the tool to success the goals, especially in low- to middle-income countries including Laos. However, no studies regard perspective of training EMS in Laos emergency medicine residents.
AIM: The aim of our work is to demonstrate the effect of EMS training for Laos emergency medicine residents to the development of the national policy in Lao’s EMS.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in two countries (Laos and Thailand) from January 2020. The project activities were establishment of a command-and-control center, development of EMS support system, and training for emergency care professionals.
RESULTS: The eight Laos emergency medicine residents were enrolled between January and March 2020. After practicing as a dispatcher and emergency medical consultant in Thailand at Khon Kaen University, the participants from Laos found that all personnel gained experience and improved their knowledge of technology in EMS and organization management. This had a direct impact on improving confidence in their return to practice in Laos.
CONCLUSIONS: The human resource development through international collaboration between Thailand and Laos is contributing the effective knowledge and expertise learning in Laos. Moreover, the result of this training may provide the most effective care system resulting in the much-needed drop in the mortality rate of traffic accidents in Laos.
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Grill C. Involving stakeholders in research priority setting: a scoping review. RESEARCH INVOLVEMENT AND ENGAGEMENT 2021; 7:75. [PMID: 34715932 PMCID: PMC8555197 DOI: 10.1186/s40900-021-00318-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2021] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND This scoping review provides a thorough analysis of how stakeholders have so far been involved in research priority setting. The review describes, synthesizes, and evaluates research priority setting projects not only for the field of health-as previous reviews have done-but does so on a much broader scale for any research area. METHODS A comprehensive electronic literature search was conducted in the databases PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Reflecting the importance of grey literature, Google Scholar and relevant websites were also screened for eligible publications. A computational approach was then used for the study selection. The final screening for inclusion was done manually. RESULTS The scoping review encompasses 731 research priority setting projects published until the end of 2020. Overall, the projects were conducted within the realm of 50 subject areas ranging from agriculture and environment over health to social work and technology. Key learnings include that nearly all priority setting projects aimed to identify research priorities for the field of health (93%), particularly for nursing and care, cancer, pediatrics, and mental, behavioral and neurodevelopmental disorders. Only 6% of the projects were not health-related and 1% identified research priorities at the interface between health and a non-health area. Over time, 30 different stakeholder groups took part in research priority setting. The stakeholders most frequently asked to identify research priorities were doctors, patients, academics/researchers, nurses, allied healthcare professionals, family members, friends, and carers. Nearly two thirds of all projects have been conducted in Europe and North America. Overall, only 9% of the projects emphasized the importance of stakeholders in their goals and rationales and actively involved them. In around a quarter of the projects, stakeholders deliberated on their research priorities throughout the entire process. CONCLUSION By mapping out the complex landscape of stakeholder involvement in research priority setting, this review guides future efforts to involve stakeholders effectively, inclusively, and transparently, which in turn may increase the overall value of research for society. As a practical addition to this review, the first worldwide research priority setting database was created: https://ois.lbg.ac.at/en/project-database . The database contains all the projects analyzed for this review and is constantly updated with the latest published research priority setting projects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christiane Grill
- Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft (LBG), Open Innovation in Science Center, Nussdorfer Strasse 64/2, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
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Phongluxa K, Langeslag G, Jat TR, Kounnavong S, Khan MA, Essink DR. Factors influencing sexual and reproductive health among adolescents in Lao PDR. Glob Health Action 2021; 13:1791426. [PMID: 32741350 PMCID: PMC7480507 DOI: 10.1080/16549716.2020.1791426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Adolescents are particularly vulnerable to poor sexual and reproductive health outcomes. In addition, Lao PDR has the highest teenage pregnancy rate in southeast Asia and a high maternal mortality ratio. Objective This study aimed to provide a comprehensive exploration of factors that influence SRH knowledge, attitudes, and practices of adolescents in Bokeo Province, Lao PDR. Method Data from the Adolescent Girl Situation Analysis cross-sectional study, collected in 2018 using a mixed-method approach with 837 adolescents aged 10–19, and key informant interviews, were analysed. Regression analyses were used to identify predictors of modern contraception knowledge, autonomy, gender-based violence, sexual activity, and contraception use. This was complemented with qualitative thematic content analysis. Results Adolescents living in two rural districts had lower sexual and reproductive health knowledge compared to urban district residents. Findings showed misconceptions about the birth control pill, a belief that sex education is important, but that the current teaching quality is problematic. There was a strong positive association between knowledge and autonomy. In the two rural districts, residents were more likely to lack autonomy. Marriage was described as an autonomous decision, yet 40.4% lacked autonomy regarding marriage. Among sexually active adolescents, 35.2% used contraception. Boys and girls were said to be equal, yet education access and gender roles favoured boys. Additionally, violence was more justified by husbands against their wives. Conclusion The study helps to understand the views and perceptions of adolescents and key informants on gender equality and gender-based violence. Three main areas require more effort and greater investment to improve adolescent sexual and reproductive health: knowledge and use of contraceptives, gender inequality, and autonomy. There is poor knowledge of contraceptive methods, indicating a need to further integrate comprehensive sexual education, introduced in primary school, and to increase investment in training and monitoring teachers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Khampheng Phongluxa
- Lao Tropical and Public Health Institute, Ministry of Health , Vientiane, Lao PDR
| | - Ghislaine Langeslag
- Athena Institute, Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Van Amsterdam , Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Tej Ram Jat
- United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) , Vientiane, Lao PDR
| | - Sengchanh Kounnavong
- Lao Tropical and Public Health Institute, Ministry of Health , Vientiane, Lao PDR
| | - Mariam A Khan
- United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) , Vientiane, Lao PDR
| | - Dirk R Essink
- Athena Institute, Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Van Amsterdam , Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Bromage I, Wright EP, Kounnavong S, Sychareun V, Venroij L. Research provides evidence for health policy in Lao PDR. Glob Health Action 2020; 13:1791415. [PMID: 32741351 PMCID: PMC7480484 DOI: 10.1080/16549716.2020.1791415] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | - E Pamela Wright
- Guelph International Health Consulting: Amsterdam , The Netherlands
| | - Sengchanh Kounnavong
- Director, Lao Tropical and Public Health Institute, Ministry of Health , Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR
| | - Vanphanom Sychareun
- Dean, Faculty of Public Health, University of Health Sciences , Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR
| | - Léonie Venroij
- LEARN Program Manager, MCNV Laos , Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR
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Thongmixay S, Schoneveld T, Vongxay V, Broerse JEW, Sychareun V, Essink DR. Quality of family planning services for women of reproductive age in Lao PDR. Glob Health Action 2020; 13:1788261. [PMID: 32741347 PMCID: PMC7480436 DOI: 10.1080/16549716.2020.1788261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In Lao PDR, 15% of the married women want to postpone or prevent having a child, yet most are not using contraceptives to achieve this. Literature shows that usage of contraceptives is strongly dependent on the quality of family planning services. However, little is known about the quality of family planning services in Lao PDR. OBJECTIVE To assess the quality of family planning services provided in public health facilities in Lao PDR. METHODS Using a cross-sectional study design, public health facilities in three provinces in Lao PDR were assessed on structure, process and outcome measures of quality. Following the Quick Investigation of Quality approach, client exit interviews (n = 393), structured observations (n = 218) and facility audits (n = 17) were conducted. RESULTS Facility audits, observations and client exit interviews painted different pictures of the overall quality of family planning services. Taking all together, the quality was rated as moderate to high. Only marginal differences in quality were found between family planning services located in different geographical areas. Notably, only married women with children were using these services. Although contraceptives were provided, little attention was given to the information provided during consultations and to the interpersonal relationship between client and provider. CONCLUSION The results suggest that although improvements are needed to enhance quality of individual consultations, the greatest gain in reducing unwanted pregnancies would be made by ensuring access for all women of reproductive age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Souksamone Thongmixay
- Faculty of Public Health, University of Health Sciences , Vientiane, Lao PDR
- Athena Institute, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit van Amsterdam , Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Tess Schoneveld
- Athena Institute, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit van Amsterdam , Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Viengnakhone Vongxay
- Faculty of Public Health, University of Health Sciences , Vientiane, Lao PDR
- Athena Institute, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit van Amsterdam , Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Jacqueline E W Broerse
- Athena Institute, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit van Amsterdam , Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Vanphanom Sychareun
- Faculty of Public Health, University of Health Sciences , Vientiane, Lao PDR
| | - Dirk R Essink
- Athena Institute, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit van Amsterdam , Amsterdam, Netherlands
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