Authors' objectives:

To stimulate the debate on enablers of high-quality health services research and public health research, LBI-HTA initiated a report on organization and governance of health services research and public health research. A successful system (organization and governance) of health services research and public health research enables institutional and human resources capacity building, which are foundations of high-quality research.

Authors' recommendations: Not least due to a long standing and well funded research tradition and a culture open to evidence based policy debate, model organizations in the field of health services research and public health research are found in particular in the Netherlands and in the UK. Transparent processes of prioritizing research questions, of communicating research results and of evaluating research and its implementation are necessary to establish a research system positively impacting the practice of political decision making. Trust between decision makers and researchers, characterized by intensive interaction along the entire research process, is a prerequisite for ultimate user relevance of research. Scientific competence in the narrow sense on the part of the research organization needs to be coupled with the ability to actively communicate with decision makers and with network building skills. Thiscan be enhanced by organizational structures in research commissioning, academia and independent research organizations. In addition to political will, organizational leadership and sustainable funding commitments, capacity building requires time for a culture of problem solving in mutual respect to develop between decision makers and researchers. A perspective on research that takes organizational and systemic perspectives on board, that understands the production of evidence as a shared process and that is sensitive to context offers the most promising way forward.

Project Status: Completed

URL for project: http://eprints.hta.lbg.ac.at/908

Year Published: 2011

English language abstract: An English language summary is available

Publication Type: Not Assigned

Country: Austria

Organisation Name: Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Health Technology Assessment

Contact Address: Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for fuer Health Technology Assessment (LBI-HTA), Garnisongasse 7/rechte Stiege Mezzanin (Top 20), 1090 Vienna, Austria. Tel: +43 1 236 8119 - 0 Fax: +43 1 236 8119 - 99

Contact Name: tarquin.mittermayr@aihta.at

Contact Email: office@aihta.at

Copyright: Ludwig Boltzmann Institut fuer Health Technology Assessment (LBI-HTA)