Grants to Develop Health Policy and Systems Research, 06/01

Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research Second Round 2001-2002 Deadline: 29 June 2001

Promoting Policy Research for Health Systems Development

In collaboration with the World Health Organization, an initiative fostered by the Global Forum for Health Research

Grants will aim to contribute to improved health by encouraging relevant, valid, and sustainable research and its application to the health policy and management process.

Grants: Two types of grants will be awarded:

Young Researcher Grants
These grants aim to support the growth and potential of HPSR in the medium term by funding projects of young researchers working as part of a research team, or the projects of students who are doing Masters or Doctoral level dissertations in a relevant subject. Close coordination will be sought between the academic and methodological support provided by the host academic programme or senior researchers and Alliance training and grant requirements.

Research to Evidence Grants
These grants aim to strengthen capacity for the application of HPSR to the policy process. Financial support will be provided to teams of experienced researchers and policy/decision-makers to undertake short research projects involving empirical study or analysis of existing data. Projects should take the form of an interaction between researchers and policy/decision-makers which fosters the production of evidence for the policy process.

Besides financial support for research, the Alliance will organise training and development workshops for proposal development and writing up and communication of research results to influence the policy process.

Research topics

The Alliance encourages submissions in a number of specific topic areas (see below), identified on the basis of partner priorities, emerging and widely acknowledged problems, Alliance consultations over the past year, and demand for funding as reflected in the response to the first round call. However, letters of intent on any other HPSR topic will also be considered. Selection will be based on the scientific merit of the proposal, its justification with respect to country priorities, and the extent to which it contributes to a critical mass of research on particular topics. In addition, applications are particularly encouraged from low-income countries, with limited HPS research capacity but demonstrating researcher and policy maker commitment to building up capacity in HPSR.

Health policy and systems research is defined broadly as the production of new knowledge and applications to improve how societies organise themselves to achieve health goals, including how they plan, manage and finance activities to improve health, as well as the roles, perspectives and interests of different actors in this effort. The health system functions of regulation, organisation, financing and delivery of services are the focal subjects of HPSR. Broader determinants directly affecting the health system are also considered within the purview of HPSR. Outside the scope of HPSR would be research focusing on environmental, political, cultural and economic determinants and processes that affect health indirectly.

Submissions on the following topics are especially encouraged:

A. Impact of social policies against poverty and exclusion, and consequences of globalisation

There are multiple direct and indirect linkages between globalisation and health requiring further research. The direct effects include impacts on health systems and policies directly (e.g., the effects of the WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services) and through international markets (e.g., the effects of the WTO Agreement on TradeRelated Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights); and direct effects on other influences on health at the population level (e.g., crossborder transmission of infectious disease and the marketing of tobacco). The indirect pathway includes effects operating through the national economy and on population levels of health risks.

B. Innovative approaches to health financing for the poor

Health financing encompasses collecting money to fund health systems, pooling contributions from different sources to allow financial risks to be shared, and paying service providers. Effective health financing seeks to ensure that all individuals have affordable access to appropriate public health and personal health care services, to pay providers fairly for the services they deliver and to set the right financial incentives for service users and providers.

C. National health accounts (NHA): country methodological developments

NHA has been recognised as a strategic tool to monitor, evaluate and outline potential planning avenues in health systems. In most countries only first estimates are available, imposing the need to search for feasible ways to fulfil policy requirements. Research is required to establish if the NHA models being developed satisfy the four basic questions: who pays? for what? produced by whom? for whose benefits? There is also a need to identify the most cost-effective ways to obtain reliable and sufficient data with the appropriate breakdown by region, socio-economic strata, disease, and provider. Other important issues include: use of existing data to simulate the effects of restructuring financing and delivery systems or re-allocating resources; data projections to identify future resource needs; other health policy uses of NHA.

D. Research on human resource development

Staffing costs and wages represent usually about three quarters of recurrent health expenditure in most countries. Effective health service delivery requires the efficient use of the skills of a wellmotivated health sector workforce. The health sector workforce is complex, with several health specific professional groups with distinct roles and their own educational and regulatory structures. Each professional group also has a specific culture, which sometimes is the main obstacle to bringing them to agree to changes, or work in a co-ordinated manner. Research will be considered that provides evidence on the following issues: .

E. Scaling up malaria control and prevention: challenges for financing and health system strengthening

Populations exposed to malaria require rapid access to proven first line treatment and preventive interventions which may be delivered by non-traditional actors such as consumer good distribution networks. Public, voluntary and for-profit private sector stakeholders brought together through Country Roll Back Malaria (RBM) partnerships have outlined plans for increasing their scale of operation. These plans aim to provide improved access to RBM interventions by 60% of at risk populations by 2006 in order to reduce the burden of disease of malaria by 50% by 2010. Research providing guidance on how RBM action at country level can be enhanced is required in the following areas:

F. Research on road traffic injuries: policy development and implementation

Road traffic injuries represent the tenth leading cause of death world-wide and account for the largest fraction of the global burden of injuries. By the year 2020 it is expected that road traffic crashes will account for the third highest cause of the global burden of disease. The predicted sharp rise in road traffic crashes will occur predominantly in developing countries. Crucial risk factors such as driving under the influence of alcohol; speeding; under-utilising seat belts and child restraints; and poor road design and roadway environment are all avoidable phenomena.

Who can apply

Young Researcher Grants
Applicants must be enrolled in a Masters or Doctorate programme and the proposed research project should be an integral part of the requirements for graduation. The letter of intent can be submitted by an academic supervisor or by the junior researcher, in which case the supervisor should endorse the proposal. Only developing country nationals normally residing in a developing country are eligible, although they may be enrolled in an academic programme abroad.

Research to Evidence Grants
The individual applicant should have or be able to establish collaboration with another institution or internal unit leading to the formation of a team with at least one researcher and one policy / decision-maker. The supporting member(s) of the team should endorse the letter of intent. Applications will be accepted only from institutions in developing countries, but teams including developed country institutions are eligible.

Current Alliance grantees are not eligible to apply as principal investigators.

Project selection and technical support

Letters of intent will be selected by the Alliance on a competitive basis. In the first phase, up to 30 letters of intent are expected to be selected on the basis of relevance and technical merit. Applicants will then be invited to develop a preliminary proposal and present it at one of two protocol development workshops to be held in the week of September 17 and October 1st 2001. Participants will submit final proposals in English for the award phase within two weeks of the assigned workshop. In this phase, approximately 25 proposals will be selected for funding on the basis of their technical merit. After the preliminary research report is submitted, the principal investigator will be invited to a second training and development workshop to support write-up and the design of dissemination and application strategies. Projects will be offered technical support during execution as required.

Budget, duration and contractual arrangements

Grants will be awarded for up to one year with a modest budget to support field work and office support. Young researcher grants have been supported in the past at an average of US$ 8,200 (US$ 13,000 maximum) and Research to Evidence grants at an average of US$ 19,400 (US$ 31,200 maximum). Grants will be awarded by the Alliance through a contract between the Global Forum for Health Research and the applicant's institution. Payment will be in one tranche at the beginning of the contract.

How to apply

Letters of intent should be received by the Alliance not later than 5PM GMT on 29 June, 2001. Awards will be announced by July 13. Letters are preferred in English, but Spanish or French can also be used. Only electronic submissions will be accepted. Submission through the Alliance Web site is preferred, but letters are also accepted by E-mail. Use only one medium for submission. The Alliance will confirm reception of letters as they are received.

The letters should contain the following information not to exceed 2,000 words (excepting the CV as an annex):

General information

Type of grant requested (State which:) Young researcher or Research to evidence

Priority area chosen (refer to one or more from the list below): * Impact of social policies against poverty and exclusion, and consequences of globalisation * Innovative approaches to health financing for the poor * National health accounts (NHA): country methodological developments * Research on human resource development * Scaling up malaria control and prevention: challenges to funding and health system strengthening
* Research on road traffic injuries: policy development and implementation

Other (please specify).

Project title
Contact information of applicant
Name
Post
Telephone
Fax
Email
Address (including zip code if available) Details of supporting institution/unit:

For young researchers:
name of academic institution
name of Masters' or Doctoral programme
name of supervisor/thesis director

For Research to Evidence Grants:
name of research institution
name of policy partner's institution
Is your institution a partner in the Alliance-HPSR? Yes
No
Research project information
Aim
Objectives
Justification:

Describe relationship of proposed project to HPSR priorities at country level.

For Young Researcher Grants: specify the role of the research within the academic programme and for professional development.

For research to evidence grants: state potential application of research to national policies and the health system.

Conceptual framework
Methodology
Data analysis plan
Budget
Funding requested from the Alliance (state global budget only, in US dollars)
Funding to be obtained from other sources Duration in months (projects should be completed in one year or less)

Annex: Brief curriculum vitae of principal researcher only (not more than three pages).

Send letters by Web posting or E-mail only: mailto:alliancehpsr@who.int
http://www.alliance-hpsr.org

For queries please address correspondence to:

Miguel A. Gonzlez-Block, Manager
Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research Office No. 3148
World Health Organization
CH 1211 Geneva 27 Switzerland
Tel: +41-22-791-2890/2840
Fax: +41-22-791-4328
mailto:alliancehpsr@who.int
http://www.alliance-hpsr.org

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