Health policy and systems research

Health policy and systems research (HPSR) is a field of inquiry that studies "how societies organize themselves in achieving collective health goals, and how different actors interact in the policy and implementation processes to contribute to policy outcomes". HPSR is interdisciplinary and brings together expertise in a variety of biomedical and social sciences such as economics, sociology, anthropology, political science, public health and epidemiology.

History

The Commission on Health Research for Development and the Ad Hoc Committee on Health Research both highlighted the urgent need for focusing research methods, funding and practice towards addressing health inequities and embracing inter-disciplinary and intersectoral thinking. These reports and other academic and activist voices linked to them argued for greater voice and participation of developing countries in defining research priorities. Since then creation of the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research in 2000 and that of Health Systems Global in 2012 have consolidated the practice community of HPSR. In 2010, the first global symposium on health systems research was held in Montreux. PLoS Medicine commissioned three articles on the state-of-the-art in HPSR authored by a diverse group of global health academics. These articles critically examined the status of HPSR, current challenges and mapped the need to build capacity in HPSR and support local policy development and health systems strengthening, especially in LMICs. The series positioned HPSR as a field of inquiry that is driven by the nature of research question as opposed to being guided by the research methods.