The World Health Organization (WHO) cites the Philippines as a model for low- to middle-income countries with a comprehensive national strategy for health research based on the Health Evidence Network (HEN) report, “What is the evidence on policies, interventions and tools for establishing and/or strengthening national health research systems and their effectiveness?” which elaborates the importance of collaborative and cross-cutting health research strategies as key in the achievement of national health goals.

Emphasizing the challenge in building and sustaining the growth of a continuously evolving health research landscape, the HEN report identifies the Philippines as among the countries which made significant progress in line with the institutionalization of the Philippine National Health Research System (PNHRS) through the Republic Act 10532 in 2013.

“Defining and articulating a vision for the NHRS is important in providing an overall direction and purpose for the activities involved in establishing and strengthening the system,” the report asserts. Referring to the country’s AmBisyon Natin 2040, the report explained that the “22-year vision for the nation provided a framework within which to develop a long-term vision for the country’s health research.”

The report also highlights the support given to research projects aligned with the National Unified Health Research Agenda (NUHRA) and the accreditation of research ethics committees (RECs). In 2016, the report notes that the country was able to address 45 of the 56 priority topics in health. This includes the country’s focus on innovation, particularly with its Tuklas Lunas program which leverages on the country’s biodiversity. On accreditation of RECs, through the Philippine Health Research Ethics Board (PHREB), the country was able to accredit a total of 48 RECs in 2016. To date, there are 95 accredited RECs across all regions in the country.

Collaborative efforts and partnerships were also identified as key in achieving the country’s health goals. The report illustrates the partnership between the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (DOST-PCHRD) and the United States National Institutes of Health to create a platform for a coordinated approach to tuberculosis research, and with the United Kingdom’s Medical Research Council for infectious disease projects in institutions in both countries.

Recognizing that “the way in which health research evidence is produced can increase the chance that it will be used in the health system,” the report also underscores the country’s efforts to advance health research publication in line with its partnership with the Asia Pacific Association of Medical Editors (APAME). In collaboration with the APAME, DOST-PCHRD holds biannual medical writing workshops to strengthen the publishing capacity of health researchers in the country.

“A health research strategy plays a key role in creating an overall system that is stronger because it combines diverse interventions related to specific functions,” the report concludes.

The PNHRS, through its implementing institutions — Department of Health (DOH), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the University of the Philippines Manila (UPM), is a national framework and convergent strategy that aims to promote cooperation and integration of all health research efforts in the country to ensure that research contributes to evidence-informed health policies and actions.

Written by: Jwynne Gwyneth Macan
Contributor: Christine Jane Gonzalez