Information, Evidence and Research
Research Promotion Newsletter
June 2019
» Meetings
Meeting of the Eastern Mediterranean Research Review Ethics Review Committee
November 2018 – The Eastern Mediterranean Research Ethics Review Committee held its annual meeting from 11- to 12 November 2018 to: review progress on implementation of recommendations from the 2017 meeting; discuss plans for the Committee’s work in 2019; discuss the status of the upcoming regional bioethics summits (Pakistan 2019; Islamic Republic of Iran 2021); and address new challenges of observing ethics of health research during emergencies. The meeting also included a one-day workshop covering a global and regional overview of ethics and bioethics, ethical aspects of managing infectious disease outbreaks, ethics and universal health coverage), ethics, big data, and artificial intelligence.
Fourth meeting of WHO collaborating centres in the Eastern Mediterranean Region
January 2019 – The fourth meeting of WHO Collaborating Centres in the Eastern Mediterranean Region took place in Muscat, Oman, from 9 to 10 January 2019. The participants included directors of collaborating centres working in the Region from different Member States, in addition to WHO staff from the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean. The objectives of the meeting were to: review the updated rules and policies regulating (re)designation of collaborating centres and streamline their collaboration with WHO’s programme of work; discuss the challenges faced by collaborating centres in implementation of planned activities in collaboration with WHO; and orient the centres with regards to Eastern Mediterranean Region’s Vision 2023.
High-level meeting on institutional capacity for the use of evidence in health policy-making
February 2019 – A high-level meeting was conducted from 17 to 19 February 2019 in Beirut, Lebanon, to explore the organizational settings of health generating evidence used by health authorities in countries of the Region. The main objectives of the meeting were to: discuss best methods for knowledge translation, including policy briefs and guideline development and adaptation, with special reference to the Region; elaborate on outcomes of WHO’s mapping survey of health research institutions in the Region; and identify key elements of a regional strategy for enhancing and scaling-up the institutional capacity for using evidence in the policy-making process.
Stakeholder workshops for potential WHO collaborating centres in Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia
February 2019 – Three stakeholder workshops with potential institutions to be considered for designation as WHO collaborating centres were held in Islamabad, Pakistan; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; and Cairo, Egypt; in February 2019. The main objectives of the workshops were to orient participating institutions towards collaborating centres’ roles and eligibility for designation, review updated rules and policies regulating (re)designation of WHO collaborating centres and introduce the WHO regional roadmap and priorities to guide future collaboration.
» Research grants
Stakeholder workshops for potential WHO collaborating centres in Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia
In response to the Research in Priority Areas in Public Health (RPPH) 2018-2019 Call for Proposals, 16 proposals were recommended for funding, in line with the regional health research priorities. The accepted proposals cover different technical areas, including exposure to air pollution, determinants of malnutrition, prevention of noncommunicable diseases, health system resilience, death reporting, under-five mortality, institutionalization of using evidence in health policy, dual practice, universal health coverage, and growing rates of caesarean section. The accepted proposals were from 8 countries: Egypt, Islamic Republic of Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, Pakistan, Palestine, Sudan and Yemen.
Small Grant Scheme for Tropical Disease Research (SGS-TDR)
In response to the Tropical Disease Research – Small Grants Scheme 2018-2019 Call for Proposals, 16 proposals were recommended for funding, covering different technical areas, including neglected tropical diseases, malaria, hepatitis C, tuberculosis, and HIV. The accepted proposals were from 7 countries: Egypt, Islamic Republic of Iran, Morocco, Pakistan, Palestine, Sudan and Yemen.
» Capacity-building
Capacity-building in research methods and ethics workshop on: good health research practice"
December 2018 – A four-day course was conducted in Hammamet, Tunisia, from 10 to 13 December 2018 introducing key elements of good health research practice. During the workshop, mixed training methodologies were used, including lecture discussion, working groups, role play and case studies. The workshop included participants from 7 countries: Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Pakistan, Sudan and Tunisia. During the workshop, the participants worked on refining and modifying their own projects, based on their discussion with the course faculty and their fellow delegates. The workshop used the good health research practice guide that has been developed and modified after piloting the course in several countries in a variety of settings.
Ethics of research involving human subjects and bio-samples » national bioethics committee
April 2019 – In collaboration with UNESCO’s Regional Office for the Middle East and Arab States, a workshop was conducted in Muscat, Oman, in April 2019 jointly with the national bioethics committee, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman. The workshop covered topics, including ethics of research on human subjects and bio-samples with special focus on ethics of genetic data, and ethico-legal issues in evolving health care systems. Participants expressed their appreciation of the role of UNESCO and WHO in promoting bioethics in the Region and requested more activities in this regard.
Policy briefs workshop, Saudi Arabia, April 2019
The policy briefs workshop was held at King Saud University Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from 17 to 18 April 2019, co-organized by the King Saud University ‒ Research Chair for Evidence-Based Healthcare and Knowledge Translation and WHO, in close coordination between the WHO Regional Office and country office. The workshop was inaugurated by the CEO, University Medical City, as well as the Dean, King Saud University College of Medicine. Co-facilitators included: Dr Haifa Wahabi and Dr Yasser Amer. Participants represented different Saudi institutions. From King Saud University: representatives of the Research Chair of Princess Norah bint Abdullah bin Abdulaziz for Women's Health; Research Chair of Health Education; Center for Autism Treatment and Research; Research Chair of Prince Abdullah bin Khaled Coeliac Disease; Quality Management Department, King Saud University Medical City; Disaster Management Unit, and the Emergency Medicine Department. From outside King Saud University: representatives of the National Center for Evidence-Based Health Practice, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences; Saudi Center for Disease Prevention and Control; Population Health and the National Biobank at King Abdullah International Medical Research Center; and National Health Information Center (on behalf of the Saudi Health Council). Presentations were followed by group discussions, while working groups focused on practical steps for drafting a policy brief on obesity, as well as drug use disorders.
Contact us
Research Promotion and Development Programme
Department of Information, Evidence and Research
World Health Organization
Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean
WHO Street, extension of:
Abdel-Razak El-Sanhouri Street
P.O.Box 7608, Nasr City (11371)
Cairo, Egypt
emrgorpd@who.int
+202 22765348; 22765452
+202 2670 2492 / +202 267 2494
http://www.emro.who.int/research
