Health Systems Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town, South Africa.
Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Department of Global Health, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa.
Health Res Policy Syst. 2024 Aug 19;22(1):114. doi: 10.1186/s12961-024-01189-5.
Poverty-related diseases (PRD) remain amongst the leading causes of death in children under-5 years in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) based on the best available evidence are key to strengthening health systems and helping to enhance equitable health access for children under five. However, the CPG development process is complex and resource-intensive, with substantial scope for improving the process in SSA, which is the goal of the Global Evidence, Local Adaptation (GELA) project. The impact of research on PRD will be maximized through enhancing researchers and decision makers' capacity to use global research to develop locally relevant CPGs in the field of newborn and child health. The project will be implemented in three SSA countries, Malawi, South Africa and Nigeria, over a 3-year period. This research protocol is for the monitoring and evaluation work package of the project. The aim of this work package is to monitor the various GELA project activities and evaluate the influence these may have on evidence-informed decision-making and guideline adaptation capacities and processes. The specific project activities we will monitor include (1) our ongoing engagement with local stakeholders, (2) their capacity needs and development, (3) their understanding and use of evidence from reviews of qualitative research and, (4) their overall views and experiences of the project.
We will use a longitudinal, mixed-methods study design, informed by an overarching project Theory of Change. A series of interconnected qualitative and quantitative data collections methods will be used, including knowledge translation tracking sheets and case studies, capacity assessment online surveys, user testing and in-depth interviews, and non-participant observations of project activities. Participants will comprise of project staff, members of the CPG panels and steering committees in Malawi, South Africa and Nigeria, as well as other local stakeholders in these three African countries.
Ongoing monitoring and evaluation will help ensure the relationship between researchers and stakeholders is supported from the project start. This can facilitate achievement of common goals and enable researchers in South Africa, Malawi and Nigeria to make adjustments to project activities to maximize stakeholder engagement and research utilization. Ethical approval has been provided by South African Medical Research Council Human Research Ethics Committee (EC015-7/2022); The College of Medicine Research and Ethics Committee, Malawi (P.07/22/3687); National Health Research Ethics Committee of Nigeria (01/01/2007).
在撒哈拉以南非洲（SSA），与贫困相关的疾病（PRD）仍然是导致 5 岁以下儿童死亡的主要原因之一。基于现有最佳证据制定的临床实践指南（CPG）是加强卫生系统的关键，并有助于增强五岁以下儿童公平获得卫生保健的机会。然而，CPG 的制定过程复杂且资源密集，在 SSA 有很大的改进空间，这也是全球证据、地方适应（GELA）项目的目标。通过增强研究人员和决策者利用全球研究制定新生儿和儿童保健领域具有地方相关性的 CPG 的能力，将最大限度地发挥研究对 PRD 的影响。该项目将在马拉维、南非和尼日利亚这三个 SSA 国家实施，为期 3 年。本研究方案是该项目监测和评估工作包的内容。该工作包的目的是监测 GELA 项目的各项活动，并评估这些活动对循证决策和指南适应能力和过程的影响。我们将监测的具体项目活动包括：（1）我们与当地利益攸关方的持续接触，（2）他们的能力需求和发展，（3）他们对定性研究综述证据的理解和使用，以及（4）他们对项目的总体看法和经验。
我们将采用纵向混合方法研究设计，以一个总体项目变革理论为指导。将使用一系列相互关联的定性和定量数据收集方法，包括知识转化跟踪表和案例研究、能力评估在线调查、用户测试和深入访谈以及项目活动的非参与式观察。参与者将包括项目工作人员、马拉维、南非和尼日利亚的 CPG 小组和指导委员会成员，以及这三个非洲国家的其他当地利益攸关方。
持续的监测和评估将有助于确保从项目启动开始就为研究人员和利益攸关方之间的关系提供支持。这可以促进共同目标的实现，并使南非、马拉维和尼日利亚的研究人员能够调整项目活动，以最大限度地提高利益攸关方的参与度和研究利用度。南非医学研究理事会人类研究伦理委员会（EC015-7/2022）；马拉维医学院研究和伦理委员会（P.07/22/3687）；尼日利亚国家卫生研究伦理委员会（01/01/2007）已提供伦理批准。
