Deadline for application: 5 February 2023
Background
Public health emergencies require emerging science to be translated into effective messages, recommendations and actions that are easily comprehensible, accessible and relevant to policy- and decision-makers. The COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated both the consequences for health systems, policy-makers and populations when health emergency policies are not informed by evidence and also the ways social, political and cultural factors can influence the translation of scientific evidence into policy-making. Therefore, understanding and strengthening Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergency policy-making is vital to future preparedness planning.
Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergencies can be defined as the synthesis, dissemination, exchange and application of scientific knowledge with and by communities, policy- and decision-makers, media, and other stakeholders in a way that is accessible, understandable and meaningful to everyone, in order to strengthen evidence-informed policies and decisions to protect lives and promote health during health emergencies.
There is a substantial and growing literature base regarding Knowledge Translation in public health policy-making, however less is known about Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergencies including what practical interventions, projects and programmes can strengthen and encourage Science and Knowledge Translation in policy-making. Health emergencies can present specific challenges for translating science and knowledge into policy, including 1) an even greater degree of uncertainty relative to day-to-day policy-making, 2) decision-making moving beyond ministries of health to heads of government, for example, where there may be less understanding of scientific and public health information, methods and processes, 3) increased time pressures for the collection of scientific information and decision-making from that information and 4) greater political and public scrutiny of translation and decision-making processes.
As part of wider work related to Science Translation, WHO seeks to engage with policy- and decision- makers in order to encourage and strengthen Science and Knowledge Translation and promote evidence-informed policy processes, decisions and actions to better prepare for, and manage, health emergencies. This includes creating awareness amongst policy makers about the importance, value and relevance of scientific information in health emergencies, encouraging the use of science to create evidence-informed health emergency policies and decisions at a national level and increasing capacity and guidance for Science and Knowledge Translation by policy- and decision-makers.
Objectives
This call for expression of interest seeks to identify a service provider to conduct a multi-disciplinary scoping review of the literature on Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergency policy-making including: how Science and Knowledge Translation are conceptualized and defined in the context of health emergencies, factors that influence the interplay between knowledge, evidence and policy-making in health emergency situations and examples of good practice and strategies that have enabled the translation of science and knowledge in health emergencies such as interventions and programmes that have strengthened or advocated for Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergencies.
This scoping review project has three main objectives: (i) advancing the conceptualization of Science and Knowledge Translation, specifically in health emergency contexts, by reviewing existing conceptualizations of Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergencies (ii) reviewing the existing multi-disciplinary research base about Science and Knowledge Translation in the context of public health emergencies, identifying barriers and enablers to Science and Knowledge Translation in emergency contexts and examples of good or innovative practices and iii) reviewing the research on contextual factors that are can influence, assist or hinder Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergencies.
The results of the scoping review will be published in a peer-reviewed article and feed into the development of further work on Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergency policy-making, including a toolkit for policy-makers and dialogues with countries.
Deliverables
This project consists of two main pieces of work, which will both be developed under the guidance of the technical team working on Science and Knowledge Translation in WHO’s Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness and Prevention Department:
- Scoping review of the research about Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergency policy-making:
- A scoping review building on a multi-disciplinary search approach including (i) a grey literature search to identify policy documents and reports published e.g. on government websites (ii) a keyword search in relevant electronic databases to identify academic articles, including from disciplines such as the social sciences, defining and conceptualizing science and knowledge translation in health emergencies, interventions to strengthen Science and Knowledge Translation, barriers to translation and contextual factors influencing Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergency policy-making (iii) snowball sampling to gather expert input to complement the literature search. The detailed search strategy will be reviewed and approved by WHO.
- The search will be conducted in multiple languages (to be determined with the supplier) to avoid a bias towards English-speaking literature and countries.
- The review span a timeframe from 2009, post the H1N1 pandemic onwards.
- Findings of the review will be analyzed using pre-defined categories, which will be developed in close collaboration with the technical team at WHO.
- The results of the review will be made available to WHO via , e.g. using Excel.
- The
review will focus on the following PCC (population, concept and
context) elements, to be finalized and further defined in collaboration
with the WHO technical team:
- Population: Policy actors, policy-makers and decision-makers.
- Concept:
- Conceptualization of Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergency policy-making.
- Interventions, projects, programmes and wider contextual factors related to Science and Knowledge Translation in health emergencies and barriers and enablers that can facilitate translation or make translation more difficult.
- Context: High-, middle- and low-income settings; a particular focus on health-related and emergency contexts.
2. Peer-reviewed article summarizing and analysing the findings of the scoping review:
- The main results of the scoping review will be included in a manuscript to be published in a peer-reviewed journal.
- The manuscript will be developed under the guidance of the technical team at WHO to comply with WHO internal clearance and publication processes.
Responsible officers from the technical team working on Science and Knowledge Translation in WHO’s Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness and Prevention Department will be available for guidance, input and consultation during the entire project duration.
WHO will own the intellectual property of work produced through this contract. Appropriate attribution will be given to individuals and organizations involved in the development of the work.
Timeline
Estimated time necessary: February to May 2023
Estimated duration/period: approximately 3 months
Specific requirements
Interested organizations and individuals should meet the following requirements:
- 7+ years of experience in public health research including previous experience with leading multidisciplinary research projects is required. Particular expertise in Science and Knowledge Translation is desirable.
- Demonstrated experience in conducting and publishing systematic and/or scoping reviews and grey literature searches is required.
- Background in public health, global health policy, science communication or related field.
- Previous experience in working with WHO is an asset.
- Language: expert knowledge of English required and working knowledge of at least one other UN language preferred.
Place of assignment
The project can be completed remotely.
Travel
No travel is anticipated.
Application procedure
Interested organizations and applicants should send an email to epi-win@who.int by 5 February 2023.
Applicants are kindly requested to include the following information in their application:
- A cover letter describing their motivation for application and highlighting any specific skill or experience relevant,
- CVs and publication lists of all team members,
- A cost estimate and proposed work plan including timeline.
Interviews will be held in in the week commencing 20th February 2023 with an expected start date to be confirmed thereafter.