Progress towards the Development of Research Agenda and the Launch of Knowledge Hub: The WHO Thematic Platform for Health Emergency and Disaster Risk Management Research Network (Health EDRM RN)
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
3. Results
3.1. WHO Health EDRM Research Agenda
- Gather information on existing health EDRM research programs and agendas.
- Finalize criteria for prioritizing research themes and questions (preliminary criteria are displayed above).
- Finalize a list of stakeholders to be consulted.
- Conduct surveys and other consultative methods with key stakeholders to identify research needs.
- Establish a process and working groups for reviewing results of surveys.
- Draft a research agenda to address identified needs under each theme (preliminary research themes and questions are presented in Table 1).
- Conduct a peer-review through global consultation.
- Publish and disseminate finalized research agenda.
- Monitoring progress and update research agenda every two years.
3.2. WHO Health EDRM Knowledge Hub
3.3. Knowledge Hub for Information Sharing
4. Follow-Up Actions
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Theme | Additional Research Questions Proposed at the 1st Core Group Meeting [9] | Research Questions Proposed at the 2018 Kobe Expert Meeting [8] | |
---|---|---|---|
Area 1 * | Health data management before, during and after emergencies and disasters | a. How can data on non-death health outcomes be captured? b. How can data be captured on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in emergencies? c. How can data on long-term physical health and wellbeing and mortality risks be captured? d. How can data be more effectively used in health emergency risk profiling? e. How can data be used to conduct monitoring and evaluation more effectively? f. How can big data be used for improvements to the policy and practice of health emergency and disaster risk management (EDRM)? | a. What are the national and regional challenges inhibiting the implementation of WHO standardized medical data collection systems after emergencies and disasters? b. What broader health-related data are needed to inform effective health emergency and disaster risk management (EDRM), i.e., community vulnerabilities, hospital functional status, infrastructure, lifelines and health workforce? |
Area 2 * | Psychosocial management before, during and after emergencies and disasters | a. How can common or standardized countermeasures apply psychosocial management across all settings (natural hazard-related events, human-induced events, disease outbreaks, etc.)? b. How can psychosocial impacts be monitored effectively (e.g., post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD])? c. How should underlying risks and impacts be framed? d. What wellbeing indicators can be used to evaluate resilience for emergencies and disasters? | a. How can mental health and psychosocial risk be classified using longitudinal and multi-centric studies? b. How can methods for screening, diagnosis and treatment of affected people be standardized across different settings? c. How can assets associated with greater community resilience be identified before, during and after a disaster? |
Area 3 * | Community disaster risk management including disaster risk literacy and addressing the needs of subpopulations | a. No additional questions were proposed. Follow-up is required. | a. What architecture is needed to support research into health EDRM, including consensus among disciplines and ethics? b. How can research be better translated to policy and practice across different backgrounds and contexts? c. What kind of technology for information and data management and communication is needed for risk communication, emergency response and research design? |
Area 4 * | Health workforce development for health EDRM | a. What are the indicators that evaluate training effectiveness? b. How can “occupational health and safety” be more effectively addressed in health EDRM workforce development? | a. How can different countries strengthen health EDRM through disaster risk management training programs, and what strategies will support retention, motivation and deployment of trained people? b. What are the best practices for sustaining the development of the local health workforce for health EDRM, fostering positive interactions between external support workers and the local workforce, and enabling the transition to recovery and post-event health EDRM? c. What is the common knowledge or what are the competencies required for health EDRM? |
Area 5 * | Research methods and ethics | a. How can the ethical approval processes for health EDRM be accelerated? b. How can effective structures, mechanisms or frameworks for health EDRM research funding be established/strengthened? | a. What are the definitions of the research methods and technical terms for the health EDRM? b. How can impact evaluation methods for intervention and qualitative–quantitative mixed methods be standardized? c. How can the publication process for health EDRM research become more systematic and effective? d. What are the challenges and best practices in addressing national health system, cultural and religious issues before, during and after interventions? |
Area 6 | Translational research | How can successful mechanisms be promoted to facilitate the translation of research findings into policy and practice? | Not available. |
Area 7 | Complex health risk conceptualization | How can directions be communicated for conceptualizing the complex health risks associated with various emergencies and disasters? | Not available. |
Area 8 | Cross-disciplinary research agenda | a. How can overlapping research topics with other non-health sectors be identified? b. What are the possible lessons for effective multi-disciplinary collaboration? | Not available. |
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Kayano, R.; Nomura, S.; Abrahams, J.; Huda, Q.; Chan, E.Y.Y.; Murray, V. Progress towards the Development of Research Agenda and the Launch of Knowledge Hub: The WHO Thematic Platform for Health Emergency and Disaster Risk Management Research Network (Health EDRM RN). Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 4959. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18094959
Kayano R, Nomura S, Abrahams J, Huda Q, Chan EYY, Murray V. Progress towards the Development of Research Agenda and the Launch of Knowledge Hub: The WHO Thematic Platform for Health Emergency and Disaster Risk Management Research Network (Health EDRM RN). International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(9):4959. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18094959
Chicago/Turabian StyleKayano, Ryoma, Shuhei Nomura, Jonathan Abrahams, Qudsia Huda, Emily Y. Y. Chan, and Virginia Murray. 2021. "Progress towards the Development of Research Agenda and the Launch of Knowledge Hub: The WHO Thematic Platform for Health Emergency and Disaster Risk Management Research Network (Health EDRM RN)" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 9: 4959. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18094959