SDH-NET: a South–North-South collaboration to build sustainable research capacities on social determinants of health in low- and middle-income countries

Abstract

BackgroundIt is desirable that health researchers have the ability to conduct research on health equity and contribute to the development of their national health system and policymaking processes. However, in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), there is a limited capacity to conduct this type of research due to reasons mostly associated with the status of national (health) research systems. Building sustainable research capacity in LMICs through the triangulation of South–North-South (S-N-S) collaborative networks seems to be an effective way to maximize limited national resources to strengthen these capacities. This article describes how a collaborative project (SDH-Net), funded by the European Commission, has successfully designed a study protocol and a S-N-S collaborative network to effectively support research capacity building in LMICs, specifically in the area of social determinants of health (SDH); this project seeks to elaborate on the vital role of global collaborative networks in strengthening this practice.MethodsThe implementation of SDH-Net comprised diverse activities developed in three phases. Phase 1: national level mapping exercises were conducted to assess the needs for SDH capacity building or strengthening in local research systems. Four strategic areas were defined, namely research implementation and system performance, social appropriation of knowledge, institutional and national research infrastructure, and research skills and training/networks. Phase 2: development of tools to address the identified capacity building needs, as well as knowledge management and network strengthening activities. Phase 3: identifying lessons learned in terms of research ethics, and how policies can support the capacity building process in SDH research.ResultsThe implementation of the protocol has led the network to design innovative tools for strengthening SDH research capacities, under a successful S-N-S collaboration that included national mapping reports, a global open-access learning platform with tools and resources, ethical guidelines for research, policy recommendations, and academic contributions to the global SDH discourse.ConclusionsThe effective triangulation of S-N-S partnerships can be of high value in building sustainable research capacity in LMICs. If designed appropriately, these multicultural, multi-institutional, and multidisciplinary collaborations can enable southern and northern academics to contextualize global research according to their national realities.

Understanding the state of health policy and systems research in West Africa and capacity strengthening needs: scoping of peer-reviewed publications trends and patterns 1990–2015

“…Finally, research capacity around social determinants of health was strengthened in several LMICs (Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Kenya, South Africa and Tanzania) through a triangulation of South–North–South collaborative networks (SDH-NET) in partnership with Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Germany [43]. …”

Context-led capacity building in time of crisis: fostering non-communicable diseases (NCD) research skills in the Mediterranean Middle East and North Africa

“…Most existing literature on RCB in the health field has been written by academics reflecting on their own practice, rather than policy practitioners. Some authors have looked at individual projects [12][13][14][15]. Others have reviewed a series of capacity building efforts [16].…”

“…[17] on sub-Saharan Africa [18]; on South-Eastern Europe). Within this literature, several themes have recurred, notably: questions of definition, and how to bring precision to a potentially elastic term like 'capacity building' [13,19]; how to integrate diverse disciplines, along with the challenges associated with methodological pluralism [20]; and critical reflection on how to bring rigour to evaluate impact and outcomes [12,16,[21][22][23]. Finally, an emerging literature also reflects on the research ethics underpinning such collaborations, as well as the wider tensions and limitations inherent in such programmes [13,16,17,24].…”

“…Within this literature, several themes have recurred, notably: questions of definition, and how to bring precision to a potentially elastic term like 'capacity building' [13,19]; how to integrate diverse disciplines, along with the challenges associated with methodological pluralism [20]; and critical reflection on how to bring rigour to evaluate impact and outcomes [12,16,[21][22][23]. Finally, an emerging literature also reflects on the research ethics underpinning such collaborations, as well as the wider tensions and limitations inherent in such programmes [13,16,17,24]. This paper is one of the first with a focus exclusively on RCB for health research in the Middle East and North Africa (also [25]), and among very few addressing the issue of RCB in times of war, conflict, and protracted crisis [26].…”

Capacidades de investigación sobre determinantes sociales de la salud en Brasil, Colombia y México

“…Finalmente, resulta esencial reconocer la importancia de proyectos y acciones de carácter regional, dirigidas a compartir estrategias apropiadas para el desarrollo de capacidades de investigación en la región y a fortalecer el posicionamiento de dss en las agendas políticas. La cooperación sur-sur y norte-sur en el marco de proyectos multinacionales como SDH-Net es ciertamente un camino para lograr este propósito [58].…”