RTR-MF College of Medicine

Tacloban City

Describe the
a. major characteristics of research;
b. various components of the health
system;
c. contribution of various disciplines in
health research; and,
d. purpose and scope of health research.

Adoption and commitment for Health for All

implies that we are committed to ensuring that
all people will attain a level of health that
enables them to participate actively in the
social and economic life of the community in
which they live.
Research has made major contributions to
health by providing knowledge on the cause of
diseases and ill health, and by developing the
technology to cure and prevent disease and
promote them.
Despite the considerable amount of knowledge
and technology that is available today, many
peoples continue to be unable to achieve the
targets for Health for All. Why is this so?

Health of any community depends on the

interaction and balance between the:
1.) health needs of the community;
2.) health resources that are available;
and,
3.) selection and application of health
and health related interventions.

INTERACTING FORCES AFFECTING HEALTH IN THE COMMUNITY

(perceived by
professionals
from different
disciplines
and the
population)

HEALTH
NEEDS

HEALTH
RESOURCES

INTERVENTIONS

(available
from health
services,
other sectors
and the
population)

covering all?
effective?
affordable
efficient?
acceptable?

It is evident that it is important to apply the available technology in an optimal manner,

within the limited resources available, in order to serve the health needs of the
community.

To effect change to achieve Health for All,

countries must decide on the best approaches to
adopt.
This requires detailed and accurate information
on needs, possibilities, and consequences of
recommended actions.
Information is often lacking, inadequate or
unreliable. For this reason , decision-making
based on assumptions and unjustified conclusions
often result in selection of inappropriate policy
choices, the consequences of which are only
discovered after implementation.
In many instances, research can provide the
information needed for informed decision-making.

Research is the systematic

collection, analysis, and
interpretation of data to answer a
certain question or solve a problem.

It demands a clear statement of the

problem;
It requires a plan (it is not aimlessly
looking for something in the hopes
that you will come across a solution).
It builds on existing data, using both
positive and negative findings; and,
New data should be collected as required
and be organized in such a way that they
answer the original research question(s).

First, basic research is necessary to

generate new knowledge and
technologies to deal with major
unresolved health problems;
Second, applied research is necessary to
identify priority problems and to design
and evaluate policies and programs that
will deliver the greatest health benefit,
making optimal use of available
resources.

It is ultimately concerned with improving

the health of the community, by
enhancing the efficiency of the health
system as an integral part of the overall
process of socioeconomic development.

A HEALTH SYSTEM may be described as*:

A set of cultural beliefs about health
and illness that forms the basis for healthseeking and health-promoting behavior;
The institutional arrangements within
which that behavior occurs; and,
The socio-economic/political/physical
context for those beliefs and institutions.
*Adapted from Foster et al (1978); see also Scrimshaw and
Hurtado (1984)

Components of medical care :

1. The individual, family, and community.
(Several studies show that curative services
take place within this network (Kenman 1978);
2.Health care services :
a. Public sector which include health
workers, health facilities, and
institutions
(health financing);
b. Private sector which includes folk and
alternative medicine, modern medical
practice, pharmaceutical, and nongovernmental health care

3. Health-related sectors which

contribute to health, either directly or
indirectly. These include,

Agriculture and food distribution;

Education (formal and nonformal);
Water and sanitation; and,
Transport and communication.
Development committees or councils may
promote intersectoral cooperation for
development and health.

4. The international sector including

bilateral and multilateral donor agencies
(UNICEF, WHO, etc.) that may support
health as well as development activities.
The individual and his relatives are the
major integrating force of the health
system. They choose and combine the
activities that they believe will promote
their health and weel-being.

Efforts are being made to increase coordination

between the various public services and
between government services, NGOs, and other
healing systems to promote health.
How well the different components of the health
system function depends to a large extent on
socio-economic, political, cultural,
physical, epidemiological, and other
contextual factors. For example, economic
crises or booms will affect the health and
nutritional status of individuals as well as the
national budget available for health services.

Because health research is problem-oriented,

it should be selective and concentrate on
those factors to explain and solve the problem
being examined. It is very seldom that all
components of the health system will be
involved in one study, although health
research rarely limit themselves to one
component only.
Even within the narrower field of the health
services, health research focuses on specific
topics, depending on who experiences the
problem, and what management level.

Health policymakers may, for example,

want to know:
- How can special programs be prevented
from draining away resources (time and
staff) from equally necessary services?
- Should specially prepared packets of
electrolytes be purchased or should
people be taught how to prepare sugarsalt solutions themselves?

Managers at district/provincial or city levels

may raise questions such as:
- Why is neonatal mortality in certain
municipalities or barangays much higher
than in other areas?
Hospital directors may ask:
-Why do we observe such a high rate of
complications in surgery cases? Are our own
services adequate? Are patients coming late
for treatment and, if so, why?
-

Are the routine procedures and policies

(clinical, nursing, referral), etc.) in the different
units appropriate? Comprehensive? Acceptable
to patients? Efficient?
Managers at municipal or city levels (Local
Health Boards, health committees, health
workers) may want to know:
- Why are our health centers underutilized and
Botika ng Barangay not survive ?
- How can we assist non-literate women so that
they can effectively prevent and treat diarrhea?

We must be aware that problems at one

level of the health system are usually
connected with problems or deficiencies
at other levels. Health research should
address problems from the different
perspectives of all those who are, directly
or indirectly, involved. Otherwise, we run
the risk of coming up with results that
only partly explain the problem and that
are therefore , insufficient to solve it.

Many issues in one area of concern are

interrelated and interact with issues in
other areas.
Research skills that are needed might need
to come from a variety of disciplines, e.g.
medical, epidemiology, technical,
behavioral science, economics, etc.
Sufficient and relevant information may
be provided from different disciplines such
as from sociology, epidemiology, and
management.

Varkevisser C.M., Pathmanathan I. and

Browntee A. Designing and Conducting
Health Systems Research Projects.
Volume 2 Part 1. The International
Development Center, Parliament of
Canada and the World Health
Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, 1970:
pp. 13 -23.