Health

­This collection of documents on health policy has been developed to support the work of researchers, policymakers, community members, and stakeholders who wish to contribute to greater access to quality healthcare through research and evidence-based policy development.

In South Africa healthcare funding mechanisms­, particularly national health insurance, are being researched and debated widely and this is reflected in the materials included in this section.

Policy briefs

• Decisive action to achieve the Millennium Development Goals 
  
  An HSRC policy brief on Millennium Development Goals relating to water, sanitation, education and health challenges facing the Southern African Development Community.
  
  Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), January 2011
• Econex health reform notes 
  
  To date Econex has produced 13 health reform notes relating to the introduction of a national health insurance (NHI) system in South Africa.
  Econex, April 2011
• Econex National Health Insurance notes 
  
  To date Econex has released 13 policy notes on goverment's proposed National Health Insurance plan.
  Econex, October 2009
• Evaluating deliberative processes 
  
  Fact sheet which aims to introduce public health practitioners to the evaluation of deliberative processes.­
  National Collaborating Centre for Healthy Public Policy, September 2010
• From Evidence to Action: a newsletter of the Policy > Action Network 
  
  Issue 4 of the newsletter focuses on the issue of violent crime in South Africa. The newsletter aims to stimulate debate around evidence-based policy-making. To contribute to future editions plesae send your submissions to pan@hsrc.ac.za­.
  Policy > Action Network, August 2011
• From Evidence to Action: Issue three: Child-centred policy 
  
  Issue Three of the PAN newsletter focuses on the interface between child-centred evidence and related policy. It features a range of resources that illustrate how child-focused data and research evidence can contribute to and inform better outcomes for children when formulating social policy.
  Human Sciences Research Council and the Programme to Support Pro-Poor Policy Development, June 2011
• Funding the NHI: Earmarked tax 
  
  Reseach note which investigates the ANC proposal of funding the additional expenditure required for a national health insurance (NHI) system with an with an earmarked tax rather than using general taxation. Also discusses implications of the increase in personal tax.
  Econex, August 2011
• Improving equitable domestic public financing to reach universal coverage in East and Southern Africa 
  
  This policy brief draws policy makers’ attention to the demands and challenges in health financing for universal coverage, suggesting options.
  Regional Network for Equity in Health in East and Southern Africa (EQUINET), July 2010
• Influencing health systems policy and practice 
  
  Relays some experiences from the Consortium for Research on Equitable Health Systems (CREHS) of getting research into policy and practice.
  Consortium for Research on Equitable Health Systems, March 2010
• Innovations in insuring the poor: Innovations in health insurance: Community-based models 
  
  Reviews policy challenges around scaling up community-based health insurance schemes.
  International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) , December 2009
• Innovative Medicines South Africa NHI policy briefs 
  
  ­To date Innovative Medicines South Africa has released 19 policy briefs on government's proposed National Health Insurance (NHI) plan. ­
  Innovative Medicines South Africa, February 2011
• Kesho Bora Study: Preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV during breastfeeding 
  
  Policy brief on new evidence published in Lancet Infectious Diseases which shows safety and ­efficacy of combination antiretroviral drugs during pregnancy, delivery and breastfeeding and supports the 2010 revised WHO guidelines.
  World Health Organisation (WHO), January 2011
• LIMS reforms and equitable subsidies 
  
  The 17th policy brief in a series which revisits ­the low income medical scheme (LIMS) recommendations that were made in 2006.
  Innovative Medicines South Africa, February 2011
• Mental Health and Poverty Project policy briefs 
  
  A series of nine policy briefs on policy development and analysis aimed at breaking the cycle of mental ill­-health and poverty.
  Mental Health and Poverty Project, University of Cape Town, 2010
• National health insurance: Can we afford it or can we afford not to have it? 
  
  This briefing unpacks some details of the proposed national health insurance (NHI) scheme and provides an overview of some of the more pressing questions about it.­
  Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference, September 2011
• NHI in South Africa in 2010: Background brief 
  
  Innovative Medicines has produced 14 policy briefs on National Health Insurance to date­, with this background brief providing an overview of developments during 2010.
  Innovative Medicines South Africa, November 2010
• Nursing in a new era: policy brief 1 
  
  Examines the shifts in training and employment patterns between 1997 and 2007.
  Education, Science and Skills Development Programme, Human Sciences Research Council, November 2009
• Projected non-communicable diseases update 
  
  ­This policy brief uses the revised population and new information to update several policy briefs that projected future chronic disease and cancer in South Africa.­­
  Innovative Medicines South Africa, June 2011
• SHIELD information sheets 
  
  Series of information sheets on healthcare funding and benefits in South Africa, Ghana, and Tanzania.
  Strategies for Health Insurance for Equity in Less Developed Countries (SHIELD), August 2010
• Tackling implementation gaps through health policy analysis 
  
  Guidelines for predicting political and institutional barriers to strengthening equitable health systems.
  Centre for Health Policy, September 2008
• The need for the active and strategic management of local-level policy implementation  
  
  Reviews research seeking to document key influences over policy implementation - exercise of power by managers and frontline implementers and factors such as managerial trust and organisational culture.
  Centre for Health Policy, October 2009
• The tax base in South Africa 
  
  Policy brief dealing with the tax base in South Africa, based on annual tax statistics, which­ provide authoritative information on the taxes collected and the patterns by income level which can help with understanding how social security contributions for national health insurance (NHI) may­ be structured.
  Innovative Medicines South Africa (IMSA), August 2011
• Universal coverage and equitable financing 
  
  The 16th policy brief in a series which reviews universal coverage and issues related to having a national ­health service (NHS) alongside a mandatory health insurance system.
  Innovative Medicines South Africa, February 2011
• Vacancy: Head: Research Use and Impact Assessment (RIA) (Deputy Executive Director) 
  
  The Research Use and Impact (RIA) programme at the HSRC wishes to appoint a suitable candidate to lead the programme. The successful candidate will be based in Pretoria on a 5 year contract. The closing date for applications is 18 November 2011.­­
  Human Sciences Research Council, November 2011

Research reports & papers

• Towards better use of evidence in policy formation: A discussion paper 
  
  A report intended as an initial high-level paper to stimulate discussion amongst New Zealand policy advisors and policy makers.­
  Gluckman, P., May 2011
• Achieving a shared goal: Free universal health care in Ghana 
  
  A critical assessment of Ghana's current ­national health insurance system and the need to implement free health care for all citizens, with an executive summary. ­
  Oxfam, March 2011
• An evaluation of the Ghana national health insurance scheme in the context of the health MDGs 
  
  E­valuates Ghana's NHIS to determine whether it is fulfilling the needs for which it was established, by focusing on the health status of women.
  Global Development Network, March 2010
• An overview of health and health care in South Africa 1994 - 2010: Priorities, progress and prospects for new gains 
  
  Discussion document on macro health policy and planning which identifies key priorities and opportunities for consideration.
  Harrison, D., January 2010
• Assessing progress in Africa toward the Millennium Development Goals 
  
  Highlights policy innovations including expanded social protection programmes in Africa that are facilitating progress toward at­tainment of the Millennium Development Goals.
  United Nations Development Programme, September 2010
• Citizens' engagement in policymaking and the design of public services 
  
  Citizen participation in policymaking and service design has been debated or attempted, but too infrequently realised. Considers current reform initiatives in the Australian Public Service (APS) and examines the implications of citizen-centric ideals for the processes and structures of government agencies.­
  Australian Public Service (APS), July 2011
• Closing the gap in a generation: health equity through action on the social determinants of health 
  Commission on Social Determinants of Health, WHO, November 2008
• Community-based health insurance and social protection policy 
  
  Reviews the role of community health financing for protection against the impoverishing effects of illness.
  Social Protection Unit, World Bank, March 2007
• Debate: National health insurance 
  
  Opinion pieces on national health insurance from Health-e news service.
  Health-e, June 2009
• Developing good taste in research: facilitators of and hindrances to evidence informed health-policy making in state government  
  Millbank Quarterly, November 2008
• Evidence and healthy public policy: insights from health and political sciences  
  
  Looks at what constitutes evidence in policy-making and models of policy-making in political science, to show how evidence is used or not to develop health public policy.
  Canadian Policy Research Networks, May 2008
• Financial implications of a National Health Insurance plan for South Africa 
  
  Final report on a ­study commissioned by the Hospital Association of South Africa on estimated economic costs of a NHI plan.
  Econex, March 2010
• Fixing health systems 
  
  Argues for allocating budgets towards the 'burden of dise­ase', with Tanzanian case studies
  International Development Research Centre, January 2008
• Global experience of community health workers for delivery of health related Millennium Development Goals: A systematic review, country case studies, and recommendations for integration into national health systems 
  
  Findings of a global systematic review including eight in-depth country case studies in Sub-Saharan Africa. South East Asia and Latin America.
  World Health Organisation (WHO), 2010
• Health and NHI consultations 
  
  Documentation from a series of community consultations on the proposed national health insurance system (NHI).
  Black Sash, August 2011
• Health as a human right: the wrong prescription 
  
  H­uman rights academic Jacob Mchangama argues that the political and legal ascendance of the right to health is unwarranted and counterproductive.
  International Policy Network, December 2009
• How might policymakers make reasonable decisions when they have limited information? 
  
  Planners typically do not possess all the knowledge required, so there is reason to consider policy formation with partial knowledge of policy impacts. Considers choice of a vaccination policywhen a planner has partial knowledge of the effect ­of vaccination on illness rates.
  Proceedings of the National Academcy of Sciences , February 2010
• Implementing the APRM: Views from civil society  
  
  Assembled collaboratively over the past year by several South African civil society organisations (CSOs), this report scrutinises the country’s track record in fighting corruption, managing diversity, addressing xenophobia and racism, managing elections, consolidating democracy and upholding the rule of law, as well as confronting social exclusion and effective service delivery. ­­
  APRM Monitoring Project (AMP), June 2011
• Intellectual property and access to medicines: an analysis of legislation in Central America 
  
  How intellectual property provisions impact on medicines access in developing countries.
  Bulletin of the World Health Organisation, October 2009
• Knowledge, networks and nations: Global scientific collaboration in the 21st century 
  
  Reviews the changing patterns of science, and scientific collaboration, in order to provide a basis for understanding such ongoing changes. Aims to identify the opportunities and benefits of international collaboration, to consider how they can best be realised, and to initiate a debate on how international scientific collaboration can be harnessed to tackle global problems more effectively.
  Royal Society, March 2011
• Method for synthesizing knowledge about public policies 
  
  Propose a knowledge synthesis method that is applicable to public policies, taking into account data linked to both effectiveness and implementation. Aims to identify policies that are most likely to succeed, and includes a summary.­
  National Collaborating Centres for Healthy Public Policies (NCCHPP), September 2010
• Migration and health in South Africa: A review of the current situation and recommendations for achieving the World Health Resolution on the Health of Migrants 
  
  F­ocuses on South Africa, and explores the linkages between health and the diverse movements of people within the county and across its borders.
  African Centre for Migration and Society, November 2010
• National health insurance in South Africa: stakeholder perspectives on NHI 
  
  A collation ­of various positions on NHI compiled by Innovative Medicines South Africa.
  Innovative Medicines South Africa, August 2009
• Nursing in a new era: The profession and education of nurses in South Africa 
  
  Considers the profile, image and status of nursing and the nature and role of nursing education.
  Human Sciences Research Council, 2009
• Promoting mental health in scarce-resource contexts: Emerging evidence and practice 
  
  Recommends actions that empower individuals, families and communities to enhance resilience and the development of ­health enhancing policy and legislative frameworks.
  Human Sciences Research Council, February 2010
• Reclaiming the resources for health: A regional analysis of equity in health in East and Southern Africa 
  
  Research aimed at influencing h­ealth policies and­ programmes in the region.
  EQUINET, September 2008
• Social or national health insurance? 
  
  Summarises key South African debates about mandatory health insurance.
  Health Systems Trust, 2007
• South African child gauge: Healthy children: From survival to optimal development 
  
  An annual production which monitors progress towards realising the rights of children, with this issue focusing on child health.
  Children’s Institute, University of Cape Town, July 2010
• South African Development Index (SADI) 
  
  An initiative by the South African Institute of Race Relations which aims to track development trends in South Africa, and will be released on a quarterly basis. ­
  South African Institute of Race Relations, February 2011
• State of the cities report: Towards resilient cities 
  
  Assesses the progress made by South African cities over the last decade in relation to key development outcomes and reviews strategic problems and opportunities relating to planning and management­
  South African Cities Network (SACN), April 2011
• Strengthening health systems: the role and promise of policy and systems research 
  
  A biennial review of health policy and systems research from the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research, an initiative of the Global Forum for Health Research in collaboration with the World Health Organization (2004).
  Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research, 2004
• The effects of education and health on wages and productivity 
  
  A staff working paper using a human capital earnings function and data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey to estimate the effects of education and health status on wages.
  Productivity Commission, March 2010
• The Health Systems Knowledge Network of the World Health Organisation Commission on the Social Determinants of Health 
  

  Selected documents from this project conducted in partnership with the South African Centre for Health Policy­.

  World Health Organisation, 2008
• The state of the world's children 2011: Adolescence - an age of opportunity 
  
  Examines the global state of adolescents, outlines the challenges they face in health, education, protection and participation, and argues that investing in them now is our best hope of breaking the intergenerational cycle of poverty and inequity and laying the foundation for a more peaceful, tolerant and equitable world.
  UNICEF, March 2011
• The university in development case studies of use-oriented research 
  
  This analysis provides new understandings of current concepts of 'globalisation', 'use-oriented' research, 'knowledge society and economy', and 'national system of innovation'.
  HSRC Press, November 2011
• The world health report: Health systems financing: The path to universal coverage 
  
  Makes recommendations on healthcare financing towards universal healthcare coverage. Also read bulletins on healthcare financing.
  World Health Organisation, November 2010
• World health statistics 2011 
  
  The World Health Organisation's annual compilation of health-related data for its 193 member states, and includes a summary of the progress made towards achieving the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and associated targets.
  World Health Organisation (WHO), May 2011
• Would social health insurance improve South African health care? What other middle income countries can teach us 
  
  Reviews the impact social health insurance would have on healthcare in South Africa.
  Transformation, 1994

Case studies

• A rapid equity focused health impact assessment of a policy implementation plan: An Australian case study and impact evaluation 
  
  Provisional article on equity focused health impact assessments (EFHIAs) used for ­enhancing the consideration of health equity in the development of policies, programmes and projects. Presents a case study of a rapid EFHIA that was conducted in Australia on a health promotion policy implementation plan.
  International Journal for Equity in Health , January 2011
• Call for proposals: To conduct a series of case studies on the policy influence of impact studies 
  
  Call for proposals to conduct a series of case studies to identify factors that contribute to or impede evidence from rigorous impact evaluations to influence policy(deadline is 28 February 2011).
  International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie), February 2011
• Case studies on social determinants of health 
  
  Case studies commissioned for the World Conference on Social Determinants of Health which present successful examples of policy action aiming to reduce health inequities. ­­
  World Health Organisation (WHO), October 2011
• Health innovation networks to help developing countries address neglected diseases 
  
  Highlights an important means to improve health equity: the growing ability of some developing countries to undertake health innovation.
  Science, July 2005
• Research to policy and action: the case of vitamin A in South Africa 
  
  Explores the potential for reducing the schism between research and policy by examining the existing gap between research and policy action.
  Council on Health Research for Development, 2000
• Systematic review database 
  
  ­This database provides policymakers and practitioners with easy access to systematic reviews that examine evidence on the effects of social and economic development interventions in low- and middle-income countries. It draws together systematic reviews from a range of sources and covers all sectors.
  International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie), September 2011
• What it takes to successfully translate research into policy and action 
  
  An interview with Director of the Centre for Microbiology Research and Chief Research Officer, Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), Dr Njeri Wamae, about translating research into action, and successes and pitfalls of engaging with policy makers.
  TropIKA.net, November 2008
• WIEGO social protection case study: The Ghana National Health Insurance Scheme 
  
  A case study documentation of good practice examples of social protection for informal workers.
  Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and organising (WIEGO), July 2009

Country studies

• Africa Capacity indicators 2011: Capacity development in fragile states 
  
  This report introduces a unique and unprecedented series of data on the state of capacity in Africa. It also examines key issues and challenges confronting in-country and cross-border capacity development.
  African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), February 2011
• Are South Africa's new health policies making a difference?  
  
  Since 1994 the South African government has prioritised equity as a health policy goal.  Considers how successful the policies have been by referring to evidence from household studies carried out between 1992 and 2003.
  Health Economics Unit, Centre for Health Policy, 2007
• Assessing progress in Africa towards the Millennium Development Goals 
  
  The third in a series which discusses what needs to be done further in reaching the MDGs,  an abridged version of a much more comprehensive joint Economic Commission for Africa, African Union Commission, and African Development Bank report.
  United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, February 2009
• Comparative health systems research in a context of HIV/AIDS: lessons from a multi-country study in South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia  
  
  Comparative research conducted in South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia, to determine preconditions for the success of health care reforms, for affirming common issues faced by these countries, and to develop research capacity.
  Health Economics and HIV/AIDS Research Division, 2007
• Country notes: National Health Insurance 
  
  Newly launched research notes being collated for researchers, policymakers and stakeholders who are considering health reforms. ­
  Innovative Medicines South Africa, April 2010
• Health in South Africa 
  
  A collaboration between the Lancet and academic centres to assess the health status in South Africa.
  Lancet, August 2009
• International profiles of health care systems 
  
  Presents overviews of the health care systems of 13 countries, including information on health system financing, innovations and reforms. ­
  Commonwealth Fund, June 2010
• Public support to food security in India, Brazil and South Africa: Elements for a policy dialogue 
  
  A comparative study of the food-security policy agendas in the IBSA countries which aims to  identify and examine critical issues and good practices in order to reveal relevant points for knowledge sharing. Includes a one-page summary.­
  International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth (IPC-IG), May 2011
• SHIELD reports on alternative approaches to health insurance 
  
  Reports from a three-year project which critically analyses alternative approaches to health insurance in Ghana, Tanzania and South Africa. ­
  Strategies for Health Insurance for Equity in Less Developed Countries (SHIELD), 2010
• What is the impact of social health protection on access to health care, health expenditure and impoverishment?: a comparative analysis of three African countries 
  
  Investigates health care systems in Kenya, Senegal and South Africa, followed by a short description of the methodology and data used in the research. The later sections focus on empirical results and policy implications.
  International Labour Organisation, 2006

Toolkits & guidelines

• A user-friendly guide/toolkit for applying the human rights-based framework 
  
  With information on the basic project management cycle.
  People's Health Movement, July 2009
• Advocacy in action: a toolkit to support NGOs and CBOs responding to HIV and AIDS 
  
  Guidelines for developing practical advocacy skills.
  International AIDS alliance, December 2003
• Benchmarks of fairness for health care reform: a policy tool for developing countries 
  
  Also read further documents on health equity policy issues from the Global Equity Gauge Alliance. 
  Global Equity Gauge Alliance, 2008
• Building community resilience to disasters 
  
  Provides a definition of community resilience in the context of national health security and a set o­f eight levers and five core components for building resilience.
  Rand Health, February 2011
• Call for submissions: Terms of reference for an online course on how to build a policy influence plan 
  
  Call for the development of a course which will improve  organizational capacity to influence public policies in developing countries - deadline 23 January 2011
  Global Development Network (GDNet), January 2011
• Data strategies for policymaking: Identifying international good practice 
  
  Reviews international good practice for using data in policymaking and develops a conceptual framework for characterising and classifying the different elements of a data strategy for public sector orga­nisations.
  RAND Corporation, 2010
• Developing decentralisation and reproductive health services: guidelines for policymakers  
  University of Leeds, 2007
• e-Atlas of global development 
  
  A free, online, interactive tool, which maps and graphs more than 175 indicators from the World Bank’s development database.
  World Bank, March 2011
• From Evidence to Action: Issue 6: Evaluating our way to better government performance 
  
  In the final issue of the PAN newsletter for 2011 ­we look at how the evaluation of government programmes can be invaluable in improving performance and service delivery.
  Policy > Action Network, Human Sciences Research Council, December 2011
• From Evidence to Action: P>AN Newsletter 1/2010 
  
  This is the first edition of the Policy > Action Network newsletter, From Evidence to Action, published with support from the Programme to Support Pro-Poor Policy Development (PSPPD), a partnership between the Presidency and the Eu­ropean Union.­
  Policy > Action Network, November 2010
• Handbook on monitoring, evaluating and managing knowledge for policy influence 
  
  The main purpose of this handbook is to facilitate the investment process of a public research institute in developing a system (from the simplest to the most sophisticated) of monitoring and evaluation (M&E), and knowledge management (KM) of the impact of research on public policy.
  CIPPEC, February 2011
• Health Policy Initiative: Moving from policy to action 
  
  A USAID initiative drawing on project experiences and lessons learned to design the Policy-to-Action Framework. Provides links to materials, ­country-specific policy implementation studies and other key policy resources.
  USAID, September 2010
• Magenta book 
  
  Sets out the key issues to consider when designing and managing evaluations, and the presentation and interpretation of evaluation results. Describes why thinking about evaluation before and during the policy design phase can help to improve the quality of evaluation results without needing to hinder the policy proce­ss.
  HM Treasury, April 2011
• Managing for development results: A focus on Africa 
  
  A case book aimed at ensuring­ that managers are using evidence to make decisions and development stakeholders are able to keep track of progress.
  African Community of Practice on Managing for Development Results, 2010
• Monitoring and evaluation toolkit: HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria 
  
  ­Revised indicators at the output, outcome and impact levels for HIV/AIDS.
  Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, March 2008
• Rand Compare  
  
  Evidence-based approach for understanding, designing and evaluating health policies.
  2009
• Research as a tool for advocacy 
  
  A presentation outlining approaches to achieving research-based­ policies.
  Institute for Security Studies (ISS), 2010
• Sound expectations: From impact evaluations to policy change 
  
  A conceptual framework to be used in the production of case studies which identify factors that help or hinder rigorous impact evaluations from influencing policy.
  International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie), April 2011
• SUPPORT tools for evidence-informed health policymaking (STP) 
  
  A series of 17 articles, each proposing a tool for use­ by those involved in finding and using research evidence to support evidence-informed health policymaking.
  Health Research Policy and Systems, December 2009
• Tools and resources 
  
  Aims to provide analytical tools and resources to assist analysts and managers with policy development or service-planning projects.
  Population and Sustainable Development, New Zealand, March 2011

Conference & seminar papers

• BHF annual Southern African conference 2010: A meeting of minds 
  
  Conference papers on strategic and operational issues facing medical aid schemes, in the context of proposed National Health Insurance policies.
  Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF), August 2010
• 1st Latin American conference on research and innovation for health  
  
  This conference worked towards ensuring that research deals with the countries’ health priorities and contributes to equitable development in Latin America.
  Pan American Health Organisation, April 2008
• A nation's health in crisis: International experience and public/private collaboration 
  
  Roundtable discussion on health systems, health funding, and health­ policy.
  Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE), November 2010
• Best practices in health research policy development 
  
  This report summarises presentations and discussions that took place during the session entitled National health research: developing a policy framework, during the Global Forum for Health Research 11, ­Beijing, Peoples’ Republic of China.
  COHRED, October 2007
• Board of Healthcare Funders conference  
  
  BHF 2009 ­conference papers with National Health Insurance theme.
  July 2009
• Colloquium: Health within a comprehensive system of social security 
  
  Addressed challenges facing the South African health system, aiming to influence health policy developers on issues related to national health insurance.
  Human Sciences Research Council, August 2007
• Fair financing for health: mobilising domestic resources and managing commercialisation of health systems 
  
  ­Reviews research on domestic public resource mobilisation­ focusing on ‘success stories’ in allocations towards the health sector.
  The Regional Network on Equity in Health in East and Southern Africa (EQUINET), September 2009
• Financing South Africa's national health system through national health insurance: Possibilities and challenges - colloquium proceedings 
  
  Report on colloquium on ‘Health within a comprehensive system of social security’.
  Human Sciences Research Council, 2008
• Global ministerial Forum for Health: strengthening research for health, development and equity 
  
  Download background documents and presentations from this conference, held from 17-19 November 2008 in Bamako,Mali­.
  Global Health Forum, November 2008
• Health systems and antiretroviral access - key findings and policy recommendations 
  
  Report on a round table which debated current understanding on developments in health systems aspects of HIV in South Africa, to make recommendations for future policy and operational research. Presentations can be downloaded here.
  October 2007
• National conference on bringing evidence into public health policy 
  
  Conference papers on themes around evidence based health policy development, service­ delivery, human resources for health and health financing.
  Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru and Institute of Tropical Medicine, Belgium, December 2010
• National Health Insurance: Can it solve South Africa's health crisis?  
  
  Comprehensive analysis of the public health system in South Africa, towards national health insurance­.
  Sanders, D., September 2009
• Presentation: Evaluation as a key source of evidence for policy-making 
  
  Presentation from a seminar which reviewed evidence-based policy-making and the potential role of evaluation as a key, and a systematic, source of evidence. Presented by Dr Ian Goldman, Deputy Director General, Evaluation and Research, DPME,­ The Presidency.­
  Goldman, I., January 2012
• Producing knowledge syntheses that are both rigorous and relevant to policy makers 
  
  Workshop report where participants were enabled to apply a knowledge synthesis ­method including: choosing a relevant policy for study, analysing it, performing a literature review (in a way that differs from literature reviews on simple interventions) and organising deliberative processes.
  National Collaborating Centre for Healthy Public Policy, June 2011
• Public policy: Why ethics matters 
  
  Essays based on a conference which aimed to ­encourage and facilitate debate about the ethical basis for policy making.
  Australian National University, October 2010
• Strengthening health systems in Southern Africa 1992-2007 
  
  A platform for a review of HSTs contribution to health research utilisation in policy making and the use of information to inform management decisions.
  Health Systems Trust, 2007

Reading lists

• Centre for Health Policy reading list 
  
  The Centre for Health Policy reading list includes publications on health policy from 1999 to 2007.
  Centre for Health Policy, 2007
• Literature reviews on knowledge and policy 
  
  Extensive literature review on kno­wledge and policy in the health and education sectors.
  Know&Pol, June 2007

Advocacy initiatives

• SECTION27 submission on National Health Insurance (NHI) 
  
  ­Submission to National Treasury on its proposal for the first phase of the conversion of medical deductions to medical tax credits, callng for an extension of the subsidisation of medical scheme contributions beyond personal income tax payers.
  Section27 incorporating the AIDS Law Project, July 2011
• Advocacy toolkit for health 
  
  Describes advocacy techniques and activities for the health professionals and students. Includes aids such as templates, phone scripts, sample letters and other downloadable tools.
  Physicians for Human Rights, 2007
• African Community of Practice on Managing for Development Results 
  
  A community of over 1,000 practitioners managing for development results (MfDR) from 37 different African countries and regions across the world.
  March 2011
• From Evidence to Action: the Policy > Action Network newsletter 
  
  Download the second issue of the Policy > Action Network newsletter and email pan@hsrc.ac.za if you would like to make comments or submissions for the next issue.
  Human Sciences Research Council, February 2011
• HIV/AIDS and human rights in Southern Africa: an advocacy resource manual  
  
  Gives practical information on how law and policy can protect and promote human rights in the context of HIV/AIDS, and how Southern African Development Community countries have et this challenge.
  AIDS and Rights Alliance for Southern Africa, 2006
• IPC-IG Internship Programme  
  
  This internship offers outstanding graduate-level students the opportunity to acquire direct exposure to IPC-IG’s work as a global forum for policy dialogue and South-South learning on development innovations.
  International Poverty Centre, January 2011
• National Planning Commission (NPC) Jam 
  
  If you have some ideas on building a better South Africa, please register for and participate in the National Planning Commission (NPC)­ Jam (an online brainstorming event from noon on 28 September until noon on 1 October). Additional information can also be found here. ­
  National Planning Commission (NPC) , September 2011
• Online training: How to build a policy influence plan 
  
  CIPPEC, a leading think tank in Argentina will award 12 scholarships to participate in the third edition of this online training programme developed jointly with Global Development Network (GDN)­ which will start by the end of August 2011.­
  
  CIPPEC, August 2011
• Rural Health Advocacy Project 
  
  Aims to work towards ­the progressive realization of the constitutional right of health for all, including the rural poor.
  September 2009
• September National Imbizo 
  
  A new Facebook forum for a national citizens' dialogue, currently working against xenophobia and planning for ­a National Indaba in September 2010.
  July 2010
• The People's Health Movement 
  
  Grassroots movement with representation in many countries including South Africa.
  January 2009