Global leaders in evidence-based healthcare highlight the urgent need to advance global health equity
Cochrane has partnered with JBI, Campbell Collaboration, GIN, the Institute for Evidence-Based Healthcare, the Centre for Evidence-based Health Care and NICE to launch the 2023 campaign for World Evidence-Based Healthcare (EBHC) Day, called ‘Evidence and Global Health Equity’.
World EBHC Day is held on 20 October each year. It is a global initiative that raises awareness of the need for better evidence to inform healthcare policy, practice and decision-making in order to improve health outcomes globally. It is an opportunity to participate in debate about global trends and challenges and celebrate the impact of individuals and organisations worldwide, recognising the work of dedicated researchers, policymakers and health professionals in improving health outcomes.
The 2023 campaign aims to examine how the global evidence community can foster and embed equity within and across evidence ecosystems to advance global health equity and inspire a collective drive among individuals and organisations to challenge the status quo and embrace a new paradigm of evidence generation and utilisation that propels progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals.
“In 2023 we reached the mid-way point for the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and a global commitment to ‘leave no one behind’, says World Evidence-Based Healthcare Day Chair, Bianca Pilla. "However, the global crises of humanitarian disasters, climate change and health pandemics are all impeding progress and exacerbating global health inequities, highlighting the urgency to strengthen local and global evidence ecosystems to address societal challenges."
Evidence is a prerequisite for achieving global health equity. Equitable health policies, systems and services are all dependent on functioning evidence ecosystems: the generation and application of evidence, whether this is by the public, health workers, researchers or policymakers.
"Global health equity rests on the foundation of robust evidence ecosystems," says Catherine Spencer, Cochrane CEO. "As a trusted leader in synthesizing health evidence for over 30 years, Cochrane is fully dedicated to promoting equity. We are excited to collaborate with the other World Evidence-Based Healthcare Day partners to emphasize that the development of equitable health policies, systems, and services hinges upon the effective generation and application of evidence by the public, health workers, researchers, and policymakers. Together, we can drive meaningful change and foster a future of inclusive healthcare."
In 2023 the organising partners have invited Health Information for All (HIFA), E-Base Africa, International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie), The George Institute for Global Health and University of Global Health Equity as campaign partners. Campaign partners collaborate with the organising partners of World Evidence-Based Healthcare Day to contribute to developing and strengthening the campaign, ‘Evidence and Global Health Equity’, with unique expertise, knowledge and resources.
The 2023 campaign is a call to action to take concrete steps towards equity-centred evidence-informed decision making, drawing attention to the need to enhance collaboration, information sharing and networking to increase access to research evidence, and to move towards integrated systems that prioritise equity, inclusivity and multisectoral participation of all actors.
Many in the Cochrane community have submitted blogs, vlogs, and events for World Evidence-Based Healthcare Day to help share experiences and collective wisdom on fostering equity-centred evidence-informed decision-making and strengthening evidence ecosystems - check them out!