The II National Meeting of the Network for Evidence-Informed Policies in Brazil – EVIPNet Brazil Network – was held in Brasilia, on November 21 and 22, 2023, under the coordination of the Department of Science and Technology of the Secretariat of Science, Technology and Strategic Inputs of the Ministry of Health (DECIT/SCTIE/MS) of Brazil. With a program focused on the institutionalization of Evidence-Informed Policies (PIE) in the management of the Unified Health System (SUS), the event brought together about 200 participants from all regions of Brazil, most of them representatives of the Evidence Centers (NEVs).
As a member of the Advisory Board of EVIPNet Brazil since its creation in 2007, BIREME has been involved in activities to promote EVIPNet and facilitate the use of evidence in decision-making and health policy formulation, especially through distance learning courses and workshops. The EVIPNet Brazil Network Portal and the PIE (Evidence-Informed Policies) database are results of this collaboration and have been kept updated since their implementation in 2008. They are available in the Virtual Health Library (VHL).
At the opening of the meeting, the Secretary of SCTIE/MS, Dr. Carlos Gadelha, recalled the inclusion of science in the agenda of the Ministry of Health with the National Policy for Science, Technology and Innovation in Health, and listed aspects of the current context, considering the period of response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and emphasizing the importance of confronting and preventing scientific misinformation in health.
The main participation of BIREME in the meeting was the roundtable dedicated to the sustainable strengthening of EVIPNet Brazil, in which Veronica Abdallah, Manager of Information Services and Products, and the Director of BIREME, João Paulo Sousa, participated. In her presentation, Verônica drew a parallel with the VHL Network, based on the VHL situation analysis for network strengthening, which was the central theme of the last VHL Network meeting (held a few days earlier, from November 13 to 16).
Verônica Abdala highlighted the challenges of maintaining an active, motivated and engaged network in the development of products and services that contribute to the access and application of scientific information in health interventions, in line with BIREME’s new strategy 2023-2025 “Information for Action”. In his speech, João Paulo Souza reaffirmed the importance of EVIPNet Brasil for BIREME and renewed the commitment to collaborate and support the development of the Brazilian network, highlighting its conceptual alignment with the Center’s 2023-2025 Strategy, which focuses on the digital transformation of operations and health products and services.
In the same roundtable, Laura Boeira’s presentation from the Veredas Institute stood out for its focus on valuing the people who engage and create the Network as a path to institutionalize PIEs. She said: “The network is built on people, so you have to take the time to listen to people.
Recommendations for the strengthening of EVIPNet Brazil
The last session of the meeting had the purpose of collecting recommendations from the participants for the strengthening of EVIPNet, a moment that registered a great participation among those present. BIREME proposed:
– Updating of the EVIPNet Brasil Portal to better represent the dynamics of the network and to increase the visibility of the products, services and actions carried out by them.
– Holding an EVIPNet meeting as a parallel event to the 11th Regional Congress on Health Sciences Information, CRICS11, which will be organized by BIREME in 2025.
For Verônica Abdala, the event was an opportunity to reunite and reaffirm the importance of science for health, as well as to renew partnerships and collaborations among the various institutions and people who participated in the meeting. In her assessment, “The EVIPNet Brazil Network has gained new momentum to continue with its mission of fostering and supporting the development of policies informed by scientific evidence in Brazil.”
About the EVIPNet Network
The EVIPNet Brazil Network was created in 2007 as part of the global initiative led by the World Health Organization that, since 2004, seeks to promote the systematic use of scientific evidence in the development and implementation of health policies and programs. In addition to supporting the formulation and implementation of Evidence-Informed Policies through guidelines, tools and training, the EVIPNet Brazil Network also produces other educational and knowledge translation resources, such as Evidence Syntheses, Rapid Responses and Policy Dialogue.
Links of interest: