The XIII Session of the BIREME Advisory Committee (AC) was held virtually on August 29, 2024, with the participation of members representing five Latin American and Caribbean countries who learned about the 2023 results and developments of the 2024-2025 Biannual Work Plan (BWP 24-25), focusing on the implementation of the BIREME 2023-2025 Strategy and the incorporation of advanced technologies in health information products and services.
Besides the Director João Paulo Souza and the BIREME team, members appointed by Brazil, Chile, Cuba and Trinidad and Tobago participated: Paulo Sellera, Valentina Sandoval (Chile), Ileana Alfonso (Cuba) and Stewart Smith (Trinidad & Tobago), and Sebastián García Saisó, Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Department of Evidence and Intelligence for Action in Health (EIH). Igor da Silva Barbosa took part as a guest, representing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, considering the BIREME Headquarters Agreement being formalized in Brazil.
The day’s agenda focused on the assessment of BWP 24-25, highlighting the actions planned and already implemented to accelerate BIREME’s digital transformation. João Paulo Souza presented the results achieved in the last year, and the main products and services that will be developed in the current and next biennia, in line with the BIREME Strategy 2023-2025.
The session opened with an update on the progress of BIREME’s “Headquarters Agreement” with the Brazilian government, highlighting its importance for the full implementation of its institutional framework. The main results achieved in the last 18 months were then presented in the context of BWPs 22-23 and 24-25 and the progress made in implementing the BIREME 2023-2025 Strategy since the last AC meeting in 2023, including:
- Identification of strategic needs and opportunities with member countries and PAHO/WHO;
- Mapping of advanced functionalities and co-ideation of development and investment options; and
- Definition of research and development priorities, with a focus on advanced technologies such as Large Language Models (LLMs), the personalization and virtualization of digital libraries.
The session also included the sharing of the recommendations of the BIREME Scientific Committee, whose members had met the same week, and which emphasized the need to continue the implementation of Strategy 2023-2025, with special attention to the integration of LLMs in health information products, also recommending the prioritization of technologies that improve the user experience, such as personalization with the identification of geospatial clusters of emerging topics.
The Advisory Committee endorsed these recommendations and emphasized the importance of strengthening communication with Ministries of Health and PAHO Country Offices to ensure that the information products developed respond effectively to public health needs, with an emphasis on supporting evidence-informed policymaking. PAHO’s Country Cooperation Strategies can support the implementation of this activity by indicating access to quality information and evidence as a priority in the countries.
Actions were considered for BIREME’s sustainability in the country and in the region, suggesting the expansion of its sources of funding and specifically the implementation of its Headquarters Agreement in the country, to strengthen its institutionality in favor of the development of information products and services that become regional public goods. The members of the CA unanimously recognized the results achieved by BIREME and the new developments underway by its innovation component.
These recommendations feed back into BIREME’s work plans, thus enabling the implementation of the recommendations made. The final and detailed report of the session, which includes all the recommendations and discussions, will soon be shared with the Committee members and BIREME staff for evaluation and subsequent action. For more information on the AC and other BIREME governance meetings, visit the BIREME Governance Committees portal.