Read online: https://risingscholars.net/en/news/details/2180/
Healthcare Information For All
The rationale for HIFA is described in a Lancet paper that introduced the global evidence ecosystem and three intrinsic weaknesses in the system: communication across the six components, understanding of information needs and how to meet them, and advocacy to secure political and financial support for universal access to reliable healthcare information. HIFA promotes communication across five global forums in four languages: HIFA, CHIFA (child health), HIFA-French, HIFA-Portuguese and HIFA-Spanish.
HIFA supports understanding through a range of in-depth explorations on the HIFA forums. Also, HIFA advocates by engaging more than 400 health and development organisations to officially endorse the vision of universal access. We are also securing endorsement from the world bodies that represent the six components of the global evidence ecosystem. To date, the World Medical Association and the International Federation of Library Associations have issued official policy statements of endorsement. We are in discussion with the World Association of Medical Editors to do the same.
Best wishes, Neil
HIFA profile: Neil Pakenham-Walsh is coordinator of HIFA (Healthcare Information For All), a global health community that brings all stakeholders together around the shared goal of universal access to reliable healthcare information. HIFA has 20,000 members in 180 countries, interacting in four languages and representing all parts of the global evidence ecosystem. HIFA is administered by Global Healthcare Information Network, a UK-based nonprofit in official relations with the World Health Organization. Email: neil@hifa.org