[Re: https://www.hifa.org/dgroups-rss/open-access-25-removing-barriers-betwee... ]
Rabia asks: "And perhaps most importantly — how do we ensure that quality and relevance move hand in hand, so that open access truly helps close the gap between evidence and impact?"
Thank you, another good question.
I would respond to this by thinking not only about whether and how an open-access research paper might directly inform patient care. Indeed we are struggling to find any specific examples where, for example, access to an original research paper has helped save a life or even led to better quality of care. (I am sure such examples exist, we just haven't identified any as yet- I'm hoping HIFA members can help, and especially welcome examples from personal experience.)
For me, what is more important is the impact of open access to health research on the integrity of the overall global evidence ecosystem, and on each of the six components of the system (generate, publish, synthesise, repackage, find, apply) https://www.hifa.org/about-hifa
For example, in relation to the Synthesis component, we have heard from a systematic reviewer, Unni Gopinathan, that open access facilitates the systematic review process by removing paywalls. On the other hand, he notes that open access 'has also contributed to a proliferation of low-quality or poorly designed studies' that make things more challenging for systematic reviewers. (Meanwhile, we have to take into account the increasing role of AI in systematic reviews, and to note that the quality of AI itself is largely dependent on research being freely accessible - arguably the impact of OA on AI will prove to be much more important than the impact of personal access to specific papers) https://www.hifa.org/dgroups-rss/open-access-33-open-access-and-availabi...
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