Dear HIFA colleagues,
One of our key questions is "What is the impact of open access to health research on health care?". We are looking for evidence that access to the full text of research can make a difference to clinical decision making iand quality of care.
Several HIFA members have said that there is a positive impact, but what is missing is specific practical examples.
We have asked "Has open access to research ever helped to save a life?"
To date, we have not been able to identify a single example from HIFA members. I invite all HIFA members to think of an occasion where access to the full text of a research paper helped to save a life, or even contributed to clinical decision-making. Please send email to hifa@hifaforums.org
We have also asked ChatGPT the same question and it too has been unable to provide any relevant examples.
Of course, just because we have not yet identified examples does not mean they do not exist. However, given that the whole purpose of health research is to improve health care, it's important that we understand to what extent access to the full text of research papers directly supports clinical decision-making (as compared with repackaged evidence in the form of clinical guidelines, formularies, decision support tools...).
Many thanks, 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