Sally Abou Melhem, Office of Communications, sa256@aub.edu.lb
AUB, through its Knowledge to Policy (K2P) Center at the Faculty of Health Sciences is collaborating with the Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government (MBRSG) in Dubai and the United Arab Emirates, to host the Sixth Global Symposium on Health Systems Research (HSR2020) in Dubai. The symposium will take place in the Eastern Mediterranean region over five days between November 8 and 12, 2020. It is expected to welcome around 2,000 delegates including researchers, policymakers, funders, implementers, civil society, and other stakeholders from relevant national and regional associations and professional organizations.
Health Systems Global (HSG) is an international membership organisation dedicated to promoting health systems research and knowledge translation. HSG organizes a symposium every two years to bring together its members with the full range of players involved in health systems and policy research. The venue chosen for each meeting facilitates the inclusion of participants from a specific part of the world and a focus on that region.
Dr. George Gotsadze, executive director of HSG, congratulated the Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government and AUB on behalf of the HSG board, which is made up of key researchers and experts from across the globe. “We are looking forward to working closely with the Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government, AUB, and their regional partners over the next two and a half years to prepare for this global gathering in this extremely important region for HSG. HSG and partners have learnt a great deal from hosting a number of global symposia. We will draw on this experience to deliver a successful Sixth Symposium in Dubai."
“We are delighted to be named as host partners for the Sixth Global Symposium on Health Systems Research in a region where strengthening and advancing health policy and systems research (HPSR) and contributing to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for health is much needed,” said Dr. Ali Sebaa Al Marri, executive president of MBRSG.
Each symposium is a global meeting in terms of content and representation and is a venue for sharing new state-of-the-art evidence; reviewing the progress and challenges towards implementation of the global agenda of priority research; and identifying and discussing the approaches to strengthen the scientific rigor of health systems research including concepts, frameworks, measures and methods. Each symposium also aims to facilitate greater research collaboration and learning communities across disciplines, sectors, initiatives, and countries.
Dr. Fadi El-Jardali, professor of health policy and systems at AUB and founding director of the K2P Center, said that strengthening HPSR and enhancing its translation into policy and action in the Eastern Mediterranean region (EMR) has been repeatedly emphasized over the years. “The news that we will be bringing the Global Symposium to the Eastern Mediterranean region in 2020 is an important and exciting moment for the HPSR community in general and the EMR in particular.”
El-Jardali added that this symposium would provide a crucial catalyzing platform for awareness, capacity, support, and partnerships within and beyond the EMR. Importantly, it will serve as a stepping stone to evidence-informed health policymaking in the EMR, building bridges across “intellectually distant” regions, and ensuring individuals, communities, and institutions contribute to and benefit from joining a growing global HPSR community. He said, “We are excited to play an active role in shaping this much needed momentum that will be transformative for the EMR.”