Ethical Considerations in Setting Health Research Priorities: A Philippine Case Study

Background

Research priority-setting (RPS) processes in the Philippines have applied a combination of principles and RPS frameworks such as the James Lind Alliance framework, Philippine National Health Research System Guidelines for Health Research Prioritization, bottom-up with top-down inputs approach, multi-criteria decision analysis, nominal group technique, and consensus-building. In a 2023 case study, the gaps identified highlight the need for ethical considerations and equity in RPS in the Philippine setting. Strengthening ethical considerations in health research is necessary to prevent perpetuation of inequities in global and national health systems

Aim

This project aims to:

• Analyse ethical and equity considerations in health RPS exercises conducted by the Alliance for Improving Health Outcomes (AIHO) in the Philippines.
• Develop recommendations for better integration of ethics and equity in future RPS activities by AIHO and in the Philippines.

Research Methodology

We will review RPS outputs (research agenda documents and final reports) using thematic analysis to identify how ethical and equity issues have been identified, dealt with, and considered in the reports and outputs. We will also engage RPS practitioners in the Philippines to gather feedback on the findings and inputs to develop actionable recommendations for ethical and equity-focused RPS in the country.