Hierarchy of qualities in global health partnerships: a path towards equity and sustainability

Despite the exponential growth of global health partnerships (GHPs) over the past 20 years, evidence for their effectiveness remains limited. Furthermore, many partnerships are dysfunctional as a result of inequitable partnership benefits, low trust and accountability and poor evaluation and quality improvement practices. In this article, we describe a theoretical model for partnerships developed by seven global health experts. Through semistructured interviews and an open-coding approach to data analysis, we identify 12 GHP pillars spanning across three interconnected partnership levels and inspired by Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. The transactional pillars are governance, resources and expertise, power management, transparency and accountability, data and evidence and respect and curiosity. The collaborative pillars (which build on the transactional pillars) are shared vision, relationship building, deep understanding and trust. The transformational pillars (which build on the collaborative pillars and allow partnerships to achieve their full potential) are equity and sustainability. The theoretical model described in this article is complemented by real-life examples, which outline both the cost incurred when GHPs fail to live up to these pillars and the benefits gained when GHPs uphold them. We also provide lessons learnt and best practices that GHPs should adopt to further increase their strength and improve their effectiveness in the future. To continue improving health outcomes and reducing health inequities globally, we need GHPs that are transformational, not just rhetorically but de facto. These actualised partnerships should serve as a catalyst for the greater societal good and not simply as a platform to accrue and exchange organisational benefits.

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Actions for fostering cross-disciplinary global health research

10.1101/2021.09.30.21264294 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Yan Ding ◽

Ewan Tomeny ◽

Imelda Bates ◽

Keyword(s):

Global Health ◽

Health Research ◽

Knowledge Integration ◽

Real Life ◽

Research Process ◽

Shared Vision ◽

Baseline Survey ◽

Global Health Research ◽

African Countries ◽

Time Investment

The ability to conduct cross-disciplinary research in international collaborations is critical for improving global health. Building on a recent literature review, we investigated practical actions that can support effective cross-disciplinary global health research in real life using a North-South global health programme as a case study. The programme involved research teams from ten African countries from multiple disciplinary backgrounds. We compared the actions used by the programme for planning and implementing cross-disciplinary global health research to those described in the literature. We used a three-component model for the cross-disciplinary collaborative research process to frame the data collection tools and analysis. Data sources included interviews with 31 participants (including researchers, administrators, and collaborators), a review of programme documents, a baseline survey, and observations of interactions at meetings and events. Our findings suggests that for research to be successful in global health, a shared vision with explicit goals is essential. Principally, these goals concern knowledge integration supported by regular communication, orientation about each others disciplines, and equitable partnerships across institutions and individuals. Fostering cross-disciplinary global health research needs a significant time investment from researchers, support staff, and programme leaders. Furthermore, indicators for tracking the development and success of cross-disciplinary relationships should be agreed at the outset and monitored throughout. We have produced recommendations for both improving the design of cross-disciplinary global health research programmes, and for actions to foster cross-disciplinary collaborations and skills in global health.

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A Systematic Design Selection Methodology for System-Optimal Compliant Actuation

Robotica ◽

10.1017/s0263574718001248 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 37 (4) ◽

pp. 656-674 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Abdullah Kamadan ◽

Gullu Kiziltas ◽

Volkan Patoglu

Keyword(s):

Knee Prosthesis ◽

Design Method ◽

Real Life ◽

Direct Consequence ◽

System Level ◽

Full Potential ◽

System Optimal ◽

Compliant Actuation ◽

Design Selection ◽

Selection Methodology

SummaryThis work presents a systematic design selection methodology that utilizes a co-design strategy for system-level optimization of compliantly actuated robots that are known for their advantages over robotic systems driven by rigid actuators. The introduced methodology facilitates a decision-making strategy that is instrumental in making selections among system-optimal robot designs actuated by various degrees of variable or fixed compliance. While the simultaneous co-design method that is utilized throughout guarantees systems performing at their full potential, a homotopy technique is used to maintain integrity via generation of a continuum of robot designs actuated with varying degrees of variable and fixed compliance. Fairness of the selection methodology is ensured via utilization of common underlying (variable) compliant actuation principle and dynamical task requirements throughout the generated system designs. The direct consequence of the developed methodology is that it allows robot designers make informed selections among a variety of systems which are guaranteed to perform at their best. Applicability of the introduced methodology has been validated using a case study for system-optimal design of an active knee prosthesis that is driven by a mechanically adjustable compliance and controllable equilibrium position actuator (MACCEPA) under a periodic/real-life dynamical task.

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Managing cost uncertainties in transportation and assignment problems

Journal of Applied Mathematics and Decision Sciences ◽

10.1155/s1173912698000042 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 65-104 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

V. Adlakha ◽

H. Arsham

Keyword(s):

Time Lag ◽

Real Life ◽

Optimal Solution ◽

Global Market ◽

Solution Algorithm ◽

Assignment Problems ◽

The Stability ◽

Order Assignment ◽

Cost Parameters ◽

The Cost

In a fast changing global market, a manager is concerned with cost uncertainties of the cost matrix in transportation problems (TP) and assignment problems (AP).A time lag between the development and application of the model could cause cost parameters to assume different values when an optimal assignment is implemented. The manager might wish to determine the responsiveness of the current optimal solution to such uncertainties. A desirable tool is to construct a perturbation set (PS) of cost coeffcients which ensures the stability of an optimal solution under such uncertainties.The widely-used methods of solving the TP and AP are the stepping-stone (SS) method and the Hungarian method, respectively. Both methods fail to provide direct information to construct the needed PS. An added difficulty is that these problems might be highly pivotal degenerate. Therefore, the sensitivity results obtained via the available linear programming (LP) software might be misleading.We propose a unified pivotal solution algorithm for both TP and AP. The algorithm is free of pivotal degeneracy, which may cause cycling, and does not require any extra variables such as slack, surplus, or artificial variables used in dual and primal simplex. The algorithm permits higher-order assignment problems and side-constraints. Computational results comparing the proposed algorithm to the closely-related pivotal solution algorithm, the simplex, via the widely-used pack-age Lindo, are provided. The proposed algorithm has the advantage of being computationally practical, being easy to understand, and providing useful information for managers. The results empower the manager to assess and monitor various types of cost uncertainties encountered in real-life situations. Some illustrative numerical examples are also presented.

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Melding Disparate Cultures and Capacities to Create Global Health Partnerships

American Journal of Public Health ◽

10.2105/ajph.91.10.1552 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 91 (10) ◽

pp. 1552-1554 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Peter D. Bell ◽

C. Charles Stokes

Keyword(s):

Global Health ◽

Health Partnerships

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Cultivate, assess, advocate, implement, and sustain

Digital Library Perspectives ◽

10.1108/dlp-07-2016-0023 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 33 (2) ◽

pp. 100-116 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Sara Mannheimer ◽

Conor Cote

Keyword(s):

Cost Savings ◽

Digital Preservation ◽

Shared Vision ◽

Limited Resources ◽

Shared Knowledge ◽

Collective Knowledge ◽

Content Type ◽

The Cost ◽

Ongoing Support

Purpose For libraries with limited resources, digital preservation can seem like a daunting responsibility. Forming partnerships can help build collective knowledge and maximize combined resources to achieve digital preservation goals. This paper aims to provide guidance to help libraries with limited resources achieve digital preservation goals by forming partnerships to build collective knowledge and maximize combined resources. Design/methodology/approach In 2015, librarians from four Montana institutions formed the Digital Preservation Working Group (DPWG), a collaboration to increase digital preservation efforts statewide. The group’s immediate goals were to promote digital preservation best-practices at each individual institution, and to learn about and support each other’s work. The group’s long-term goal was to implement a shared digital preservation service that would fill gaps in existing digital preservation efforts. Findings Beyond the cost savings gained by sharing a digital preservation service, the members of DPWG benefitted from shared knowledge and expertise gained during the partnership. The group also functioned as a sounding board as each institution built its digital preservation program, and it became a system of support when challenges arose. Practical/implications This paper proposes a five-point plan for creating digital preservation partnerships: cultivate a foundation of knowledge and identify a shared vision; assess the current digital preservation landscape at each institution; advocate for the value of digital preservation activities; implement shared digital preservation services; and sustain group activities and establish structures for ongoing support. Originality/value The activities of DPWG provide a model for institutions seeking to collaborate to meet digital preservation challenges. This paper shows that by implementing a structured plan, institutions can build and sustain digital preservation partnerships, thus positioning themselves to achieve digital preservation success.

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Beyond The Historiography: Film Dokumenter Sejarah Sebagai Alternatif Historiografi di Indonesia

SASDAYA Gadjah Mada Journal of Humanities ◽

10.22146/sasdayajournal.36452 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2 (2) ◽

pp. 405

Author(s):

Aan Ratmanto

Keyword(s):

New Media ◽

Documentary Film ◽

Real Life ◽

Documentary Films ◽

Digital Era ◽

History Of ◽

The Cost ◽

The University ◽

Quality Of Research

The Department of History, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, the University of Gadjah Mada in 2015 made a milestone in the development of historiography in Indonesia. They made a bold move to produce a scholar with a documentary film work instead of a thesis. In the future, it is not impossible that this step will soon be followed by other universities in Indonesia. This paper was written in response to these developments. In this digital era-and in the midst of still low interest in reading in Indonesia-emerged the discourse to seek new media for historiography in Indonesia. The film, especially documentary films are seen as new media that match the characteristics of history because of they both present real-life reality. Moreover, Indonesia with the diversity of tribes and culture and history, of course, save a variety of themes that will not run out to be appointed a documentary. Based on that, this paper will discuss the types, forms, and format of the documentary that is suitable and possible to be produced by history students as a substitute for thesis-considering the cost of film production tends to be higher than thesis research. Thus, the film of a documentary a college student, especially a history produces the quality of research and aestheticsKata

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Assessing How Global Health Partnerships Function: An equity-informed critical interpretive synthesis

10.21203/rs.3.rs-207571/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Katrina Marie Plamondon ◽

Ben Brisbois ◽

Leslie Dubent ◽

Charles P. Larson

Keyword(s):

Global Health ◽

Professional Associations ◽

Research Capacity ◽

General Interest ◽

Power Dynamics ◽

Economic Relationships ◽

Health Partnerships ◽

Non Governmental Organizations ◽

Critical Interpretive Synthesis ◽

Resource Dynamics

Abstract Global health partnerships (GHPs) are situated in complex political and economic relationships and involve partners with different needs and interests (e.g., government agencies, non-governmental organizations, corporations, universities, professional associations, philanthropic organizations and communities). As part of a mixed methods study designed to develop an equity-sensitive tool to support more equity-centred North-South GHPs, this critical interpretive synthesis examined reported assessments of GHPs. We examined 30 peer-reviewed articles for power dynamics, equity and inequities, and contradictions or challenges encountered in North-South partnerships. Among articles reviewed, authors most often situated GHPs around a topical focus on research, capacity-building, clinical, or health services issues, with the ‘work’ of the partnership aiming to foster skills or respond to community needs. The specific features of GHPs that were assessed varied widely, with consistently-reported elements including the early phases of partnering; governance issues; the day-to-day work of partnerships; the performance, impacts and benefits of GHPs; and issues of inclusion. Articles shared a general interest in partnering processes and often touched briefly on issues of equity; but they rarely accounted for the complexity of sociopolitical and historical contexts shaping issues of equity in GHPs. Further, assessments of GHPs were often reported without inclusion of voices from all partners or named beneficiaries. GHPs were frequently portrayed as inherently beneficial for Southern partners, without attention to power dynamics and inequities (North-South, South-South). Though historical and political dynamics of the Global North and South were inconsistently examined as influential forces in GHPs, such dynamics were frequently portrayed as complex and characterized by asymmetries in power and resources. Generally, assessments of GHPs paid little attention to the macroeconomic forces in the power and resource dynamics of GHPs highlights the importance of considering the broader political. Our findings suggest that GHPs can serve to entrench both inequitable relationships and unfair distributions of power, resources, and wealth within and between countries (and partners) if inequitable power relationships are left unmitigated. We argue that specific practices could enhance GHPs’ contributions to equity, both in their processes and outcomes. Enhancing partnering practices to focus on inclusion, responsiveness to North-South and South-South inequities, and recognition of GHPs as situated in a broader (and inequitable) political economy. A relational and equity-centred approach to assessing GHPs would place social justice, humility and mutual benefits as central practices —that is, regular, routine things that partners involved in partnering do intentionally to make GHPs function well. Practicing equity in GHPs requires continuous efforts to explicitly acknowledge and examine the equity implications of all aspects of partnering.

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