Cochrane South Africa (CSA), South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) is part of the international Cochrane Collaboration a non-profit organisation operating worldwide, which disseminates up-to-date reviews on the effects of healthcare interventions in order to ensure health care decision-making within Africa will be informed by high quality, timely and relevant research evidence.
Cochrane SA and iCAHE are working together with Health Systems Research Unit (HSRU), South African Medical Research Council, and the Centre for Evidence-Based Health Care, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences of Stellenbosch University on Project SAGE: an innovative partnership which aims to enhance the quality of primary health care by engaging in a stakeholder-driven process to improve the standards of local clinical guideline development, adaptation, contextualisation and, ultimately, implementation.
Go to the Project SAGE homepage.
In 2013 iCAHE signed a Statement of Collaborative Intent with the Health Consumers Alliance of South Australia (HCA SA - http://www.hcasa.asn.au/), the peak SA body for health consumers. HCA and iCAHE agree that consumers should be at the heart of health care. This means consumers should also be integral to the design, conduct and recommendations of health care research and the translation of best practice into evidence. For this reason, HCA and iCAHE have committed to work together to promote and support the engagement of consumers in research and dissemination of research evidence for the best benefit of consumers and the wider community.This partnership has already lead to a range of opportunities with consumers and consumer organisations and is changing the way in which iCAHE works with and values the literature, policy and practice of consumer engagement. Future issues of this newsletter will report on the outcomes of this work.
Recruitment of consumers for research studies is often challenging and always requires a respectful approach, ideally via a known and trusted third party. iCAHE has been fortunate to enter into two partnerships to support consumer recruitment in this study funded by the Australian Primary Health Care Research Institute (APHCRI). Our partners are Adelaide Unicare and the Central Adelaide and Hills Medicare Local (CAHML). Unicare has undertaken the partnership in line with its mission to provide quality patient care; provide a quality teaching network for medical, nursing and allied health undergraduate and postgraduate students; and to facilitate research into General Practice. CAMHL has expressed support for the project’s intent to inform early identification and action to enable older people to live in the community, where they want, for as long as they want, with safety and dignity. iCAHE is pleased to have the opportunity to work with our partners’ clinicians and consumers to inform project recommendations that maximise health and economic benefit for the Australian community.
The Health in Communities (HiC) Research Team is focused on the development, implementation and communication of research that supports the concepts related to positive health. Framed with the concepts of Salutogenesis as well as the Social Determinants of Health, the HiC Team seek to explore various factors that can assist, maintain and improve health with Australian society.
Members of the HiC Team (Dr Janette Young, Dr Richard McGrath & Dr Caroline Adams) have extensive experience using quantitative and qualitative research approaches as well as abilities to 'translate' academic knowledge for the media, policy makers, practitioners and the general public.
Key projects areas currently being undertaken by members of the HiC Team include:
Website: http://healthincommunitiesresearchteam.weebly.com/
iCAHE specialises in the production of clinical guidelines, systematic reviews and the synthesis of research evidence.
iCAHE has collaborated with a range of international research groups, industry groups, and a range of visitors and valued colleagues, both from external agencies and universities and those internal to UniSA