Learning health systems: pathways to progress: Flagship report of the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research (2021)

Summary

There is widespread consensus that learning is crucial for the performance of health systems and the achievement of broader health goals. However, this consensus is not matched by shared knowledge and understanding of how health systems learn, or of how to improve health systems learning across different contexts. 

The report is aimed at an audience of diverse stakeholders invested in strengthening health systems, and aims to achieve two things. First, to move towards a shared language and frameworks to discuss the problems and solutions of learning, as they apply to health systems. Second, the report seeks to advance action on learning – by providing stakeholders with clarity on steps that they can undertake to advance learning for health systems.

This report is intended to be a starting point for gaining a shared understanding of learning health systems as an actionable agenda. The hope is that it will spur useful conversations and fuel the movement for better informed, more analytical and more self-reliant health systems – especially in the context of low- and middle-income countries.