Tagged / huddersfield

Evidence Synthesis Centre open at Kathmandu University

Awarded & submitted bids, international, Knowledge Exchange, Publishing, Training, writing

Last week we opened the Evidence Synthesis Centre in the School of Medical Sciences at Kathmandu University in Nepal.  The centre is part of a wider initiative is funded by The British Academy and supported in the field by Green Tara Nepal. Earlier parts of this initiative included online workshop on systematic reviewing and evidence synthesis as well as face-to-face training in Nepal late last year.  The project involved Bournemouth University’s Dr. Pramod Regmi and Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen both in the Faculty of Health, Environment & Medical Sciences. 

This capacity-building project is led by Prof. Padam Simkhada from the University of Huddersfield and takes place at Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences (KUSMS). This new Fellowship scheme is an international collaboration led by the University of Huddersfield in the UK, in close collaboration with Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences (in Nepal), the Nepal Health Research Council, and several UK universities: Bournemouth University, the University of Sheffield, Canterbury Christ Church University, Keele University and the University of Chester. The Evidence Synthesis Centre and The British Academy grant grew out of an editorial written four years ago and published in the Journal of the Nepal Health Research Council [1]. The wider British Academy funded project on strengthening evidence  synthesis for health policy-making in Nepal has been described in two recent publications [2-3].

 

 

References:

  1. Simkhada, P., Dhimal, M., van Teijlingen, E., Gyanwali, P. (2022) Nepal Urgently Needs a National Evidence Synthesis Centre,  Journal of Nepal Health Research Council, 20 (3): i-ii.
  2. Simkhada, P., Vaidya, A., Regmi, P. P., Paudyal, P., van Teijlingen, E., Dhimal, M., Kiorala, B., Shrestha, A., Simkhada, B. (2025). Strengthening Evidence Synthesis for Health Policymaking in Nepal: A New Fellowship Initiative. Nepal Journal of Epidemiology, 15(2), 1379–1380. https://doi.org/10.3126/nje.v15i2.88516
  1. Vaidya, A., Simkhada, P., Silwal, R. C., Paudyal, P., Dhimal, M., Simkhada, B., van Teijlingen, E. (2025). Progress of the Unique Fellowship in Health Research Evidence Synthesis in Nepal. Nepal Journal of Epidemiology, 15(4), 1397–1398. https://doi.org/10.3126/nje.v15i4.88535

Nursing Research REF Impact in Nepal

international, Publishing, REF 2029 impact case studies, writing

The Nepal Nursing Council has made Continuing Professional Development (CPD) compulsory for all nurses and midwives wanting to re-enrol from tomorrow. Starting on 15th January 2025 all nurses and midwives who want to re-register will have to show evidence of having conducted recent training to maintain and enhance their knowledge, skills, and professional competence.  According to the new provision, licences will not be renewed unless applicants have completed a minimum of 60 hours of training within the preceding six years.  This change in regulation is largely driven by research driven by two UK universities, and BU is one of them.

As early as 2016 the research team called for a move to a system of post-registration with compulsory further learning and regular updating of skills, adding that “the introduction of CPD will be beneficial to all nurses in Nepal” [1].  The key argument was that If Nepal does not establish CPD requirements, only some staff will engage with training activities, it will be ad hoc driven by personal interests rather than service needs.  An even greater concern was that staff will seek only the free training made available by either the government and/or INGOs (International Non-Governmental Organisations) rather than CPD most relevant to their current practices.

To generate the evidence that CPD is vital in Nepal, the team led by Dr. Bibha Simkhada conducted interviews with nurse leader in the country to understand perspectives on existing on-the-job training and Continuous Professional Development more generally [2].  Bibha, currently Reader in Nursing at the University of Huddersfield, worked at Bournemouth University for several years during this research.  Next, the researchers conducted focus group discussions with other relevant stakeholders [3].  These research findings were disseminated to stakeholders in Kathmandu, including the NNC (Nepal Nursing Council), MIDSON (Midwifery Society of Nepal), NAN (Nursing Association of Nepal), and the Ministry of Health & Population as well as to a wider audience through a call under the heading ‘Nepal needs Continuing Professional Development for Re-registration in Nursing and Midwifery’ [4].

These papers all argue that promoting CPD benefits the quality of health care.  Indirectly, it builds confidence in the general population as it is guarantee to the individual patient in Nepal that the nurses and midwives, who are treating them, have up-to-date skills and knowledge. In addition, it strengthens the NNC as it supports to professionalise nursing and midwifery in Nepal and bring the standard of nursing and midwifery practices to a higher and internationally comparable level.

The research work at BU was supported by small amounts of QR funding through BU Centre for Excellence in Learning (CEL) in 2016, the Centre for Midwifery & Women’s Health in 2018 and the Faculty of Health & Social Sciences in 2019.  This shows that well-designed research conducted by researchers who have insight into the political landscape of health services in Nepal can have a great impact with minimal resources.

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen (BU REF lead UoA3)

&

Dr. Vikram Mohan (UoA3 REF Impact Champion)

 

 

References

  1. Simkhada, B, Mackay, S, Khatri, R., Sharma, C.K., Pokhrel, T, Marahatta, S, Angell, C, van Teijlingen, E., Simkhada, P (2016) Continual Professional Development (CPD): Improving Quality of Nursing Care in Nepal Health Prospect 15 (3):1-3. 
  2. Khatri R, van Teijlingen E, Marahatta SB, Simkhada P, Mackay S, Simkhada B (2021) Exploring the Challenges and Opportunities for Continuing Professional Development for Nurses: A Qualitative Study with Senior Nurse Leaders in Nepal Journal of Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences. 7(1), 15-29.
  3. Simkhada B, van Teijlingen E, Pandey A, Sharma CK, Simkhada P, Singh DR (2023) Stakeholders’ Perceptions of Continuing Professional Development among Nepalese Nurses: A Focus Group Study Nursing Open.10(5).
  4. Simkhada B, van Teijlingen E, Sharma C, Pandey A, Simkhada P. (2023) Nepal needs Continuing Professional Development for Re-registration in Nursing and Midwifery Journal of Nepal Health Research Council, 21(60):541-42.

British Academy funded capacity-building training in Nepal

Awarded & submitted bids, international, Knowledge Exchange

Yesterday we reached third day of the three-day Fellowship training workshop in Dhulikhel, Nepal on evidence synthesis. This capacity-building project is led by the University of Huddersfield and takes place at Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences (KUSMS). This new Fellowship scheme is an international collaboration led by the University of Huddersfield in the UK, in close collaboration with Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences (in Nepal), the Nepal Health Research Council, and several UK universities: Bournemouth University, the University of Sheffield, Canterbury Christ Church University, Keele University and the University of Chester. This unique Fellowship started online in the autumn of 2025 and is part of a larger project on strengthening institutional knowledge and capacity of federal, provincial and local governments for evidence-informed health policymaking in Nepal. This important initiative is funded by The British Academy and supported in the field by Green Tara Nepal [1]. The project involved Bournemouth University’s Dr. Pramod Regmi and Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen both in the Faculty of Health, Environment & Medical Sciences.

Some 28 Fellows have been selected from nearly one hundred applicants to help build capacity in the field of evidence synthesis with overall aim to promote evidence-informed policymaking in Nepal. This is longstanding aim of the researcher as highlighted in previous call for an evidence-based policy centre in Nepal [2].

References:

1. Simkhada P, Vaidyal A, Regmi P, Paudyal P, van Teijlingen E, Dhimal M, Koirala B, Shresthe A, Simkhada B (2025) Strengthening Evidence Synthesis for Health Policymaking in Nepal: A New Fellowship Initiative, Nepal Journal of Epidemiology, 15(2), 1379–1380. https://doi.org/10.3126/nje.v15i2.88516

2. Simkhada P, Dhimal M, van Teijlingen E, Gyanwali P (2022). Nepal Urgently Needs a National Evidence Synthesis Centre, Nepal Journal of Epidemiology, 20 (3): i-ii.

Global Consortium for Public Health Research 2025

international, Publishing, Research themes, writing

This week the 3rd Annual Meeting of the Global Consortium for Public Health (GCPHR) takes place at the University of Huddersfield on June 25th-26th.  GCPHR 2025 was attended by people involved in global health research from the UK, India, Nepal, Qatar, and Ghana.  Building on the success of the 2023 inaugural two-day meeting and the second annual event in 2024, the 2025 meeting brought together a diverse community of health researchers, practitioners, policy-makers and global health leaders. This initiative has as its main aim to facilitate the exchange of knowledge, promote innovation, and strengthen international collaboration.

Bournemouth University academics have been involved since GCPHR’s inception, and this year Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen from the Centre for Midwifery & Women’s Health (CMWH) contributed to a panel discussion on ‘Innovating Tomorrow: National and Global Research in the Age of AI’.  He presented around the pros and cons of Interdisciplinary Research in Global Health. Together with colleagues Edwin has published several papers on interdisciplinary research [1-3] and collaborative writing of research output with a range of colleagues from different disciplines [4-5].

Prof. Padam Simkhada from the University of Huddersfield (and Visiting Faculty in BU’s Faculty of Health & Social Sciences outlined the recently awarded British Academy grant on ‘Evidence-based Policy-Making in Nepal’.  The latter project, which includes BU’s Dr. Pramod Regmi as co-investigator, also has policy-makers in Nepal as collaborators, giving it great potential to become a REF Impact Case-Study.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References:

  1. Shanker, S., Wasti, S.P., Ireland, J., Regmi, P., Simkhada, P., van Teijlingen, E. (2021) The Interdisciplinary Team Not the Interdisciplinarist: Reflections on Interdisciplinary Research, Europasian Journal of Medical Sciences 3(2): 1-5. https://doi.org/10.46405/ejms.v3i2.317
  2. van Teijlingen, E., Regmi, P., Adhikary, P., Aryal, N., Simkhada, P. (2019). Interdisciplinary Research in Public Health: Not quite straightforward. Health Prospect, 18(1), 4-7. https://doi.org/10.3126/hprospect.v18i1.19337
  3. Wasti, S. P., van Teijlingen, E., Simkhada, P. (2020) Public Health is truly interdisciplinary. Journal of Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences, 6(1):21-22.
  4. Harvey, O., van Teijlingen, A., Regmi, P.R., Ireland, J., Rijal, A., van Teijlingen, E.R. (2022) Co-authors, colleagues, and contributors: Complexities in collaboration and sharing lessons on academic writing, Health Prospect 21(1):1-3. https://www.nepjol.info/index.php/HPROSPECT/article/view/39320/31432
  5. Hundley, V., Luce, A., Simkhada, P., van Teijlingen, E. (2022) Collaborative Writing for Publication, In: Wasti, S.P., et al. (Eds.) Academic Writing and Publishing in Health & Social Sciences, Kathmandu, Nepal: Himal Books: 15-19.

Inaugural research meeting for British Academy grant

international, Publishing, writing

Today we had the introductory meeting of our recently funded ‘British Academy Project on Evidence-Informed Policymaking in Nepal’, the project is coordinated by the University of Huddersfield by Prof. Padam Simkhada, who is also Visiting Professor in Bournemouth University’s (BU) Faculty of Health & Social Sciences.  The co-investigator at BU is Dr. Pramod Regmi (Principal Academic in International Health), with other co-applicants based at the Keele University, Canterbury Christ Church University, the University of Sheffield, the University of Chester, the Nepal Health Research Council (NHRC), Kathmandu University and the research-based charity Green Tara Nepal.

This one year grant is officially starting next month (1st June).  The plans for this project were laid some time ago, and expressed in our 2022 paper ‘Nepal urgently needs a National Evidence Synthesis Centre‘ [1].   Our funded project will focus on the activities of: (1) formative research; (b)  capacity building including evidence synthesis; (c) the establishment of a National Evidence Synthesis Centre; and (d) the evaluation of sustainability planning.  The British Academy see this award also as providing a developmental opportunity, enabling award holders to build connections within the cohort and critically beyond that as well.

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery & Women’s Health

Reference:

  1. Simkhada, P., Dhimal, M., van Teijlingen, E., Gyanwali, P. (2022) Nepal Urgently Needs a National Evidence Synthesis Centre, Journal of Nepal Health Research Council, 20 (3): i-ii.

 

BU conference presentation Federalisation & Nepal’s health system

international, Publishing, writing

The health system in Nepal’s unique federalisation experiment will be presented by Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen at a three-day conference at the Far Western University, Nepal on Saturday 8th February.  Nepal’s introduction of its federal system in the 2015 Constitution changed the way society, including its health system, was organised.  It meant that political changes and health systems changes occurred in parallel.  Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen explores the impact of federalisation on Nepal’s health system as part of an interdisciplinary mixed-methods study* called ‘The Impact of Federalisation on Nepal’s Health System: A longitudinal Analysis’.

First, implementing a new federal system is a slow, resource intensive process. While building new federal structures is important, challenging the status quo through strategic “unlearning and undoing” of old tendencies is also essential, as this creates spaces for new approaches that are more in line with federalism. This requires attention to emotional and political spheres, and not just structural or technical ones.

Federalisation, generally, brought decision making, resources and service delivery closer to the people, yet the process remains challenging and incomplete. Importantly, at the same time as federalism was being introduced, Nepal’s health system had to respond to COVID-19, making it difficult to disentangle the effects of the pandemic from those of federalisation. The health system is also part of a broader, complex, and interdependent set of socio-political, economic, legal, and cultural systems.

We found that the impact of federalisation varied across the six WHO building blocks and pre-existing conditions, e.g. wealthier regions often benefit disproportionately, exacerbating inequities in health.  Our study further highlighted: (a) the importance of leadership and governance, combined with financing mechanisms; (b) insufficient planning and misalignment between central and local levels resulting in inefficiencies; (c) weak health information systems hinder the ability to measure long-term effects.  Overall, unlocking the full potential of federalism will require political will and commitment at all three levels of government.

To date eight papers have been produced based in this project [1-8].

 

References:

  1. Koirala, B., Rushton, S., Adhikary, P., Balen, J., et al. (2024) COVID-19 as a challenge to Nepal’s newly federalised health system: capacities, responsibilities, and mindsets, Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health (online first) https://doi.org/10.1177/1010539524125012.
  2. Sapkota, S., Rushton, S., van Teijlingen, E., et al. (2024) Participatory policy analysis in health policy and systems research: reflections from a study in Nepal. Health Research & Policy Systems, 22 (No.7) https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-023-01092-5 .
  3. Wasti, S.P., van Teijlingen, E., Simkhada, P., et al. (2023) Selection of Study Sites and Participants for Research into Nepal’s Federal Health System, WHO South-East Asia Journal of Public Health 12(2):116-119.
  4. Sapkota, S., Dhakal, A., Rushton S., et al. (2023) The impact of decentralisation on health systems: a systematic review of reviews. BMJ Global Health 8:e013317. doi:10.1136/bmjgh-2023-013317.
  5. Wasti, S.P., van Teijlingen, E., Rushton, S., et al. (2023) Overcoming the Challenges Facing Nepal’s Health System During Federalisation: An Analysis of Health System Building Blocks, Health Research Policy & Systems 21(117) https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-023-01033-2
  6. Sapkota, S., Panday, S., Wasti, S.P., et al. (2022) Health System Strengthening: The Role of Public Health in Federal Nepal, Journal of the Nepal Public Health Association 7(1):36-42.
  7. Adhikary, P., Balen, J., Gautam, S., et al. (2020) The COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal: Emerging evidence on the effectiveness of action by, and cooperation between, different levels of government in a federal system, Journal of Karnali Academy of Health Sciences 3 (3): 1-11.
  8. Rushton, S., Pandey, S., van Teijlingen, E., et al. (2021) An Investigation into the Impact of Decentralization on the Health System of Nepal. Journal of Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences, 7(1): 3–14. https://doi.org/10.3126/jmmihs.v7i1.43146

Study of federalisation in Nepal leading to policy brief

conferences, international, Publishing, writing

On Boxing Day and the following day (Dec. 27th) a member of our research team, Amshu Dhakal based at Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences (MMIHSS), presented findings from our Nepal Federal Health System Project in Kathmandu.  The event, Nepal Health Conclave 2024, was organised by the Ministry of Health and Population and supported by WHO (World Health Organization) Nepal and UNFPA.  The event aimed to help strengthen Nepal’s health services.  This year’s conclave, themed “Bridging the Gap Between Global Expertise and National Needs”, brought together Nepalese diaspora health professionals and national stakeholders to foster collaboration and innovation in health systems.

Amshu presented two posters at the event: (1) The Impact of Decentralisation on Health Systems: A Systematic Review of Reviews which systematically reviewed how decentralisation affects health systems globally, highlighting key opportunities and challenges across WHO’s six building blocks; and (2) Transforming the Health System in Nepal: The Impact of Federalisation, which examined how the transition to a federal system reshaped Nepal’s health system, identifying gaps, opportunities, and actionable recommendations for improvement.

Our research team produced policy briefs in collaboration with government officials/stakeholders from all three levels of government.  The policy briefs can be accessed at the website of our Nepal Federal Health System Project.  This study was funded by the UK Health Systems Research Initiative [Grant ref. MR/T023554/1] to study the consequences for the health system of Nepal’s move from a centralised political system to a more federal government structure in 2015.  This joint project was led by the University of Sheffield in collaboration with Bournemouth University, the University of Huddersfield, Canterbury Christ Church University and two institutions in Nepal, namely MMIHS and PHASE Nepal. 

In late 2022 further funding was awarded by the Medical Research Foundation to Prof. Julie Balen, from Canterbury Christ Church University, to disseminate the findings of our UK Health Systems Research Initiative-funded research in Nepal. In terms of academic dissemination, we have published eight papers from this interdisciplinary project [1-8].

For and from this project, our team produced a comprehensive English-language policy brief as well as a Nepali-language version for politicians and policy-makers and civil servants in Nepal.

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery & Women’s Health

 

References:

  1. Koirala, B., Rushton, S., Adhikary, P., Balen, J., et al. (2024) COVID-19 as a challenge to Nepal’s newly federalised health system: capacities, responsibilities, and mindsets, Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health (online first) https://doi.org/10.1177/1010539524125012.
  2. Sapkota, S., Rushton, S., van Teijlingen, E., et al. (2024) Participatory policy analysis in health policy and systems research: reflections from a study in Nepal. Health Research & Policy Systems, 22 (No.7) https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-023-01092-5 .
  3. Wasti, S.P., van Teijlingen, E., Simkhada, P., et al. (2023) Selection of Study Sites and Participants for Research into Nepal’s Federal Health System, WHO South-East Asia Journal of Public Health 12(2):116-119.
  4. Sapkota, S., Dhakal, A., Rushton S., et al. (2023) The impact of decentralisation on health systems: a systematic review of reviews. BMJ Global Health 8:e013317. doi:10.1136/bmjgh-2023-013317.
  5. Wasti, S.P., van Teijlingen, E., Rushton, S., et al. (2023) Overcoming the Challenges Facing Nepal’s Health System During Federalisation: An Analysis of Health System Building Blocks, Health Research Policy & Systems 21(117) https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-023-01033-2
  6. Sapkota, S., Panday, S., Wasti, S.P., et al. (2022) Health System Strengthening: The Role of Public Health in Federal Nepal, Journal of the Nepal Public Health Association 7(1):36-42.
  7. Adhikary, P., Balen, J., Gautam, S., et al. (2020) The COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal: Emerging evidence on the effectiveness of action by, and cooperation between, different levels of government in a federal system, Journal of Karnali Academy of Health Sciences 3 (3): 1-11.
  8. Rushton, S., Pandey, S., van Teijlingen, E., et al. (2021) An Investigation into the Impact of Decentralization on the Health System of Nepal. Journal of Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences, 7(1): 3–14. https://doi.org/10.3126/jmmihs.v7i1.43146

Editorial accepted by Frontiers in Public Health

international, open access, Publishing, writing

As part of the special issue in Frontiers in Public Health on ‘Evidence-based approaches in Aging and Public Health’ the guest editors included 15 academic papers.  These 15 contributions to the Special Issue were introduced in placed in perspective in our editorial ‘Editorial: Evidence-based approaches in Aging and Public Health‘ [1] which was accepted for publication two days ago.   The guest editors included two Visiting Faculty to FHSS: Prof. Padam Simkhada and Dr. Brijesh Sathian.

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery & Women’s Health (CMWH)

Reference:

  1. Sathian, B., van Teijlingen, E., Simkhada, P., Kabir, R., Al Hamad, H. (2024) Editorial: Evidence-based approaches in Aging and Public Health, Frontier in Public Health 12 2024 https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1391432