April 23, 2024
Case Study: How Research to Publication is helping to foster and develop research skills and knowledge in Lagos State Health Service Commission
Dr Runsewe Fehintola is a Senior Medical Officer
of the Directorate of Medical Services Health
Service Commission. Educational grant funding
from Pfizer has enabled the Commission to
subscribe over 200 users to BMJ’s Research
to Publication.
Dr Runsewe Fehintola is a Senior Medical Officer of the Directorate of Medical Services Health
Service Commission. Educational grant funding from Pfizer has enabled the Commission to
subscribe over 200 users to BMJ’s Research to Publication.
“Ultimately we want to develop good quality research that will lead to improvements in healthcare. Through research, we will be able to make informed decisions and shape health policy. To achieve this we have a plan to strengthen research skills on the ground so that more research can get published, and therefore more knowledge shared across the medical community.”
“Naturally we face challenges. There are funding issues, along with restricted time available to dedicate to research. Previously professionals have not been encouraged to publish in research courses taken during their training, so in Lagos the rate of published papers was low. Funding from Pfizer to provide access to Research to Publication is helping to overcome some of these challenges and is giving healthcare professionals the confidence to publish their work.”
“Users of the programme include medical doctors, consultants, resident doctors, medical officers and people in the administrative section who are also doctors, like myself. In implementing the Research to Publication programme we set out a number of objectives. The first objective is to create a research team for the Health Service Commission. We are also seeking to improve knowledge on dissertation writing among our resident doctors. Alongside that we aim to enable our health workers to write and publish papers.”
“Knowledge gained through Research to Publication is helping us to achieve these
objectives by strengthening research skills across the board.”
“Our researchers cover a broad area of health from mental health to infectious diseases and research policy. Research to Publication modules and courses is suitable for all these areas and clearly outlines how to conduct medical research.”
“I’m grateful to BMJ for organising such a fantastic online course for healthcare workers. The videos are really valuable and the easy-to-follow format is great for learning.”
“It is very flexible, with many of our users accessing the course from their home in the evenings, from either their laptops or mobiles. Indeed, I did most of the course on my iPhone very successfully.”
“Through helping people to improve their knowledge on what makes a paper publishable, study designs and how to write up methods and results, colleagues are now eager to start their own research studies.”
“Feedback from users is very positive. Resident doctors have shared how the programme has helped with their dissertation. Health workers are increasingly seeing the value of research and how it can impact patient care. And for consultants, it has generated a drive to conduct more research. Naturally, they all want to get published in BMJ Journals and contribute to sharing high quality health research. As for the Health Service Commission, we simply want to ensure that every Lagosian enjoys unfettered access to quality healthcare.”
A note from Dr Berkeley Phillips,
Medical Director, Pfizer UK
“It is wonderful to see such a strong endorsement of this programme from Dr Runsewe Fehintola and her team. Pfizer is proud to have partnered with the BMJ to fund access to its Research to Publication system for healthcare organisations in Africa, the Middle East and the UK. Our aim for this programme and others we are involved in is to provide access to resources that support the development and publication of clinical research; ultimately helping the healthcare community to improve patient outcomes. The example from Dr Runsewe Fehintola and the 200 clinicians and researchers in Lagos demonstrates the positive impact of such collaborations.”