Recap — Utilizing Academic Research to Support Real-Time Decision-Making in Health and Humanitarian Crises - Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research

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Published on February 24, 2023

On November 30th, Dr. Ahmad Firas Khalid delivered an interactive seminar about how the Canadian Red Cross makes decisions using scientific, real-time evidence amidst health and humanitarian crises. Twenty-six participants discussed the Red Cross’ involvement in intelligence, development, and research. But more importantly, how research is presented to help bridge the gap between academia and emergency aid responders.

Dr. Khalid states that evidence-informed decision-making is not simply a process of providing more evidence, but rather finding ways to support the use of evidence in decision-making. His CIHR Health Systems Impact-funded work illustrates that a concise summary of evidence is the most effective way to help decision-makers review large quantities of information on a short timeline. He then provided templates and examples of what to include in a concise summary of evidence; benefits, harms and cost, implementation considerations, and recommendations. Dr. Khalid hopes to bridge the gap between academia and decision-makers that work in fast-paced, high pressure environments to better utilize academic research and support humanitarian causes.