Health-care information: access or implementation?–Authors' reply
Authors: Soumyadeep Bhaumik, Neil Pakenham-Walsh, Pranab Chatterjee, Tamoghna Biswas
Journal: The Lancet Global Health (2013)

We thank Haris Riaz and colleagues for their interest in our Comment.1Bhaumik S Walsh NP Chatterjee P Biswas T Governments are legally obliged to ensure adequate access to health information.Lancet Glob Health. 2013; 1: e129-e130Summary Full Text Full Text PDF Scopus (9) Google Scholar The term access in the context of our Comment not only implies open access to newly generated research findings, but also incorporates making pre-existing knowledge available to health-care workers and caregivers. Making essential health-care information available at the end-user level through seminars and tutorials, among other modalities, is indeed an indispensible part of ensuring access in the truest sense of the term. As mentioned by Riaz and colleagues, continued medical education and recertification procedures are necessary, which are basically structured methods to assure information dissemination, reinforcement, and retention. We advocate the very same outcomes, not only for medical professionals, but also for health-care providers and caregivers at all levels. We wonder however why Riaz and colleagues state that “there is no evidence to show that such an intervention in the home setting improves mortality”. Substantial rigorous evidence2Munos MK Walker CL Black RE The effect of oral rehydration solution and recommended home fluids on diarrhoea mortality.Int J Epidemiol. 2010; 39: i75-i87Crossref PubMed Scopus (178) Google Scholar shows that use of oral rehydration solution, even in the home or community settings, can reduce mortality from diarrhoea. Evidence for other recommended home fluids is scare, but in areas with low coverage of oral rehydration solution, home fluids are still recommended for rehydration.3UNICEF/WHODiarrhoea: why children are still dying and what can be done. World Health Organization, Geneva2009http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2009/9789241598415_eng.pdfGoogle Scholar A decrease in research funding is a matter of urgent concern, but research funding and funding to increase access to health-care information need not be mutually competitive. No suggestions to divert funds from basic or clinical research to ensure access have been made. However, the very point of research will be nullified if the results do not reach the end-users who put evidence into practice; thus a balance between the generation and the dissemination of health-care information is of utmost importance. Although the importance of generation of health-care information is self-evident, the matter of dissemination has always been put on the sidelines. Information dissemination is a complex, dynamic process, which is controlled by sociocultural, economic, and political agendas. Therefore, the wisdom generated from research does often not distill down to the end-users, the physicians, and other medical professionals who are fighting the battle at the bedside. Painstaking policy making, ensured implementation, quality assurance, monitoring, and reviewing are necessary to ensure that the endpoint is reached. The effects of research are seen in the change it brings about locally, nationally, and globally, and we will remain chasing that goal until and unless we ensure adequate dissemination and access to the generated wisdom.4Pang T Gray M Evans T A 15th grand challenge for global public health.Lancet. 2006; 367: 284-286Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (22) Google Scholar SB, PC, and TB are country representatives for India of HIFA2015. The position of country representative of HIFA2015 is a voluntary unpaid position. NP-W is the coordinator of HIFA2015 and CHILD2015 networks and codirector of Global Healthcare Information Network. We declare that we have no other conflicts of interest. Health-care information: access or implementation?We read with great interest the Comment by Soumyadeep Bhaumik and colleagues (Sept, p e129)1 advocating universal access to health-care information. The communication is important and timely; however, we believe that Bhaumik and colleagues have extrapolated their arguments and made disproportionate and dubious claims to support their viewpoint. Full-Text PDF Open Access