ABSTRACT
Evidence-based decision-making for programs and policies has emerged as a critical ingredient for effective programs and policies. Evidence-based decision-making has been well integrated now into clinical medical practice overseas, but has entered the realm of public health programming only recently [1]. High quality research should be the basis for generating evidence for program and policy decision-making. However, the question of what types of research are most relevant to program decision-making is still often debated. Traditional public health specialists continue to defer to randomized controlled trials (RCTs) as the definitive evidence-base for decision-making about interventions. This is increasingly, however, being viewed as inadequate for effective decision-making, largely because RCTs often only yield information on “what” interventions are most efficacious, but not on “how” interventions had their impact [2]. Relying only on evidence from RCTs, without consideration of context and impact pathways, then, can be misleading and lead to lowered effectiveness in non-optimal program circumstances. Broadening the scope of the type of research, therefore, is important to consider when developing programs [3].
