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Table 4 Finalized questions by theme

From: Identifying health policy and systems research priorities for the sustainable development goals: social protection for health

Global Theme

Research Need

Finalized Research Quesiton

Evidence of Effectiveness

Increase overall evidence base for demand side interventions on impact

What are the effects of conditional cash transfer programs on healthcare quality, coverage and outcomes across settings in low and middle income countries?

What are the effects of unconditional cash transfer programs on healthcare quality, coverage and outcomes across settings in low and middle income countries?

How do the characteristics of cash transfers such as the amount, frequency, method of payment, etc., affect intended outcomes, particularly enrollment of the target population?

What are the impacts of social protection programs in conflict affected settings and their effectiveness in improving health outcomes and access to health services?

Longevity of effects

What are the long-term effects of cash transfer programs or social protection programs on behavior change, and how sustainable have they been?

How can demand-side financing for health be made financially sustain able?

How can social protection programs for health be designed, implemented, and evaluated to ensure sustainability and scalability in low and middle income countries, including conflict affected settings?

Increase understanding of the equity effects of CCTs/demand side financing

What is the impact of social protection initiatives on health equity outcomes and equitable access to quality health care services for poor and marginalized populations?

Evidence of Effectiveness for Specific Services

Increasing evidence around the way food aid is delivered and its effect on intended outcomes

How do the characteristics of food aid programs (e.g. source, amount, frequency, mode, recipient etc.) affect intended health-related outcomes (e.g. morbidity, sustained behavior changes, drug adherence, labor market participation etc.)?

Increasing evidence for paid maternity leave and the link to health outcomes

What are the impacts of different forms of maternity leave (paid vs. unpaid, length, etc.) on maternal and child health outcomes?

Evidence of Effectiveness for Cost Effectiveness

Increasing evidence of DSF on OOP

How do demand-side financing or CCT programs affect out-of-pocket spending on health?

Increasing evidence on cost-effectiveness and efficiency

How cost-effective are CCT programs compared to supply-side interventions (e.g. strengthening quality of infrastructure and expanding services) in improving health?

How cost-effective are CCT programs compared with other types of demand side interventions (e.g. UCTs, vouchers, behavior change, communication) in improving health coverage and health outcomes?

Pathways of impact/methods

Strengthen our understanding in the ways that internal and external factors influence SP programs and their effectiveness

What are the pathways through which social protection programs affect clinical and nonclinical outcomes, and what are the implications on program design?

What are the contextual factors that influence the effectiveness of conditional and unconditional cash transfer schemes for health?

Strengthen our understanding in the ways that SP programs affect intergenerational relationships

How do social protection programs (e.g. cash transfers) affect intergenerational and gender relationships at the community and household level?

How do social protection programs for health affect intergenerational poverty and social mobility?

Strengthen our understanding of the importance of conditionality for cash transfer programs

How does conditionality in cash transfer programs affect behavioral changes for disease prevention and treatment?

Unintended Consequences

Strengthen our understanding of the unintended consequences of social protection programs

What are the unintended health-related consequences of social protection programs?

How can social protection programs be designed to minimize dependency and promote productivity amongst beneficiaries?

What is the extent of fraud and abuse in health-related social protection programs, and how can social protection programs be designed to show accountability?

Program Implementation

Identify tools to help with determining eligibility for SP interventions.

What tools and systems can be used to assess and apply eligibility criteria for health-related social protection programs?

Strengthen our understanding on how SP programs should best integrate or interact with specific groups of people or other sectors

How can the community/civil society be engaged to help design, implement and evaluate social protection programs?

How can various social protection initiatives be best integrated or harmonized across sectors?

How do social protection programs influence the interaction between public and private health care providers with regards to service availability, quality of care and utilization?

How do we provide social protection programs to refugee populations without undermining support for nationals?

How can informal sector and migrant workers be effectively covered by health-related social protection systems?

How can social protection schemes help in ensuring that the most vulnerable such as the disabled are provided with people-centered and integrated services?

How can social protection systems help in protecting people from domestic violence and its consequences?

Strengthen our understanding of linkages between SP for health and governance

How do social protection programs contribute to state building?

Data reliability and validity

Strengthen our understanding on how SP programs can be best monitored

How can routine information systems be strengthened and used to monitor and evaluate social protection systems for health?