PAHO supports decision-making in innovation and production of health technologies, workshop on technologies horizon scanning – PAHO/WHO

Santo Domingo, November 5, 2024 (PAHO) – The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), through its Department of Innovation, Access to Medicines and Health Technologies (IMT), organized a workshop on horizon scanning to support decision-making in innovation and production of health technologies, The purpose of the workshop was to develop strategies and methodologies for using Horizon Scanning as a tool to identify and prioritize health technologies for innovation and regional production.

The workshop allowed participants to identify key criteria for the prioritization of new and emerging health technologies, as well as to reflect on the challenges and barriers to local and regional innovation and production. There were introductory presentations, such as the one from i-HTS (Euroscan), a global network for scanning new and emerging technologies, as well as experiences shared by Argentina, Brazil and Colombia. It was attended by 37 representatives of RedETSA member institutions from thirteen countries in the region who discussed, through group activities, the identification of domains to develop a prioritization framework for local/regional production of vaccines and other health technologies.

This workshop represented a milestone, as it was the first instance allowing health technology assessment (HTA) entities to approach the issue of how to inform decision-making in innovation and production of health technologies. Technological production and innovation are a relatively new area for many of the region’s health authorities, so the experience and methodologies developed by HTA institutions could play a fundamental role in systematizing this process.

PAHO promotes an integrated approach to health technologies, focusing on equitable access. This approach encompasses all stages, from development and production, through regulation and market entry, to their incorporation into benefit plans and the rational use of technologies.

Based on the work and discussions at the workshop, a document is being prepared with recommendations on how to use the horizon scanning to define priorities for innovation and production of vaccines and other health technologies in the Region.

The workshop was led by the Access to Medicines and Health Technologies Unit (AH) and the Special Program, Innovation and Regional Production Platform (RP) of the IMT Department.

This initiative was supported by Global Affairs Canada (GAC).