KEYSTONE HPSR Initiative // Module 1: Introducing Health Systems & Health Policy // Slideshow 5: Epistemological self-diagnosis This is the fifth slideshow of Module 1: Introducing Health Systems & Health Policy, of the KEYSTONE Teaching and Learning Resources for Health Policy and Systems Research To access video sessions and slides for all modules copy and past the following link in your browser: http://bit.ly/25vVVp1 Module 1: Introducing Health Systems & Health Policy This module introduces students to the KEYSTONE initiative, the objectives and design of the inaugural course, and the field of Health Policy and Systems Research. Common frameworks used to understand health systems and health policy are delineated, including the WHO building blocks framework, health systems hardware and software, systems thinking, social construction, and people-centred health systems. There are 5 slideshows in this module. Module 1: Introducing Health Systems & Health Policy -Module 1 Slideshow 1: KEYSTONE Course Getting Oriented -Module 1 Slideshow 2: Health Systems and Health Policy Frameworks 1 -Module 1 Slideshow 3: Health Systems and Health Policy Frameworks 2 -Module 1 Slideshow 4: Health Systems and Health Policy: Wrap Up -Module 1 Slideshow 5: Epistemological self-diagnosis The other modules in this series are: Module 2: Social justice, equity & gender Module 3: System complexity Module 4: Health Policy & Systems Research frameworks Module 5: Economic analysis Module 6: Policy analysis Module 7: Realist evaluation Module 8: Systems thinking Module 9: Ethnography Module 10: Implementation research Module 11: Participatory action research Module 12: Knowledge translation Module 13: Research Plan Writing KEYSTONE is a collective initiative of several Indian health policy and systems research (HPSR) organizations to strengthen national capacity in HPSR towards addressing critical needs of health systems and policy development. KEYSTONE is convened by the Public Health Foundation of India in its role as Nodal Institute of the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research (AHPSR). The inaugural KEYSTONE short course was conducted in New Delhi from 23 February – 5 March 2015. In the process of delivering the inaugural course, a suite of teaching and learning materials were developed under Creative Commons license, and are being made available as open access resources. The KEYSTONE teaching and learning resources include 38 videos and 32 slide presentations organized into 13 modules. These materials cover foundational concepts, common approaches used in HPSR, and guidance for preparing a research plan. These resources were created and are made available through support and funding from the Alliance for Health Policy & Systems Research (AHPSR), WHO for the KEYSTONE initiative.

1. https://twitter.com/KeystoneHPSR
Building the HPSR CommunityBuilding HPSR Capacity
KEYSTONE
Inaugural KEYSTONE Course on Health Policy and Systems Research 2015
Epistemological self-diagnosis

2. KEYSTONE
Epistemological self-diagnosis
A totally unscientific self-diagnosis …
this is not a test – try to be honest with yourself
(From CHEPSAA)

3. KEYSTONE
Q1 Which do you trust more?
‘hard science’ or ‘soft science’?
A. Hard science
B. Both/either/it depends
C. Soft science

4. KEYSTONE
Q2 Is there such a thing as ‘truth’?
A. I can’t decide
B. No (no truth or many truths)
C. Yes

5. KEYSTONE
Q3 Is knowledge discovered or created?
A. Knowledge is discovered
B. Both / I can’t decide
C. Knowledge is created

6. KEYSTONE
Q4 Can we have knowledge of
a single reality that is independent of the
knower?
A. Yes
B. No
C. Sometimes

7. KEYSTONE
Q5 What is the role of the HPS researcher?
A. Truth gatherer
B. Interpreter
C. Meaning maker

8. KEYSTONE
Scoring yourself
Q1 A= 1 B=2 C=3
Q2 A= 2 B=3 C=1
Q3 A=1 B=2 C=3
Q4 A=1 B=3 C=2
Q5 A=1 B=2 C=3

9. KEYSTONE
Scoring yourself
(in our totally unscientific study)
1-6 = heading towards positivism
6-11 = couldn’t decide … hovering … or a
critical realist
11-15 = heading towards constructivism

10. Open Access Policy
KEYSTONE commits itself to the principle of open access to knowledge. In keeping with this, we strongly support open access and use of materials
that we created for the course. While some of the material is in fact original, we have drawn from the large body of knowledge already available under
open licenses that promote sharing and dissemination. In keeping with this spirit, we hereby provide all our materials (wherever they are already not
copyrighted elsewhere as indicated) under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license
visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
This work is ‘Open Access,’ published under a creative commons license which means that you are free to copy, distribute, display, and use the
materials as long as you clearly attribute the work to the KEYSTONE course (suggested attribution: Copyright KEYSTONE Health Policy & Systems
Research Initiative, Public Health Foundation of India and KEYSTONE Partners, 2015), that you do not use this work for any commercial gain in any
form and that you in no way alter, transform or build on the work outside of its use in normal academic scholarship without express permission of
the author and the publisher of this volume. Furthermore, for any reuse or distribution, you must make clear to others the license terms of this work.
This means that you can:
read and store this document free of charge
distribute it for personal use free of charge
print sections of the work for personal use
read or use parts or whole of the work in a context where no financial transactions take place
gain financially from the work in anyway
sell the work or seek monies in relation to the distribution of the work
use the work in any commercial activity of any kind
distribute in or through a commercial body (with the exception of academic usage within educational
institutions such as schools and universities
However, you cannot: