Regional Convener - Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) - Social Innovation in Health Initiatives

Regional Convener - Americas Pan American Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)

Since 2016, PAHO/WHO has served as the regional convener for the Social Innovation in Health Initiative (SIHI) in the Americas, co-sponsoring activities, hosting resources, and collaborating with the SIHI-LAC Secretariat, governments, innovators, and partners. As WHO’s Regional Office for the Americas, PAHO/WHO acts as a key liaison with WHO, TDR, and international partners to integrate social innovation into regional health strategies. In collaboration with Centro Internacional de Entrenamiento e Investigaciones Médicas (CIDEIM) and Instituto de Enfermedades Infecciosas y Parasitología Antonio Vidal, PAHO coordinates regional hubs to implement social innovation initiatives across Latin America and the Caribbean.

Meet our Team

OUR ACTIVITIES

SOCIAL INNOVATOR EXCHANGE

From August 2022 – May 2023, PAHO with the support of the SI-LAC secretariat and social innovators co-developed and piloted a new program among social innovators in health, called the SI-Exchange (Innovación social en salud: Intercambio de experiencias y documentación). The purpose of the SI-Exchange was to co-produce knowledge on social innovations in health, document and disseminate the knowledge, and build the implementation capacity of social innovators in health.

The first pilot was conducted between the Pablo Montoya from, El Canto del Tucán (Sinergias) in Colombia and the Magaly Blas from, Mamas del Rio in Peru. The pilot was supported by Marcela Mercado from Zika Kids in Colombia.

Findings from the pilot highlighted the positive experiences of innovators who participated in the SI-exchange and the value of learning across innovations. Recommendations for future SI-exchanges include: the provision of administrative and travel support, investing in documentation training, and ensuring a full multi-disciplinary team composition.

Read the Report

SOCIAL INNOVATION IN HEALTH CASE DOCUMENTATION GUIDANCE 2023

Based on the learning gained during the SI-Exchange pilot, a guidance document was developed to support innovators, journalists, or persons who wish to document social innovation strategies such that a) research questions can be identified and b) social innovations can be promoted.

This 17-page guidance document provides the reader with a background to social innovation and relevant frameworks; highlights the value of documenting social innovation cases; gives tips and suggestions on the practicalities associated with doing so; and provides a detailed case documentation template with different documentation tools that can be used.

2023 CROWDSOURCING CALL FOR SOCIAL INNOVATIONS IN HEALTH EQUITY

PAHO convened the 2023 crowdsourcing call for social innovations across Latin America and the Caribbean, with the support of the SIHI- Secretariate. The focus of the 2023 call was on social innovations in health that have closed the health equity gap.

The call was widely participated in, receiving 93 applications from 13 countries across Latin America and the Caribbean. From the applications received, 67 passed the eligibility screening and 44 passed the social innovation screening. To supported the selection process, the remaining 44 applications were assessed by the 6 external review panel members. In the end, 3 innovations were recognized and there were 2 honorary mentions.

To learn more about the 2023 crowdsourcing call and the other calls, visit the crowdsourcing page

OUR RECOGNIZED INNOVATIONS (2015-2023)

WORKSHOP: “Social Innovation as a Pathway for Health Equity”

From October 31 to November 2, 2023, the “Social Innovation as a Pathway for Health Equity” workshop was held at the PAHO headquarters, in Washington DC. This workshop brought together social innovators in health, representatives from various PAHO departments, and DC-based innovation collaborators and members from SIHI-LAC.

The overall aim of the workshop was to co-produce knowledge on social innovation in health strategies, enhance innovation sustainability and scalability, promote networking, and celebrate the impact that social innovations in health have had on health equity in the LAC region.

The workshop promoted spaces for dialogue between social innovators and potential allies, helping to identify the needs and opportunities for social innovations in health to impact politics, in addition to knowledge and experience exchange. Innovators also had the opportunity to present their initiatives.

Tangible impacts at both innovator and institutional levels were noted. PAHO expressed interest in institutionalizing social innovation in health, marking a shift towards a holistic approach in their strategic goals. The meeting emphasized health equity, community impact, and recognition of innovators, contributing to compiling and understanding best practices.

Building Innovators Capacity

PAHO aims to build the capacity of innovators by partnering innovators with seasoned researchers so that, initiatives can move forward with their innovations and research. In 2023, two recognized innovations Mamás del Río and El Canto del Tucán (Sinergias NGO) partnered with Salud con Lupa to provide training to indigenous communicators from the Amazon.