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The QuEST LAC network uses data to promote evidence-based policies for health in Latin America

Nature Medicine volume 30, pages 1811–1812 (2024)Cite this article

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Today’s healthcare landscape is characterized by evolving needs and heightened public expectations, and requires exceptional healthcare systems. These health systems must be capable of delivering consistently high quality, tailored care in a variety of contexts. Quality health systems are needed for the overall wellbeing and fulfilment of communities, to build trust and to achieve better health outcomes1. It is estimated that approximately 8 million people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) die each year from treatable health conditions, with 60% of these deaths attributable to poor-quality health care, despite access to healthcare services. The most disadvantaged populations and the countries with the fewest economic resources are disproportionately affected by this problem1.

The Quality Evidence for The Transformation of Health Systems for Latin America and the Caribbean (QuEST LAC) network brings together a group of researchers from Peru, Argentina, Ecuador, Mexico and Colombia, and functions as the regional arm of the Quality Evidence for The Transformation of Health Systems (QuEST) consortium — a global network of researchers committed to improving healthcare quality. As a Latin American network, QuEST LAC aims to develop human capacity in health systems research and to build and communicate the science of high-quality health systems. QuEST LAC is committed to working with regional governments and research institutions, promoting synergies between research and policy, and implementing transformative initiatives to redefine evaluation methods and actively redesign systems, striving to ensure that equitable, high-quality care is accessible to people in the region. QuEST LAC comprises two core research centers — one at the Cayetano Heredia University in Peru and the other at the Institute of Clinical Effectiveness and Health Effectiveness (IECS by its Spanish acronym) in Argentina — as well as five affiliated centers in Latin America.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Public Health and Administration, Epidemiology Department, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Peru

    Patricia J. García, Jesús Medina-Ranilla & Laura Espinoza-Pajuelo

  2. Division of Prevention Science, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Hannah Leslie

  3. Institute for Clinical Effectiveness and Health Policy (IECS), Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Marina Guglielmino, Javier Roberti, Agustina Mazzoni & Ezequiel García-Elorrio

  4. National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) – Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIESP), Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Javier Roberti & Ezequiel García-Elorrio

Authors
  1. Patricia J. García
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  2. Hannah Leslie
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  3. Jesús Medina-Ranilla
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  4. Laura Espinoza-Pajuelo
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  5. Marina Guglielmino
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  6. Javier Roberti
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  7. Agustina Mazzoni
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  8. Ezequiel García-Elorrio
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Correspondence to Patricia J. García.

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García, P.J., Leslie, H., Medina-Ranilla, J. et al. The QuEST LAC network uses data to promote evidence-based policies for health in Latin America. Nat Med 30, 1811–1812 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-024-03029-z

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