Health Policy and Planning’s Top 10 articles in 2021

By Natasha Salaria (London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine)

Health Policy and Planning publishes health policy and systems research focusing on low- and middle-income countries. The journal consists of four sections; Health Systems Research, Health Economics, Health Policy Processes and Implementation Research and Evaluation.

At Health Policy and Planning (HPP) in 2021, our impact factor increased from 2.704 to 3.344 which makes us 19^th out of 88 in the Health Policy & Services ISI category. After the impact factor release, we marketed a campaign around the impact of HPP papers on health systems policy at a global level. We created this research collection of papers along with this infographic showcasing more than 1,100 papers mentioned by policy sources so far and demonstrating HPP’s impact on health systems policy at a global level, thus helping bridge the gap between academic research and its real-life application.

We launched a new Call for Papers: Call for papers: from COVID-19 to stronger health systems looking for papers on responses to COVID-19 that can help strengthen people-centred and equitable health systems. The deadline for which is ongoing, for queries around submission please do not hesitate to contact our editorial office: hpp.editorialoffice@oup.com.

We ended the year by publishing another high-profile journal supplement in collaboration with Health Systems Global containing reflections from the 6th Global Symposium on Health Systems Research: Reimagining health systems for better health and social justice. This was accompanied by an extended podcast with authors of papers from the supplement.

Below you can find our top 10 most cited, downloaded and most accessed content in the past year from content published in 2021. We continue to thank our valued Section Editors, reviewers and authors for their dedication to HPP and contribution to the publication of high-quality research.

Top 10 Cited

1. Corporate power and the international trade regime preventing progressive policy action on non-communicable diseases: a realist review [LINK]
2. Remote data collection for public health research in a COVID-19 era: ethical implications, challenges and opportunities [LINK]
3. The needs-based health workforce planning method: a systematic scoping review of analytical applications [LINK]
4. Disruptions in maternal and child health service utilization during COVID-19: analysis from eight sub-Saharan African countries [LINK]
5. Poor coverage and quality for poor women: Inequalities in quality antenatal care in nine East African countries [LINK]
6. Supervision of community health nurses in Ghana: a mixed-methods study on experiences and mentorship needs [LINK]
7. Improving antibiotic use through behaviour change: a systematic review of interventions evaluated in low- and middle-income countries [LINK]
8. An interrupted time series analysis of the lockdown policies in India: a national-level analysis of COVID-19 incidence [LINK]
9. Socio-economic determinants of global COVID-19 mortalities: policy lessons for current and future pandemics [LINK]
10. In search of ‘community’: a critical review of community mental health services for women in African settings [LINK]

Top 10 Downloaded

1. Sin taxes and their effect on consumption, revenue generation and health improvement: A systematic literature review in Latin America [LINK]
2. Remote data collection for public health research in a COVID-19 era: ethical implications, challenges and opportunities [LINK]
3. COVID-19 preparedness and response plans from 106 countries: a review from a health systems resilience perspective [LINK]
4. A modified scoping review of the enablers and barriers to implementing primary health care in the COVID-19 context [LINK]
5. Disruptions in maternal and child health service utilization during COVID-19: analysis from eight sub-Saharan African countries [LINK]
6. Using WhatsApp Messenger for Health Systems Research: A scoping review of available literature [LINK]
7. Applied systems thinking: Unlocking theory, evidence and practice for health policy and systems research [LINK]
8. Maternal and perinatal death surveillance and response in low and middle-income countries: a scoping review of implementation factors [LINK]
9. Socio-economic determinants of global COVID-19 mortalities: policy lessons for current and future pandemics [LINK]
10. Barriers and facilitators to knowledge translation activities within academic institutions in low- and middle-income countries [LINK]

Top 10 Altmetric

1. An assessment of geographical access and factors influencing travel time to emergency obstetric care in the urban state of Lagos, Nigeria [LINK]
2. Is the routine health information system ready to support the planned national health insurance scheme in South Africa? [LINK]
3. Health and politics in pandemic times: COVID-19 responses in Ethiopia [LINK]
4. In search of ‘community’: a critical review of community mental health services for women in African settings [LINK]
5. COVID-19 preparedness and response plans from 106 countries: a review from a health systems resilience perspective [LINK]
6. Fifteen years later: moving forward Heller’s heritage on fiscal space for health [LINK]
7. Applied systems thinking: Unlocking theory, evidence and practice for health policy and systems research [LINK]
8. Do efficiency gains really translate into more budget for health? An assessment framework and country applications [LINK]
9. A modified scoping review of the enablers and barriers to implementing primary health care in the COVID-19 context [LINK]
10. Understanding disparities in person-centred maternity care: the potential role of provider implicit and explicit bias [LINK]