Methodological Guidelines for Applied Research on Decentralization of Health Systems in Latin America

This guide is to assist applied researchers design and implement research activities on the decentralization of health systems in Latin America. It focuses on using national-level data on decentralization and using field case studies at the local level. It is based on lessons learned from the experience of the Harvard School of Public Health in applied research in Chile, Bolivia, and Colombia. This guide assumes that the researchers have some knowledge of economics, but is presented so that non-economists can understand the methodology. However, it will be necessary to have a skilled economist to carry out the national data analysis.