Chagas Disease across Contexts: Scientific Knowledge in a Globalized World.

Chagas is the most important endemic disease in Latin America. It was progressively constructed as a relevant public issue, starting as a medical problem, focusing later on housing conditions, poverty, or vector agents. In recent decades, research has mainly focused on the parasite's biological characterization. In the meanwhile, both Chagas disease and knowledge about it spread out geographically. We analyze the worldwide scientific production on Chagas, showing that countries' research strategies depend on two main factors: endemicity and research traditions. This approach complements previous studies, allowing us to better understand the construction of Chagas disease as a social and scientific problem.

Capital social y uso del conocimiento en el sector salud: una revisión narrativa de la literatura / Social capital and use of the knowledge in the health sector: a narrative review of the literature

En el sector salud, las brechas entre la generación del conocimiento científico y su uso para la toma de decisiones comprometen la calidad de la atención brindada. Estas brechas se han relacionado con diferentes factores, entre ellos el capital social. Este trabajo explora el papel del capital social en el uso del conocimiento en el sector salud. Para hacerlo se recurrió a una revisión de la literatura de los últimos veinte años. Los hallazgos reportaron que las tres dimensiones del capital social, es decir, el capital estructural, el capital relacional y el capital cognitivo, se han relacionado teóricamente con la gestión y el uso del conocimiento y que el capital social se considera un predictor significativo de la práctica basada en evidencias. Se concluye que fomentar la confianza y los lazos de comunicación entre los empleados, así como buscar relaciones con investigadores, potencian el uso de las evidencias científicas en la toma de decisiones. Estas acciones se traducen en beneficios para los usuarios finales del sistema de salud(AU)

In the health sector, gaps persist between scientific knowledge´s production and its use for decision-making; and these gaps compromise the quality of provided care. These gaps have been related to different factors, including social capital. This paper explores the role of social capital in the use of knowledge in the health sector. To do so, a review of the literature of the last twenty years was conducted. Among the main findings, three dimensions of social capital (i.e. structural capital, relational capital and cognitive capital) have been theoretically related to knowledge use and management; and social capital is highlighted as a significant predictor of evidence-based practice. Encouraging trust and strengthening communication links among employees, as well as seeking relationships with researchers have the potential to foster scientific knowledge use in decision-making. These actions can be translated into benefits for final health system´s users(AU)