This paper discusses the basis for a Brazilian National Policy in Science, Technology, and Innovation in Health (PNCTI/S) as the structural element for a Brazilian health research effort. At least since the National Research Council (CNPq) was founded in 1951, this huge effort, including a set of nearly 18,000 researchers in 4,900 research groups, has not been backed by an explicit national health research policy. The paper takes the view that the appropriate body for establishing this policy is the Ministry of Health, as occurs in the majority of countries with a research tradition. Such a National Policy should be backed by a priority research agenda, developed through agreement by the most relevant players, namely health researchers and managers. The National Policy should be extensive in relation to the knowledge chain and inclusive towards researchers and research institutions. Finally, it should be based on the quest for equity in health and ethical research standards in practice.
Science and technology; Health research; Strategic research
