Number of stakeholders participating per country.

Snakebite envenoming is a debilitating neglected tropical disease disproportionately affecting the rural poor in low and middle-income countries in the tropics and sub-tropics. Critical questions and gaps in public health and policy need to be addressed if major progress is to be made towards reducing the negative impact of snakebite, particularly in the World Health Organisation (WHO) Africa region. We engaged key stakeholders to identify barriers to evidence-based snakebite decision making and to explore how development of research and policy hubs could help to overcome these barriers. We conducted an electronic survey among 73 stakeholders from ministries of health, health facilities, academia and non-governmental organizations from 15 countries in the WHO Africa region. The primary barriers to snakebite research and subsequent policy translation were limited funds, lack of relevant data, and lack of interest from policy makers. Adequate funding commitment, strong political will, building expert networks and a demand for scientific evidence were all considered potential factors that could facilitate snakebite research. Participants rated availability of antivenoms, research skills training and disease surveillance as key research priorities. All participants indicated interest in the development of research and policy hubs and 78% indicated their organization would be willing to actively participate. In conclusion, our survey affirms that relevant stakeholders in the field of snakebite perceive research and policy hubs as a promising development, which could help overcome the barriers to pursuing the WHO goals and targets for reducing the burden of snakebite.

蛇咬伤中毒（Snakebite envenoming）是一种致残性被忽视的热带病，在热带与亚热带地区的中低收入国家中，该疾病对农村贫困人群的影响尤为严重。若要在降低蛇咬伤负面影响方面取得重大进展，亟需解决公共卫生与政策领域存在的关键问题及研究空白，尤其是在世界卫生组织（WHO）非洲区域。我们邀约了该领域的关键利益相关方，旨在明确阻碍蛇咬伤循证决策的各类障碍，并探究研究与政策枢纽（research and policy hubs）的建设如何助力克服这些障碍。我们针对来自WHO非洲区域15个国家的73名利益相关方开展了电子问卷调查，受访对象涵盖卫生部、医疗机构、学术界及非政府组织的相关人员。蛇咬伤研究及后续政策转化的主要障碍包括资金匮乏、相关研究数据缺失，以及政策制定者缺乏相关兴趣。充足的资金投入承诺、坚定的政治意愿、专家网络的构建，以及对科学证据的需求，均被视为可推动蛇咬伤研究的潜在助力因素。受访者将抗蛇毒血清（antivenoms）的可及性、研究技能培训与疾病监测列为核心研究优先事项。所有受访者均对研究与政策枢纽的建设表示出兴趣，其中78%的受访者称其所在组织愿意积极参与其中。综上，本次调查证实，蛇咬伤领域的相关利益相关方均认为研究与政策枢纽是一项极具前景的发展方向，可助力克服在落实WHO减轻蛇咬伤疾病负担的目标与指标过程中面临的各类障碍。