The Operational Research (OR) work conducted over the 18 months by the Shusamaj Foundation for Tropical Diseases Research and Training (TDR).

It gives information about the overall “learning by doing” strategy regarding the evidence needed to inform treatment and prevention programs. It reports on the activities that were conducted to facilitate priority setting and the involvement of teams from national programs, and on efforts to develop tools for operational research in multiple settings. It also reflects on achievements to date and next steps.

It is hoped that the work done to date in selected areas will be used as a basis to expand to others. The document should be useful to staff in country who are interested in how to gather the evidence needed to improve treatment and prevention programs.