Jakarta – The Health Development Policy Agency (BKPK) held a Bibliometric Analysis Workshop for Policy: Insight and Strategy on Monday (March 9) in Jakarta. This activity aims to increase understanding of the use of bibliometric analysis as a strategic instrument for formulating evidence-based health policies.
In her remarks, BKPK Secretary Etik Retno Wiyati emphasized the importance of comprehensive, up-to-date, and structured scientific data in addressing the complexity of health issues, both at the national and global levels.
According to him, the BKPK has an important role in providing policy recommendations to various technical units within the Ministry of Health based on strong scientific evidence.
"Just like crude oil underground, data (research results, publications, health statistics) is a very valuable asset but cannot be used immediately. It must first be "mined" and "refined." Crude oil is only useful after it has been processed into gasoline, etc. Likewise, data must first be processed and analyzed to produce useful information. insight or real recommendations for policy making," said Etik.
He also highlighted the rapid growth in scientific publications each year. This situation demands the ability to sort and analyze valid information to form the basis for formulating effective health policies.
One approach that can be used is bibliometric analysis, which is a statistical approach to scientific literature to identify research patterns and trends and uncover unanswered research gaps that are not always visible through manual reading.
Through this method, policymakers can map research collaboration networks, identify key strategic partner actors, to strengthen the policy ecosystem, and find opportunities for evidence-based policy development.
In the workshop, the Director of Research, Technology, and Innovation Policy Formulation at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Prakoso Bhairawa Putera, explained the development of the use of bibliometrics in policy research.
He believes bibliometrics has now become a crucial tool for understanding the knowledge landscape to support public policy. He noted that from 1983 to 2025, approximately 3.509 scientific documents discussed the use of bibliometrics and various literature reviews in policy research.
"Bibliometrics is no longer just an academic tool for researchers and analysts. Today, this method is also used to understand various public issues, from the health climate to the development of artificial intelligence," said Prakoso.
Prakoso further explained that bibliometrics and other literature reviews have become a kind of Policy Intelligence to map the knowledge landscape for use in policy formulation. However, he emphasized that bibliometric analysis cannot stand alone in the policy-making process.
“Bibliometrics helps map the knowledge landscape, but it still needs to be combined with expert input and other data sources,” he explained.
In this workshop, participants also learned data collection methods, analysis techniques using tools such as Scopus and VOSviewer, as well as practices for mapping research trends and identifying stakeholders in the field of health policy.
Through this workshop, participants are expected to utilize bibliometric analysis as a navigation tool to systematically process scientific data, resulting in more effective, evidence-based health policy recommendations. (Author: Nisa Fitriyani, Editor: HDI Work Team)
