Health Internetwork Access to Research Initiative (HINARI)

“The value of HINARI cannot be overemphasised. It is impossible to conduct meaningful research without access to full text articles of previous research.”

HINARI is the oldest  programme of  the Research4Life  partnership.  This programme  provides free or very low-cost online access to the major journals in   biomedical and related social sciences to local, not-for-profit institutions in developing countries. Over 400 publishers and 170 publisher partners also take part by offering more than 51,000 information resources to help academic researchers and practising physicians access the latest information in their fields.

Impacting healthcare for more than a decade

As one of the founding members of HINARI, BMJ has provided free access to all of its journals and journals archive to local, not-for-profit institutions in developing countries for over 12 years. This means there is no need for them to subscribe to access the full text; they automatically qualify for free access.

The benefits are far reaching, and the HINARI programme has helped many thousands of healthcare workers to create a healthier world. R4L was recently supported by BMJ to conduct a survey that asked over 1,000 researchers, teachers and health professionals in over 50 countries to find out the impact of HINARI.

The results revealed that awareness and usage is high, but areas of improvement include training, promotion and limited use where there are access issues. Those making use of HINARI reported on the positive impact the programme has had on patient care, outcomes, education, and career progression. 

• More than half of respondents said their institution had access and 89% are aware of HINARI.

• Over 72% had accessed HINARI resources, and nearly two thirds of users access content via HINARI at least once a week.

• More than 75% of respondents had not received any training in using the resources.

• Over 40% of respondents had accessed for the first time 5 years ago and the HINARI user base is growing at a fairly constant annual rate.

• Researchers / teachers use the knowledge gained to help with conducting, writing and submitting research for publication, as well as career advancement, and improving teaching content.

• Health professionals stated that HINARI access helps saving lives, improving patient care and safety, improving diagnosis and treatment, as well as career advancement.

Download the overall survey report here 

“We’ve always been proud to support the HINARI initiative. BMJ plays an important role as an integral part of the global healthcare community so it’s important to us that we engage in partnerships for improving health in the developing world. At BMJ, we do what we can to realise our vision of helping to create a healthier world. The content we make freely available via HINARI supports this vision by giving health professionals access to the tools and support they need to improve patient outcomes.”

Allison Lang, Publishing Director, BMJ

Watch how R4L helps charity improve lives of HIV-infected orphans in Zambia.

HINARI is a key programme from the Research4Life initiative, whose partners include four United Nations Agencies, Yale and Cornell University Libraries, the International Association of Scientific, Technical & Medical Publishers (STM), Microsoft, and some 195 publishers worldwide.