TREND OF HEALTH RESEARCH BUDGET ALLOCATION IN IRAN AS COMPARED TO THAT IN DEVELOPED COUNTRIES

In this descriptive study, we compared the amount of public spending on health research and the process for allocation of research funds between Iran and several developed countries.The study made it clear that the State's total per capita spending on research and the percentage of the total government budget and the Gross Domestic Product spent on research were considerably lower than in most developed nations. The administrative process for obtaining funds was long and tedious, and private sector spending on health research was negligible (in contrast to Western countries, where the most research is funded by the private sector). The results of this study could have important implications for health care planning and research administration in Iran.