Verônica Abdala

Biography and Expertise of Verônica Abdala

Verônica Abdala is a leading specialist in health information management, whose career has been dedicated to democratizing access to scientific knowledge in Latin America and the Caribbean. As a manager at BIREME, she plays a crucial role in developing and maintaining essential information services and products that serve millions of health professionals, researchers, and policymakers. Her work is central to the mission of PAHO/WHO in promoting evidence-informed health systems.

Her expertise aligns perfectly with the 3rd WCTCIM’s Thematic Axis, “Contributions of TCIM to Global Public Health (Evidence-Based).” By coordinating the Virtual Health Library (VHL) and pioneering knowledge translation tools like evidence syntheses and gap maps, she provides the very infrastructure needed to validate and integrate TCIM into national health systems. This work embodies the principles of the Gujarat Declaration, which call for a robust scientific foundation for traditional medicine. Moreover, her efforts in organizing diverse sources of knowledge directly support the congress motto pillar of “Knowledge Diversity.”

Beyond technical implementation, the work of Verônica Abdala fosters South-South collaboration, a cornerstone of the congress’s historical significance. The VHL network is a cooperative model that empowers countries to share information and build collective capacity. Therefore, her leadership helps create a more equitable global health landscape where evidence from diverse contexts can inform policy and improve well-being for all.

Professional Career and Contributions

Verônica Abdala‘s professional journey shows her long-term commitment to BIREME’s mission. For over three decades, she has been a driving force in the organization, shaping health information in the Americas. Her career reflects a deep understanding of the technical, strategic, and cooperative elements required to sustain large-scale information networks.

Her trajectory shows a focus on innovation and collaboration. She was instrumental in evolving key information resources, adapting them to new technologies and the needs of the health community. This effort solidified BIREME’s role as a regional leader and vital partner for health ministries and research institutions.

• Manager, Information Sources Production (Current Role): Oversees methodologies and production flows for BIREME’s primary information sources, ensuring the quality and integrity of databases like LILACS and the VHL.
• Manager, Cooperative Information Services: Coordinated the VHL’s extensive network of cooperating centers. This involved fostering partnerships and providing technical guidance to institutions across many countries, promoting South-South cooperation.
• Project Coordination, Virtual Health Library (VHL): Deeply involved with the VHL, a BIREME flagship initiative. She coordinated numerous technical cooperation projects to expand its reach, including developing specialized libraries like the VHL for Traditional, Complementary, and Integrative Medicine (VHL TCIM Americas).
• Librarian and Information Specialist (1989-Present): Since joining BIREME in 1989, she has applied her expertise in library and information science to manage complex health information systems, contributing to its technical excellence and strategic vision.

Academic Qualifications and Foundation

The academic background of Verônica Abdala provides the ideal theoretical and practical foundation for her impactful career in health information sciences. Her formal education in library science and information science has equipped her with the critical skills needed to organize, systematize, and disseminate complex scientific information on a massive scale. This expertise is indispensable for the management of networks like the VHL.

Her studies have allowed her to approach the challenges of information access with both technical precision and a strategic vision for knowledge sharing. Consequently, her academic qualifications are not merely credentials but are actively applied daily to solve real-world problems in public health.

• Master’s Degree in Information Science (2006): Awarded by the prestigious University of São Paulo (USP), Brazil. Her master’s research likely deepened her understanding of information architecture, user behavior, and knowledge management, providing advanced skills that she applies to her leadership roles at BIREME.
• Bachelor’s Degree in Library Science (1988): Obtained from the Fundação Escola de Sociologia e Política de São Paulo (FESPSP), Brazil. This foundational degree provided her with the core principles of information organization, cataloging, and retrieval, which are essential for building and maintaining robust databases and digital libraries.

This strong academic grounding in information science is precisely what enables Verônica Abdala to effectively lead projects that translate raw data and research into accessible, usable evidence for the TCIM community and beyond.

Knowledge Translation and Evidence Synthesis

A central focus of Verônica Abdala‘s recent work is knowledge translation, a critical process that aims to bridge the gap between scientific research and its practical application in health policy and clinical practice. This focus is especially important for the field of TCIM, where a growing body of evidence needs to be effectively communicated to decision-makers. Her work ensures that scientific findings do not remain confined to academic journals but are transformed into actionable insights.

Her team at BIREME develops and implements innovative tools for evidence synthesis, such as evidence gap maps. These visual tools provide a systematic overview of the available research on a particular topic, highlighting both what is known and where further research is needed. For TCIM, this is invaluable, as it helps prioritize research funding and efforts, aligning them with the WHO Traditional Medicine Strategy’s goal of building a stronger evidence base.

Furthermore, Verônica Abdala plays a key role in the development of the VHL TCIM Americas, a specialized information portal that aggregates scientific literature on traditional, complementary, and integrative medicine. This resource is a cornerstone for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in the region, promoting “Knowledge Diversity” by making a wide range of scientific information visible and accessible. Therefore, her work is not just about managing information; it is about building the evidentiary foundation for the future of global public health.

Fostering International Collaboration

While not holding formal board titles in external organizations, the professional activity of Verônica Abdala is intrinsically linked to governance and collaborative leadership. Her role in coordinating technical cooperation projects at BIREME places her at the nexus of a vast network of institutions, effectively serving as a key facilitator and strategic guide for international committees and working groups across Latin America and the Caribbean.

She steers collaborative efforts involving national ministries of health, universities, research institutes, and professional associations. This work requires constant dialogue, consensus-building, and strategic planning, mirroring the functions of a high-level steering committee. Her leadership is instrumental in maintaining the cohesion and operational excellence of the VHL network, a prime example of successful and sustainable South-South collaboration.

In this capacity, Verônica Abdala helps define technical standards, develop shared methodologies, and promote capacity-building initiatives among partner institutions. Her work ensures that the collective effort to democratize health information is aligned with the strategic priorities of PAHO/WHO and its member states. Therefore, her influence extends far beyond a single institution, shaping the collaborative ecosystem that underpins public health information infrastructure in the Americas.

Connect with Verônica Abdala

To further explore the work of Verônica Abdala and her contributions to health information science, you can access her professional profiles and academic records through the links below. These resources offer detailed insights into her projects, publications, and ongoing activities at BIREME/PAHO/WHO.

LinkedIn Profile: Connect on LinkedIn

Lattes Curriculum (CNPq): View Academic Curriculum