WorldWideScience

Sample records for building global health

  1. Building the foundations of an informatics agenda for global health - 2011 workshop report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mirza, Muzna; Kratz, Mary; Medeiros, Donna; Pina, Jamie; Richards, Janise; Zhang, Xiaohui; Fraser, Hamish; Bailey, Christopher; Krishnamurthy, Ramesh

    2012-01-01

    Strengthening the capacity of public health systems to protect and promote the health of the global population continues to be essential in an increasingly connected world. Informatics practices and principles can play an important role for improving global health response capacity. A critical step is to develop an informatics agenda for global health so that efforts can be prioritized and important global health issues addressed. With the aim of building a foundation for this agenda, the authors developed a workshop to examine the evidence in this domain, recognize the gaps, and document evidence-based recommendations. On 21 August 2011, at the 2011 Public Health Informatics Conference in Atlanta, GA, USA, a four-hour interactive workshop was conducted with 85 participants from 15 countries representing governmental organizations, private sector companies, academia, and non-governmental organizations. The workshop discussion followed an agenda of a plenary session - planning and agenda setting - and four tracks: Policy and governance; knowledge management, collaborative networks and global partnerships; capacity building; and globally reusable resources: metrics, tools, processes, templates, and digital assets. Track discussions examined the evidence base and the participants' experience to gather information about the current status, compelling and potential benefits, challenges, barriers, and gaps for global health informatics as well as document opportunities and recommendations. This report provides a summary of the discussions and key recommendations as a first step towards building an informatics agenda for global health. Attention to the identified topics and issues is expected to lead to measurable improvements in health equity, health outcomes, and impacts on population health. We propose the workshop report be used as a foundation for the development of the full agenda and a detailed roadmap for global health informatics activities based on further

  2. Global health promotion: how can we strengthen governance and build effective strategies?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Kelley

    2006-12-01

    This paper discusses what is meant by 'global health promotion' and the extent to which global governance architecture is emerging, enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health within an increasingly global context. A review of selected initiatives on breast-milk substitutes, healthy cities, tobacco control and diet and nutrition suggests that existing institutions are uneven in their capacity to tackle global health issues. The strategic building of a global approach to health promotion will draw on a broad range of governance instruments, give careful attention to implementation in the medium to longer term, reflect on the nature and appropriateness of partnerships and develop fuller understanding of effective policies for harnessing the positive influences of globalization and countering the negatives.

  3. Global Disease Detection-Achievements in Applied Public Health Research, Capacity Building, and Public Health Diplomacy, 2001-2016.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rao, Carol Y; Goryoka, Grace W; Henao, Olga L; Clarke, Kevin R; Salyer, Stephanie J; Montgomery, Joel M

    2017-11-01

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has established 10 Global Disease Detection (GDD) Program regional centers around the world that serve as centers of excellence for public health research on emerging and reemerging infectious diseases. The core activities of the GDD Program focus on applied public health research, surveillance, laboratory, public health informatics, and technical capacity building. During 2015-2016, program staff conducted 205 discrete projects on a range of topics, including acute respiratory illnesses, health systems strengthening, infectious diseases at the human-animal interface, and emerging infectious diseases. Projects incorporated multiple core activities, with technical capacity building being most prevalent. Collaborating with host countries to implement such projects promotes public health diplomacy. The GDD Program continues to work with countries to strengthen core capacities so that emerging diseases can be detected and stopped faster and closer to the source, thereby enhancing global health security.

  4. Claim Your Space: Leadership Development as a Research Capacity Building Goal in Global Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Airhihenbuwa, Collins O; Ogedegbe, Gbenga; Iwelunmor, Juliet; Jean-Louis, Girardin; Williams, Natasha; Zizi, Freddy; Okuyemi, Kolawole

    2016-04-01

    As the burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) rises in settings with an equally high burden of infectious diseases in the Global South, a new sense of urgency has developed around research capacity building to promote more effective and sustainable public health and health care systems. In 2010, NCDs accounted for more than 2.06 million deaths in sub-Saharan Africa. Available evidence suggests that the number of people in sub-Saharan Africa with hypertension, a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, will increase by 68% from 75 million in 2008 to 126 million in 2025. Furthermore, about 27.5 million people currently live with diabetes in Africa, and it is estimated that 49.7 million people living with diabetes will reside in Africa by 2030. It is therefore necessary to centralize leadership as a key aspect of research capacity building and strengthening in the Global South in ways that enables researchers to claim their spaces in their own locations. We believe that building capacity for transformative leadership in research will lead to the development of effective and appropriate responses to the multiple burdens of NCDs that coexist with infectious diseases in Africa and the rest of the Global South. © 2016 Society for Public Health Education.

  5. Claim Your Space: Leadership Development as a Research Capacity Building Goal in Global Health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Airhihenbuwa, Collins O.; Ogedegbe, Gbenga; Iwelunmor, Juliet; Jean-Louis, Girardin; Williams, Natasha; Zizi, Freddy; Okuyemi, Kolawole

    2016-01-01

    As the burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) rises in settings with an equally high burden of infectious diseases in the Global South, a new sense of urgency has developed around research capacity building to promote more effective and sustainable public health and health care systems. In 2010, NCDs accounted for more than 2.06 million deaths…

  6. Global building physics

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rode, Carsten

    2013-01-01

    High ambitions are set for the building physics performance of buildings today. No single technology can achieve fulfilment of these ambitions alone. Integrated, multi-facetted solutions and optimization are necessary. A holistic, or ‘global’, technological perspective is needed, which includes all...... aspects of the building as defined in building engineering. We live in an international society and building solutions are developed across country borders. Building physics is a global theme. The International Association of Building Physics has global appeal. This brief article reports the keynote...

  7. Global Building Physics

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rode, Carsten

    2012-01-01

    High ambitions are set for the building physics performance of buildings today. No single technology can achieve fulfilment of these ambitions alone. Integrated, multi-facetted solutions and optimization are necessary. A holistic, or “global”, technological perspective is needed, which includes all...... aspects of the building as defined in building engineering. We live in an international society and building solutions are developed across country borders. Building physics is a global theme. The International Association of Building Physics has global appeal. The keynote lecture and this brief paper...

  8. Bridging Grant : Building Canadian Support for Global Health ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    The Canadian Coalition for Global Health Research (CCGHR) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting research for global health equity. The CCGHR provides a networking and action platform for the Canadian global health research community and partners in low- and middle-income countries. This grant will ...

  9. Capacity building for global health diplomacy: Thailand's experience of trade and health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thaiprayoon, Suriwan; Smith, Richard

    2015-11-01

    A rapid expansion of trade liberalization in Thailand during the 1990s raised a critical question for policy transparency from various stakeholders. Particular attention was paid to a bilateral trade negotiation between Thailand and USA concerned with the impact of the 'Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Rights (TRIPS) plus' provisions on access to medicines. Other trade liberalization effects on health were also concerning health actors. In response, a number of interagency committees were established to engage with trade negotiations. In this respect, Thailand is often cited as a positive example of a country that has proactively sought, and achieved, trade and health policy coherence. This article investigates this relationship in more depth and suggests lessons for wider study and application of global health diplomacy (GHD). This study involved semi-structured interviews with 20 people involved in trade-related health negotiations, together with observation of 9 meetings concerning trade-related health issues. Capacity to engage with trade negotiations appears to have been developed by health actors through several stages; starting from the Individual (I) understanding of trade effects on health, through Nodes (N) that establish the mechanisms to enhance health interests, Networks (N) to advocate for health within these negotiations, and an Enabling environment (E) to retain health officials and further strengthen their capacities to deal with trade-related health issues. This INNE model seems to have worked well in Thailand. However, other contextual factors are also significant. This article suggests that, in building capacity in GHD, it is essential to educate both health and non-health actors on global health issues and to use a combination of formal and informal mechanisms to participate in GHD. And in developing sustainable capacity in GHD, it requires long term commitment and strong leadership from both health and non-health sectors. Published by

  10. Capacity building for global health diplomacy: Thailand’s experience of trade and health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thaiprayoon, Suriwan; Smith, Richard

    2015-01-01

    A rapid expansion of trade liberalization in Thailand during the 1990s raised a critical question for policy transparency from various stakeholders. Particular attention was paid to a bilateral trade negotiation between Thailand and USA concerned with the impact of the ‘Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Rights (TRIPS) plus’ provisions on access to medicines. Other trade liberalization effects on health were also concerning health actors. In response, a number of interagency committees were established to engage with trade negotiations. In this respect, Thailand is often cited as a positive example of a country that has proactively sought, and achieved, trade and health policy coherence. This article investigates this relationship in more depth and suggests lessons for wider study and application of global health diplomacy (GHD). This study involved semi-structured interviews with 20 people involved in trade-related health negotiations, together with observation of 9 meetings concerning trade-related health issues. Capacity to engage with trade negotiations appears to have been developed by health actors through several stages; starting from the Individual (I) understanding of trade effects on health, through Nodes (N) that establish the mechanisms to enhance health interests, Networks (N) to advocate for health within these negotiations, and an Enabling environment (E) to retain health officials and further strengthen their capacities to deal with trade-related health issues. This INNE model seems to have worked well in Thailand. However, other contextual factors are also significant. This article suggests that, in building capacity in GHD, it is essential to educate both health and non-health actors on global health issues and to use a combination of formal and informal mechanisms to participate in GHD. And in developing sustainable capacity in GHD, it requires long term commitment and strong leadership from both health and non-health sectors. PMID

  11. Global health initiative investments and health systems strengthening: a content analysis of global fund investments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Warren, Ashley E; Wyss, Kaspar; Shakarishvili, George; Atun, Rifat; de Savigny, Don

    2013-07-26

    Millions of dollars are invested annually under the umbrella of national health systems strengthening. Global health initiatives provide funding for low- and middle-income countries through disease-oriented programmes while maintaining that the interventions simultaneously strengthen systems. However, it is as yet unclear which, and to what extent, system-level interventions are being funded by these initiatives, nor is it clear how much funding they allocate to disease-specific activities - through conventional 'vertical-programming' approach. Such funding can be channelled to one or more of the health system building blocks while targeting disease(s) or explicitly to system-wide activities. We operationalized the World Health Organization health system framework of the six building blocks to conduct a detailed assessment of Global Fund health system investments. Our application of this framework framework provides a comprehensive quantification of system-level interventions. We applied this systematically to a random subset of 52 of the 139 grants funded in Round 8 of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (totalling approximately US$1 billion). According to the analysis, 37% (US$ 362 million) of the Global Fund Round 8 funding was allocated to health systems strengthening. Of that, 38% (US$ 139 million) was for generic system-level interventions, rather than disease-specific system support. Around 82% of health systems strengthening funding (US$ 296 million) was allocated to service delivery, human resources, and medicines & technology, and within each of these to two to three interventions. Governance, financing, and information building blocks received relatively low funding. This study shows that a substantial portion of Global Fund's Round 8 funds was devoted to health systems strengthening. Dramatic skewing among the health system building blocks suggests opportunities for more balanced investments with regard to governance, financing, and

  12. Equity in Health and Health Financing: Building and Strengthening ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Equity in Health and Health Financing: Building and Strengthening Developing Country Networks. Equity in health is a pressing global concern. Disparities in health status and access to health care within and across countries are both a cause and a consequence of social inequality. Access to health services continues to ...

  13. Building Global Learning Communities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cochrane, Thomas; Buchem, Ilona; Camacho, Mar; Cronin, Catherine; Gordon, Averill; Keegan, Helen

    2013-01-01

    Within the background where education is increasingly driven by the economies of scale and research funding, we propose an alternative online open and connected framework (OOC) for building global learning communities using mobile social media. We critique a three year action research case study involving building collaborative global learning…

  14. Global Oral Health Inequalities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcia, I.; Tabak, L.A.

    2011-01-01

    Despite impressive worldwide improvements in oral health, inequalities in oral health status among and within countries remain a daunting public health challenge. Oral health inequalities arise from a complex web of health determinants, including social, behavioral, economic, genetic, environmental, and health system factors. Eliminating these inequalities cannot be accomplished in isolation of oral health from overall health, or without recognizing that oral health is influenced at multiple individual, family, community, and health systems levels. For several reasons, this is an opportune time for global efforts targeted at reducing oral health inequalities. Global health is increasingly viewed not just as a humanitarian obligation, but also as a vehicle for health diplomacy and part of the broader mission to reduce poverty, build stronger economies, and strengthen global security. Despite the global economic recession, there are trends that portend well for support of global health efforts: increased globalization of research and development, growing investment from private philanthropy, an absolute growth of spending in research and innovation, and an enhanced interest in global health among young people. More systematic and far-reaching efforts will be required to address oral health inequalities through the engagement of oral health funders and sponsors of research, with partners from multiple public and private sectors. The oral health community must be “at the table” with other health disciplines and create opportunities for eliminating inequalities through collaborations that can harness both the intellectual and financial resources of multiple sectors and institutions. PMID:21490232

  15. Polycentrism in Global Health Governance Scholarship; Comment on “Four Challenges That Global Health Networks Face”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jale Tosun

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Drawing on an in-depth analysis of eight global health networks, a recent essay in this journal argued that global health networks face four challenges to their effectiveness: problem definition, positioning, coalition-building, and governance. While sharing the argument of the essay concerned, in this commentary, we argue that these analytical concepts can be used to explicate a concept that has implicitly been used in global health governance scholarship for quite a few years. While already prominent in the discussion of climate change governance, for instance, global health governance scholarship could make progress by looking at global health governance as being polycentric. Concisely, polycentric forms of governance mix scales, mechanisms, and actors. Drawing on the essay, we propose a polycentric approach to the study of global health governance that incorporates coalitionbuilding tactics, internal governance and global political priority as explanatory factors.

  16. Polycentrism in Global Health Governance Scholarship

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tosun, Jale

    2018-01-01

    Drawing on an in-depth analysis of eight global health networks, a recent essay in this journal argued that global health networks face four challenges to their effectiveness: problem definition, positioning, coalition-building, and governance. While sharing the argument of the essay concerned, in this commentary, we argue that these analytical concepts can be used to explicate a concept that has implicitly been used in global health governance scholarship for quite a few years. While already prominent in the discussion of climate change governance, for instance, global health governance scholarship could make progress by looking at global health governance as being polycentric. Concisely, polycentric forms of governance mix scales, mechanisms, and actors. Drawing on the essay, we propose a polycentric approach to the study of global health governance that incorporates coalitionbuilding tactics, internal governance and global political priority as explanatory factors. PMID:29325406

  17. Building Public Health Capacity through Online Global Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Madhok, Rajan; Frank, Erica; Heller, Richard Frederick

    2018-01-01

    Rising disease burden and health inequalities remain global concerns, highlighting the need for health systems strengthening with a sufficient and appropriately trained workforce. The current models for developing such a workforce are inadequate and newer approaches are needed. In this paper we describe a model for public health capacity building…

  18. Global building inventory for earthquake loss estimation and risk management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jaiswal, Kishor; Wald, David; Porter, Keith

    2010-01-01

    We develop a global database of building inventories using taxonomy of global building types for use in near-real-time post-earthquake loss estimation and pre-earthquake risk analysis, for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) program. The database is available for public use, subject to peer review, scrutiny, and open enhancement. On a country-by-country level, it contains estimates of the distribution of building types categorized by material, lateral force resisting system, and occupancy type (residential or nonresidential, urban or rural). The database draws on and harmonizes numerous sources: (1) UN statistics, (2) UN Habitat’s demographic and health survey (DHS) database, (3) national housing censuses, (4) the World Housing Encyclopedia and (5) other literature.

  19. Building Sustainable Local Capacity for Global Health Research in West Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sam-Agudu, Nadia A; Paintsil, Elijah; Aliyu, Muktar H; Kwara, Awewura; Ogunsola, Folasade; Afrane, Yaw A; Onoka, Chima; Awandare, Gordon A; Amponsah, Gladys; Cornelius, Llewellyn J; Mendy, Gabou; Sturke, Rachel; Ghansah, Anita; Siberry, George K; Ezeanolue, Echezona E

    Global health research in resource-limited countries has been largely sponsored and led by foreign institutions. Thus, these countries' training capacity and productivity in global health research is limited. Local participation at all levels of global health knowledge generation promotes equitable access to evidence-based solutions. Additionally, leadership inclusive of competent local professionals promotes best outcomes for local contextualization and implementation of successful global health solutions. Among the sub-Saharan African regions, West Africa in particular lags in research infrastructure, productivity, and impact in global health research. In this paper, experts discuss strategies for scaling up West Africa's participation in global health evidence generation using examples from Ghana and Nigeria. We conducted an online and professional network search to identify grants awarded for global health research and research education in Ghana and Nigeria. Principal investigators, global health educators, and representatives of funding institutions were invited to add their knowledge and expertise with regard to strengthening research capacity in West Africa. While there has been some progress in obtaining foreign funding, foreign institutions still dominate local research. Local research funding opportunities in the 2 countries were found to be insufficient, disjointed, poorly sustained, and inadequately publicized, indicating weak infrastructure. As a result, research training programs produce graduates who ultimately fail to launch independent investigator careers because of lack of mentoring and poor infrastructural support. Research funding and training opportunities in Ghana and Nigeria remain inadequate. We recommend systems-level changes in mentoring, collaboration, and funding to drive the global health research agenda in these countries. Additionally, research training programs should be evaluated not only by numbers of individuals graduated but

  20. A fuzzy-based model to implement the global safety buildings index assessment for agri-food buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francesco Barreca

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available The latest EU policies focus on the issue of food safety with a view to ensuring adequate and standard quality levels for the food produced and/or consumed within the EC. To that purpose, the environment where agricultural products are manufactured and processed plays a crucial role in achieving food hygiene. As a consequence, it is of the outmost importance to adopt proper building solutions which meet health and hygiene requirements as well as to use suitable tools to measure the levels achieved. Similarly, it is necessary to verify and evaluate the level of workers’ safety and welfare in their working environment. Workers’ safety has not only an ethical and social value but also an economic implication, since possible accidents or environmental stressors are the major causes of the lower efficiency and productivity of workers. Therefore, it is fundamental to design suitable models of analysis that allow assessing buildings as a whole, taking into account both health and hygiene safety as well as workers’ safety and welfare. Hence, this paper proposes an assessment model that, based on an established study protocol and on the application of a fuzzy logic procedure, allows assessing the global safety level of an agri-food building by means of a global safety buildings index. The model here presented is original since it uses fuzzy logic to evaluate the performances of both the technical and environmental systems of an agri-food building in terms of health and hygiene safety of the manufacturing process as well as of workers’ health and safety. The result of the assessment is expressed through a triangular fuzzy membership function which allows carrying out comparative analyses of different buildings. A specific procedure was developed to apply the model to a case study which tested its operational simplicity and the validity of its results. The proposed model allows obtaining a synthetic and global value of the building performance of

  1. Building codes: An often overlooked determinant of health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chauvin, James; Pauls, Jake; Strobl, Linda

    2016-05-01

    Although the vast majority of the world's population spends most of their time in buildings, building codes are not often thought of as 'determinants of health'. The standards that govern the design, construction, and use of buildings affect our health, security, safety, and well-being. This is true for dwellings, schools, and universities, shopping centers, places of recreation, places of worship, health-care facilities, and workplaces. We urge proactive engagement by the global public health community in developing these codes, and in the design and implementation of health protection and health promotion activities intended to reduce the risk of injury, disability, and death, particularly when due to poor building code adoption/adaption, application, and enforcement.

  2. The future of global health education: training for equity in global health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lisa V. Adams

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Among academic institutions in the United States, interest in global health has grown substantially: by the number of students seeking global health opportunities at all stages of training, and by the increase in institutional partnerships and newly established centers, institutes, and initiatives to house global health programs at undergraduate, public health and medical schools. Witnessing this remarkable growth should compel health educators to question whether the training and guidance that we provide to students today is appropriate, and whether it will be applicable in the next decade and beyond. Given that “global health” did not exist as an academic discipline in the United States 20 years ago, what can we expect it will look like 20 years from now and how can we prepare for that future? Discussion Most clinicians and trainees today recognize the importance of true partnership and capacity building in both directions for successful international collaborations. The challenge is in the execution of these practices. There are projects around the world where this is occurring and equitable partnerships have been established. Based on our experience and observations of the current landscape of academic global health, we share a perspective on principles of engagement, highlighting instances where partnerships have thrived, and examples of where we, as a global community, have fallen short. Conclusions As the world moves beyond the charity model of global health (and its colonial roots, it is evident that the issue underlying ethical global health practice is partnership and the pursuit of health equity. Thus, achieving equity in global health education and practice ought to be central to our mission as educators and advisors when preparing trainees for careers in this field. Seeking to eliminate health inequities wherever they are ingrained will reveal the injustices around the globe and in our own cities and

  3. The status of adolescent medicine: Building a global adolescent workforce

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Lana; Upadhya, Krishna K; Matson, Pamela; Adger, Hoover; Trent, Maria E

    2016-01-01

    Remarkable public health achievements to reduce infant and child mortality and improve the health and well-being of children worldwide have successfully resulted in increased survival and a growing population of young people aged 10–24 years. Population trends indicate that the current generation of 1.8 billion young people is the largest in history, but there is a scarcity of dedicated resources available to effectively meet the health needs of adolescents and young adults worldwide. Growing recognition of the pivotal roles young people play in the cultures, societies, and countries in which they live has spurred an expanding global movement to address the needs of this special population. Building an effective global workforce of highly-skilled adolescent health professionals who understand the unique biological, psychological, behavioral, social, and environmental factors that impact the health of adolescents is a critical step in addressing the health needs of the growing cohort of young people. In this review, we aim to: 1) Define a global assessment of the health needs for adolescents around the world; 2) Describe examples of current training programs and requirements in Adolescent Medicine; 3) Identify existing gaps and barriers to develop an effective adolescent health workforce; and 4) Develop a call for targeted actions to build capacity of the adolescent health workforce, broaden culturally relevant research and evidence-based intervention strategies, and reinforce existing interdisciplinary global networks of youth advocates and adolescent health professionals to maximize the opportunities for training, research, and care delivery. PMID:26167974

  4. Advancing the right to health through global organizations: The potential role of a Framework Convention on Global Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Friedman, Eric A; Gostin, Lawrence O; Buse, Kent

    2013-06-14

    Organizations, partnerships, and alliances form the building blocks of global governance. Global health organizations thus have the potential to play a formative role in determining the extent to which people are able to realize their right to health. This article examines how major global health organizations, such as WHO, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, UNAIDS, and GAVI approach human rights concerns, including equality, accountability, and inclusive participation. We argue that organizational support for the right to health must transition from ad hoc and partial to permanent and comprehensive. Drawing on the literature and our knowledge of global health organizations, we offer good practices that point to ways in which such agencies can advance the right to health, covering nine areas: 1) participation and representation in governance processes; 2) leadership and organizational ethos; 3) internal policies; 4) norm-setting and promotion; 5) organizational leadership through advocacy and communication; 6) monitoring and accountability; 7) capacity building; 8) funding policies; and 9) partnerships and engagement. In each of these areas, we offer elements of a proposed Framework Convention on Global Health (FCGH), which would commit state parties to support these standards through their board membership and other interactions with these agencies. We also explain how the FCGH could incorporate these organizations into its overall financing framework, initiate a new forum where they collaborate with each other, as well as organizations in other regimes, to advance the right to health, and ensure sufficient funding for right to health capacity building. We urge major global health organizations to follow the leadership of the UN Secretary-General and UNAIDS to champion the FCGH. It is only through a rights-based approach, enshrined in a new Convention, that we can expect to achieve health for all in our lifetimes. Copyright © 2013 Friedman, Gostin

  5. Polycentrism in Global Health Governance Scholarship Comment on "Four Challenges That Global Health Networks Face".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tosun, Jale

    2017-05-23

    Drawing on an in-depth analysis of eight global health networks, a recent essay in this journal argued that global health networks face four challenges to their effectiveness: problem definition, positioning, coalition-building, and governance. While sharing the argument of the essay concerned, in this commentary, we argue that these analytical concepts can be used to explicate a concept that has implicitly been used in global health governance scholarship for quite a few years. While already prominent in the discussion of climate change governance, for instance, global health governance scholarship could make progress by looking at global health governance as being polycentric. Concisely, polycentric forms of governance mix scales, mechanisms, and actors. Drawing on the essay, we propose a polycentric approach to the study of global health governance that incorporates coalitionbuilding tactics, internal governance and global political priority as explanatory factors. © 2018 The Author(s); Published by Kerman University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

  6. Global climate-oriented building energy use scenarios

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Harvey, L.D. Danny

    2014-01-01

    This paper explores the extent to which global fuel use in buildings could be reduced, and the growth in global electricity use in buildings limited, by applying stringent (factor of 3–4) improvements to recent building codes for new buildings worldwide and large (factor of 2–3) reductions in the energy use of existing buildings through renovations. The analysis is carried out for 10 different socio-economic regions of the world, taking into account existing building stock and energy intensities in each region and projected changes in population and income, which in most parts of the world will drive large increases in building floor area. A stock turnover model is applied to project changes in heating, cooling, service hot water (SHW) and non-thermal electricity demand with various rates of improvement in standards for new and renovated buildings, and various rates of renovation and demolition of existing buildings. For a scenario in which population peaks at about 9 billion and global average per capita GDP increases to twice the 2010 value by 2100, the global fuel demand could be reduced by a factor of four while limiting maximum annual electricity demand to twice the 2010 value. - Highlights: • A detailed model for generating global scenarios of building energy use is presented. • Drivers of increasing energy use are population and per capita GDP in 10 regions. • Heating, cooling and ventilation energy uses are projected using a stock turnover model. • Global building fuel demand could decrease by 60–80% by 2100 relative to 2010. • Global building electricity demand could be limited to a 100–200% increase

  7. Canada's global health role: supporting equity and global citizenship as a middle power.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nixon, Stephanie A; Lee, Kelley; Bhutta, Zulfiqar A; Blanchard, James; Haddad, Slim; Hoffman, Steven J; Tugwell, Peter

    2018-02-22

    Canada's history of nation building, combined with its status as a so-called middle power in international affairs, has been translated into an approach to global health that is focused on equity and global citizenship. Canada has often aspired to be a socially progressive force abroad, using alliance building and collective action to exert influence beyond that expected from a country with moderate financial and military resources. Conversely, when Canada has primarily used economic self-interest to define its global role, the country's perceived leadership in global health has diminished. Current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal federal government has signalled a return to progressive values, driven by appreciation for diversity, equality, and Canada's responsibility to be a good global citizen. However, poor coordination of efforts, limited funding, and the unaddressed legacy of Canada's colonisation of Indigenous peoples weaken the potential for Canadians to make meaningful contributions to improvement of global health equity. Amid increased nationalism and uncertainty towards multilateral commitments by some major powers in the world, the Canadian federal government has a clear opportunity to convert its commitments to equity and global citizenship into stronger leadership on the global stage. Such leadership will require the translation of aspirational messages about health equity and inclusion into concrete action at home and internationally. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. A global building inventory for earthquake loss estimation and risk management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jaiswal, K.; Wald, D.; Porter, K.

    2010-01-01

    We develop a global database of building inventories using taxonomy of global building types for use in near-real-time post-earthquake loss estimation and pre-earthquake risk analysis, for the U.S. Geological Survey's Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) program. The database is available for public use, subject to peer review, scrutiny, and open enhancement. On a country-by-country level, it contains estimates of the distribution of building types categorized by material, lateral force resisting system, and occupancy type (residential or nonresidential, urban or rural). The database draws on and harmonizes numerous sources: (1) UN statistics, (2) UN Habitat's demographic and health survey (DHS) database, (3) national housing censuses, (4) the World Housing Encyclopedia and (5) other literature. ?? 2010, Earthquake Engineering Research Institute.

  9. The politics of researching global health politics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rushton, Simon

    2015-01-01

    In this comment, I build on Shiffman’s call for the global health community to more deeply investigate structural and productive power. I highlight two challenges we must grapple with as social scientists carrying out the types of investigation that Shiffman proposes: the politics of challenging the powerful; and the need to investigate types of expertise that have traditionally been thought of as ‘outside’ global health. In doing so, I argue that moving forward with the agenda Shiffman sets out requires social scientists interested in the global politics of health to be reflexive about our own exercise of structural and productive power and the fact that researching global health politics is itself a political undertaking. PMID:25905482

  10. Understanding the impact of global trade liberalization on health systems pursuing universal health coverage.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Missoni, Eduardo

    2013-01-01

    In the context of reemerging universalistic approaches to health care, the objective of this article was to contribute to the discussion by highlighting the potential influence of global trade liberalization on the balance between health demand and the capacity of health systems pursuing universal health coverage (UHC) to supply adequate health care. Being identified as a defining feature of globalization affecting health, trade liberalization is analyzed as a complex and multidimensional influence on the implementation of UHC. The analysis adopts a systems-thinking approach and refers to the six building blocks of World Health Organization's current "framework for action," emphasizing their interconnectedness. While offering new opportunities to increase access to health information and care, in the absence of global governance mechanisms ensuring adequate health protection and promotion, global trade tends to have negative effects on health systems' capacity to ensure UHC, both by causing higher demand and by interfering with the interconnected functioning of health systems' building blocks. The prevention of such an impact and the effective implementation of UHC would highly benefit from a more consistent commitment and stronger leadership by the World Health Organization in protecting health in global policymaking fora in all sectors. Copyright © 2013 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Building global learning communities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Averill Gordon

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available Within the background where education is increasingly driven by the economies of scale and research funding, we propose an alternative online open and connected framework (OOC for building global learning communities using mobile social media. We critique a three year action research case study involving building collaborative global learning communities around a community of practice of learning researchers and practitioners. The results include the development of a framework for utilising mobile social media to support collaborative curriculum development across international boundaries. We conclude that this framework is potentially transferrable to a range of educational contexts where the focus is upon student-generated mobile social media projects.

  12. Building Global Citizenship: Engaging Global Issues, Practicing Civic Skills

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brunell, Laura A.

    2013-01-01

    How can international politics courses be used to generate global civic engagement? The article describes how experiential learning can be used to stimulate student interest in issues of contemporary, global significance and to build students' repertoire of globally and locally relevant civic skills. It describes how students can become active…

  13. Global health and global health ethics

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Benatar, S. R; Brock, Gillian

    2011-01-01

    ...? What are our responsibilities and how can we improve global health? Global Health and Global Health Ethics addresses these questions from the perspective of a range of disciplines, including medicine, philosophy and the social sciences...

  14. Information empowerment: predeparture resource training for students in global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rana, Gurpreet K

    2014-04-01

    The Taubman Health Sciences Library (THL) collaborates with health sciences schools to provide information skills instruction for students preparing for international experiences. THL enhances students' global health learning through predeparture instruction for students who are involved in global health research, clinical internships, and international collaborations. This includes teaching international literature searching skills, providing country-specific data sources, building awareness of relevant mobile resources, and encouraging investigation of international news. Information skills empower creation of stronger global partnerships. Use of information resources has enhanced international research and training experiences, built lifelong learning foundations, and contributed to the university's global engagement. THL continues to assess predeparture instruction.

  15. Management Matters: A Leverage Point for Health Systems Strengthening in Global Health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elizabeth H. Bradley

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Despite a renewed focus in the field of global health on strengthening health systems, inadequate attention has been directed to a key ingredient of high-performing health systems: management. We aimed to develop the argument that management – defined here as the process of achieving predetermined objectives through human, financial, and technical resources – is a cross-cutting function necessary for success in all World Health Organization (WHO building blocks of health systems strengthening. Management within health systems is particularly critical in low-income settings where the efficient use of scarce resources is paramount to attaining health goals. More generally, investments in management capacity may be viewed as a key leverage point in grand strategy, as strong management enables the achievement of large ends with limited means. We also sought to delineate a set of core competencies and identify key roles to be targeted for management capacity building efforts. Several effective examples of management interventions have been described in the research literature. Together, the existing evidence underscores the importance of country ownership of management capacity building efforts, which often challenge the status quo and thus need country leadership to sustain despite inevitable friction. The literature also recognizes that management capacity efforts, as a key ingredient of effective systems change, take time to embed, as new protocols and ways of working become habitual and integrated as standard operating procedures. Despite these challenges, the field of health management as part of global health system strengthening efforts holds promise as a fundamental leverage point for achieving health system performance goals with existing human, technical, and financial resources. The evidence base consistently supports the role of management in performance improvement but would benefit from additional research with improved

  16. New Academic Partnerships in Global Health: Innovations at Mount Sinai School of Medicine

    Science.gov (United States)

    Landrigan, Philip J.; Ripp, Jonathan; Murphy, Ramon J. C.; Claudio, Luz; Jao, Jennifer; Hexom, Braden; Bloom, Harrison G.; Shirazian, Taraneh; Elahi, Ebby; Koplan, Jeffrey P.

    2011-01-01

    Global health has become an increasingly important focus of education, research, and clinical service in North American universities and academic health centers. Today there are at least 49 academically based global health programs in the United States and Canada, as compared with only one in 1999. A new academic society, the Consortium of Universities for Global Health, was established in 2008 and has grown significantly. This sharp expansion reflects convergence of 3 factors: (1) rapidly growing student and faculty interest in global health; (2) growing realization–powerfully catalyzed by the acquired immune deficiency syndrome epidemic, the emergence of other new infections, climate change, and globalization–that health problems are interconnected, cross national borders, and are global in nature; and (3) rapid expansion in resources for global health. This article examines the evolution of the concept of global health and describes the driving forces that have accelerated interest in the field. It traces the development of global health programs in academic health centers in the United States. It presents a blueprint for a new school-wide global health program at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. The mission of that program, Mount Sinai Global Health, is to enhance global health as an academic field of study within the Mount Sinai community and to improve the health of people around the world. Mount Sinai Global Health is uniting and building synergies among strong, existing global health programs within Mount Sinai; it is training the next generation of physicians and health scientists to be leaders in global health; it is making novel discoveries that translate into blueprints for improving health worldwide; and it builds on Mount Sinai’s long and proud tradition of providing medical and surgical care in places where need is great and resources few. PMID:21598272

  17. The Pan-University Network for Global Health: framework for collaboration and review of global health needs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Winchester, M S; BeLue, R; Oni, T; Wittwer-Backofen, U; Deobagkar, D; Onya, H; Samuels, T A; Matthews, S A; Stone, C; Airhihenbuwa, C

    2016-04-21

    In the current United Nations efforts to plan for post 2015-Millennium Development Goals, global partnership to address non-communicable diseases (NCDs) has become a critical goal to effectively respond to the complex global challenges of which inequity in health remains a persistent challenge. Building capacity in terms of well-equipped local researchers and service providers is a key to bridging the inequity in global health. Launched by Penn State University in 2014, the Pan University Network for Global Health responds to this need by bridging researchers at more than 10 universities across the globe. In this paper we outline our framework for international and interdisciplinary collaboration, as well the rationale for our research areas, including a review of these two themes. After its initial meeting, the network has established two central thematic priorities: 1) urbanization and health and 2) the intersection of infectious diseases and NCDs. The urban population in the global south will nearly double in 25 years (approx. 2 billion today to over 3.5 billion by 2040). Urban population growth will have a direct impact on global health, and this growth will be burdened with uneven development and the persistence of urban spatial inequality, including health disparities. The NCD burden, which includes conditions such as hypertension, stroke, and diabetes, is outstripping infectious disease in countries in the global south that are considered to be disproportionately burdened by infectious diseases. Addressing these two priorities demands an interdisciplinary and multi-institutional model to stimulate innovation and synergy that will influence the overall framing of research questions as well as the integration and coordination of research.

  18. Developing empirical collapse fragility functions for global building types

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jaiswal, K.; Wald, D.; D'Ayala, D.

    2011-01-01

    Building collapse is the dominant cause of casualties during earthquakes. In order to better predict human fatalities, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) program requires collapse fragility functions for global building types. The collapse fragility is expressed as the probability of collapse at discrete levels of the input hazard defined in terms of macroseismic intensity. This article provides a simple procedure for quantifying collapse fragility using vulnerability criteria based on the European Macroseismic Scale (1998) for selected European building types. In addition, the collapse fragility functions are developed for global building types by fitting the beta distribution to the multiple experts’ estimates for the same building type (obtained from EERI’s World Housing Encyclopedia (WHE)-PAGER survey). Finally, using the collapse probability distributions at each shaking intensity level as a prior and field-based collapse-rate observations as likelihood, it is possible to update the collapse fragility functions for global building types using the Bayesian procedure.

  19. Green Buildings and Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Allen, Joseph G; MacNaughton, Piers; Laurent, Jose Guillermo Cedeno; Flanigan, Skye S; Eitland, Erika Sita; Spengler, John D

    2015-09-01

    Green building design is becoming broadly adopted, with one green building standard reporting over 3.5 billion square feet certified to date. By definition, green buildings focus on minimizing impacts to the environment through reductions in energy usage, water usage, and minimizing environmental disturbances from the building site. Also by definition, but perhaps less widely recognized, green buildings aim to improve human health through design of healthy indoor environments. The benefits related to reduced energy and water consumption are well-documented, but the potential human health benefits of green buildings are only recently being investigated. The objective of our review was to examine the state of evidence on green building design as it specifically relates to indoor environmental quality and human health. Overall, the initial scientific evidence indicates better indoor environmental quality in green buildings versus non-green buildings, with direct benefits to human health for occupants of those buildings. A limitation of much of the research to date is the reliance on indirect, lagging and subjective measures of health. To address this, we propose a framework for identifying direct, objective and leading "Health Performance Indicators" for use in future studies of buildings and health.

  20. Health promotion: An effective tool for global health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sanjiv Kumar

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Health promotion is very relevant today. There is a global acceptance that health and social wellbeing are determined by many factors outside the health system which include socioeconomic conditions, patterns of consumption associated with food and communication, demographic patterns, learning environments, family patterns, the cultural and social fabric of societies; sociopolitical and economic changes, including commercialization and trade and global environmental change. In such a situation, health issues can be effectively addressed by adopting a holistic approach by empowering individuals and communities to take action for their health, fostering leadership for public health, promoting intersectoral action to build healthy public policies in all sectors and creating sustainable health systems. Although, not a new concept, health promotion received an impetus following Alma Ata declaration. Recently it has evolved through a series of international conferences, with the first conference in Canada producing the famous Ottawa charter. Efforts at promoting health encompassing actions at individual and community levels, health system strengthening and multi sectoral partnership can be directed at specific health conditions. It should also include settings-based approach to promote health in specific settings such as schools, hospitals, workplaces, residential areas etc. Health promotion needs to be built into all the policies and if utilized efficiently will lead to positive health outcomes.

  1. Operationalizing the One Health approach: the global governance challenges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Kelley; Brumme, Zabrina L

    2013-10-01

    While there has been wide-ranging commitment to the One Health approach, its operationalisation has so far proven challenging. One Health calls upon the human, animal and environmental health sectors to cross professional, disciplinary and institutional boundaries, and to work in a more integrated fashion. At the global level, this paper argues that this vision is hindered by dysfunctions characterising current forms of global health governance (GHG), namely institutional proliferation, fragmentation, competition for scarce resources, lack of an overarching authority, and donor-driven vertical programmes. This has contributed, in part, to shortcomings in how One Health has been articulated to date. An agreed operational definition of One Health among key global institutions, efforts to build One Health institutions from the ground up, comparative case studies of what works or does not work institutionally, and high-level global support for research, training and career opportunities would all help to enable One Health to help remedy, and not be subsumed by, existing dysfunctions in GHG.

  2. Tobacco industry globalization and global health governance: towards an interdisciplinary research agenda

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Kelley; Eckhardt, Jappe; Holden, Chris

    2016-01-01

    Shifting patterns of tobacco production and consumption, and the resultant disease burden worldwide since the late twentieth century, prompted efforts to strengthen global health governance through adoption of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. While the treaty is rightfully considered an important achievement, to address a neglected public health issue through collective action, evidence suggests that tobacco industry globalization continues apace. In this article, we provide a systematic review of the public health literature and reveal definitional and measurement imprecision, ahistorical timeframes, transnational tobacco companies and the state as the primary units and levels of analysis, and a strong emphasis on agency as opposed to structural power. Drawing on the study of globalization in international political economy and business studies, we identify opportunities to expand analysis along each of these dimensions. We conclude that this expanded and interdisciplinary research agenda provides the potential for fuller understanding of the dual and dynamic relationship between the tobacco industry and globalization. Deeper analysis of how the industry has adapted to globalization over time, as well as how the industry has influenced the nature and trajectory of globalization, is essential for building effective global governance responses. This article is published as part of a thematic collection dedicated to global governance. PMID:28458910

  3. Tobacco industry globalization and global health governance: towards an interdisciplinary research agenda.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Kelley; Eckhardt, Jappe; Holden, Chris

    2016-01-01

    Shifting patterns of tobacco production and consumption, and the resultant disease burden worldwide since the late twentieth century, prompted efforts to strengthen global health governance through adoption of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. While the treaty is rightfully considered an important achievement, to address a neglected public health issue through collective action, evidence suggests that tobacco industry globalization continues apace. In this article, we provide a systematic review of the public health literature and reveal definitional and measurement imprecision, ahistorical timeframes, transnational tobacco companies and the state as the primary units and levels of analysis, and a strong emphasis on agency as opposed to structural power. Drawing on the study of globalization in international political economy and business studies, we identify opportunities to expand analysis along each of these dimensions. We conclude that this expanded and interdisciplinary research agenda provides the potential for fuller understanding of the dual and dynamic relationship between the tobacco industry and globalization. Deeper analysis of how the industry has adapted to globalization over time, as well as how the industry has influenced the nature and trajectory of globalization, is essential for building effective global governance responses. This article is published as part of a thematic collection dedicated to global governance.

  4. Applying a global justice lens to health systems research ethics: an initial exploration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pratt, Bridget; Hyder, Adnan A

    2015-03-01

    Recent scholarship has considered what, if anything, rich people owe to poor people to achieve justice in global health and the implications of this for international research. Yet this work has primarily focused on international clinical research. Health systems research is increasingly being performed in low and middle income countries and is essential to reducing global health disparities. This paper provides an initial description of the ethical issues related to priority setting, capacity-building, and the provision of post-study benefits that arise during the conduct of such research. It presents a selection of issues discussed in the health systems research literature and argues that they constitute ethical concerns based on their being inconsistent with a particular theory of global justice (the health capability paradigm). Issues identified include the fact that priority setting for health systems research at the global level is often not driven by national priorities and that capacity-building efforts frequently utilize one-size-fits-all approaches.

  5. Post-Colonial Nation Building, Global Governance, Globalisation ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Post-Colonial Nation Building, Global Governance, Globalisation and Development in Nigeria and Africa. ... PROMOTING ACCESS TO AFRICAN RESEARCH ... A common route that nations take is that of nation building, especially within the ...

  6. The Global Health Service Partnership: An Academic–Clinical Partnership to Build Nursing and Medical Capacity in Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eileen M. Stuart-Shor

    2017-07-01

    translation of evidence to practice through implementation science are included. Findings from the first 3 years of GHSP suggest that an innovative, locally tailored and culturally appropriate multi-country academic–clinical partnership program that addresses national health priorities is feasible and generated new knowledge and best practices relevant to capacity building for nursing and medical education. This in turn has implications for improving the health of populations who suffer a disproportionate burden of global disease.

  7. Building Resilience in Families, Communities, and Organizations: A Training Program in Global Mental Health and Psychosocial Support.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saul, Jack; Simon, Winnifred

    2016-12-01

    This article describes the Summer Institute in Global Mental Health and Psychosocial Support, a brief immersion training program for mental health, health, and allied professionals who work with populations that have endured severe adversities and trauma, such as domestic and political violence, extreme poverty, armed conflict, epidemics, and natural disasters. The course taught participants to apply collaborative and contextually sensitive approaches to enhance social connectedness and resilience in families, communities, and organizations. This article presents core training principles and vignettes which illustrate how those engaging in such interventions must: (1) work in the context of a strong and supportive organization; (2) appreciate the complexity of the systems with which they are engaging; and (3) be open to the possibilities for healing and transformation. The program utilized a combination of didactic presentations, hands-on interactive exercises, case studies, and experiential approaches to organizational team building and staff stress management. © 2016 Family Process Institute.

  8. Building-related health impacts in European and Chinese cities

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tuomisto, Jouni T; Niittynen, Marjo; Pärjälä, Erkki

    2015-01-01

    consumption of buildings. In addition, the model should be usable for policy comparisons by non-health experts on city level with city-specific data, it should give guidance on the particular climate mitigation questions but at the same time increase understanding on the related health impacts and the model......BACKGROUND: Public health is often affected by societal decisions that are not primarily about health. Climate change mitigation requires intensive actions to minimise greenhouse gas emissions in the future. Many of these actions take place in cities due to their traffic, buildings, and energy...... consumption. Active climate mitigation policies will also, aside of their long term global impacts, have short term local impacts, both positive and negative, on public health. Our main objective was to develop a generic open impact model to estimate health impacts of emissions due to heat and power...

  9. Asset-Based Community Development as a Strategy for Developing Local Global Health Curricula.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Webber, Sarah; Butteris, Sabrina M; Houser, Laura; Coller, Karen; Coller, Ryan J

    2018-02-07

    A significant and growing proportion of US children have immigrant parents, an issue of increasing importance to pediatricians. Training globally minded pediatric residents to address health inequities related to globalization is an important reason to expand educational strategies around local global health (LGH). We developed a curriculum in the pediatric global health residency track at the University of Wisconsin in an effort to address gaps in LGH education and to increase resident knowledge about local health disparities for global community members. This curriculum was founded in asset-based community development (ABCD), a strategy used in advocacy training but not reported in global health education. The initial curriculum outputs have provided the foundation for a longitudinal LGH curriculum and a community-academic partnership. Supported by a community partnership grant, this partnership is focused on establishing a community-based postpartum support group for local Latinos, with an emphasis on building capacity in the Latino community. Aspects of this curriculum can serve other programs looking to develop LGH curricula rooted in building local partnerships and capacity using an ABCD model. Copyright © 2018 Academic Pediatric Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. Developing a holistic policy and intervention framework for global mental health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khenti, Akwatu; Fréel, Stéfanie; Trainor, Ruth; Mohamoud, Sirad; Diaz, Pablo; Suh, Erica; Bobbili, Sireesha J; Sapag, Jaime C

    2016-02-01

    There are significant gaps in the accessibility and quality of mental health services around the globe. A wide range of institutions are addressing the challenges, but there is limited reflection and evaluation on the various approaches, how they compare with each other, and conclusions regarding the most effective approach for particular settings. This article presents a framework for global mental health capacity building that could potentially serve as a promising or best practice in the field. The framework is the outcome of a decade of collaborative global health work at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) (Ontario, Canada). The framework is grounded in scientific evidence, relevant learning and behavioural theories and the underlying principles of health equity and human rights. Grounded in CAMH's research, programme evaluation and practical experience in developing and implementing mental health capacity building interventions, this article presents the iterative learning process and impetus that formed the basis of the framework. A developmental evaluation (Patton M.2010. Developmental Evaluation: Applying Complexity Concepts to Enhance Innovation and Use. New York: Guilford Press.) approach was used to build the framework, as global mental health collaboration occurs in complex or uncertain environments and evolving learning systems. A multilevel framework consists of five central components: (1) holistic health, (2) cultural and socioeconomic relevance, (3) partnerships, (4) collaborative action-based education and learning and (5) sustainability. The framework's practical application is illustrated through the presentation of three international case studies and four policy implications. Lessons learned, limitations and future opportunities are also discussed. The holistic policy and intervention framework for global mental health reflects an iterative learning process that can be applied and scaled up across different settings through

  11. Anthropology, knowledge-flows and global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feierman, S; Kleinman, A; Stewart, K; Farmer, D; Das, V

    2010-01-01

    Global health programmes are damaged by blockages in the upward flow of information from localities and regional centres about realities of professional practice and about patients' lives and conditions of treatment. Power differentials between local actors and national or international decision-makers present further obstacles to effective action. Anthropological research and action, in its most effective current forms, make important contributions to these issues. This research often continues over the long term, intensively. It can be multi-sited, studying actors at local, national and international levels simultaneously. It studies the relative knowledge and power of impoverished patients and global decision-makers, all within a single frame. By doing so, anthropological research is capable of providing new and important insights on the diverse meanings of patient decision-making, informed consent, non-compliance, public health reporting, the building of political coalitions for health and many other issues.

  12. Global oral health inequalities: the view from a research funder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcia, I; Tabak, L A

    2011-05-01

    Despite impressive worldwide improvements in oral health, inequalities in oral health status among and within countries remain a daunting public health challenge. Oral health inequalities arise from a complex web of health determinants, including social, behavioral, economic, genetic, environmental, and health system factors. Eliminating these inequalities cannot be accomplished in isolation of oral health from overall health, or without recognizing that oral health is influenced at multiple individual, family, community, and health systems levels. For several reasons, this is an opportune time for global efforts targeted at reducing oral health inequalities. Global health is increasingly viewed not just as a humanitarian obligation, but also as a vehicle for health diplomacy and part of the broader mission to reduce poverty, build stronger economies, and strengthen global security. Despite the global economic recession, there are trends that portend well for support of global health efforts: increased globalization of research and development, growing investment from private philanthropy, an absolute growth of spending in research and innovation, and an enhanced interest in global health among young people. More systematic and far-reaching efforts will be required to address oral health inequalities through the engagement of oral health funders and sponsors of research, with partners from multiple public and private sectors. The oral health community must be "at the table" with other health disciplines and create opportunities for eliminating inequalities through collaborations that can harness both the intellectual and financial resources of multiple sectors and institutions.

  13. Global mental health and neuroscience: potential synergies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stein, Dan J; He, Yanling; Phillips, Anthony; Sahakian, Barbara J; Williams, John; Patel, Vikram

    2015-02-01

    Global mental health has emerged as an important specialty. It has drawn attention to the burden of mental illness and to the relative gap in mental health research and services around the world. Global mental health has raised the question of whether this gap is a developmental issue, a health issue, a human rights issue, or a combination of these issues-and it has raised awareness of the need to develop new approaches for building capacity, mobilising resources, and closing the research and treatment gap. Translational neuroscience has also advanced. It comprises an important conceptual approach to understanding the neurocircuitry and molecular basis of mental disorders, to rethinking how best to undertake research on the aetiology, assessment, and treatment of these disorders, with the ultimate aim to develop entirely new approaches to prevention and intervention. Some apparent contrasts exist between these fields; global mental health emphasises knowledge translation, moving away from the bedside to a focus on health systems, whereas translational neuroscience emphasises molecular neuroscience, focusing on transitions between the bench and bedside. Meanwhile, important opportunities exist for synergy between the two paradigms, to ensure that present opportunities in mental health research and services are maximised. Here, we review the approaches of global mental health and clinical neuroscience to diagnosis, pathogenesis, and intervention, and make recommendations for facilitating an integration of these two perspectives. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Beyond Watches and Chocolate-Global Mental Health Elective in Switzerland.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schneeberger, Andres R; Weiss, Andrea; von Blumenthal, Suzanne; Lang, Undine E; Huber, Christian G; Schwartz, Bruce J

    2016-08-01

    Despite increasing interest in global mental health training opportunities, only a few psychiatry residency programs offer global mental health training experiences in developing countries and even fewer programs offer it in other first-world countries. The authors developed a global mental health elective giving US psychiatry residents the opportunity to visit Switzerland to study and experience the mental health care system in this European country. This elective focuses on four major learning objectives: (1) the system of training and curriculum of postgraduate psychiatry education in Switzerland, (2) clinical and organizational aspects of Swiss mental health, (3) administrative aspects of Swiss mental health care delivery, and (4) scholarly activity. This program was uniquely tailored for psychiatry residents. The preliminary experiences with US psychiatry residents show that they value this learning experience, the opportunity to access a different mental health care system, as well as the potential to build international connections with peers.

  15. Good collaborative practice: reforming capacity building governance of international health research partnerships.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ward, Claire Leonie; Shaw, David; Sprumont, Dominique; Sankoh, Osman; Tanner, Marcel; Elger, Bernice

    2018-01-08

    In line with the policy objectives of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, this commentary seeks to examine the extent to which provisions of international health research guidance promote capacity building and equitable partnerships in global health research. Our evaluation finds that governance of collaborative research partnerships, and in particular capacity building, in resource-constrained settings is limited but has improved with the implementation guidance of the International Ethical Guidelines for Health-related Research Involving Humans by The Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS) (2016). However, more clarity is needed in national legislation, industry and ethics guidelines, and regulatory provisions to address the structural inequities and power imbalances inherent in international health research partnerships. Most notably, ethical partnership governance is not supported by the principal industry ethics guidelines - the International Conference on Harmonization Technical Requirements for Registration of Pharmaceutical for Human Use (ICH) Good Clinical Practice (ICH-GCP). Given the strategic value of ICH-GCP guidelines in defining the role and responsibility of global health research partners, we conclude that such governance should stipulate the minimal requirements for creating an equitable environment of inclusion, mutual learning, transparency and accountability. Procedurally, this can be supported by i) shared research agenda setting with local leadership, ii) capacity assessments, and iii) construction of a memorandum of understanding (MoU). Moreover, the requirement of capacity building needs to be coordinated amongst partners to support good collaborative practice and deliver on the public health goals of the research enterprise; improving local conditions of health and reducing global health inequality. In this respect, and in order to develop consistency between sources of research governance, ICH

  16. US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Its Partners' Contributions to Global Health Security.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tappero, Jordan W; Cassell, Cynthia H; Bunnell, Rebecca E; Angulo, Frederick J; Craig, Allen; Pesik, Nicki; Dahl, Benjamin A; Ijaz, Kashef; Jafari, Hamid; Martin, Rebecca

    2017-12-01

    To achieve compliance with the revised World Health Organization International Health Regulations (IHR 2005), countries must be able to rapidly prevent, detect, and respond to public health threats. Most nations, however, remain unprepared to manage and control complex health emergencies, whether due to natural disasters, emerging infectious disease outbreaks, or the inadvertent or intentional release of highly pathogenic organisms. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) works with countries and partners to build and strengthen global health security preparedness so they can quickly respond to public health crises. This report highlights selected CDC global health protection platform accomplishments that help mitigate global health threats and build core, cross-cutting capacity to identify and contain disease outbreaks at their source. CDC contributions support country efforts to achieve IHR 2005 compliance, contribute to the international framework for countering infectious disease crises, and enhance health security for Americans and populations around the world.

  17. Where We Fall Down: Tensions in Teaching Social Medicine and Global Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Finnegan, Amy; Morse, Michelle; Nadas, Marisa; Westerhaus, Michael

    As global health interest has risen, so too has the relevance of education on the social determinants of health and health equity. Social medicine offers a particularly salient framework for educating on the social determinants of health, health disparities, and health equity. SocMed and EqualHealth, 2 unique but related organizations, offer annual global health courses in Uganda, Haiti, and the United States, which train students to understand and respond to the social determinants of health through praxis, self-reflection and self-awareness, and building collaborative partnerships across difference. The aim of this paper is to describe an innovative pedagogical approach to teaching social medicine and global health. We draw on the notion of praxis, which illuminates the value of iterative reflection and action, to critically examine our points of weakness as educators in order to derive lessons with broad applicability for those engaged in global health work. The data for this paper were collected through an autoethnography of teaching 10 global health social medicine courses in Uganda and Haiti since 2010. It draws on revealing descriptions from participant observation, student feedback collected in anonymous course evaluations, and ongoing relationships with alumni. Critical analysis reveals 3 significant and complicated tensions raised by our courses. The first point of weakness pertains to issues of course ownership by North American outsiders. The second tension emerges from explicit acknowledgment of social and economic inequities among our students and faculty. Finally, there are ongoing challenges of sustaining positive momentum toward social change after transformative course experiences. Although successful in generating transformative learning experiences, these courses expose significant fracture points worth interrogating as educators, activists, and global health practitioners. Ultimately, we have identified a need for building equitable

  18. Implications of global warming on human health

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Singh, R.K.; Syam, P.V.S.

    1997-01-01

    Due to the build up of green house gases in atmosphere, less heat escapes through the atmosphere promoting global warming. This may result in world wide droughts, sea-level rise inundating islands and coastal countries, cataclysmic hurricanes etc. Human health as a result of these changes, will be affected both physiologically and psychologically. Physiological effects may be more pronounced in cases occurring due to changes in rainfall and temperature patterns, food production amounts, water availability, etc. Psychological impact may be more in cases of catastrophes like floods, hurricanes or famine. In this paper, an attempt has been made to highlight the implications of global warming on human health due to temperature change. Food production changes and ultra-violet radiation effects and cataclysmic disaster effects. (author)

  19. Medicalization of global health 2: The medicalization of global mental health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clark, Jocalyn

    2014-01-01

    Once an orphan field, 'global mental health' now has wide acknowledgement and prominence on the global health agenda. Increased recognition draws needed attention to individual suffering and the population impacts, but medicalizing global mental health produces a narrow view of the problems and solutions. Early framing by advocates of the global mental health problem emphasised biological disease, linked psychiatry with neurology, and reinforced categories of mental health disorders. Universality of biomedical concepts across culture is assumed in the globalisation of mental health but is strongly disputed by transcultural psychiatrists and anthropologists. Global mental health movement priorities take an individualised view, emphasising treatment and scale-up and neglecting social and structural determinants of health. To meet international targets and address the problem's broad social and cultural dimensions, the global mental health movement and advocates must develop more comprehensive strategies and include more diverse perspectives.

  20. Building Partnerships to Promote Global Health Equity: Takeaways from the 6th Annual Symposium

    Science.gov (United States)

    CGH celebrated yet another successful and inspiring Annual Symposium on Global Cancer Research (ASGCR) held in conjunction with the 9th Annual CUGH (Consortium of University on Global Health) Conference on March 15, 2018 in New York, NY. Read more about ASGCR and new global collaborations in cancer research.

  1. Estimating Solar Energy Potential in Buildings on a Global Level

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petrichenko, Ksenia

    2015-01-01

    This chapter contributes to the debate around net-zero energy concept from a global perspective. By means of comprehensive modelling, it analyses how much global building energy consumption could be reduced through utilisation of building-integrated solar energy technologies and energy......-efficiency improvements. Valuable insights on the locations and building types, in which it is feasible to achieve a net-zero level of energy performance through solar energy utilisation, are presented in world maps....

  2. Four Challenges That Global Health Networks Face

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jeremy Shiffman

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Global health networks, webs of individuals and organizations with a shared concern for a particular condition, have proliferated over the past quarter century. They differ in their effectiveness, a factor that may help explain why resource allocations vary across health conditions and do not correspond closely with disease burden. Drawing on findings from recently concluded studies of eight global health networks—addressing alcohol harm, early childhood development (ECD, maternal mortality, neonatal mortality, pneumonia, surgically-treatable conditions, tobacco use, and tuberculosis—I identify four challenges that networks face in generating attention and resources for the conditions that concern them. The first is problem definition: generating consensus on what the problem is and how it should be addressed. The second is positioning: portraying the issue in ways that inspire external audiences to act. The third is coalition-building: forging alliances with these external actors, particularly ones outside the health sector. The fourth is governance: establishing institutions to facilitate collective action. Research indicates that global health networks that effectively tackle these challenges are more likely to garner support to address the conditions that concern them. In addition to the effectiveness of networks, I also consider their legitimacy, identifying reasons both to affirm and to question their right to exert power.

  3. Global health equity and climate stabilisation: a common agenda.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Friel, Sharon; Marmot, Michael; McMichael, Anthony J; Kjellstrom, Tord; Vågerö, Denny

    2008-11-08

    Although health has improved for many people, the extent of health inequities between and within countries is growing. Meanwhile, humankind is disrupting the global climate and other life-supporting environmental systems, thereby creating serious risks for health and wellbeing, especially in vulnerable populations but ultimately for everybody. Underlying determinants of health inequity and environmental change overlap substantially; they are signs of an economic system predicated on asymmetric growth and competition, shaped by market forces that mostly disregard health and environmental consequences rather than by values of fairness and support. A shift is needed in priorities in economic development towards healthy forms of urbanisation, more efficient and renewable energy sources, and a sustainable and fairer food system. Global interconnectedness and interdependence enable the social and environmental determinants of health to be addressed in ways that will increase health equity, reduce poverty, and build societies that live within environmental limits.

  4. Building a global business continuity programme.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lazcano, Michael

    2014-01-01

    Business continuity programmes provide an important function within organisations, especially when aligned with and supportive of the organisation's goals, objectives and organisational culture. Continuity programmes for large, complex international organisations, unlike those for compact national companies, are more difficult to design, build, implement and maintain. Programmes for international organisations require attention to structural design, support across organisational leadership and hierarchy, seamless integration with the organisation's culture, measured success and demonstrated value. This paper details practical, but sometimes overlooked considerations for building successful global business continuity programmes.

  5. The Cuba–United States Thaw: Building Bridges through Science and Global Health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bausch, Daniel G.; Kouri, Vivian; Resik, Sonia; Acosta, Belsy; Guillen, Gerardo; Goraleski, Karen; Espinal, Marcos; Guzman, Maria G.

    2017-01-01

    Beginning in 2014, there has been significant progress in normalization of relations between Cuba and the United States. Herein, we discuss the history and recent progress in scientific collaboration between the two countries as well as the continued challenges. Science and global health diplomacy can be key tools in reestablishing a trusting and productive relationship of mutual and global benefit, bringing about better and healthier lives for people in both Cuba and the United States. PMID:28719268

  6. The Cuba-United States Thaw: Building Bridges Through Science and Global Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bausch, Daniel G; Kouri, Vivian; Resik, Sonia; Acosta, Belsy; Guillen, Gerardo; Goraleski, Karen; Espinal, Marcos; Guzman, Maria G

    2017-06-01

    AbstractBeginning in 2014, there has been significant progress in normalization of relations between Cuba and the United States. Herein, we discuss the history and recent progress in scientific collaboration between the two countries as well as the continued challenges. Science and global health diplomacy can be key tools in reestablishing a trusting and productive relationship of mutual and global benefit, bringing about better and healthier lives for people in both Cuba and the United States.

  7. Global Health Security

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2017-09-21

    Dr. Jordan Tappero, a CDC senior advisor on global health, discusses the state of global health security.  Created: 9/21/2017 by National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID), Center for Global Health (CGH).   Date Released: 9/21/2017.

  8. The Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN): Putting the Pieces Together

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, H.; Shumake, J.; Trtanj, J.

    2017-12-01

    Human exposure to extreme heat is one of the principal and most manageable impacts of climate on human health. Yet, every year worldwide, tens of thousands of people die as a result of avoidable heat-induced health consequences and countless others experience reduced labor productivity, physiological stress and ill health. The IPCC predicts with high confidence, that the observed trend of longer lasting, more frequent, more intense, and earlier onset heat waves will continue into the future. This situation requires the global health community to aggressively confront this recognized risk. Many countries and cities worldwide have developed heat action plans or heat health early warning systems, but these efforts are only connected in an ad-hoc fashion, use a broad range of non-standardized tools, methods, and approaches, and lack a clear mechanism to learn from each other in order to more rapidly advance health protection. To address this gap and accelerate heat health protection, the Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN) was launched in June 2016, by the WMO/WHO joint office for Climate and Health and the NOAA Climate Program Office. GHHIN is envisioned to be an independent, voluntary, member driven forum of scientists, professionals, and policymakers focused on enhancing and multiplying the global and local learning and resilience-building for heat health that is already occurring. GHHIN seeks to serve as a catalyst, knowledge broker, disseminator of good practices, and a forum for facilitating exchange and identifying needs. GHHIN will promote evidence-driven interventions, shared-learning, co-production of information, synthesis of priorities and capacity building to empower actors to take more effective and informed life-saving preparedness and planning measures. GHHIN is working toward several activities in 2018. The first Global Heat Health Synthesis report will be published to synthesize the state of science and practice to monitor, predict, and

  9. Global eHealth, Social Business and Citizen Engagement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liaw, Siaw-Teng; Ashraf, Mahfuz; Ray, Pradeep

    2017-01-01

    The UNSW WHO Collaborating Centre (WHOCC) in eHealth was established in 2013. Its designated activities are: mHealth and evidence-based evaluation, including use case analyses. The UNSW Yunus Social Business Health Hub (YSBHH), established in 2015 to build on the Yunus Centre/Grameen Bank eHealth initiatives, added social business and community participation dimensions to the UNSW global eHealth program. The Grameen Bank is a social business built around microcredit, which are small loans to poor people to enable them to "produce something, sell something, earn something to develop self-reliance and a life of dignity". The vision revolves around global partnerships for development, Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The scope includes mHealth implementation and evaluation in the context of the Internet of Things (IoT), with a growing focus on social business and citizen engagement approaches. This paper summarises a critical case study of the UNSW WHOCC (eHealth) designated activities in collaboration with Bangladesh institutions (International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDRB) and Yunus Centre). Issues and challenges are highlighted.

  10. Building our global family--achieving treatment for all.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Skinner, M W

    2010-07-01

    Building our global family by reaching out to women, children and youth and those in sub-Saharan Africa to achieve Treatment for All. The World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH) has committed to recognizing and incorporating the critical and important challenges that are faced by women with bleeding disorders within our global family. The next crucial steps include the development of outreach and registry programmes which can be adapted globally to accelerate the identification of such women, and to educate and guide them to the appropriate clinical care setting. Equally important, awareness must be raised within the broader medical community where women would typically first present with clinical symptoms. Family practitioners, nurse-midwives, obstetricians, gynaecologists and community health clinics will increasingly be strategic and central to WFH outreach efforts, in addition to serving as new care partners essential to the multidisciplinary model of care. Adapting and implementing the WFH development model regionally within Africa is proving to be a successful approach both for the introduction as well as the development of sustainable national care programmes for patients with bleeding disorders. The targeted development of solid national programmes such as in South Africa, Senegal and Kenya has expanded the training capacity of the WFH, as well as providing key regional examples. Local medical professionals are now responsible for providing the training in many regional programmes. Children with bleeding disorders in low-income countries are at great risk of dying young. WFH data demonstrate that among such patients, as the economic capacity of a country decreases so does the ratio of adults to children. The organization of care, training of a multi-disciplinary healthcare team, and education of patients and their families lead to improved mortality independent of economic capacity or increased clotting factor concentrate availability. Additionally, through

  11. Gaps in studies of global health education: an empirical literature review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yan Liu

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Background: Global health has stimulated a lot of students and has attracted the interest of many faculties, thereby initiating the establishment of many academic programs on global health research and education. global health education reflects the increasing attention toward social accountability in medical education. Objective: This study aims to identify gaps in the studies on global health education. Design: A critical literature review of empirical studies was conducted using Boolean search techniques. Results: A total of 238 articles, including 16 reviews, were identified. There had been a boom in the numbers of studies on global health education since 2010. Four gaps were summarized. First, 94.6% of all studies on global health education were conducted in North American and European countries, of which 65.6% were carried out in the United States, followed by Canada (14.3% and the United Kingdom (9.2%. Only seven studies (2.9% were conducted in Asian countries, five (2.1% in Oceania, and two (0.8% in South American/Caribbean countries. A total of 154 studies (64.4% were qualitative studies and 64 studies (26.8% were quantitative studies. Second, elective courses and training or programs were the most frequently used approach for global health education. Third, there was a gap in the standardization of global health education. Finally, it was mainly targeted at medical students, residents, and doctors. It had not granted the demands for global health education of all students majoring in medicine-related studies. Conclusions: Global health education would be a potentially influential tool for achieving health equity, reducing health disparities, and also for future professional careers. It is the time to build and expand education in global health, especially among developing countries. Global health education should be integrated into primary medical education. Interdisciplinary approaches and interprofessional collaboration were

  12. Promoting health equity: WHO health inequality monitoring at global and national levels

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hosseinpoor, Ahmad Reza; Bergen, Nicole; Schlotheuber, Anne

    2015-01-01

    Background Health equity is a priority in the post-2015 sustainable development agenda and other major health initiatives. The World Health Organization (WHO) has a history of promoting actions to achieve equity in health, including efforts to encourage the practice of health inequality monitoring. Health inequality monitoring systems use disaggregated data to identify disadvantaged subgroups within populations and inform equity-oriented health policies, programs, and practices. Objective This paper provides an overview of a number of recent and current WHO initiatives related to health inequality monitoring at the global and/or national level. Design We outline the scope, content, and intended uses/application of the following: Health Equity Monitor database and theme page; State of inequality: reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health report; Handbook on health inequality monitoring: with a focus on low- and middle-income countries; Health inequality monitoring eLearning module; Monitoring health inequality: an essential step for achieving health equity advocacy booklet and accompanying video series; and capacity building workshops conducted in WHO Member States and Regions. Conclusions The paper concludes by considering how the work of the WHO can be expanded upon to promote the establishment of sustainable and robust inequality monitoring systems across a variety of health topics among Member States and at the global level. PMID:26387506

  13. Promoting health equity: WHO health inequality monitoring at global and national levels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hosseinpoor, Ahmad Reza; Bergen, Nicole; Schlotheuber, Anne

    2015-01-01

    Health equity is a priority in the post-2015 sustainable development agenda and other major health initiatives. The World Health Organization (WHO) has a history of promoting actions to achieve equity in health, including efforts to encourage the practice of health inequality monitoring. Health inequality monitoring systems use disaggregated data to identify disadvantaged subgroups within populations and inform equity-oriented health policies, programs, and practices. This paper provides an overview of a number of recent and current WHO initiatives related to health inequality monitoring at the global and/or national level. We outline the scope, content, and intended uses/application of the following: Health Equity Monitor database and theme page; State of inequality: reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health report; Handbook on health inequality monitoring: with a focus on low- and middle-income countries; Health inequality monitoring eLearning module; Monitoring health inequality: an essential step for achieving health equity advocacy booklet and accompanying video series; and capacity building workshops conducted in WHO Member States and Regions. The paper concludes by considering how the work of the WHO can be expanded upon to promote the establishment of sustainable and robust inequality monitoring systems across a variety of health topics among Member States and at the global level.

  14. Promoting health equity: WHO health inequality monitoring at global and national levels

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ahmad Reza Hosseinpoor

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Background: Health equity is a priority in the post-2015 sustainable development agenda and other major health initiatives. The World Health Organization (WHO has a history of promoting actions to achieve equity in health, including efforts to encourage the practice of health inequality monitoring. Health inequality monitoring systems use disaggregated data to identify disadvantaged subgroups within populations and inform equity-oriented health policies, programs, and practices. Objective: This paper provides an overview of a number of recent and current WHO initiatives related to health inequality monitoring at the global and/or national level. Design: We outline the scope, content, and intended uses/application of the following: Health Equity Monitor database and theme page; State of inequality: reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health report; Handbook on health inequality monitoring: with a focus on low- and middle-income countries; Health inequality monitoring eLearning module; Monitoring health inequality: an essential step for achieving health equity advocacy booklet and accompanying video series; and capacity building workshops conducted in WHO Member States and Regions. Conclusions: The paper concludes by considering how the work of the WHO can be expanded upon to promote the establishment of sustainable and robust inequality monitoring systems across a variety of health topics among Member States and at the global level.

  15. Making sense of the global health crisis: policy narratives, conflict, and global health governance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ney, Steven

    2012-04-01

    Health has become a policy issue of global concern. Worried that the unstructured, polycentric, and pluralist nature of global health governance is undermining the ability to serve emergent global public health interests, some commentators are calling for a more systematic institutional response to the "global health crisis." Yet global health is a complex and uncertain policy issue. This article uses narrative analysis to explore how actors deal with these complexities and how uncertainties affect global health governance. By comparing three narratives in terms of their basic assumptions, the way they define problems as well as the solutions they propose, the analysis shows how the unstructured pluralism of global health policy making creates a wide scope of policy conflict over the global health crisis. This wide scope of conflict enables effective policy-oriented learning about global health issues. The article also shows how exclusionary patterns of cooperation and competition are emerging in health policy making at the global level. These patterns threaten effective learning by risking both polarization of the policy debate and unanticipated consequences of health policy. Avoiding these pitfalls, the analysis suggests, means creating global health governance regimes that promote openness and responsiveness in deliberation about the global health crisis.

  16. INTEGRATING HEALTH INTO BUILDINGS OF THE FUTURE.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heidari, Leila; Younger, Margalit; Chandler, George; Gooch, James; Schramm, Paul

    2016-01-01

    The health and wellbeing of building occupants should be a key priority in the design, building, and operation of new and existing buildings. Buildings can be designed, renovated, and constructed to promote healthy environments and behaviors and mitigate adverse health outcomes. This paper highlights health in terms of the relationship between occupants and buildings, as well as the relationship of buildings to the community. In the context of larger systems, smart buildings and green infrastructure strategies serve to support public health goals. At the level of the individual building, interventions that promote health can also enhance indoor environmental quality and provide opportunities for physical activity. Navigating the various programs that use metrics to measure a building's health impacts reveals that there are multiple co-benefits of a "healthy building," including those related to the economy, environment, society, transportation, planning, and energy efficiency.

  17. Global agenda, local health: including concepts of health security in preparedness programs at the jurisdictional level.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eby, Chas

    2014-01-01

    The Global Health Security Agenda's objectives contain components that could help health departments address emerging public health challenges that threaten the population. As part of the agenda, partner countries with advanced public health systems will support the development of infrastructure in stakeholder health departments. To facilitate this process and augment local programs, state and local health departments may want to include concepts of health security in their public health preparedness offices in order to simultaneously build capacity. Health security programs developed by public health departments should complete projects that are closely aligned with the objectives outlined in the global agenda and that facilitate the completion of current preparedness grant requirements. This article identifies objectives and proposes tactical local projects that run parallel to the 9 primary objectives of the Global Health Security Agenda. Executing concurrent projects at the international and local levels in preparedness offices will accelerate the completion of these objectives and help prevent disease epidemics, detect health threats, and respond to public health emergencies. Additionally, future funding tied or related to health security may become more accessible to state and local health departments that have achieved these objectives.

  18. The new global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Cock, Kevin M; Simone, Patricia M; Davison, Veronica; Slutsker, Laurence

    2013-08-01

    Global health reflects the realities of globalization, including worldwide dissemination of infectious and noninfectious public health risks. Global health architecture is complex and better coordination is needed between multiple organizations. Three overlapping themes determine global health action and prioritization: development, security, and public health. These themes play out against a background of demographic change, socioeconomic development, and urbanization. Infectious diseases remain critical factors, but are no longer the major cause of global illness and death. Traditional indicators of public health, such as maternal and infant mortality rates no longer describe the health status of whole societies; this change highlights the need for investment in vital registration and disease-specific reporting. Noncommunicable diseases, injuries, and mental health will require greater attention from the world in the future. The new global health requires broader engagement by health organizations and all countries for the objectives of health equity, access, and coverage as priorities beyond the Millennium Development Goals are set.

  19. Global health governance as shared health governance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruger, Jennifer Prah

    2012-07-01

    With the exception of key 'proven successes' in global health, the current regime of global health governance can be understood as transnational and national actors pursuing their own interests under a rational actor model of international cooperation, which fails to provide sufficient justification for an obligation to assist in meeting the health needs of others. An ethical commitment to providing all with the ability to be healthy is required. This article develops select components of an alternative model of shared health governance (SHG), which aims to provide a 'road map,' 'focal points' and 'the glue' among various global health actors to better effectuate cooperation on universal ethical principles for an alternative global health equilibrium. Key features of SHG include public moral norms as shared authoritative standards; ethical commitments, shared goals and role allocation; shared sovereignty and constitutional commitments; legitimacy and accountability; country-level attention to international health relations. A framework of social agreement based on 'overlapping consensus' is contrasted against one based on self-interested political bargaining. A global health constitution delineating duties and obligations of global health actors and a global institute of health and medicine for holding actors responsible are proposed. Indicators for empirical assessment of select SHG principles are described. Global health actors, including states, must work together to correct and avert global health injustices through a framework of SHG based on shared ethical commitments.

  20. Global health justice and governance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruger, Jennifer Prah

    2012-01-01

    While there is a growing body of work on moral issues and global governance in the fields of global justice and international relations, little work has connected principles of global health justice with those of global health governance for a theory of global health. Such a theory would enable analysis and evaluation of the current global health system and would ethically and empirically ground proposals for reforming it to more closely align with moral values. Global health governance has been framed as an issue of national security, human security, human rights, and global public goods. The global health governance literature is essentially untethered to a theorized framework to illuminate or evaluate governance. This article ties global health justice and ethics to principles for governing the global health realm, developing a theoretical framework for global and domestic institutions and actors.

  1. Mentoring health researchers globally: Diverse experiences, programmes, challenges and responses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cole, Donald C; Johnson, Nancy; Mejia, Raul; McCullough, Hazel; Turcotte-Tremblay, Anne-Marie; Barnoya, Joaquin; Falabella Luco, María Soledad

    2016-10-01

    Mentoring experiences and programmes are becoming increasingly recognised as important by those engaged in capacity strengthening in global health research. Using a primarily qualitative study design, we studied three experiences of mentorship and eight mentorship programmes for early career global health researchers based in high-income and low- and middle-income countries. For the latter, we drew upon programme materials, existing unpublished data and more formal mixed-method evaluations, supplemented by individual email questionnaire responses. Research team members wrote stories, and the team assembled and analysed them for key themes. Across the diverse experiences and programmes, key emergent themes included: great mentors inspire others in an inter-generational cascade, mentorship is transformative in personal and professional development and involves reciprocity, and finding the right balance in mentoring relationships and programmes includes responding creatively to failure. Among the challenges encountered were: struggling for more level playing fields for new health researchers globally, changing mindsets in institutions that do not have a culture of mentorship and building collaboration not competition. Mentoring networks spanning institutions and countries using multiple virtual and face-to-face methods are a potential avenue for fostering organisational cultures supporting quality mentorship in global health research.

  2. Peopling Global Health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    João Biehl

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available The field of Global Health brings together a vastly diverse array of actors working to address pressing health issues worldwide with unprecedented financial and technological resources and informed by various agendas. While Global Health initiatives are booming and displacing earlier framings of the field (such as tropical medicine or international health, critical analyses of the social, political, and economic processes associated with this expanding field — an “open source anarchy” on the ground — are still few and far between. In this essay, we contend that, among the powerful players of Global Health, the supposed beneficiaries of interventions are generally lost from view and appear as having little to say or nothing to contribute. We make the case for a more comprehensive and people-centered approach and demonstrate the crucial role of ethnography as an empirical lantern in Global Health. By shifting the emphasis from diseases to people and environments, and from trickle-down access to equality, we have the opportunity to set a humane agenda that both realistically confronts challenges and expands our vision of the future of global communities.

  3. Mapping the global health employment market: an analysis of global health jobs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keralis, Jessica M; Riggin-Pathak, Brianne L; Majeski, Theresa; Pathak, Bogdan A; Foggia, Janine; Cullinen, Kathleen M; Rajagopal, Abbhirami; West, Heidi S

    2018-02-27

    The number of university global health training programs has grown in recent years. However, there is little research on the needs of the global health profession. We therefore set out to characterize the global health employment market by analyzing global health job vacancies. We collected data from advertised, paid positions posted to web-based job boards, email listservs, and global health organization websites from November 2015 to May 2016. Data on requirements for education, language proficiency, technical expertise, physical location, and experience level were analyzed for all vacancies. Descriptive statistics were calculated for the aforementioned job characteristics. Associations between technical specialty area and requirements for non-English language proficiency and overseas experience were calculated using Chi-square statistics. A qualitative thematic analysis was performed on a subset of vacancies. We analyzed the data from 1007 global health job vacancies from 127 employers. Among private and non-profit sector vacancies, 40% (n = 354) were for technical or subject matter experts, 20% (n = 177) for program directors, and 16% (n = 139) for managers, compared to 9.8% (n = 87) for entry-level and 13.6% (n = 120) for mid-level positions. The most common technical focus area was program or project management, followed by HIV/AIDS and quantitative analysis. Thematic analysis demonstrated a common emphasis on program operations, relations, design and planning, communication, and management. Our analysis shows a demand for candidates with several years of experience with global health programs, particularly program managers/directors and technical experts, with very few entry-level positions accessible to recent graduates of global health training programs. It is unlikely that global health training programs equip graduates to be competitive for the majority of positions that are currently available in this field.

  4. Global health research needs global networking

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ignaciuk, A.; Leemans, R.

    2012-01-01

    To meet the challenges arising from global environmental change on human health, co-developing common approaches and new alliances of science and society are necessary. The first steps towards defining cross-cutting, health-environment issues were developed by the Global Environmental Change and

  5. Integrated Building Health Management

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Abstract: Building health management is an important part in running an efficient and cost-effective building. Many problems in a building’s system can go undetected...

  6. The 'global health' education framework: a conceptual guide for monitoring, evaluation and practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-01-01

    Background In the past decades, the increasing importance of and rapid changes in the global health arena have provoked discussions on the implications for the education of health professionals. In the case of Germany, it remains yet unclear whether international or global aspects are sufficiently addressed within medical education. Evaluation challenges exist in Germany and elsewhere due to a lack of conceptual guides to develop, evaluate or assess education in this field. Objective To propose a framework conceptualising 'global health' education (GHE) in practice, to guide the evaluation and monitoring of educational interventions and reforms through a set of key indicators that characterise GHE. Methods Literature review; deduction. Results and Conclusion Currently, 'new' health challenges and educational needs as a result of the globalisation process are discussed and linked to the evolving term 'global health'. The lack of a common definition of this term complicates attempts to analyse global health in the field of education. The proposed GHE framework addresses these problems and presents a set of key characteristics of education in this field. The framework builds on the models of 'social determinants of health' and 'globalisation and health' and is oriented towards 'health for all' and 'health equity'. It provides an action-oriented construct for a bottom-up engagement with global health by the health workforce. Ten indicators are deduced for use in monitoring and evaluation. PMID:21501519

  7. Global health and foreign policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feldbaum, Harley; Lee, Kelley; Michaud, Joshua

    2010-01-01

    Health has long been intertwined with the foreign policies of states. In recent years, however, global health issues have risen to the highest levels of international politics and have become accepted as legitimate issues in foreign policy. This elevated political priority is in many ways a welcome development for proponents of global health, and it has resulted in increased funding for and attention to select global health issues. However, there has been less examination of the tensions that characterize the relationship between global health and foreign policy and of the potential effects of linking global health efforts with the foreign-policy interests of states. In this paper, the authors review the relationship between global health and foreign policy by examining the roles of health across 4 major components of foreign policy: aid, trade, diplomacy, and national security. For each of these aspects of foreign policy, the authors review current and historical issues and discuss how foreign-policy interests have aided or impeded global health efforts. The increasing relevance of global health to foreign policy holds both opportunities and dangers for global efforts to improve health.

  8. Global Health and Foreign Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feldbaum, Harley; Lee, Kelley; Michaud, Joshua

    2010-01-01

    Health has long been intertwined with the foreign policies of states. In recent years, however, global health issues have risen to the highest levels of international politics and have become accepted as legitimate issues in foreign policy. This elevated political priority is in many ways a welcome development for proponents of global health, and it has resulted in increased funding for and attention to select global health issues. However, there has been less examination of the tensions that characterize the relationship between global health and foreign policy and of the potential effects of linking global health efforts with the foreign-policy interests of states. In this paper, the authors review the relationship between global health and foreign policy by examining the roles of health across 4 major components of foreign policy: aid, trade, diplomacy, and national security. For each of these aspects of foreign policy, the authors review current and historical issues and discuss how foreign-policy interests have aided or impeded global health efforts. The increasing relevance of global health to foreign policy holds both opportunities and dangers for global efforts to improve health. PMID:20423936

  9. Transforming global health with mobile technologies and social enterprises: global health and innovation conference.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kayingo, Gerald

    2012-09-01

    More than 2,000 people convened for the ninth annual Global Health and Innovation Conference at Yale University on April 21-22, 2012. Participants discussed the latest innovations, ideas in development, lessons learned, opportunities and challenges in global health activities. Several themes emerged, including the important role of frontline workers, strengthening health systems, leveraging social media, and sustainable and impact-driven philanthropy. Overall, the major outcome of the conference was the increased awareness of the potential of mobile technologies and social enterprises in transforming global health. Experts warned that donations and technological advances alone will not transform global health unless there are strong functioning health infrastructures and improved workforce. It was noted that there is a critical need for an integrated systems approach to global health problems and a need for scaling up promising pilot projects. Lack of funding, accountability, and sustainability were identified as major challenges in global health.

  10. Health promotion competencies: providing a road map for health promotion to assume a prominent role in global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shilton, Trevor

    2009-06-01

    Understanding of health and its determinants is rapidly expanding and changing. The emergence of chronic diseases as the leading cause of global disease burden and improved understanding of social determinants of health has brought greater focus to the role of prevention in health. The IUHPE has shown outstanding leadership through the Galway Consensus Statement. Its three recommendations appropriately focus on stimulating dialogue, developing global consensus and communicating the results to key stakeholders. The IUHPE can further enhance progress of the statement by developing participative processes to ensure engagement and ownership by its members. The Galway Consensus Statement can be used to advance professional standards in global health promotion by: (1) providing a common language by which health promotion and its meaning can be communicated to others; (2) providing a framework for building capacity in the health promotion workforce and in the health workforce in general; (3) providing international consensus for consistency in university health promotion courses; (4) providing a framework for credentialing in health promotion; (5) better informing health promotion engagement with other significant workforce sectors and advancing partnership as a key way of working. A vital further application of the Galway Consensus Statement is to inform advocacy. Advocacy is vital to ensure health promotion is better resourced and prioritized by policy makers. Advocacy and communication are vital tools to highlight the evidence, establish the policy fit and infrastructure requirements of health promotion, and present health promotion solutions based on evidence of effectiveness.

  11. Globalizing rehabilitation psychology: Application of foundational principles to global health and rehabilitation challenges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bentley, Jacob A; Bruyère, Susanne M; LeBlanc, Jeanne; MacLachlan, Malcolm

    2016-02-01

    This article reviewed foundational principles in rehabilitation psychology and explored their application to global health imperatives as outlined in the World Report on Disability (World Health Organization & World Bank, 2011). Historical theories and perspectives are used to assist with conceptual formulation as applied to emerging international rehabilitation psychology topics. According to the World Report on Disability (World Health Organization & World Bank, 2011), there are approximately 1 billion individuals living with some form of disability globally. An estimated 80% of persons with disabilities live in low- to middle-income countries (WHO, 2006). The primary messages and recommendations of the World Report on Disability have been previously summarized as it relates to potential opportunities for contribution within the field of rehabilitation psychology (MacLachlan & Mannan, 2014). Yet, undeniable barriers remain to realizing the full potential for contributions in low- to middle-income country settings. A vision for engaging in international capacity building and public health efforts is needed within the field of rehabilitation psychology. Foundational rehabilitation psychology principles have application to the service of individuals with disabilities in areas of the world facing complex socioeconomic and sociopolitical challenges. Foundational principles of person-environment interaction, importance of social context, and need for involvement of persons with disabilities can provide guidance to the field as it relates to global health and rehabilitation efforts. The authors illustrate the application of rehabilitation psychology foundational principles through case examples and description of ongoing work, and link foundational principles to discreet domains of intervention going forward. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  12. Under the (legal radar screen: global health initiatives and international human rights obligations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hammonds Rachel

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Given that many low income countries are heavily reliant on external assistance to fund their health sectors the acceptance of obligations of international assistance and cooperation with regard to the right to health (global health obligations is insufficiently understood and studied by international health and human rights scholars. Over the past decade Global Health Initiatives, like the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund have adopted novel approaches to engaging with stakeholders in high and low income countries. This article explores how this experience impacted on acceptance of the international obligation to (help fulfil the right to health beyond borders. Methods The authors conducted an extensive review of international human rights law literature, transnational legal process literature, global public health literature and grey literature pertaining to Global Health Initiatives. To complement this desk work and deepen their understanding of how and why different legal norms evolve the authors conducted 19 in-depth key informant interviews with actors engaged with three stakeholders; the European Union, the United States and Belgium. The authors then analysed the interviews through a transnational legal process lens. Results Through according value to the process of examining how and why different legal norms evolve transnational legal process offers us a tool for engaging with the dynamism of developments in global health suggesting that operationalising global health obligations could advance the right to health for all. Conclusions In many low-income countries the health sector is heavily dependent on external assistance to fulfil the right to health of people thus it is vital that policies and tools for delivering reliable, long-term assistance are developed so that the right to health for all becomes more than a dream. Our research suggests that the Global Fund experience offers

  13. Under the (legal) radar screen: global health initiatives and international human rights obligations

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-01-01

    Background Given that many low income countries are heavily reliant on external assistance to fund their health sectors the acceptance of obligations of international assistance and cooperation with regard to the right to health (global health obligations) is insufficiently understood and studied by international health and human rights scholars. Over the past decade Global Health Initiatives, like the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund) have adopted novel approaches to engaging with stakeholders in high and low income countries. This article explores how this experience impacted on acceptance of the international obligation to (help) fulfil the right to health beyond borders. Methods The authors conducted an extensive review of international human rights law literature, transnational legal process literature, global public health literature and grey literature pertaining to Global Health Initiatives. To complement this desk work and deepen their understanding of how and why different legal norms evolve the authors conducted 19 in-depth key informant interviews with actors engaged with three stakeholders; the European Union, the United States and Belgium. The authors then analysed the interviews through a transnational legal process lens. Results Through according value to the process of examining how and why different legal norms evolve transnational legal process offers us a tool for engaging with the dynamism of developments in global health suggesting that operationalising global health obligations could advance the right to health for all. Conclusions In many low-income countries the health sector is heavily dependent on external assistance to fulfil the right to health of people thus it is vital that policies and tools for delivering reliable, long-term assistance are developed so that the right to health for all becomes more than a dream. Our research suggests that the Global Fund experience offers lessons to build on. PMID

  14. Under the (legal) radar screen: global health initiatives and international human rights obligations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hammonds, Rachel; Ooms, Gorik; Vandenhole, Wouter

    2012-11-15

    Given that many low income countries are heavily reliant on external assistance to fund their health sectors the acceptance of obligations of international assistance and cooperation with regard to the right to health (global health obligations) is insufficiently understood and studied by international health and human rights scholars. Over the past decade Global Health Initiatives, like the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund) have adopted novel approaches to engaging with stakeholders in high and low income countries. This article explores how this experience impacted on acceptance of the international obligation to (help) fulfil the right to health beyond borders. The authors conducted an extensive review of international human rights law literature, transnational legal process literature, global public health literature and grey literature pertaining to Global Health Initiatives. To complement this desk work and deepen their understanding of how and why different legal norms evolve the authors conducted 19 in-depth key informant interviews with actors engaged with three stakeholders; the European Union, the United States and Belgium. The authors then analysed the interviews through a transnational legal process lens. Through according value to the process of examining how and why different legal norms evolve transnational legal process offers us a tool for engaging with the dynamism of developments in global health suggesting that operationalising global health obligations could advance the right to health for all. In many low-income countries the health sector is heavily dependent on external assistance to fulfil the right to health of people thus it is vital that policies and tools for delivering reliable, long-term assistance are developed so that the right to health for all becomes more than a dream. Our research suggests that the Global Fund experience offers lessons to build on.

  15. BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN INCREASING GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS

    OpenAIRE

    NABABAN, TONGAM SIHOL

    2014-01-01

    Global Entrepreneurship and Development Index or the Global Entrepreneurship and Development Index (GEDI) In 2013 positioned Indonesia at ranked 76 of 118 countries. Compared with the ASEAN countries, the position are still far below Singapore (13), and still below Malaysia (57), Brunei Darussalam (58), Thailand (65). This fact shows that Indonesia has not been optimal in building its entrepreneurial yet. To enhance the development of entrepreneurship, the Indonesian government has launched a...

  16. Building a Sustainable Global Surgery Nonprofit Organization at an Academic Institution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frisella, Margaret M

    Surgical Outreach for the Americas is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization providing surgical care to those in need in developing countries of the Western Hemisphere. Every year since its inception in 2008, teams of surgeons, nurses, and allied health professionals have traveled to areas of need and performed primarily hernia repair surgeries for those without access to affordable health care. Surgical Outreach for the Americas (SOfA) began as a general concept based on World Health Organization statistics claiming that 11% of the global burden of disease can be resolved via surgery. Armed with this information, a group of compassionate and selfless health care professionals planned the first trip, to the Dominican Republic, in January 2009. Building on what was first just an ambition to help others, we now also train surgeons, surgery residents, and nurses in the countries we serve. To date, SOfA has successfully treated 734 patients, with 899 total surgical procedures performed (693 of these under general anesthesia). These procedures include inguinal hernia, umbilical hernia, testicular masses, orchiectomies, and various general surgical procedures. Through the efforts of a great many talented individuals and robust fundraising efforts, the SOfA message continues to gain momentum. SOfA not only considers the health and well-being of the disadvantaged through capacity-building efforts but strives to educate and improve the skills of health care professionals in the countries we visit. Our goal is to increase the number of missions each year and begin a 2-fold educational program that (a) provides surgical resident education through participation in mission work and (b) provides local surgeon education in the areas served. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  17. Medicalization of global health 1: has the global health agenda become too medicalized?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clark, Jocalyn

    2014-01-01

    Medicalization analyses have roots in sociology and have critical usefulness for understanding contemporary health issues including the 'post-2015 global health agenda'. Medicalization is more complex than just 'disease mongering'--it is a process and not only an outcome; has both positive and negative elements; can be partial rather than complete; and is often sought or challenged by patients or others in the health field. It is understood to be expanding rather than contracting, plays out at the level of interaction or of definitions and agenda-setting, and is said to be largely harmful and costly to individuals and societies. Medicalization of global health issues would overemphasise the role of health care to health; define and frame issues in relation to disease, treatment strategies, and individual behaviour; promote the role of medical professionals and models of care; find support in industry or other advocates of technologies and pharmaceuticals; and discount social contexts, causes, and solutions. In subsequent articles, three case studies are explored, which critically examine predominant issues on the global health agenda: global mental health, non-communicable disease, and universal health coverage. A medicalization lens helps uncover areas where the global health agenda and its framing of problems are shifted toward medical and technical solutions, neglecting necessary social, community, or political action.

  18. Impacts of globalization in health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ioannou, Andriani; Mechili, Aggelos; Kolokathi, Aikaterini; Diomidous, Marianna

    2013-01-01

    Globalization is the process of international integration arising from the interchange of world views, products, ideas, and other aspects of culture. Globalization describes the interplay of macro-social forces across cultures. The purpose of this study is a systematic review of the bibliography on the impacts of globalization in health. The consequences of globalization on health present a twofold dimension, on the one hand affects the health of the population and on the other hand organization and functioning of health systems. As a result of globalization, there has been an undeniable economic development and technological progress to support the level of health around the world, improving the health status of certain populations with a beneficial increase in life expectancy. In many aspects globalization is good but there are many problems too.

  19. Global Health Solidarity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    West-Oram, Peter G N; Buyx, Alena

    2017-07-01

    For much of the 20th century, vulnerability to deprivations of health has often been defined by geographical and economic factors. Those in wealthy, usually 'Northern' and 'Western', parts of the world have benefited from infrastructures, and accidents of geography and climate, which insulate them from many serious threats to health. Conversely, poorer people are typically exposed to more threats to health, and have lesser access to the infrastructures needed to safeguard them against the worst consequences of such exposure. However, in recent years the increasingly globalized nature of the world's economy, society and culture, combined with anthropogenic climate change and the evolution of antibiotic resistance, has begun to shift the boundaries that previously defined the categories of person threatened by many exogenous threats to health. In doing so, these factors expose both new and forgotten similarities between persons, and highlight the need for global cooperative responses to the existential threats posed by climate change and the evolution of antimicrobial resistance. In this article, we argue that these emerging health threats, in demonstrating the similarities that exist between even distant persons, provides a catalyst for global solidarity, which justifies, and provides motivation for, the establishment of solidaristic, cooperative global health infrastructures.

  20. Promoting Global Health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Margaret A. Winker, MD

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available The Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of MCH and AIDS (IJMA is a member of the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME. The Editorial Board of IJMA believes it is important that the statement on promoting global health and this accompanying editorial is brought to the attention of our readers. Medical journal editors have a social responsibility to promote global health by publishing, whenever possible, research that furthers health worldwide.

  1. Management training in global health education: a Health Innovation Fellowship training program to bring healthcare to low-income communities in Central America.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prado, Andrea M; Pearson, Andy A; Bertelsen, Nathan S

    2018-01-01

    Interprofessional education is increasingly recognized as essential for health education worldwide. Although effective management, innovation, and entrepreneurship are necessary to improve health systems, business schools have been underrepresented in global health education. Central America needs more health professionals trained in health management and innovation to respond to health disparities, especially in rural communities. This paper explores the impact of the Health Innovation Fellowship (HIF), a new training program for practicing health professionals offered jointly by the Central American Healthcare Initiative and INCAE Business School, Costa Rica. Launched in 2014, HIF's goal is to create a network of highly trained interdisciplinary health professionals in competencies to improve health of Central American communities through better health management. The program's fellows carried out innovative healthcare projects in their local regions. The first three annual cohorts (total of 43 fellows) represented all health-related professions and sectors (private, public, and civil society) from six Central American countries. All fellows attended four 1-week, on-site modular training sessions, received ongoing mentorship, and stayed connected through formal and informal networks and webinars through which they exchange knowledge and support each other. CAHI stakeholders supported HIF financially. Impact evaluation of the three-year pilot training program is positive: fellows improved their health management skills and more than 50% of the projects found either financial or political support for their implementation. HIF's strengths include that both program leaders and trainees come from the Global South, and that HIF offers a platform to collaborate with partners in the Global North. By focusing on promoting innovation and management at a top business school in the region, HIF constitutes a novel capacity-building effort within global health education. HIF

  2. Exploring the influence of the Global Fund and the GAVI Alliance on health systems in conflict-affected countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Patel, Preeti; Cummings, Rachael; Roberts, Bayard

    2015-01-01

    Global Health Initiatives (GHIs) respond to high-impact communicable diseases in resource-poor countries, including health systems support, and are major actors in global health. GHIs could play an important role in countries affected by armed conflict given these countries commonly have weak health systems and a high burden of communicable disease. The aim of this study is to explore the influence of two leading GHIs, the Global Fund and the GAVI Alliance, on the health systems of conflict-affected countries. This study used an analytical review approach to identify evidence on the role of the Global Fund and the GAVI Alliance with regards to health systems support to 19 conflict-affected countries. Primary and secondary published and grey literature were used, including country evaluations from the Global Fund and the GAVI Alliance. The WHO heath systems building blocks framework was used for the analysis. There is a limited evidence-base on the influence of GHIs on health systems of conflict-affected countries. The findings suggest that GHIs are increasingly investing in conflict-affected countries which has helped to rapidly scale up health services, strengthen human resources, improve procurement, and develop guidelines and protocols. Negative influences include distorting priorities within the health system, inequitable financing of disease-specific services over other health services, diverting staff away from more essential health care services, inadequate attention to capacity building, burdensome reporting requirements, and limited flexibility and responsiveness to the contextual challenges of conflict-affected countries. There is some evidence of increasing engagement of the Global Fund and the GAVI Alliance with health systems in conflict-affected countries, but this engagement should be supported by more context-specific policies and approaches.

  3. Where theory and practice of global health intersect: the developmental history of a Canadian global health initiative.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Daibes, Ibrahim; Sridharan, Sanjeev

    2014-01-01

    This paper examines the scope of practice of global health, drawing on the practical experience of a global health initiative of the Government of Canada--the Teasdale-Corti Global Health Research Partnership Program. A number of challenges in the practical application of theoretical definitions and understandings of global health are addressed. These challenges are grouped under five areas that form essential characteristics of global health: equity and egalitarian North-South partnerships, interdisciplinary scope, focus on upstream determinants of health, global conceptualization, and global health as an area of both research and practice. Information in this paper is based on the results of an external evaluation of the program, which involved analysis of project proposals and technical reports, surveys with grantees and interviews with grantees and program designers, as well as case studies of three projects and a review of relevant literature. The philosophy and recent definitions of global health represent a significant and important departure from the international health paradigm. However, the practical applicability of this maturing area of research and practice still faces significant systemic and structural impediments that, if not acknowledged and addressed, will continue to undermine the development of global health as an effective means to addressing health inequities globally and to better understanding, and acting upon, upstream determinants of health toward health for all. While it strives to redress global inequities, global health continues to be a construct that is promoted, studied, and dictated mostly by Northern institutions and scholars. Until practical mechanisms are put in place for truly egalitarian partnerships between North and South for both the study and practice of global health, the emerging philosophy of global health cannot be effectively put into practice.

  4. [Global health: a Latin American vision].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Franco-Giraldo, Álvaro

    2016-02-01

    This article presents a Latin American vision of global health from a counterhegemonic perspective, applicable to various countries of the world in similar circumstances. It begins by reviewing several concepts and trends in global health and outlining the differences between conventional public health, international health, and global health, but without seeing them as antagonistic, instead situating them in a model that is based on global health and also includes the other two disciplines. It is understood that global factors influenced earlier theories, schemes, and models of classic international health. The article emphasizes the importance of several aspects of world-geopolitics and economic globalization that impose constraints on world health; it also underscores the theory of social and environmental determinants of the health-disease spectrum, which have impacts beyond those of epidemiologic risk factors. The suggested approach is based on cosmopolitanism and holism: global philosophical and political currents that allow for a better interpretation of world phenomena and are more relevant because they give rise to lines of action. Structurally, the theoretical foundations of global health are presented in three analytical areas: global justice and equity, governance and the supranational protection of rights, and holism and a new global consciousness. The article concludes by underscoring the need to construct an approach to the existence and praxis of global public health that is based on the Latin American perspective, an approach that highlights grassroots social movements as an alternative way to secure a new order and global awareness of rights and to redefine the architecture of global health governance.

  5. Examining the global health arena: strengths and weaknesses of a convention approach to global health challenges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haffeld, Just Balstad; Siem, Harald; Røttingen, John-Arne

    2010-01-01

    The article comprises a conceptual framework to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of a global health convention. The analyses are inspired by Lawrence Gostin's suggested Framework Convention on Global Health. The analytical model takes a starting-point in events tentatively following a logic sequence: Input (global health funding), Processes (coordination, cooperation, accountability, allocation of aid), Output (definition of basic survival needs), Outcome (access to health services), and Impact (health for all). It then examines to what degree binding international regulations can create order in such a sequence of events. We conclude that a global health convention could be an appropriate instrument to deal with some of the problems of global health. We also show that some of the tasks preceding a convention approach might be to muster international support for supra-national health regulations, negotiate compromises between existing stakeholders in the global health arena, and to utilize WHO as a platform for further discussions on a global health convention. © 2010 American Society of Law, Medicine & Ethics, Inc.

  6. Global health: governance and policy development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kelley, Patrick W

    2011-06-01

    Global health policy is now being influenced by an ever-increasing number of nonstate and non-intergovernmental actors to include influential foundations, multinational corporations, multi-sectoral partnerships, and civil society organizations. This article reviews how globalization is a key driver for the ongoing evolution of global health governance. It describes the massive increases in bilateral and multilateral investments in global health and it highlights the current global and US architecture for performing global health programs. The article closes describing some of the challenges and prospects that characterize global health governance today. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Global health diplomacy in Iraq: international relations outcomes of multilateral tuberculosis programmes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kevany, Sebastian; Jaf, Payman; Workneh, Nibretie Gobezie; Abu Dalod, Mohammad; Tabena, Mohammed; Rashid, Sara; Al Hilfi, Thamer Kadum Yousif

    2014-01-01

    International development programmes, including global health interventions, have the capacity to make important implicit and explicit benefits to diplomatic and international relations outcomes. Conversely, in the absence of awareness of these implications, such programmes may generate associated threats. Due to heightened international tensions in conflict and post-conflict settings, greater attention to diplomatic outcomes may therefore be necessary. We examine related 'collateral' effects of Global Fund-supported tuberculosis programmes in Iraq. During site visits to Iraq conducted during 2012 and 2013 on behalf of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, on-site service delivery evaluations, unstructured interviews with clinical and operational staff, and programme documentary review of Global Fund-supported tuberculosis treatment and care programmes were conducted. During this process, a range of possible external or collateral international relations and diplomatic effects of global health programmes were assessed according to predetermined criteria. A range of positive diplomatic and international relations effects of Global Fund-supported programmes were observed in the Iraq setting. These included (1) geo-strategic accessibility and coverage; (2) provisions for programme sustainability and alignment; (3) contributions to nation-building and peace-keeping initiatives; (4) consistent observation of social, cultural and religious norms in intervention selection; and (5) selection of the most effective and cost-effective tuberculosis treatment and care interventions. Investments in global health programmes have valuable diplomatic, as well as health-related, outcomes, associated with their potential to prevent, mitigate or reverse international tension and hostility in conflict and post-conflict settings, provided that they adhere to appropriate criteria. The associated international presence in such regions may also contribute to peace

  8. Health promotion in globalization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Álvaro Franco-Giraldo

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available Objective: to unravel some theoretical and factual elements required to implement more effective health promotion strategies and practices in the field of health services whilst following the great challenges that globalization has imposed on the health systems, which are inevitably expressed in the local context (glocalization. Methodology: a narrative review taking into account the concepts of globalization and health promotion in relation to health determinants. The authors approach some courses of action and strategies for health promotion based on the social principles and universal values that guide health promotion, health service reorientation and primary healthcare, empowerment, social participation, and inter-sectoral and social mobilization. Discussion: the discussion focuses on the redirection of health promotion services in relation to the wave of health reforms that has spread throughout the world under the neoliberal rule. The author also discusses health promotion, its ineffectiveness, and the quest for renewal. Likewise, the author sets priorities for health promotion in relation to social determinants. Conclusion: the current global order, in terms of international relations, is not consistent with the ethical principles of health promotion. In this paper, the author advocates for the implementation of actions to change the social and physical life conditions of people based on changes in the use of power in society and the appropriate practice of politics in the context of globalization in order to achieve the effectiveness of the actions of health promotion.

  9. Global health partnerships in practice: taking stock of the GAVI Alliance's new investment in health systems strengthening.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Naimoli, Joseph F

    2009-01-01

    Despite a burgeoning literature on global health partnerships (GHPs), there have been few studies of how GHPs, particularly those trying to build a bridge between horizontal and vertical modes of delivering essential health services, operate at global and country levels. This paper will help address this knowledge gap by describing and analyzing the GAVI Alliance's early experience with health systems strengthening (HSS) to improve immunization coverage and other maternal-child health outcomes. To date, the strengths of HSS reside in its potential to optimize GAVI's overall investment in immunization, efforts to harmonize with other initiatives, willingness to acknowledge risk and identify mitigation strategies, engagement of diverse stakeholders, responsiveness to country needs, and effective management of an ambitious grant-making enterprise. The challenges have been forging a common vision and approach, governance, balancing pressure to move money with incremental learning, managing partner roles and relationships, managing the "value for money" risk, and capacity building. This mid-point stock-taking makes recommendations for moving GAVI forward in a thoughtful manner. The findings should be of interest to other GHPs because of their larger significance. This is a story about how a successful alliance that decided to broaden its mandate has responded to the technical, organizational, and political complexities that challenge its traditional business model. Copyright (c) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  10. A global public health imperative

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    MESKE

    Actions towards closing the health equity gap: A global public health imperative. Tewabech ... global health development. With only two ... of himself and of his family; including food, clothing .... impact on health equity and in the end issued the.

  11. Veterinary public health capacity-building in India: a grim reflection of the developing world's underpreparedness to address zoonotic risks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kakkar, Manish; Abbas, Syed Shahid; Kumar, Ashok; Hussain, Mohammad Akhtar; Sharma, Kavya; Bhatt, Purvi Mehta; Zodpey, Sanjay

    2013-01-01

    Veterinary public health (VPH) is ideally suited to promote convergence between human, animal and environmental sectors. Recent zoonotic and emerging infectious disease events have given rise to increasing calls for efforts to build global VPH capacities. However, even with their greater vulnerability to such events, including their economic and livelihood impacts, the response from low-and middle-income countries such as India has been suboptimal, thereby elevating global health risks. Addressing risks effectively at the human-animal interface in these countries will require a clear vision, consistent policies, strategic approach and sustained political commitment to reform and refine the current VPH capacity-building efforts. Only then can the discipline serve its goal of disease prevention, poverty alleviation and support for sustainable livelihoods through improvements in human and animal health.

  12. How to build a strong global brand for an SME : Case: Company A

    OpenAIRE

    Huikko, Nicole

    2014-01-01

    This study falls into the category of product-oriented thesis and examines brands, brand management, and brand building in international B2B context. Through application of theoretical concepts, analysis of empirical data, and practical actions, a global B2B branding plan for case company A is developed. The case company is an SME and has the vision to become a globally recognized brand. The guiding research question is how to build a strong global B2B brand for an SME. The objective of ...

  13. The role of NGOs in global health research for development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jones Lori

    2005-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Global health research is essential for development. A major issue is the inequitable distribution of research efforts and funds directed towards populations suffering the world's greatest health problems. This imbalance is fostering major attempts at redirecting research to the health problems of low and middle income countries. Following the creation of the Coalition for Global Health Research – Canada (CGHRC in 2001, the Canadian Society for International Health (CSIH decided to review the role of non-governmental organizations (NGOs in global health research. This paper highlights some of the prevalent thinking and is intended to encourage new thinking on how NGOs can further this role. Approach This paper was prepared by members of the Research Committee of the CSIH, with input from other members of the Society. Persons working in various international NGOs participated in individual interviews or group discussions on their involvement in different types of research activities. Case studies illustrate the roles of NGOs in global health research, their perceived strengths and weaknesses, and the constraints and opportunities to build capacity and develop partnerships for research. Highlights NGOs are contributing at all stages of the research cycle, fostering the relevance and effectiveness of the research, priority setting, and knowledge translation to action. They have a key role in stewardship (promoting and advocating for relevant global health research, resource mobilization for research, the generation, utilization and management of knowledge, and capacity development. Yet, typically, the involvement of NGOs in research is downstream from knowledge production and it usually takes the form of a partnership with universities or dedicated research agencies. Conclusion There is a need to more effectively include NGOs in all aspects of health research in order to maximize the potential benefits of research. NGOs

  14. Legal and regulatory capacity to support the global health security agenda.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morhard, Ryan; Katz, Rebecca

    2014-01-01

    On February 13, 2014, 27 nations, along with 3 international organizations, launched the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA). The intent of GHSA is to accelerate progress in enabling countries around the world to prevent, detect, and respond to public health emergencies-capacities to be achieved through 9 core objectives. Building national, regional, and international capacity includes creating strong legal and regulatory regimes to support national and international capacities to prevent, detect, and respond to public health emergencies. Accordingly, establishing and reinforcing international and national-level legal preparedness is central to advancing elements of each of the 9 objectives of the GHSA.

  15. Global mental health and the National Institute of Mental Health Research Domain Criteria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weine, Stevan Merill; Langenecker, Scott; Arenliu, Aliriza

    2018-05-01

    The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) project presents innovative ways of investigating mental illness based on behavioral and neurobiological measures of dimensional processes. Although cultural psychiatrists have critiqued RDoC's implications and limitations for its under-developed focus on context and experience, RDoC presents opportunities for synergies with global mental health. It can capture aspects of clinical or sub-clinical behavior which are less dependent upon Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM-5) and perhaps better elucidate the role of culture in disease expression and resilience. Aim/Results: This article uses the example of migration to describe several starting points for new research: (1) providing components for building an investigable conceptual framework to understand individual's mental health, resilience and adjustment to migration challenges or social adversities in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and (2) identifying measurable factors which determine resilience or vulnerability, to guide development and evaluation of targeted prevention, treatment and recovery strategies for mental health in LMICs. In such ways, RDoC frameworks could help put the new cutting edge neurobiological dimensional scientific advances in a position to contribute to addressing mental health problems amid social adversities in LMICs. However, this would require a much-expanded commitment by both RDoC and global mental health researchers to address contextual and experiential dimensions.

  16. From conceptual pluralism to practical agreement on policy: global responsibility for global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruger, Jennifer Prah; Hammonds, Rachel; Ooms, Gorik; Barry, Donna; Chapman, Audrey; Van Damme, Wim

    2015-10-28

    As the human cost of the global economic crisis becomes apparent the ongoing discussions surrounding the post-2015 global development framework continue at a frenzied pace. Given the scale and scope of increased globalization moving forward in a post-Millennium Development Goals era, to protect and realize health equity for all people, has never been more challenging or more important. The unprecedented nature of global interdependence underscores the importance of proposing policy solutions that advance realizing global responsibility for global health. This article argues for advancing global responsibility for global health through the creation of a Global Fund for Health. It suggests harnessing the power of the exceptional response to the combined epidemics of AIDS, TB and Malaria, embodied in the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, to realize an expanded, reconceptualized Global Fund for Health. However this proposal creates both an analytical quandary embedded in conceptual pluralism and a practical dilemma for the scope and raison d'etre of a new Global Fund for Health. To address these issues we offer a logical framework for moving from conceptual pluralism in the theories supporting global responsibility for health to practical agreement on policy to realize this end. We examine how the innovations flowing from this exceptional response can be coupled with recent ideas and concepts, for example a global social protection floor, a Global Health Constitution or a Framework Convention for Global Health, that share the global responsibility logic that underpins a Global Fund for Health. The 2014 Lancet Commission on Global Governance for Health Report asks whether a single global health protection fund would be better for global health than the current patchwork of global and national social transfers. We concur with this suggestion and argue that there is much room for practical agreement on a Global Fund for Health that moves from the

  17. CURRENT PERSPECTIVES OF POTTER'S GLOBAL BIOETHICS AS A BRIDGE BETWEEN CLINICAL (PERSONALIZED) AND PUBLIC HEALTH ETHICS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Turina, Iva Sorta-Bilajac; Brkljacić, Morana; Grgas-Bile, Cecilija; Gajski, Domagoj; Racz, Aleksandar; Cengić, Tomislav

    2015-12-01

    In the context of modern scientific and technological developments in biomedicine and health care, and the potential consequences of their application on humans and the environment, Potter's global bioethics concept resurfaces. By actualizing Potter's original thoughts on individual bioethical issues, the universality of two of his books, which today represent the backbone of the world bioethical literature, "Bioethics--Bridge to the Future" and "Global Bioethics: Building on the Leopold Legacy", is emphasized. Potter's global bioethics today can legitimately be viewed as a bridge between clinical personalized ethics on the one hand and ethics of public health on the other.

  18. Developing a framework for successful research partnerships in global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Larkan, Fiona; Uduma, Ogenna; Lawal, Saheed Akinmayọwa; van Bavel, Bianca

    2016-05-06

    The Centre for Global Health, Trinity College Dublin has as one of its goals, strengthening health systems in developing countries. In realising this goal we work across more than 40 countries with third-level, civil society, government, private sector and UN partners. Each of these requires that different relationships be established. Good principles must guide all global health research partnerships. An exploratory research project was undertaken with research partners of, and staff within, the Centre for Global Health. The aim was to build an evidence-based framework. An inductive exploratory research process was undertaken using a grounded theory approach in three consecutive phases: Phase I: An open-ended questionnaire was sent via email to all identified partners. Phase II: A series of consultative meetings were held with the staff of the Centre for Global Health. Phase III: Data sets from Phases I and II were applied to the development of a unifying framework. Data was analysed using grounded theory three stage thematic analysis - open, axial and selective coding. Relational and operational aspects of partnership were highlighted as being relevant across every partnership. Seven equally important core concepts emerged (focus, values, equity, benefit, leadership, communication and resolution), and are described and discussed here. Of these, two (leadership and resolution) are less often considered in existing literature on partnerships. Large complex partnerships can work well if all parties are agreed in advance to a common minimum programme, have been involved from the design stage, and have adequate resources specifically allocated. Based on this research, a framework for partnerships has been developed and is shared.

  19. Public Health Adaptation to Climate Change in Large Cities: A Global Baseline.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Araos, Malcolm; Austin, Stephanie E; Berrang-Ford, Lea; Ford, James D

    2016-01-01

    Climate change will have significant impacts on human health, and urban populations are expected to be highly sensitive. The health risks from climate change in cities are compounded by rapid urbanization, high population density, and climate-sensitive built environments. Local governments are positioned to protect populations from climate health risks, but it is unclear whether municipalities are producing climate-adaptive policies. In this article, we develop and apply systematic methods to assess the state of public health adaptation in 401 urban areas globally with more than 1 million people, creating the first global baseline for urban public health adaptation. We find that only 10% of the sampled urban areas report any public health adaptation initiatives. The initiatives identified most frequently address risks posed by extreme weather events and involve direct changes in management or behavior rather than capacity building, research, or long-term investments in infrastructure. Based on our characterization of the current urban health adaptation landscape, we identify several gaps: limited evidence of reporting of institutional adaptation at the municipal level in urban areas in the Global South; lack of information-based adaptation initiatives; limited focus on initiatives addressing infectious disease risks; and absence of monitoring, reporting, and evaluation. © The Author(s) 2015.

  20. The global role of health care delivery science: learning from variation to build health systems that avoid waste and harm.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mulley, Albert G

    2013-09-01

    This paper addresses the fourth theme of the Indiana Global Health Research Working Conference, Clinical Effectiveness and Health Systems Research. It explores geographic variation in health care delivery and health outcomes as a source of learning how to achieve better health outcomes at lower cost. It focuses particularly on the relationship between investments made in capacities to deliver different health care services to a population and the value thereby created by that care for individual patients. The framing begins with the dramatic variation in per capita health care expenditures across the nations of the world, which is largely explained by variations in national wealth. The 1978 Declaration of Alma Ata is briefly noted as a response to such inequities with great promise that has not as yet been realized. This failure to realize the promise of Alma Ata grows in significance with the increasing momentum for universal health coverage that is emerging in the current global debate about post-2015 development goals. Drawing upon work done at Dartmouth over more than three decades, the framing then turns to within-country variations in per capita expenditures, utilization of different services, and health outcomes. A case is made for greater attention to the question of value by bringing better information to bear at both the population and individual levels. Specific opportunities to identify and reduce waste in health care, and the harm that is so often associated with it, are identified by learning from outcome variations and practice variations.

  1. Introduction to Global Health Promotion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torres, Jennifer

    2017-03-01

    Global health education is becoming increasingly prominent in universities throughout the country especially in programs focused on health and behavioral sciences, law, economics, and political science. Introduction to Global Health Promotion is a book that can be used by both instructors and students in the field of global health. The book provides theories and models, human rights, and technology relevant to the field. In addition the book is designed to share best evidence for promoting health and reducing morbidity and mortality in a variety of areas. The book can be used by health educators, public health practitioners, professors, and students as a resource for research and practice in the field of health promotion and disease prevention.

  2. Building Evidence for Health: Green Buildings, Current Science, and Future Challenges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cedeño-Laurent, J G; Williams, A; MacNaughton, P; Cao, X; Eitland, E; Spengler, J; Allen, J

    2018-04-01

    Civilizational challenges have questioned the status quo of energy and material consumption by humans. From the built environment perspective, a response to these challenges was the creation of green buildings. Although the revolutionary capacity of the green building movement has elevated the expectations of new commercial construction, its rate of implementation has secluded the majority of the population from its benefits. Beyond reductions in energy usage and increases in market value, the main strength of green buildings may be the procurement of healthier building environments. Further pursuing the right to healthy indoor environments could help the green building movement to attain its full potential as a transformational public health tool. On the basis of 40 years of research on indoor environmental quality, we present a summary of nine environment elements that are foundational to human health. We posit the role of green buildings as a critical research platform within a novel sustainability framework based on social-environmental capital assets.

  3. The growing impact of globalization for health and public health practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Labonté, Ronald; Mohindra, Katia; Schrecker, Ted

    2011-01-01

    In recent decades, public health policy and practice have been increasingly challenged by globalization, even as global financing for health has increased dramatically. This article discusses globalization and its health challenges from a vantage of political science, emphasizing increased global flows (of pathogens, information, trade, finance, and people) as driving, and driven by, global market integration. This integration requires a shift in public health thinking from a singular focus on international health (the higher disease burden in poor countries) to a more nuanced analysis of global health (in which health risks in both poor and rich countries are seen as having inherently global causes and consequences). Several globalization-related pathways to health exist, two key ones of which are described: globalized diseases and economic vulnerabilities. The article concludes with a call for national governments, especially those of wealthier nations, to take greater account of global health and its social determinants in all their foreign policies.

  4. Global constitutionalism, applied to global health governance: uncovering legitimacy deficits and suggesting remedies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ooms, Gorik; Hammonds, Rachel

    2016-12-03

    Global constitutionalism is a way of looking at the world, at global rules and how they are made, as if there was a global constitution, empowering global institutions to act as a global government, setting rules which bind all states and people. This essay employs global constitutionalism to examine how and why global health governance, as currently structured, has struggled to advance the right to health, a fundamental human rights obligation enshrined in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. It first examines the core structure of the global health governance architecture, and its evolution since the Second World War. Second, it identifies the main constitutionalist principles that are relevant for a global constitutionalism assessment of the core structure of the global health governance architecture. Finally, it applies these constitutionalist principles to assess the core structure of the global health governance architecture. Leading global health institutions are structurally skewed to preserve high incomes countries' disproportionate influence on transnational rule-making authority, and tend to prioritise infectious disease control over the comprehensive realisation of the right to health. A Framework Convention on Global Health could create a classic division of powers in global health governance, with WHO as the law-making power in global health governance, a global fund for health as the executive power, and the International Court of Justice as the judiciary power.

  5. BREEAM [Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method] BRE [Building Research Establishment] assessment method for buildings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baldwin, R.

    1994-01-01

    Buildings account for a large share of environmental impacts in their construction, use, and demolition. In western Europe, buildings account for ca 50% of primary energy use (hence CO 2 output), far outweighing the contribution of the transport and industrial sectors. Other impacts from building energy use include the use of chemicals such as chlorofluorocarbons for cooling. In the United Kingdom, the Building Research Establishment (BRE) has developed a certificate system for environmental labelling of buildings so that the performance of the building against a set of defined environmental criteria can be made visible to clients. This system thus rewards positive actions to improve the environmental performance of buildings and assists in marketing to an environmentally aware clientele. Issues included in assessments for awarding the certificate are addressed under three main headings: global issues and use of resources, local issues, and indoor issues. Global issues include ozone depletion and CO 2 emissions; local issues include public health and water conservation; and indoor issues include air quality and lighting. 8 refs., 1 tab

  6. Global health education in Swedish medical schools.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ehn, S; Agardh, A; Holmer, H; Krantz, G; Hagander, L

    2015-11-01

    Global health education is increasingly acknowledged as an opportunity for medical schools to prepare future practitioners for the broad health challenges of our time. The purpose of this study was to describe the evolution of global health education in Swedish medical schools and to assess students' perceived needs for such education. Data on global health education were collected from all medical faculties in Sweden for the years 2000-2013. In addition, 76% (439/577) of all Swedish medical students in their final semester answered a structured questionnaire. Global health education is offered at four of Sweden's seven medical schools, and most medical students have had no global health education. Medical students in their final semester consider themselves to lack knowledge and skills in areas such as the global burden of disease (51%), social determinants of health (52%), culture and health (60%), climate and health (62%), health promotion and disease prevention (66%), strategies for equal access to health care (69%) and global health care systems (72%). A significant association was found between self-assessed competence and the amount of global health education received (pcurriculum. Most Swedish medical students have had no global health education as part of their medical school curriculum. Expanded education in global health is sought after by medical students and could strengthen the professional development of future medical doctors in a wide range of topics important for practitioners in the global world of the twenty-first century. © 2015 the Nordic Societies of Public Health.

  7. Capacity-building for health research in developing countries: a manager's approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Franklin White

    2002-09-01

    Full Text Available Research may be viewed as rigorous inquiry to advance knowledge and improve practices. An international commission has argued that strengthening research capacity is one of the most powerful, cost-effective, and sustainable means of advancing health and development. However, the global effort to promote research in developing countries has been mostly policy driven, and largely at the initiative of donor agencies based in developed countries. This policy approach, although essential, both contrasts with and is complementary to that of research managers, who must build capacity "from the ground up" in a variety of health service settings within countries and with differing mandates, resources, and constraints. In health organizations the concept of research is broad, and practices vary widely. However, building research capacity is not altogether different from building other kinds of organizational capacity, and it involves two major dimensions: strategic and operational. In organizations in the health field, if reference to research is not in the mission statement, then developing a relevant research capacity is made vastly more difficult. Research capacities that take years to develop can be easily damaged through inadequate support, poor management, or other negative influences associated with both internal and external environments. This paper draws from key international research policy documents and observations on the behavior of research and donor agencies in relation to developing countries. It examines capacity-building primarily as a challenge for research managers, realities underlying operational effectiveness and efficiency, approaches to resource mobilization, and the need for marketing the research enterprise. Selected examples from South Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean are presented.

  8. Building the national health information infrastructure for personal health, health care services, public health, and research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Detmer Don E

    2003-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Improving health in our nation requires strengthening four major domains of the health care system: personal health management, health care delivery, public health, and health-related research. Many avoidable shortcomings in the health sector that result in poor quality are due to inaccessible data, information, and knowledge. A national health information infrastructure (NHII offers the connectivity and knowledge management essential to correct these shortcomings. Better health and a better health system are within our reach. Discussion A national health information infrastructure for the United States should address the needs of personal health management, health care delivery, public health, and research. It should also address relevant global dimensions (e.g., standards for sharing data and knowledge across national boundaries. The public and private sectors will need to collaborate to build a robust national health information infrastructure, essentially a 'paperless' health care system, for the United States. The federal government should assume leadership for assuring a national health information infrastructure as recommended by the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics and the President's Information Technology Advisory Committee. Progress is needed in the areas of funding, incentives, standards, and continued refinement of a privacy (i.e., confidentiality and security framework to facilitate personal identification for health purposes. Particular attention should be paid to NHII leadership and change management challenges. Summary A national health information infrastructure is a necessary step for improved health in the U.S. It will require a concerted, collaborative effort by both public and private sectors. If you cannot measure it, you cannot improve it. Lord Kelvin

  9. Country ownership and capacity building: the next buzzwords in health systems strengthening or a truly new approach to development?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Goldberg Jessica

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background During the last decade, donor governments and international agencies have increasingly emphasized the importance of building the capacity of indigenous health care organizations as part of strengthening health systems and ensuring sustainability. In 2009, the U.S. Global Health Initiative made country ownership and capacity building keystones of U.S. health development assistance, and yet there is still a lack of consensus on how to define either of these terms, or how to implement “country owned capacity building”. Discussion Concepts around capacity building have been well developed in the for-profit business sector, but remain less well defined in the non-profit and social sectors in low and middle-income countries. Historically, capacity building in developing countries has been externally driven, related to project implementation, and often resulted in disempowerment of local organizations rather than local ownership. Despite the expenditure of millions of dollars, there is no consensus on how to conduct capacity building, nor have there been rigorous evaluations of capacity building efforts. To shift to a new paradigm of country owned capacity building, donor assistance needs to be inclusive in the planning process and create true partnerships to conduct organizational assessments, analyze challenges to organizational success, prioritize addressing challenges, and implement appropriate activities to build new capacity in overcoming challenges. Before further investments are made, a solid evidence base should be established concerning what works and what doesn’t work to build capacity. Summary Country-owned capacity building is a relatively new concept that requires further theoretical exploration. Documents such as The Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness detail the principles of country ownership to which partner and donor countries should commit, but do not identify the specific mechanisms to carry out these

  10. Global Health Governance at a Crossroads.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ng, Nora Y; Ruger, Jennifer Prah

    2011-06-21

    This review takes stock of the global health governance (GHG) literature. We address the transition from international health governance (IHG) to global health governance, identify major actors, and explain some challenges and successes in GHG. We analyze the framing of health as national security, human security, human rights, and global public good, and the implications of these various frames. We also establish and examine from the literature GHG's major themes and issues, which include: 1) persistent GHG problems; 2) different approaches to tackling health challenges (vertical, horizontal, and diagonal); 3) health's multisectoral connections; 4) neoliberalism and the global economy; 5) the framing of health (e.g. as a security issue, as a foreign policy issue, as a human rights issue, and as a global public good); 6) global health inequalities; 7) local and country ownership and capacity; 8) international law in GHG; and 9) research gaps in GHG. We find that decades-old challenges in GHG persist and GHG needs a new way forward. A framework called shared health governance offers promise.

  11. E-networks for improving public health education and practice in low and middle income countries: Introducing public health global network

    OpenAIRE

    Manu Raj Mathur; Priyanka Chaman; Vijayluxmi Bose

    2012-01-01

    This paper introduces a knowledge exchange portal called the Public Health Global network (www.publichealthglobal.org). Evolution of the portal as a medium for promoting dialogue and exchange within the community of public health practice and its functions ─ showcasing successes, discussing challenges and focussing on debates around research, curricula, training needs and capacity-building interventions are described. Several challenges to setting up and running such a portal are highlighted ...

  12. Estimating Fallout Building Attributes from Architectural Features and Global Earthquake Model (GEM) Building Descriptions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dillon, Michael B. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Kane, Staci R. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

    2017-03-01

    A nuclear explosion has the potential to injure or kill tens to hundreds of thousands (or more) of people through exposure to fallout (external gamma) radiation. Existing buildings can protect their occupants (reducing fallout radiation exposures) by placing material and distance between fallout particles and individuals indoors. Prior efforts have determined an initial set of building attributes suitable to reasonably assess a given building’s protection against fallout radiation. The current work provides methods to determine the quantitative values for these attributes from (a) common architectural features and data and (b) buildings described using the Global Earthquake Model (GEM) taxonomy. These methods will be used to improve estimates of fallout protection for operational US Department of Defense (DoD) and US Department of Energy (DOE) consequence assessment models.

  13. Building-related health impacts in European and Chinese cities: a scalable assessment method.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tuomisto, Jouni T; Niittynen, Marjo; Pärjälä, Erkki; Asikainen, Arja; Perez, Laura; Trüeb, Stephan; Jantunen, Matti; Künzli, Nino; Sabel, Clive E

    2015-12-14

    Public health is often affected by societal decisions that are not primarily about health. Climate change mitigation requires intensive actions to minimise greenhouse gas emissions in the future. Many of these actions take place in cities due to their traffic, buildings, and energy consumption. Active climate mitigation policies will also, aside of their long term global impacts, have short term local impacts, both positive and negative, on public health. Our main objective was to develop a generic open impact model to estimate health impacts of emissions due to heat and power consumption of buildings. In addition, the model should be usable for policy comparisons by non-health experts on city level with city-specific data, it should give guidance on the particular climate mitigation questions but at the same time increase understanding on the related health impacts and the model should follow the building stock in time, make comparisons between scenarios, propagate uncertainties, and scale to different levels of detail. We tested The functionalities of the model in two case cities, namely Kuopio and Basel. We estimated the health and climate impacts of two actual policies planned or implemented in the cities. The assessed policies were replacement of peat with wood chips in co-generation of district heat and power, and improved energy efficiency of buildings achieved by renovations. Health impacts were not large in the two cities, but also clear differences in implementation and predictability between the two tested policies were seen. Renovation policies can improve the energy efficiency of buildings and reduce greenhouse gas emissions significantly, but this requires systematic policy sustained for decades. In contrast, fuel changes in large district heating facilities may have rapid and large impacts on emissions. However, the life cycle impacts of different fuels is somewhat an open question. In conclusion, we were able to develop a practical model for city

  14. The Guatemala-Penn Partners: An Innovative Inter-Institutional Model for Scientific Capacity-Building, Healthcare Education, and Public Health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paniagua-Avila, Maria Alejandra; Messenger, Elizabeth; Nelson, Caroline A.; Calgua, Erwin; Barg, Frances K.; Bream, Kent W.; Compher, Charlene; Dean, Anthony J.; Martinez-Siekavizza, Sergio; Puac-Polanco, Victor; Richmond, Therese S.; Roth, Rudolf R.; Branas, Charles C.

    2017-01-01

    Population health outcomes are directly related to robust public health programs, access to basic health services, and a well-trained health-care workforce. Effective health services need to systematically identify solutions, scientifically test these solutions, and share generated knowledge. The World Health Organization (WHO)’s Global Healthcare Workforce Alliance states that the capacity to perform research is an essential factor for well-functioning public health systems. Low- and middle-income countries have greater health-care worker shortages and lower research capacity than higher-income countries. International global health partnerships between higher-income countries and low-middle-income countries aim to directly address such inequalities through capacity building, a process by which human and institutional resources are strengthened and developed, allowing them to perform high-level functions, solve complex problems, and achieve important objectives. The Guatemala–Penn Partners (GPP) is a collaboration among academic centers in Guatemala and the University of Pennsylvania (Penn), in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that echoes the vision of the WHO’s Global Healthcare Workforce Alliance. This article describes the historical development and present organization of the GPP according to its three guiding principles: university-to-university connections, dual autonomies with locally led capacity building, and mutually beneficial exchanges. It describes the GPP activities within the domains of science, health-care education, and public health, emphasizing implementation factors, such as sustainability and scalability, in relation to the guiding principles. Successes and limitations of this innovative model are also analyzed in the hope that the lessons learned may be applied to similar partnerships across the globe. PMID:28443274

  15. Challenges and Opportunities in Global Mental Health: a Research-to-Practice Perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wainberg, Milton L; Scorza, Pamela; Shultz, James M; Helpman, Liat; Mootz, Jennifer J; Johnson, Karen A; Neria, Yuval; Bradford, Jean-Marie E; Oquendo, Maria A; Arbuckle, Melissa R

    2017-05-01

    Globally, the majority of those who need mental health care worldwide lack access to high-quality mental health services. Stigma, human resource shortages, fragmented service delivery models, and lack of research capacity for implementation and policy change contribute to the current mental health treatment gap. In this review, we describe how health systems in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are addressing the mental health gap and further identify challenges and priority areas for future research. Common mental disorders are responsible for the largest proportion of the global burden of disease; yet, there is sound evidence that these disorders, as well as severe mental disorders, can be successfully treated using evidence-based interventions delivered by trained lay health workers in low-resource community or primary care settings. Stigma is a barrier to service uptake. Prevention, though necessary to address the mental health gap, has not solidified as a research or programmatic focus. Research-to-practice implementation studies are required to inform policies and scale-up services. Four priority areas are identified for focused attention to diminish the mental health treatment gap and to improve access to high-quality mental health services globally: diminishing pervasive stigma, building mental health system treatment and research capacity, implementing prevention programs to decrease the incidence of mental disorders, and establishing sustainable scale up of public health systems to improve access to mental health treatment using evidence-based interventions.

  16. Energy savings, emission reductions, and health co-benefits of the green building movement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    P, MacNaughton; X, Cao; J, Buonocore; J, Cedeno-Laurent; J, Spengler; A, Bernstein; J, Allen

    2018-06-01

    Buildings consume nearly 40% of primary energy production globally. Certified green buildings substantially reduce energy consumption on a per square foot basis and they also focus on indoor environmental quality. However, the co-benefits to health through reductions in energy and concomitant reductions in air pollution have not been examined.We calculated year by year LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification rates in six countries (the United States, China, India, Brazil, Germany, and Turkey) and then used data from the Green Building Information Gateway (GBIG) to estimate energy savings in each country each year. Of the green building rating schemes, LEED accounts for 32% of green-certified floor space and publically reports energy efficiency data. We employed Harvard's Co-BE Calculator to determine pollutant emissions reductions by country accounting for transient energy mixes and baseline energy use intensities. Co-BE applies the social cost of carbon and the social cost of atmospheric release to translate these reductions into health benefits. Based on modeled energy use, LEED-certified buildings saved $7.5B in energy costs and averted 33MT of CO 2 , 51 kt of SO 2 , 38 kt of NO x , and 10 kt of PM 2.5 from entering the atmosphere, which amounts to $5.8B (lower limit = $2.3B, upper limit = $9.1B) in climate and health co-benefits from 2000 to 2016 in the six countries investigated. The U.S. health benefits derive from avoiding an estimated 172-405 premature deaths, 171 hospital admissions, 11,000 asthma exacerbations, 54,000 respiratory symptoms, 21,000 lost days of work, and 16,000 lost days of school. Because the climate and health benefits are nearly equivalent to the energy savings for green buildings in the United States, and up to 10 times higher in developing countries, they provide an important and previously unquantified societal value. Future analyses should consider these co-benefits when weighing policy

  17. Future-proofing global health: Governance of priorities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bennett, Belinda; Cohen, I Glenn; Davies, Sara E; Gostin, Lawrence O; Hill, Peter S; Mankad, Aditi; Phelan, Alexandra L

    2018-05-01

    The year 2015 was a significant anniversary for global health: 15 years since the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals and the creation of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, followed two years later by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria. 2015 was also the 10-year anniversary of the adoption of the International Health Regulations (May 2005) and the formal entering into force of the Framework Convention on the Tobacco Control (February 2005). The anniversary of these frameworks and institutions illustrates the growth and contribution of 'global' health diplomacy. Each initiative has also revealed on-going issues with compliance, sustainable funding and equitable attention in global health governance. In this paper, we present four thematic challenges that will continue to challenge prioritisation within global health governance into the future unless addressed: framing and prioritising within global health governance; identifying stakeholders of the global health community; understanding the relationship between health and behaviour; and the role of governance and regulation in supporting global health.

  18. Humanity and Justice in Global Health: Problems with Venkatapuram's Justification of the Global Health Duty.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kollar, Eszter; Laukötter, Sebastian; Buyx, Alena

    2016-01-01

    One of the most ambitious and sophisticated recent approaches to provide a theory of global health justice is Sridhar Venkatapuram's recent work. In this commentary, we first outline the core idea of Venkatapuram's approach to global health justice. We then argue that one of the most important elements of the account, Venkatapuram's basis of global health duties, is either too weak or assumed implicitly without a robust justification. The more explicit grounding of the duty to protect and promote health capabilities is based on Martha Nussbaum's version of the capability approach. We argue that this foundation gives rise to humanitarian duties rather than duties of justice proper. Venkatapuram's second argument from the social determinants of health thesis is instead a stronger candidate for grounding duties of justice. However, as a justificatory argument, it is only alluded to and has not yet been spelled out sufficiently. We offer plausible justificatory steps to fill this gap and draw some implications for global health action. We believe this both strengthens Venkatapuram's approach and serves to broaden the basis for future action in the area of global health. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  19. Framing health and foreign policy: lessons for global health diplomacy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Labonté, Ronald; Gagnon, Michelle L

    2010-08-22

    Global health financing has increased dramatically in recent years, indicative of a rise in health as a foreign policy issue. Several governments have issued specific foreign policy statements on global health and a new term, global health diplomacy, has been coined to describe the processes by which state and non-state actors engage to position health issues more prominently in foreign policy decision-making. Their ability to do so is important to advancing international cooperation in health. In this paper we review the arguments for health in foreign policy that inform global health diplomacy. These are organized into six policy frames: security, development, global public goods, trade, human rights and ethical/moral reasoning. Each of these frames has implications for how global health as a foreign policy issue is conceptualized. Differing arguments within and between these policy frames, while overlapping, can also be contradictory. This raises an important question about which arguments prevail in actual state decision-making. This question is addressed through an analysis of policy or policy-related documents and academic literature pertinent to each policy framing with some assessment of policy practice. The reference point for this analysis is the explicit goal of improving global health equity. This goal has increasing national traction within national public health discourse and decision-making and, through the Millennium Development Goals and other multilateral reports and declarations, is entering global health policy discussion. Initial findings support conventional international relations theory that most states, even when committed to health as a foreign policy goal, still make decisions primarily on the basis of the 'high politics' of national security and economic material interests. Development, human rights and ethical/moral arguments for global health assistance, the traditional 'low politics' of foreign policy, are present in discourse but do

  20. Framing health and foreign policy: lessons for global health diplomacy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Labonté Ronald

    2010-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Global health financing has increased dramatically in recent years, indicative of a rise in health as a foreign policy issue. Several governments have issued specific foreign policy statements on global health and a new term, global health diplomacy, has been coined to describe the processes by which state and non-state actors engage to position health issues more prominently in foreign policy decision-making. Their ability to do so is important to advancing international cooperation in health. In this paper we review the arguments for health in foreign policy that inform global health diplomacy. These are organized into six policy frames: security, development, global public goods, trade, human rights and ethical/moral reasoning. Each of these frames has implications for how global health as a foreign policy issue is conceptualized. Differing arguments within and between these policy frames, while overlapping, can also be contradictory. This raises an important question about which arguments prevail in actual state decision-making. This question is addressed through an analysis of policy or policy-related documents and academic literature pertinent to each policy framing with some assessment of policy practice. The reference point for this analysis is the explicit goal of improving global health equity. This goal has increasing national traction within national public health discourse and decision-making and, through the Millennium Development Goals and other multilateral reports and declarations, is entering global health policy discussion. Initial findings support conventional international relations theory that most states, even when committed to health as a foreign policy goal, still make decisions primarily on the basis of the 'high politics' of national security and economic material interests. Development, human rights and ethical/moral arguments for global health assistance, the traditional 'low politics' of foreign policy, are

  1. Global Health in Radiation Oncology

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rodin, Danielle; Yap, Mei Ling; Grover, Surbhi

    2017-01-01

    programs. However, formalized training and career promotion tracks in global health within radiation oncology have been slow to emerge, thereby limiting the sustained involvement of students and faculty, and restricting opportunities for leadership in this space. We examine here potential structures...... and benefits of formalized global health training in radiation oncology. We explore how defining specific competencies in this area can help trainees and practitioners integrate their activities in global health within their existing roles as clinicians, educators, or scientists. This would also help create...... and funding models might be used to further develop and expand radiation oncology services globally....

  2. Global solidarity, migration and global health inequity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eckenwiler, Lisa; Straehle, Christine; Chung, Ryoa

    2012-09-01

    The grounds for global solidarity have been theorized and conceptualized in recent years, and many have argued that we need a global concept of solidarity. But the question remains: what can motivate efforts of the international community and nation-states? Our focus is the grounding of solidarity with respect to global inequities in health. We explore what considerations could motivate acts of global solidarity in the specific context of health migration, and sketch briefly what form this kind of solidarity could take. First, we argue that the only plausible conceptualization of persons highlights their interdependence. We draw upon a conception of persons as 'ecological subjects' and from there illustrate what such a conception implies with the example of nurses migrating from low and middle-income countries to more affluent ones. Next, we address potential critics who might counter any such understanding of current international politics with a reference to real-politik and the insights of realist international political theory. We argue that national governments--while not always or even often motivated by moral reasons alone--may nevertheless be motivated to acts of global solidarity by prudential arguments. Solidarity then need not be, as many argue, a function of charitable inclination, or emergent from an acknowledgment of injustice suffered, but may in fact serve national and transnational interests. We conclude on a positive note: global solidarity may be conceptualized to helpfully address global health inequity, to the extent that personal and transnational interdependence are enough to motivate national governments into action. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  3. Defining features of the practice of global health research: an examination of 14 global health research teams

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Craig Stephen

    2010-07-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: This paper strives to develop a pragmatic view of the scope of practice and core characteristics of global health research (GHR by examining the activities of 14 Canadian-funded global health teams that were in the process of implementing research programs. Methods: Information was collected by a reflective exploration of team proposals and progress reports, a content analysis of the outputs from an all-team meeting and review of the literature. Results: Teams adopted equity-centered, problem-focused, systems-based approaches intended to find upstream determinants that could make people more resilient to social and ecological factors impacting their health. Long-term visions and time frames were needed to develop and solidify fully functional interdisciplinary, multinational, multicultural partnerships. The implementation of research into practice was a motivating factor for all teams, but to do this, they recognized the need for evidence-based advice on how to best do this. Traditional measures of biomedical research excellence were necessary but not sufficient to encompass views of excellence of team-based interdisciplinary research, which includes features like originality, coherence and cumulative contributions to fields of study, acceptance by peers and success in translating research into gains in health status. An innovative and nuanced approached to GHR ethics was needed to deal with some unique ethical issues because the needs for GHR were not adequately addressed by institutional biomedical research ethics boards. Core competencies for GHR researchers were a blend of those needed for health promotion, population health, international development, sustainable development, and systems science. Discussion: Developing acceptable and meaningful ways to evaluate the short-term contributions for GHR and forecast its long-term impacts is a strategic priority needed to defend decisions being made in GHR development. Planning and

  4. Globalisation and global health governance: implications for public health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kruk, Margaret E

    2012-01-01

    Globalisation is a defining economic and social trend of the past several decades. Globalisation affects health directly and indirectly and creates economic and health disparities within and across countries. The political response to address these disparities, exemplified by the Millennium Development Goals, has put pressure on the global community to redress massive inequities in health and other determinants of human capability across countries. This, in turn, has accelerated a transformation in the architecture of global health governance. The entrance of new actors, such as private foundations and multi-stakeholder initiatives, contributed to a doubling of funds for global health between 2000 and 2010. Today the governance of public health is in flux, with diminished leadership from multilateral institutions, such as the WHO, and poor coherence in policy and programming that undermines the potential for sustainable health gains. These trends pose new challenges and opportunities for global public health, which is centrally concerned with identifying and addressing threats to the health of vulnerable populations worldwide.

  5. Strategic Implications of Global Health

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Monaghan, Karen

    2008-01-01

    "Strategic Implications of Global Health" responds to a request from the Undersecretary of State for Democratization and Global Affairs for an intelligence assessment on the connections between health and U.S. national interests...

  6. Pathogens, prejudice, and politics: the role of the global health community in the European refugee crisis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khan, Mishal S; Osei-Kofi, Anna; Omar, Abbas; Kirkbride, Hilary; Kessel, Anthony; Abbara, Aula; Heymann, David; Zumla, Alimuddin; Dar, Osman

    2016-08-01

    Involuntary migration is a crucially important global challenge from an economic, social, and public health perspective. The number of displaced people reached an unprecedented level in 2015, at a total of 60 million worldwide, with more than 1 million crossing into Europe in the past year alone. Migrants and refugees are often perceived to carry a higher load of infectious diseases, despite no systematic association. We propose three important contributions that the global health community can make to help address infectious disease risks and global health inequalities worldwide, with a particular focus on the refugee crisis in Europe. First, policy decisions should be based on a sound evidence base regarding health risks and burdens to health systems, rather than prejudice or unfounded fears. Second, for incoming refugees, we must focus on building inclusive, cost-effective health services to promote collective health security. Finally, alongside protracted conflicts, widening of health and socioeconomic inequalities between high-income and lower-income countries should be acknowledged as major drivers for the global refugee crisis, and fully considered in planning long-term solutions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Block assembly for global registration of building scans

    KAUST Repository

    Yan, Feilong; Nan, Liangliang; Wonka, Peter

    2016-01-01

    We propose a framework for global registration of building scans. The first contribution of our work is to detect and use portals (e.g., doors and windows) to improve the local registration between two scans. Our second contribution is an optimization based on a linear integer programming formulation. We abstract each scan as a block and model the blocks registration as an optimization problem that aims at maximizing the overall matching score of the entire scene. We propose an efficient solution to this optimization problem by iteratively detecting and adding local constraints. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method on buildings of various styles and that our approach is superior to the current state of the art.

  8. Block assembly for global registration of building scans

    KAUST Repository

    Yan, Feilong

    2016-11-11

    We propose a framework for global registration of building scans. The first contribution of our work is to detect and use portals (e.g., doors and windows) to improve the local registration between two scans. Our second contribution is an optimization based on a linear integer programming formulation. We abstract each scan as a block and model the blocks registration as an optimization problem that aims at maximizing the overall matching score of the entire scene. We propose an efficient solution to this optimization problem by iteratively detecting and adding local constraints. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method on buildings of various styles and that our approach is superior to the current state of the art.

  9. MEMBANGUN SUSTAINABLE ENTREPRENEURSHIP UNTUK MENINGKATKAN DAYA SAING GLOBAL (BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN INCREASING GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS)

    OpenAIRE

    NABABAN, TONGAM SIHOL

    2014-01-01

    Global Entrepreneurship and Development Index or the Global Entrepreneurship and Development Index (GEDI) In 2013 positioned Indonesia at ranked 76 of 118 countries. Compared with the ASEAN countries, the position are still far below Singapore (13), and still below Malaysia (57), Brunei Darussalam (58), Thailand (65). This fact shows that Indonesia has not been optimal in building its entrepreneurial yet. To enhance the development of entrepreneurship, the Indonesian government has launched ...

  10. Time to go global: a consultation on global health competencies for postgraduate doctors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walpole, Sarah C.; Shortall, Clare; van Schalkwyk, May CI; Merriel, Abi; Ellis, Jayne; Obolensky, Lucy; Casanova Dias, Marisa; Watson, Jessica; Brown, Colin S.; Hall, Jennifer; Pettigrew, Luisa M.; Allen, Steve

    2016-01-01

    Background Globalisation is having profound impacts on health and healthcare. We solicited the views of a wide range of stakeholders in order to develop core global health competencies for postgraduate doctors. Methods Published literature and existing curricula informed writing of seven global health competencies for consultation. A modified policy Delphi involved an online survey and face-to-face and telephone interviews over three rounds. Results Over 250 stakeholders participated, including doctors, other health professionals, policymakers and members of the public from all continents of the world. Participants indicated that global health competence is essential for postgraduate doctors and other health professionals. Concerns were expressed about overburdening curricula and identifying what is ‘essential’ for whom. Conflicting perspectives emerged about the importance and relevance of different global health topics. Five core competencies were developed: (1) diversity, human rights and ethics; (2) environmental, social and economic determinants of health; (3) global epidemiology; (4) global health governance; and (5) health systems and health professionals. Conclusions Global health can bring important perspectives to postgraduate curricula, enhancing the ability of doctors to provide quality care. These global health competencies require tailoring to meet different trainees' needs and facilitate their incorporation into curricula. Healthcare and global health are ever-changing; therefore, the competencies will need to be regularly reviewed and updated. PMID:27241136

  11. Framing global health: the governance challenge.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McInnes, Colin; Kamradt-Scott, Adam; Lee, Kelley; Reubi, David; Roemer-Mahler, Anne; Rushton, Simon; Williams, Owain David; Woodling, Marie

    2012-01-01

    With the emergence of global health comes governance challenges which are equally global in nature. This article identifies some of the initial limitations in analyses of global health governance (GHG) before discussing the focus of this special supplement: the framing of global health issues and the manner in which this impacts upon GHG. Whilst not denying the importance of material factors (such as resources and institutional competencies), the article identifies how issues can be framed in different ways, thereby creating particular pathways of response which in turn affect the potential for and nature of GHG. It also identifies and discusses the key frames operating in global health: evidence-based medicine, human rights, security, economics and development.

  12. Non-communicable diseases and global health governance: enhancing global processes to improve health development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Magnusson, Roger S

    2007-05-22

    This paper assesses progress in the development of a global framework for responding to non-communicable diseases, as reflected in the policies and initiatives of the World Health Organization (WHO), World Bank and the UN: the institutions most capable of shaping a coherent global policy. Responding to the global burden of chronic disease requires a strategic assessment of the global processes that are likely to be most effective in generating commitment to policy change at country level, and in influencing industry behaviour. WHO has adopted a legal process with tobacco (the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control), but a non-legal, advocacy-based approach with diet and physical activity (the Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health). The paper assesses the merits of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the FCTC as distinct global processes for advancing health development, before considering what lessons might be learned for enhancing the implementation of the Global Strategy on Diet. While global partnerships, economic incentives, and international legal instruments could each contribute to a more effective global response to chronic diseases, the paper makes a special case for the development of international legal standards in select areas of diet and nutrition, as a strategy for ensuring that the health of future generations does not become dependent on corporate charity and voluntary commitments. A broader frame of reference for lifestyle-related chronic diseases is needed: one that draws together WHO's work in tobacco, nutrition and physical activity, and that envisages selective use of international legal obligations, non-binding recommendations, advocacy and policy advice as tools of choice for promoting different elements of the strategy.

  13. Non-communicable diseases and global health governance: enhancing global processes to improve health development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Magnusson Roger S

    2007-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract This paper assesses progress in the development of a global framework for responding to non-communicable diseases, as reflected in the policies and initiatives of the World Health Organization (WHO, World Bank and the UN: the institutions most capable of shaping a coherent global policy. Responding to the global burden of chronic disease requires a strategic assessment of the global processes that are likely to be most effective in generating commitment to policy change at country level, and in influencing industry behaviour. WHO has adopted a legal process with tobacco (the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, but a non-legal, advocacy-based approach with diet and physical activity (the Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health. The paper assesses the merits of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs and the FCTC as distinct global processes for advancing health development, before considering what lessons might be learned for enhancing the implementation of the Global Strategy on Diet. While global partnerships, economic incentives, and international legal instruments could each contribute to a more effective global response to chronic diseases, the paper makes a special case for the development of international legal standards in select areas of diet and nutrition, as a strategy for ensuring that the health of future generations does not become dependent on corporate charity and voluntary commitments. A broader frame of reference for lifestyle-related chronic diseases is needed: one that draws together WHO's work in tobacco, nutrition and physical activity, and that envisages selective use of international legal obligations, non-binding recommendations, advocacy and policy advice as tools of choice for promoting different elements of the strategy.

  14. Global Health Engagement and The Department of Defense as a Vehicle for Security and Sustainable Global Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moten, Asad; Schafer, Daniel; Burkett, Edwin K

    2018-01-01

    The Unites States Department of Defense (DoD) is viewed by many in the general public as a monolithic government entity whose primary purpose is to coordinate this country's ability to make war and maintain a military presence around the world. However, the DoD is in fact a multidimensional organization whose global impact is as expansive as it is varying and is responsible for far-reaching global health interventions. The United States has worked toward providing long-term care among host nation populations by providing training in several areas related to medicine, with positive results. These efforts can be built upon with substantial positive effects. Building health infrastructure and capacity around the world is essential. The DoD is the most generously funded agency in the world, and the resources at its disposal provide the opportunity to make great gains in the long term in terms of both health and security worldwide. With efficient and careful use of DoD resources, and partnerships with key non-governmental organizations with specialized knowledge and great passion, partnerships can be forged with communities around the world to ensure that public health is achieved in even the most underserved communities. A move toward creating sustainable health systems with long-term goals and measurable outcomes is an essential complement to the already successful disaster and emergency relief that the United States military already provides. By ensuring that communities around the world are both provided with access to the sustainable health care they need and that emergency situations can be responded to in an efficient way, the United States can serve its duty as a leader in sharing expertise and resources for the betterment and security of all humankind. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Association of Military Surgeons of the United States 2017. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

  15. Increasing women in leadership in global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Downs, Jennifer A; Reif, Lindsey K; Hokororo, Adolfine; Fitzgerald, Daniel W

    2014-08-01

    Globally, women experience a disproportionate burden of disease and death due to inequities in access to basic health care, nutrition, and education. In the face of this disparity, it is striking that leadership in the field of global health is highly skewed towards men and that global health organizations neglect the issue of gender equality in their own leadership. Randomized trials demonstrate that women in leadership positions in governmental organizations implement different policies than men and that these policies are more supportive of women and children. Other studies show that proactive interventions to increase the proportion of women in leadership positions within businesses or government can be successful. Therefore, the authors assert that increasing female leadership in global health is both feasible and a fundamental step towards addressing the problem of women's health. In this Perspective, the authors contrast the high proportion of young female trainees who are interested in academic global health early in their careers with the low numbers of women successfully rising to global health leadership roles. The authors subsequently explore reasons for female attrition from the field of global health and offer practical strategies for closing the gender gap in global health leadership. The authors propose solutions aimed to promote female leaders from both resource-wealthy and resource-poor countries, including leadership training grants, mentorship from female leaders in global professions, strengthening health education in resource-poor countries, research-enabling grants, and altering institutional policies to support women choosing a global health career path.

  16. Building the Nightingale Initiative for Global Health--NIGH: can we engage and empower the public voices of nurses worldwide?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beck, Deva-Marie; Dossey, Barbara M; Rushton, Cynda H

    2013-10-01

    The Nightingale Initiative for Global Health (NIGH) is a major grassroots-to-global movement of "daring, caring and sharing" of nursing and others around the world inspired by the outstanding legacy of Florence Nightingale. The Nightingale Initiative envisions and emulates what Nightingale might have accomplished if she lived in the digital age and with international agencies such as the United Nations and World Health Organization. It challenges nurses everywhere to think and act both locally and globally, to raise their voices about the contribution of nursing, and to become authentic advocates, particularly in addressing the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

  17. Global recommendations on physical activity for health

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... кий Español Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health Menu Diet, Physical Activity & Health Global strategy development ... obesity Documents & publications Related links Global recommendations on physical activity for health WHO developed the "Global Recommendations on Physical Activity ...

  18. Buildings and Health. Educational campaign for healthy buildings. Educational material

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1994-12-31

    In recent years health and comfort problems associated with the indoor climate have come to constitute a problem in Sweden. To come to grips with this a nationwide educational campaign on Buildings and Health is being run. It is directed to those involved in planning, project design, construction and management of buildings. The objective is to convey a body of knowledge to the many occupational and professional groups in the construction sector on how to avoid indoor climate problems in homes, schools, offices and other workplaces. The campaign is being run by the Swedish National Board of Housing and Planning and the Swedish Council for Building Research, in co-operation with various organizations and companies in the construction industry, and with municipalities and authorities. The knowledge which is being disseminated through the campaign is summarized in this compendium. figs., tabs.

  19. Big Data Knowledge in Global Health Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Olayinka, Olaniyi; Kekeh, Michele; Sheth-Chandra, Manasi; Akpinar-Elci, Muge

    The ability to synthesize and analyze massive amounts of data is critical to the success of organizations, including those that involve global health. As countries become highly interconnected, increasing the risk for pandemics and outbreaks, the demand for big data is likely to increase. This requires a global health workforce that is trained in the effective use of big data. To assess implementation of big data training in global health, we conducted a pilot survey of members of the Consortium of Universities of Global Health. More than half the respondents did not have a big data training program at their institution. Additionally, the majority agreed that big data training programs will improve global health deliverables, among other favorable outcomes. Given the observed gap and benefits, global health educators may consider investing in big data training for students seeking a career in global health. Copyright © 2017 Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Challenges in Building a Global Supply Chain in the Apparel Industry

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vidyaranya B. Gargeya

    2001-09-01

    Full Text Available The last decade of the twentieth century has been characterized with the growth of global supply chains in a wide variety of industries. Global supply chain management in the apparel industry presents a wide variety of challenges. This paper presents a framework elaborating the challenges associated with communication, cultural relationships, technology, production processes, supplier arrangements, and transportation infrastructure in building a global supply chain in the apparel industry catering primarily to the U.S. market. The paper, in the concluding section, makes a few suggestions for future research in global supply chain management in the apparel industry.

  1. Globalization of health insecurity: the World Health Organization and the new International Health Regulations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aginam, Obijiofor

    2006-12-01

    The transnational spread of communicable and non-communicable diseases has opened new vistas in the discourse of global health security. Emerging and re-emerging pathogens, according to exponents of globalization of public health, disrespect the geo-political boundaries of nation-states. Despite the global ramifications of health insecurity in a globalizing world, contemporary international law still operates as a classic inter-state law within an international system exclusively founded on a coalition of nation-states. This article argues that the dynamic process of globalization has created an opportunity for the World Health Organization to develop effective synergy with a multiplicity of actors in the exercise of its legal powers. WHO's legal and regulatory strategies must transform from traditional international legal approaches to disease governance to a "post-Westphalian public health governance": the use of formal and informal sources from state and non-state actors, hard law (treaties and regulations) and soft law (recommendations and travel advisories) in global health governance. This article assesses the potential promise and problems of WHO's new International Health Regulations (IHR) as a regulatory strategy for global health governance and global health security.

  2. Global health-a circumpolar perspective

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Chatwood, Susan; Bjerregaard, Peter; Young, T Kue

    2012-01-01

    Global health should encompass circumpolar health if it is to transcend the traditional approach of the "rich North" assisting the "poor South." Although the eight Arctic states are among the world's most highly developed countries, considerable health disparities exist among regions across...... the Arctic, as well as between northern and southern regions and between indigenous and nonindigenous populations within some of these states. While sharing commonalities such as a sparse population, geographical remoteness, harsh physical environment, and underdeveloped human resources, circumpolar regions...... in the northern hemisphere have developed different health systems, strategies, and practices, some of which are relevant to middle and lower income countries. As the Arctic gains prominence as a sentinel of global issues such as climate change, the health of circumpolar populations should be part of the global...

  3. Designing for health in school buildings

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kirkeby, Inge Mette; Jensen, Bjarne Bruun; Larsen, Kristian

    2015-01-01

    Aim: To investigate the kinds of knowledge practitioners use when planning and designing for health in school buildings. Methods: Twelve semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with architects, teachers and officials to investigate use of knowledge in the making of school buildings...

  4. [Schools, office buildings, leisure settings: diversity of indoor air quality issues. Global review on indoor air quality in these settings].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mandin, C; Derbez, M; Kirchner, S

    2012-07-01

    This review provides a global overview of indoor air quality issues in schools, office buildings and recreational settings. It presents the most recent scientific publications and the on-going work conducted in France in the frame of the indoor air quality Observatory. Monitoring campaigns on indoor air quality in schools have been carried out in the recent years in Europe. However, few studies have specifically addressed the role of exposure in these buildings on children's health. Indoor air quality in office buildings has been little studied so far. However, some specificities, such as emissions from electronic devices, frequent cleaning, impossibility to open windows in high-rise buildings, for example, should be examined and their role on the health and comfort studied. Finally, even if the time spent in recreational settings is short, the quality of indoor air should also be considered because of specific pollution. This is the case of indoor swimming pools (exposure to chlorination byproducts) and ice-rinks (exposure to exhaust from machines used to smooth the ice). Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  5. SDH-NET: a South-North-South collaboration to build sustainable research capacities on social determinants of health in low- and middle-income countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cash-Gibson, Lucinda; Guerra, German; Salgado-de-Snyder, V Nelly

    2015-10-22

    It is desirable that health researchers have the ability to conduct research on health equity and contribute to the development of their national health system and policymaking processes. However, in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), there is a limited capacity to conduct this type of research due to reasons mostly associated with the status of national (health) research systems. Building sustainable research capacity in LMICs through the triangulation of South-North-South (S-N-S) collaborative networks seems to be an effective way to maximize limited national resources to strengthen these capacities. This article describes how a collaborative project (SDH-Net), funded by the European Commission, has successfully designed a study protocol and a S-N-S collaborative network to effectively support research capacity building in LMICs, specifically in the area of social determinants of health (SDH); this project seeks to elaborate on the vital role of global collaborative networks in strengthening this practice. The implementation of SDH-Net comprised diverse activities developed in three phases. Phase 1: national level mapping exercises were conducted to assess the needs for SDH capacity building or strengthening in local research systems. Four strategic areas were defined, namely research implementation and system performance, social appropriation of knowledge, institutional and national research infrastructure, and research skills and training/networks. Phase 2: development of tools to address the identified capacity building needs, as well as knowledge management and network strengthening activities. Phase 3: identifying lessons learned in terms of research ethics, and how policies can support the capacity building process in SDH research. The implementation of the protocol has led the network to design innovative tools for strengthening SDH research capacities, under a successful S-N-S collaboration that included national mapping reports, a global open

  6. Global Health Observatory (GHO)

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... global health estimates Health Equity Monitor 3.1 Maternal mortality Maternal health 3.2 Newborn and child mortality Child ... Programmes) Quick links Contact us Frequently asked questions Employment Feedback Privacy Email scams Regions Africa Americas South- ...

  7. Assembling GHERG: Could "academic crowd-sourcing" address gaps in global health estimates?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rudan, Igor; Campbell, Harry; Marušić, Ana; Sridhar, Devi; Nair, Harish; Adeloye, Davies; Theodoratou, Evropi; Chan, Kit Yee

    2015-06-01

    In recent months, the World Health Organization (WHO), independent academic researchers, the Lancet and PLoS Medicine journals worked together to improve reporting of population health estimates. The new guidelines for accurate and transparent health estimates reporting (likely to be named GATHER), which are eagerly awaited, represent a helpful move that should benefit the field of global health metrics. Building on this progress and drawing from a tradition of Child Health Epidemiology Reference Group (CHERG)'s successful work model, we would like to propose a new initiative - "Global Health Epidemiology Reference Group" (GHERG). We see GHERG as an informal and entirely voluntary international collaboration of academic groups who are willing to contribute to improving disease burden estimates and respect the principles of the new guidelines - a form of "academic crowd-sourcing". The main focus of GHERG will be to identify the "gap areas" where not much information is available and/or where there is a lot of uncertainty present about the accuracy of the existing estimates. This approach should serve to complement the existing WHO and IHME estimates and to represent added value to both efforts.

  8. Løsninger på den globale mangel på sundhedspersonale

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schriver, Michael; Ertner, Gideon; Aabenhus, Mette Morre

    2012-01-01

    The global shortage of health workers in a world with interdependence and vast inequalities in health calls for internationally coordinated context-sensitive actions to build a global health workforce of sufficient quantity and quality. This status article describes the global crisis in the health...

  9. Performance-based building codes: a call for injury prevention indicators that bridge health and building sectors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Edwards, N

    2008-10-01

    The international introduction of performance-based building codes calls for a re-examination of indicators used to monitor their implementation. Indicators used in the building sector have a business orientation, target the life cycle of buildings, and guide asset management. In contrast, indicators used in the health sector focus on injury prevention, have a behavioural orientation, lack specificity with respect to features of the built environment, and do not take into account patterns of building use or building longevity. Suggestions for metrics that bridge the building and health sectors are discussed. The need for integrated surveillance systems in health and building sectors is outlined. It is time to reconsider commonly used epidemiological indicators in the field of injury prevention and determine their utility to address the accountability requirements of performance-based codes.

  10. Reprising the globalization dimensions of international health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Labonté, Ronald

    2018-05-18

    Globalization is a fairly recent addition to the panoply of concepts describing the internationalization of health concerns. What distinguishes it from 'international health' or its newer morphing into 'global health' is a specific analytical concern with how globalization processes, past or present, but particularly since the start of our neoliberal era post-1980, is affecting health outcomes. Globalization processes influence health through multiple social pathways: from health systems and financing reforms to migration flows and internal displacement; via trade and investment treaties, labour market 'flexibilization', and the spread of unhealthy commodities; or through deploying human rights and environment protection treaties, and strengthening health diplomacy efforts, to create more equitable and sustainable global health outcomes. Globalization and Health was a pioneer in its focus on these critical facets of our health, well-being, and, indeed, planetary survival. In this editorial, the journal announces a re-focusing on this primary aim, announcing a number of new topic Sections and an expanded editorial capacity to ensure that submissions are 'on target' and processed rapidly, and that the journal continues to be on the leading edge of some of the most contentious and difficult health challenges confronting us.

  11. Globalization and Health: Exploring the opportunities and constraints for health arising from globalization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yach, Derek

    2005-01-01

    The tremendous benefits which have been conferred to almost 5 billion people through improved technologies and knowledge highlights the concomitant challenge of bringing these changes to the 1 billion people living mostly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia who are yet to benefit. There is a growing awareness of the need to reduce human suffering and of the necessary participation of governments, non-government organizations and industry within this process. This awareness has recently translated into new funding mechanisms to address HIV/Aids and vaccines, a global push for debt relief and better trade opportunities for the poorest countries, and recognition of how global norms that address food safety, infectious diseases and tobacco benefit all. 'Globalization and Health' will encourage an exchange of views on how the global architecture for health governance needs to changes in the light of global threats and opportunities. PMID:15847700

  12. Globalization and Health: Exploring the opportunities and constraints for health arising from globalization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yach, Derek

    2005-04-22

    The tremendous benefits which have been conferred to almost 5 billion people through improved technologies and knowledge highlights the concomitant challenge of bringing these changes to the 1 billion people living mostly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia who are yet to benefit. There is a growing awareness of the need to reduce human suffering and of the necessary participation of governments, non-government organizations and industry within this process. This awareness has recently translated into new funding mechanisms to address HIV/Aids and vaccines, a global push for debt relief and better trade opportunities for the poorest countries, and recognition of how global norms that address food safety, infectious diseases and tobacco benefit all. 'Globalization and Health' will encourage an exchange of views on how the global architecture for health governance needs to changes in the light of global threats and opportunities.

  13. The possible worlds of global health research: An ethics-focused discourse analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brisbois, Ben; Plamondon, Katrina

    2018-01-01

    Representations of the world enable global health research (GHR), discursively constructing sites in which studies can legitimately take place. Depoliticized portrayals of the global South frequently obscure messy legacies of colonialism and motivate technical responses to health problems with political and economic root causes. Such problematic representations of the world have not yet been rigorously examined in relation to global health ethics, a major site of scholarly effort towards GHR that promotes justice and fairness. We carried out a discourse analysis of four guidance documents relevant to the ethical practice of GHR, purposively selecting texts covering different genres (UN documents and journal articles) and prominent GHR foci (HIV and clinical trials). In light of increasing acknowledgement of the lessons Indigenous health scholarship holds for global health ethics, the four analyzed texts also included a set of principles developed to support Indigenous nation-building. Three of four documents featured global disparities as reasons for ethical caution. These inequalities appeared without explanation or causes, with generation of new scientific knowledge following as a logical response to such disparities. The fourth - Indigenous health-focused - document clearly identified 'colonialism' as a reason for both inequities in society, and related harmful research practices. Solutions to disparities in this text did not necessarily involve cutting-edge research, but focused instead on empowerment and responsiveness to community priorities and needs. These contrasting representations of the world were accomplished in ways that depended on texts' 'participants', or the people they represented; specific vocabularies or language usages; intertextual relationships to prior texts; and overall objectives or intentions of the author(s). Our results illustrate how ethics and other guidance documents serve as an important terrain for constructing, naturalizing or

  14. Conventional method for the calculation of the global energy cost of buildings; Methode conventionnelle de calcul du cout global energetique des batiments

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2002-05-01

    A working group driven by Electricite de France (EdF), Chauffage Fioul and Gaz de France (GdF) companies has been built with the sustain of several building engineering companies in order to clarify the use of the method of calculation of the global energy cost of buildings. This global cost is an economical decision help criterion among others. This press kit presents, first, the content of the method (input data, calculation of annual expenses, calculation of the global energy cost, display of results and limitations of the method). Then it fully describes the method and its appendixes necessary for its implementation: economical and financial context, general data of the project in progress, environmental data, occupation and comfort level, variants, investment cost of energy systems, investment cost for the structure linked with the energy system, investment cost for other invariant elements of the structure, calculation of consumptions (space heating, hot water, ventilation), maintenance costs (energy systems, structure), operation and exploitation costs, tariffs and consumption costs and taxes, actualized global cost, annualized global cost, comparison between variants. The method is applied to a council building of 23 flats taken as an example. (J.S.)

  15. [Academic review of global health approaches: an analytical framework].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Franco-Giraldo, Alvaro

    2015-09-01

    In order to identify perspectives on global health, this essay analyzes different trends from academia that have enriched global health and international health. A database was constructed with information from the world's leading global health centers. The search covered authors on global diplomacy and global health and was performed in PubMed, LILACS, and Google Scholar with the key words "global health" and "international health". Research and training centers in different countries have taken various academic approaches to global health; various interests and ideological orientations have emerged in relation to the global health concept. Based on the mosaic of global health centers and their positions, the review concludes that the new concept reflects the construction of a paradigm of renewal in international health and global health, the pre-paradigmatic stage of which has still not reached a final version.

  16. State Support: A Prerequisite for Global Health Network Effectiveness; Comment on “Four Challenges that Global Health Networks Face”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Robert Marten

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Shiffman recently summarized lessons for network effectiveness from an impressive collection of case-studies. However, in common with most global health governance analysis in recent years, Shiffman underplays the important role of states in these global networks. As the body which decides and signs international agreements, often provides the resourcing, and is responsible for implementing initiatives all contributing to the prioritization of certain issues over others, state recognition and support is a prerequisite to enabling and determining global health networks’ success. The role of states deserves greater attention, analysis and consideration. We reflect upon the underappreciated role of the state within the current discourse on global health. We present the tobacco case study to illustrate the decisive role of states in determining progress for global health networks, and highlight how states use a legitimacy loop to gain legitimacy from and provide legitimacy to global health networks. Moving forward in assessing global health networks’ effectiveness, further investigating state support as a determinant of success will be critical. Understanding how global health networks and states interact and evolve to shape and support their respective interests should be a focus for future research.

  17. Vaccines: Shaping global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pagliusi, Sonia; Ting, Ching-Chia; Lobos, Fernando

    2017-03-14

    The Developing Countries Vaccine Manufacturers' Network (DCVMN) gathered leaders in immunization programs, vaccine manufacturing, representatives of the Argentinean Health Authorities and Pan American Health Organization, among other global health stakeholders, for its 17th Annual General Meeting in Buenos Aires, to reflect on how vaccines are shaping global health. Polio eradication and elimination of measles and rubella from the Americas is a result of successful collaboration, made possible by timely supply of affordable vaccines. After decades of intense competition for high-value markets, collaboration with developing countries has become critical, and involvement of multiple manufacturers as well as public- and private-sector investments are essential, for developing new vaccines against emerging infectious diseases. The recent Zika virus outbreak and the accelerated Ebola vaccine development exemplify the need for international partnerships to combat infectious diseases. A new player, Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) has made its entrance in the global health community, aiming to stimulate research preparedness against emerging infections. Face-to-face panel discussions facilitated the dialogue around challenges, such as risks of viability to vaccine development and regulatory convergence, to improve access to sustainable vaccine supply. It was discussed that joint efforts to optimizing regulatory pathways in developing countries, reducing registration time by up to 50%, are required. Outbreaks of emerging infections and the global Polio eradication and containment challenges are reminders of the importance of vaccines' access, and of the importance of new public-private partnerships. Copyright © 2017.

  18. Building system capacity for the integration of mental health at the level of primary care in Tunisia: a study protocol in global mental health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spagnolo, Jessica; Champagne, François; Leduc, Nicole; Piat, Myra; Melki, Wahid; Charfi, Fatma; Laporta, Marc

    2017-01-17

    In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), addressing the high prevalence of mental disorders is a challenge given the limited number and unequal distribution of specialists, as well as scarce resources allocated to mental health. The Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) and its accompanying Intervention Guide (IG), developed by the World Health Organization (WHO), aim to address this challenge by training non-specialists such as general practitioners (GPs) in mental health care. This trial aims to implement and evaluate an adapted version of the mhGAP-IG (version 1.0) offered to GPs in 2 governorates of Tunisia (i.e., Tunis and Sousse), in order to uncover important information regarding implementation process and study design before country-wide implementation and evaluation. First, a systematic review will be conducted to explore types and effectiveness of mental health training programs offered to GPs around the world, with a specific focus on programs implemented and evaluated in LMICs. Second, a cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT) will be conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the implemented training based on the mhGAP-IG (version 1.0). Third, multiple case study design will be used to explore how contextual factors impact the successful implementation of the training and desired outcomes. In Tunisia, an important need exists to further develop proximity health services and to address the growing mental health treatment gap. One solution is to train GPs in the detection, treatment, and management of mental health problems, given their strategic role in the healthcare system. This trial thus aims to implement and evaluate an adapted version of a training based on the mhGAP-IG (version 1.0) in Tunis and Sousse before country-wide implementation and evaluation. Several contributions are envisioned: adding to the growing evidence on the mhGAP and its accompanying guide, especially in French-speaking nations; building research capacity in

  19. Is globalization really good for public health?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tausch, Arno

    2016-10-01

    In the light of recent very prominent studies, especially that of Mukherjee and Krieckhaus (), one should be initially tempted to assume that nowadays globalization is a driver of a good public health performance in the entire world system. Most of these studies use time series analyses based on the KOF Index of Globalization. We attempt to re-analyze the entire question, using a variety of methodological approaches and data. Our re-analysis shows that neoliberal globalization has resulted in very important implosions of public health development in various regions of the world and in increasing inequality in the countries of the world system, which in turn negatively affect health performance. We use standard ibm/spss ordinary least squares (OLS) regressions, time series and cross-correlation analyses based on aggregate, freely available data. Different components of the KOF Index, most notably actual capital inflows, affect public health negatively. The "decomposition" of the available data suggests that for most of the time period of the last four decades, globalization inflows even implied an aggregate deterioration of public health, quite in line with globalization critical studies. We introduce the effects of inequality on public health, widely debated in global public health research. Our annual time series for 99 countries show that globalization indeed leads to increased inequality, and this, in turn, leads to a deteriorating public health performance. In only 19 of the surveyed 99 nations with complete data (i.e., 19.1%), globalization actually preceded an improvement in the public health performance. Far from falsifying globalization critical research, our analyses show the basic weaknesses of the new "pro-globalization" literature in the public health profession. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  20. Global public health today: connecting the dots

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marta Lomazzi

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Background: Global public health today faces new challenges and is impacted by a range of actors from within and outside state boundaries. The diversity of the actors involved has created challenges and a complex environment that requires a new context-tailored global approach. The World Federation of Public Health Associations has embarked on a collaborative consultation with the World Health Organization to encourage a debate on how to adapt public health to its future role in global health. Design: A qualitative study was undertaken. High-level stakeholders from leading universities, multilateral organizations, and other institutions worldwide participated in the study. Inductive content analyses were performed. Results: Stakeholders underscored that global public health today should tackle the political, commercial, economic, social, and environmental determinants of health and social inequalities. A multisectoral and holistic approach should be guaranteed, engaging public health in broad dialogues and a concerted decision-making process. The connection between neoliberal ideology and public health reforms should be taken into account. The WHO must show leadership and play a supervising and technical role. More and better data are required across many programmatic areas of public health. Resources should be allocated in a sustainable and accountable way. Public health professionals need new skills that should be provided by a collaborative global education system. A common framework context-tailored to influence governments has been evaluated as useful. Conclusions: The study highlighted some of the main public health challenges currently under debate in the global arena, providing interesting ideas. A more inclusive integrated vision of global health in its complexity, shared and advocated for by all stakeholders involved in decision-making processes, is crucial. This vision represents the first step in innovating public health at the

  1. Global public health today: connecting the dots

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lomazzi, Marta; Jenkins, Christopher; Borisch, Bettina

    2016-01-01

    Background Global public health today faces new challenges and is impacted by a range of actors from within and outside state boundaries. The diversity of the actors involved has created challenges and a complex environment that requires a new context-tailored global approach. The World Federation of Public Health Associations has embarked on a collaborative consultation with the World Health Organization to encourage a debate on how to adapt public health to its future role in global health. Design A qualitative study was undertaken. High-level stakeholders from leading universities, multilateral organizations, and other institutions worldwide participated in the study. Inductive content analyses were performed. Results Stakeholders underscored that global public health today should tackle the political, commercial, economic, social, and environmental determinants of health and social inequalities. A multisectoral and holistic approach should be guaranteed, engaging public health in broad dialogues and a concerted decision-making process. The connection between neoliberal ideology and public health reforms should be taken into account. The WHO must show leadership and play a supervising and technical role. More and better data are required across many programmatic areas of public health. Resources should be allocated in a sustainable and accountable way. Public health professionals need new skills that should be provided by a collaborative global education system. A common framework context-tailored to influence governments has been evaluated as useful. Conclusions The study highlighted some of the main public health challenges currently under debate in the global arena, providing interesting ideas. A more inclusive integrated vision of global health in its complexity, shared and advocated for by all stakeholders involved in decision-making processes, is crucial. This vision represents the first step in innovating public health at the global level and should lead

  2. The Global Public Health Intelligence Network and early warning outbreak detection: a Canadian contribution to global public health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mykhalovskiy, Eric; Weir, Lorna

    2006-01-01

    The recent SARS epidemic has renewed widespread concerns about the global transmission of infectious diseases. In this commentary, we explore novel approaches to global infectious disease surveillance through a focus on an important Canadian contribution to the area--the Global Public Health Intelligence Network (GPHIN). GPHIN is a cutting-edge initiative that draws on the capacity of the Internet and newly available 24/7 global news coverage of health events to create a unique form of early warning outbreak detection. This commentary outlines the operation and development of GPHIN and compares it to ProMED-mail, another Internet-based approach to global health surveillance. We argue that GPHIN has created an important shift in the relationship of public health and news information. By exiting the pyramid of official reporting, GPHIN has created a new monitoring technique that has disrupted national boundaries of outbreak notification, while creating new possibilities for global outbreak response. By incorporating news within the emerging apparatus of global infectious disease surveillance, GPHIN has effectively responded to the global media's challenge to official country reporting of outbreak and enhanced the effectiveness and credibility of international public health.

  3. Kampala manifesto: Building community-based One Health approaches to disease surveillance and response-The Ebola Legacy-Lessons from a peer-led capacity-building initiative.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Petra Dickmann

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available International activities to respond to the Ebola crisis in West Africa were mainly developed and focussed around the biomedical paradigm of Western health systems. This approach was often insensitive to societal perception, attitude, and behavioural determinants and clashed with community-based health traditions, narratives, and roles, e.g., of community health workers. In this peer-led capacity-building initiative, these deficiencies were identified and analysed. Innovative, more locally focussed, community-based solutions were articulated. The new approaches described put local people at the centre of all preparedness, response, and recovery strategies. This paradigm shift reframed the role of communities from victims to active managers of their response and reacknowledged the strength of community-based One Health. We conclude that strategies should aim at empowering, not just engaging, communities. Communities can improve short-term crisis management and build longer-term resilience and capacities that are much needed in the current global health climate.The Ebola outbreak in West Africa, 2014-2016, was unprecedented in scale, extent, and duration. The international community was slow to step up its assistance in this global public health emergency and then faltered when its infection control management approaches clashed with West African realities [1]. Outbreak response evaluations have identified the need to better integrate social science intelligence [2], better collaborate with communities [3,4], more effectively draw on the strength of community health workers [5], and critically question the paradigm of Western health systems, which focus on imposing 'evidence-based' solutions that lack external validity in affected communities; i.e., they too often recommend actions that are inconsistent with, ignore, or violate traditional behaviours [6]. While there appears to be a consensus now on what needs to be done, how to achieve these goals

  4. Im/mobilities and dis/connectivities in medical globalisation: How global is Global Health?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dilger, Hansjörg; Mattes, Dominik

    2018-03-01

    The interdisciplinary, politically contested field of Global Health has often been described as a consequence of, and response to, an intensification of the mobilities of, and connectivities between, people, pathogens, ideas, and infrastructure across national borders and large distances. However, such global mobilities and connectivities are not as omnidirectional and unpatterned as the rhetoric of many Global Health actors suggests. Instead, we argue that they are suffused by a plethora of institutional, national, and global political agendas, and substantially shaped by transnational and postcolonial power relations. Furthermore, the configurations that are typically subsumed under the category of Global Health represent only a minor part of the range of im/mobilities and dis/connectivities that are essential for understanding transformations of epidemiological patterns, health care infrastructures, and the responses to health-related challenges in a globalising world. In order to broaden such a limiting analytical perspective, we propose to expand the analytical focus in studying Global Health phenomena by paying close attention to the myriad ways in which particular im/mobilities and dis/connectivities constitute medicine and well-being in global and transnational settings. Pursuing a conceptual shift from studies of 'Global Health' to studying 'medical globalization' may carve out new analytical ground for such an endeavour.

  5. Squaring the circle: health as a bridge to global solidarity in the Sustainable Development Goals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williams, B; Taylor, S

    2017-05-01

    The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), launched in September 2015 to follow on from the Millennium Development Goals, require action by all countries. The new goals range from traditional areas of health and education to a newer focus on global trade and environmental protection. We discuss how all countries can be incentivised to engage and commit and argue that thoughtful target-setting and benchmarking, a more aggressive focus on equity and an emphasis on the interdependence of health and non-health development goals are key to meaningful progress. Fundamental shared values and aspirations around health, and in particular child health, within SDG3 may, we argue, offer a platform on which to build genuine global solidarity. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

  6. Imperial or postcolonial governance? Dissecting the genealogy of a global public health strategy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Tim; Bell, Morag

    2008-11-01

    During the last decades of the 20th century it became increasingly apparent that the inter-relationship between globalisation and health is extremely complex. This complexity is highlighted in debates surrounding the re-emergence of infectious diseases, where it is recognised that the processes of globalisation have combined to create the conditions where once localised, microbial hazards have come to pose a threat to many western nations. By contrast, in an emerging literature relating to the epidemic of non-communicable diseases, and reflected in the WHO 'Global strategy on diet, physical activity and health', it is the so-called 'western lifestyle' that has been cast as the main threat to a population's health. This paper explores critically global responses to this development. Building on our interest in questions of governance and the ethical management of the healthy body, we examine whether the global strategy, in seeking to contain the influence of a 'western lifestyle', also promotes contemporary 'western-inspired' approaches to public health practices. The paper indicates that a partial reading of the WHO strategy suggests that certain countries, especially those outside the West, are being captured or 'enframed' by the integrative ambitions of a western 'imperial' vision of global health. However, when interpreted critically through a postcolonial lens, we argue that 'integration' is more complex, and that the subtle and dynamic relations of power that exist between countries of the West/non-West, are exposed.

  7. The emergency of concept global health: perspectives for the field of public health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    João Roberto Cavalcante Sampaio

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available In recent years, we have witnessed the emergence of new terms in the academic and political debate of public health, such as ‘’global health’’, ‘’global public goods’’, ‘’global health governance’’, ‘’global public health’’, ‘’health diplomacy’’, 'international cooperation’’. In this study, we aimed to analyze the historical development of the concept of ‘global health’, as well as the prospects of this new concept in the research and public health practice. A comprehensive literature review was performed in Pubmed, Scielo, Scopus, and BVS. We also analyzed documents obtained from the websites of international health organizations. 514 publications were retrieved and 36 were selected for this study. In general, the concept of "global health" refers to health as a transnational phenomenon linked to globalization, which has as main challenge to think public health beyond international relations between countries. International health organizations are particularly important in the development of the concept of "global health" and its new application prospects in the field of public health are health diplomacy, international cooperation and global health governance.

  8. State Support: A Prerequisite for Global Health Network Effectiveness Comment on "Four Challenges that Global Health Networks Face".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marten, Robert; Smith, Richard D

    2017-07-24

    Shiffman recently summarized lessons for network effectiveness from an impressive collection of case-studies. However, in common with most global health governance analysis in recent years, Shiffman underplays the important role of states in these global networks. As the body which decides and signs international agreements, often provides the resourcing, and is responsible for implementing initiatives all contributing to the prioritization of certain issues over others, state recognition and support is a prerequisite to enabling and determining global health networks' success. The role of states deserves greater attention, analysis and consideration. We reflect upon the underappreciated role of the state within the current discourse on global health. We present the tobacco case study to illustrate the decisive role of states in determining progress for global health networks, and highlight how states use a legitimacy loop to gain legitimacy from and provide legitimacy to global health networks. Moving forward in assessing global health networks' effectiveness, further investigating state support as a determinant of success will be critical. Understanding how global health networks and states interact and evolve to shape and support their respective interests should be a focus for future research. © 2018 The Author(s); Published by Kerman University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

  9. Imagining Global Health with Justice: In Defense of the Right to Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Friedman, Eric A; Gostin, Lawrence O

    2015-12-01

    The singular message in Global Health Law is that we must strive to achieve global health with justice--improved population health, with a fairer distribution of benefits of good health. Global health entails ensuring the conditions of good health--public health, universal health coverage, and the social determinants of health--while justice requires closing today’s vast domestic and global health inequities. These conditions for good health should be incorporated into public policy, supplemented by specific actions to overcome barriers to equity. A new global health treaty grounded in the right to health and aimed at health equity--a Framework Convention on Global Health (FCGH)--stands out for its possibilities in helping to achieve global health with justice. This far-reaching legal instrument would establish minimum standards for universal health coverage and public health measures, with an accompanying national and international financing framework, require a constant focus on health equity, promote Health in All Policies and global governance for health, and advance the principles of good governance, including accountability. While achieving an FCGH is certainly ambitious, it is a struggle worth the efforts of us all. The treaty’s basis in the right to health, which has been agreed to by all governments, has powerful potential to form the foundation of global governance for health. From interpretations of UN treaty bodies to judgments of national courts, the right to health is now sufficiently articulated to serve this role, with the individual’s right to health best understood as a function of a social, political, and economic environment aimed at equity. However great the political challenge of securing state agreement to the FCGH, it is possible. States have joined other treaties with significant resource requirements and limitations on their sovereignty without significant reciprocal benefits from other states, while important state interests would

  10. The workforce for health in a globalized context--global shortages and international migration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aluttis, Christoph; Bishaw, Tewabech; Frank, Martina W

    2014-01-01

    The 'crisis in human resources' in the health sector has been described as one of the most pressing global health issues of our time. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the world faces a global shortage of almost 4.3 million doctors, midwives, nurses, and other healthcare professionals. A global undersupply of these threatens the quality and sustainability of health systems worldwide. This undersupply is concurrent with globalization and the resulting liberalization of markets, which allow health workers to offer their services in countries other than those of their origin. The opportunities of health workers to seek employment abroad has led to a complex migration pattern, characterized by a flow of health professionals from low- to high-income countries. This global migration pattern has sparked a broad international debate about the consequences for health systems worldwide, including questions about sustainability, justice, and global social accountabilities. This article provides a review of this phenomenon and gives an overview of the current scope of health workforce migration patterns. It further focuses on the scientific discourse regarding health workforce migration and its effects on both high- and low-income countries in an interdependent world. The article also reviews the internal and external factors that fuel health worker migration and illustrates how health workforce migration is a classic global health issue of our time. Accordingly, it elaborates on the international community's approach to solving the workforce crisis, focusing in particular on the WHO Code of Practice, established in 2010.

  11. Contributions of Global Health Diplomacy to Health Systems in Sub ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    New research will help boost Africa's bargaining power in global health diplomacy, ... need to assert their public health interests in global health diplomacy from an ... Brazil, and India; and 3) the involvement of African actors in getting universal ...

  12. Australian Medical Students' Association Global Health Essay Competition - Global climate change, geo-engineering and human health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boyages, Costa S

    2013-10-07

    Rio+20's proposed Sustainable Development Goals have the potential to redefine the course of international action on climate change. They recognise that environmental health is inextricably linked with human health, and that environmental sustainability is of paramount importance in safeguarding global health. Competition entrants were asked to discuss ways of making global health a central component of international sustainable development initiatives and environmental policy, using one or two concrete examples

  13. RedeAmericas: building research capacity in young leaders for sustainable growth in community mental health services in Latin America.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, L; Pratt, C; Valencia, E; Conover, S; Fernández, R; Burrone, M S; Cavalcanti, M T; Lovisi, G; Rojas, G; Alvarado, R; Galea, S; Price, L N; Susser, E

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to describe the development and initial accomplishments of a training program of young leaders in community mental health research as part of a Latin American initiative known as RedeAmericas. RedeAmericas was one of five regional 'Hubs' funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) to improve community mental health care and build mental health research capacity in low- and middle-income countries. It included investigators in six Latin American cities - Santiago, Chile; Medellín, Colombia; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and Córdoba, Neuquén, and Buenos Aires in Argentina - working together with a team affiliated with the Global Mental Health program at Columbia University in New York City. One component of RedeAmericas was a capacity-building effort that included an Awardee program for early career researchers in the mental health field. We review the aims of this component, how it developed, and what was learned that would be useful for future capacity-building efforts, and also comment on future prospects for maintaining this type of effort.

  14. National public health law: a role for WHO in capacity-building and promoting transparency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marks-Sultan, Géraldine; Tsai, Feng-Jen; Anderson, Evan; Kastler, Florian; Sprumont, Dominique; Burris, Scott

    2016-07-01

    A robust health infrastructure in every country is the most effective long-term preparedness strategy for global health emergencies. This includes not only health systems and their human resources, but also countries' legal infrastructure for health: the laws and policies that empower, obligate and sometimes limit government and private action. The law is also an important tool in health promotion and protection. Public health professionals play important roles in health law - from the development of policies, through their enforcement, to the scientific evaluation of the health impact of laws. Member States are already mandated to communicate their national health laws and regulations to the World Health Organization (WHO). In this paper we propose that WHO has the authority and credibility to support capacity-building in the area of health law within Member States, and to make national laws easier to access, understand, monitor and evaluate. We believe a strong case can be made to donors for the funding of a public health law centre or unit, that has adequate staffing, is robustly networked with its regional counterparts and is integrated into the main work of WHO. The mission of the unit or centre would be to define and integrate scientific and legal expertise in public health law, both technical and programmatic, across the work of WHO, and to conduct and facilitate global health policy surveillance.

  15. National public health law: a role for WHO in capacity-building and promoting transparency

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsai, Feng-jen; Anderson, Evan; Kastler, Florian; Sprumont,, Dominique; Burris, Scott

    2016-01-01

    Abstract A robust health infrastructure in every country is the most effective long-term preparedness strategy for global health emergencies. This includes not only health systems and their human resources, but also countries’ legal infrastructure for health: the laws and policies that empower, obligate and sometimes limit government and private action. The law is also an important tool in health promotion and protection. Public health professionals play important roles in health law – from the development of policies, through their enforcement, to the scientific evaluation of the health impact of laws. Member States are already mandated to communicate their national health laws and regulations to the World Health Organization (WHO). In this paper we propose that WHO has the authority and credibility to support capacity-building in the area of health law within Member States, and to make national laws easier to access, understand, monitor and evaluate. We believe a strong case can be made to donors for the funding of a public health law centre or unit, that has adequate staffing, is robustly networked with its regional counterparts and is integrated into the main work of WHO. The mission of the unit or centre would be to define and integrate scientific and legal expertise in public health law, both technical and programmatic, across the work of WHO, and to conduct and facilitate global health policy surveillance. PMID:27429492

  16. Identifying interprofessional global health competencies for 21st-century health professionals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jogerst, Kristen; Callender, Brian; Adams, Virginia; Evert, Jessica; Fields, Elise; Hall, Thomas; Olsen, Jody; Rowthorn, Virginia; Rudy, Sharon; Shen, Jiabin; Simon, Lisa; Torres, Herica; Velji, Anvar; Wilson, Lynda L

    2015-01-01

    At the 2008 inaugural meeting of the Consortium of Universities for Global Health (CUGH), participants discussed the rapid expansion of global health programs and the lack of standardized competencies and curricula to guide these programs. In 2013, CUGH appointed a Global Health Competency Subcommittee and charged this subcommittee with identifying broad global health core competencies applicable across disciplines. The purpose of this paper is to describe the Subcommittee's work and proposed list of interprofessional global health competencies. After agreeing on a definition of global health to guide the Subcommittee's work, members conducted an extensive literature review to identify existing competencies in all fields relevant to global health. Subcommittee members initially identified 82 competencies in 12 separate domains, and proposed four different competency levels. The proposed competencies and domains were discussed during multiple conference calls, and subcommittee members voted to determine the final competencies to be included in two of the four proposed competency levels (global citizen and basic operational level - program oriented). The final proposed list included a total of 13 competencies across 8 domains for the Global Citizen Level and 39 competencies across 11 domains for the Basic Operational Program-Oriented Level. There is a need for continued debate and dialog to validate the proposed set of competencies, and a need for further research to identify best strategies for incorporating these competencies into global health educational programs. Future research should focus on implementation and evaluation of these competencies across a range of educational programs, and further delineating the competencies needed across all four proposed competency levels. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Global health security and the International Health Regulations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oliva Otavio

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Global nuclear proliferation, bioterrorism, and emerging infections have challenged national capacities to achieve and maintain global security. Over the last century, emerging infectious disease threats resulted in the development of the preliminary versions of the International Health Regulations (IHR of the World Health Organization (WHO. The current HR(2005 contain major differences compared to earlier versions, including: substantial shifts from containment at the border to containment at the source of the event; shifts from a rather small disease list (smallpox, plague, cholera, and yellow fever required to be reported, to all public health threats; and shifts from preset measures to tailored responses with more flexibility to deal with the local situations on the ground. The new IHR(2005 call for accountability. They also call for strengthened national capacity for surveillance and control; prevention, alert, and response to international public health emergencies beyond the traditional short list of required reporting; global partnership and collaboration; and human rights, obligations, accountability, and procedures of monitoring. Under these evolved regulations, as well as other measures, such as the Revolving Fund for vaccine procurement of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO, global health security could be maintained in the response to urban yellow fever in Paraguay in 2008 and the influenza (H1N1 pandemic of 2009-2010.

  18. Innovative financing for late-stage global health research and development: the Global Health Investment Fund.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fitchett, Joseph Robert; Fan Li, Julia; Atun, Rifat

    2016-01-01

    Innovative financing strategies for global health are urgently needed to reinvigorate investment and new tools for impact. Bottleneck areas along the research and development (R&D) pipeline require particular attention, such as the transitions from preclinical discovery to clinical study, and product development to implementation and delivery. Successful organizations mobilizing and disbursing resources through innovating financing mechanisms include UNITAID, the Global Fund, and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. Although precise numbers are poorly documented, estimated investment in low-income settings falls seriously short of local need. This commentary discusses the newly established Global Health Investment Fund as a case study to support late-stage global health R&D. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  19. Conversations between anthropology and psychiatry: drawing out the best from interdisciplinarity in global mental health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosso Buckton, Amanda

    2015-12-01

    Conversations between anthropologists and psychiatrists have led to new theoretical trajectories, research agendas and clinical practices as social scientists and medical practitioners forged new understandings about the interaction of culture, personhood and illness. However, the demands of global mental health, coupled with health service provision requirements, mean that mental health interventions set up with the best intentions can fail to take into account the knowledge and expertise that social sciences can contribute to a programme's success. In this paper, I reflect on conversations between an anthropologist and mental health professionals in direct reference to data analysis of an AusAID mental health capacity-building programme undertaken in the Pacific region. Social and cultural perspectives embedded within programmes can provide richer, more contextualised interventions. In drawing on the combined expertise of anthropology and psychiatry, new taken-for-granted reference points embedding cultural approaches form the basis for delivery of global mental health programmes. These perspectives include: Locating mental health programmes within development critiques. Situating the subjects of development within contextualised settings, acknowledging and respecting local knowledge, understandings and practices. A focus on interdisciplinarity as the basis for future practice in global mental health projects. © The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists 2015.

  20. Training the next generation of global health advocates through experiential education: A mixed-methods case study evaluation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoffman, Steven J; Silverberg, Sarah L

    2015-10-15

    This case study evaluates a global health education experience aimed at training the next generation of global health advocates. Demand and interest in global health among Canadian students is well documented, despite the difficulty in integrating meaningful experiences into curricula. Global health advocacy was taught to 19 undergraduate students at McMaster University through an experiential education course, during which they developed a national advocacy campaign on global access to medicines. A quantitative survey and an analysis of social network dynamics were conducted, along with a qualitative analysis of written work and course evaluations. Data were interpreted through a thematic synthesis approach. Themes were identified related to students' learning outcomes, experience and class dynamics. The experiential education format helped students gain authentic, real-world experience in global health advocacy and leadership. The tangible implications for their course work was a key motivating factor. While experiential education is an effective tool for some learning outcomes, it is not suitable for all. As well, group dynamics and evaluation methods affect the learning environment. Real-world global health issues, public health practice and advocacy approaches can be effectively taught through experiential education, alongside skills like communication and professionalism. Students developed a nuanced understanding of many strategies, challenges and barriers that exist in advocating for public health ideas. These experiences are potentially empowering and confidence-building despite the heavy time commitment they require. Attention should be given to how such experiences are designed, as course dynamics and grading structure significantly influence students' experience.

  1. Achieving Health SDG 3 in Africa through NGO Capacity Building - Insights from the Gates Foundation Investment in Partnership in Advocacy for Child and Family Health (PACFaH) Project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, Judith-Ann

    2016-09-01

    As global impact investors gear up to support roll out of the Sustainable Development Goals in the developing world, African CSOs are urged to ensure that governments shift health funding sources away from aid and loans to innovative domestic funding sources which prioritize health. To do so, African CSOs require support to build their capacity for policy and budget advocacy. Governments and development partners have failed to invest in long term capacity building projects for indigenous NGOs and instead support INGOs to push the health advocacy agenda forward. In Nigeria, the Gates foundation has risen to the challenge of building capacity of indigenous NGOs for social accountability in child and family health. The 3 year pilot project - Partnership for Advocacy in Child and Family Health Project (PACFaH) mainstreams capacity building as an effective implementation strategy for 8 indigenous NGOs to deliver on - policy; budgetary; legislative; and administrative advocacy in four issue areas: 1) family planning; 2) nutrition; 3) routine immunization; and 4) reduction of under-5 deaths from diarrhea and pneumonia. This paper documents the achievements of the eight advocacy NGOs in PACFaH, at midterm and notes that while there have been challenges, working through capacity building as an implementation strategy has enabled the local groups in the delivery of evidence based advocacy.

  2. The Global Quest to Build World-Class Universities: Toward a Social Justice Agenda

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rhoads, Robert A.; Li, Shuai; Ilano, Lauren

    2014-01-01

    This chapter provides a critical perspective on the global quest to build world-class universities (WCUs), including global "ranking mania," excessive emphasis on university branding, and the attending threats to the traditional public good mission of the university. Alternatively, we offer suggestions on how rankings may be used to…

  3. Global health politics: neither solidarity nor policy: Comment on "Globalization and the diffusion of ideas: why we should acknowledge the roots of mainstream ideas in global health".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Méndez, Claudio A

    2014-07-01

    The global health agenda has been dominating the current global health policy debate. Furthermore, it has compelled countries to embrace strategies for tackling health inequalities in a wide range of public health areas. The article by Robert and colleagues highlights that although globalization has increased opportunities to share and spread ideas, there is still great asymmetry of power according to the countries' economic and political development. It also emphasizes how policy diffusion from High Income Countries (HICs) to Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) have had flaws at understanding their political, economic, and cultural backgrounds while they are pursuing knowledge translation. Achieving a fair global health policy diffusion of ideas would imply a call for a renewal on political elites worldwide at coping global health politics. Accordingly, moving towards fairness in disseminating global health ideas should be driven by politics not only as one of the social determinants of health, but the main determinant of health and well-being among-and within-societies.

  4. Creating a Global Building Inventory for Earthquake Loss Assessment and Risk Management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jaiswal, Kishor; Wald, David J.

    2008-01-01

    Earthquakes have claimed approximately 8 million lives over the last 2,000 years (Dunbar, Lockridge and others, 1992) and fatality rates are likely to continue to rise with increased population and urbanizations of global settlements especially in developing countries. More than 75% of earthquake-related human casualties are caused by the collapse of buildings or structures (Coburn and Spence, 2002). It is disheartening to note that large fractions of the world's population still reside in informal, poorly-constructed & non-engineered dwellings which have high susceptibility to collapse during earthquakes. Moreover, with increasing urbanization half of world's population now lives in urban areas (United Nations, 2001), and half of these urban centers are located in earthquake-prone regions (Bilham, 2004). The poor performance of most building stocks during earthquakes remains a primary societal concern. However, despite this dark history and bleaker future trends, there are no comprehensive global building inventories of sufficient quality and coverage to adequately address and characterize future earthquake losses. Such an inventory is vital both for earthquake loss mitigation and for earthquake disaster response purposes. While the latter purpose is the motivation of this work, we hope that the global building inventory database described herein will find widespread use for other mitigation efforts as well. For a real-time earthquake impact alert system, such as U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER), (Wald, Earle and others, 2006), we seek to rapidly evaluate potential casualties associated with earthquake ground shaking for any region of the world. The casualty estimation is based primarily on (1) rapid estimation of the ground shaking hazard, (2) aggregating the population exposure within different building types, and (3) estimating the casualties from the collapse of vulnerable buildings. Thus, the

  5. Global citizenship is key to securing global health: the role of higher education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stoner, Lee; Perry, Lane; Wadsworth, Daniel; Stoner, Krystina R; Tarrant, Michael A

    2014-07-01

    Despite growing public awareness, health systems are struggling under the escalating burden of non-communicable diseases. While personal responsibility is crucial, alone it is insufficient. We argue that one must place themselves within the broader/global context to begin to truly understand the health implications of personal choices. Global citizenship competency has become an integral part of the higher education discourse; this discourse can and should be extended to include global health. A global citizen is someone who is (1) aware of global issues, (2) socially responsible, and (3) civically engaged. From this perspective, personal health is not solely an individual, self-serving act; rather, the consequences of our lifestyle choices and behaviors have far-reaching implications. This paper will argue that, through consciously identifying global health within the constructs of global citizenship, institutions of higher education can play an instrumental role in fostering civically engaged students capable of driving social change. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Pharmaceutical digital marketing and governance: illicit actors and challenges to global patient safety and public health

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-01-01

    Background Digital forms of direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical marketing (eDTCA) have globalized in an era of free and open information exchange. Yet, the unregulated expansion of eDTCA has resulted in unaddressed global public health threats. Specifically, illicit online pharmacies are engaged in the sale of purportedly safe, legitimate product that may in fact be counterfeit or substandard. These cybercriminal actors exploit available eDTCA mediums over the Internet to market their suspect products globally. Despite these risks, a detailed assessment of the public health, patient safety, and cybersecurity threats and governance mechanisms to address them has not been conducted. Discussion Illicit online pharmacies represent a significant global public health and patient safety risk. Existing governance mechanisms are insufficient and include lack of adequate adoption in national regulation, ineffective voluntary governance mechanisms, and uneven global law enforcement efforts that have allowed proliferation of these cybercriminals on the web. In order to effectively address this multistakeholder threat, inclusive global governance strategies that engage the information technology, law enforcement and public health sectors should be established. Summary Effective global “eHealth Governance” focused on cybercrime is needed in order to effectively combat illicit online pharmacies. This includes building upon existing Internet governance structures and coordinating partnership between the UN Office of Drugs and Crime that leads the global fight against transnational organized crime and the Internet Governance Forum that is shaping the future of Internet governance. Through a UNODC-IGF governance mechanism, investigation, detection and coordination of activities against illicit online pharmacies and their misuse of eDTCA can commence. PMID:24131576

  7. Pharmaceutical digital marketing and governance: illicit actors and challenges to global patient safety and public health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mackey, Tim K; Liang, Bryan A

    2013-10-16

    Digital forms of direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical marketing (eDTCA) have globalized in an era of free and open information exchange. Yet, the unregulated expansion of eDTCA has resulted in unaddressed global public health threats. Specifically, illicit online pharmacies are engaged in the sale of purportedly safe, legitimate product that may in fact be counterfeit or substandard. These cybercriminal actors exploit available eDTCA mediums over the Internet to market their suspect products globally. Despite these risks, a detailed assessment of the public health, patient safety, and cybersecurity threats and governance mechanisms to address them has not been conducted. Illicit online pharmacies represent a significant global public health and patient safety risk. Existing governance mechanisms are insufficient and include lack of adequate adoption in national regulation, ineffective voluntary governance mechanisms, and uneven global law enforcement efforts that have allowed proliferation of these cybercriminals on the web. In order to effectively address this multistakeholder threat, inclusive global governance strategies that engage the information technology, law enforcement and public health sectors should be established. Effective global "eHealth Governance" focused on cybercrime is needed in order to effectively combat illicit online pharmacies. This includes building upon existing Internet governance structures and coordinating partnership between the UN Office of Drugs and Crime that leads the global fight against transnational organized crime and the Internet Governance Forum that is shaping the future of Internet governance. Through a UNODC-IGF governance mechanism, investigation, detection and coordination of activities against illicit online pharmacies and their misuse of eDTCA can commence.

  8. Health sciences libraries building survey, 1999-2009.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ludwig, Logan

    2010-04-01

    A survey was conducted of health sciences libraries to obtain information about newer buildings, additions, remodeling, and renovations. An online survey was developed, and announcements of survey availability posted to three major email discussion lists: Medical Library Association (MLA), Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries (AAHSL), and MEDLIB-L. Previous discussions of library building projects on email discussion lists, a literature review, personal communications, and the author's consulting experiences identified additional projects. Seventy-eight health sciences library building projects at seventy-three institutions are reported. Twenty-two are newer facilities built within the last ten years; two are space expansions; forty-five are renovation projects; and nine are combinations of new and renovated space. Six institutions report multiple or ongoing renovation projects during the last ten years. The survey results confirm a continuing migration from print-based to digitally based collections and reveal trends in library space design. Some health sciences libraries report loss of space as they move toward creating space for "community" building. Libraries are becoming more proactive in using or retooling space for concentration, collaboration, contemplation, communication, and socialization. All are moving toward a clearer operational vision of the library as the institution's information nexus and not merely as a physical location with print collections.

  9. Global health in the 21st century.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laaser, Ulrich; Brand, Helmut

    2014-01-01

    Since the end of the 1990s, globalization has become a common term, facilitated by the social media of today and the growing public awareness of life-threatening problems common to all people, such as global warming, global security and global divides. For the main parameters of health like the burden of disease, life expectancy and healthy life expectancy, extreme discrepancies are observed across the world. Infant mortality, malnutrition and high fertility go hand in hand. Civil society, as an indispensable activator of public health development, mainly represented by non-governmental organisations (NGOs), is characterised by a high degree of fragmentation and lack of public accountability. The World Federation of Public Health Associations is used as an example of an NGO with a global mission and fostering regional cooperation as an indispensable intermediate level.The lack of a globally valid terminology of basic public health functions is prohibitive for coordinated global and regional efforts. Attempts to harmonise essential public health functions, services and operations are under way to facilitate communication and mutual understanding. 1) Given the limited effects of the Millennium Development Goal agenda, the Post-2015 Development Goals should focus on integrated regional development. 2) A code of conduct for NGOs should be urgently developed for the health sector, and NGOs should be registered and accredited. 3) The harmonisation of the basic terminology for global public health essentials should be enhanced.

  10. HIV scale-up in Mozambique: Exceptionalism, normalisation and global health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Høg, Erling

    2014-01-01

    The large-scale introduction of HIV and AIDS services in Mozambique from 2000 onwards occurred in the context of deep political commitment to sovereign nation-building and an important transition in the nation's health system. Simultaneously, the international community encountered a willing state partner that recognised the need to take action against the HIV epidemic. This article examines two critical policy shifts: sustained international funding and public health system integration (the move from parallel to integrated HIV services). The Mozambican government struggles to support its national health system against privatisation, NGO competition and internal brain drain. This is a sovereignty issue. However, the dominant discourse on self-determination shows a contradictory twist: it is part of the political rhetoric to keep the sovereignty discourse alive, while the real challenge is coordination, not partnerships. Nevertheless, we need more anthropological studies to understand the political implications of global health funding and governance. Other studies need to examine the consequences of public health system integration for the quality of access to health care. PMID:24499102

  11. Geography and global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Tim; Moon, Graham

    2012-01-01

    In the wake of the report of the World Health Organisation's Commission on the Social Determinants of Health, Closing the gap in a generation (Marmot 2008), this invited commentary considers the scope for geographical research on global health. We reflect on current work and note future possibilities, particularly those that take a critical perspective on the interplay of globalisation, security and health.

  12. Understanding how and why health is integrated into foreign policy - a case study of health is global, a UK Government Strategy 2008–2013

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-01-01

    Background Over the past decade, global health issues have become more prominent in foreign policies at the national level. The process to develop state level global health strategies is arguably a form of global health diplomacy (GHD). Despite an increase in the volume of secondary research and analysis in this area, little primary research, particularly that which draws directly on the perspectives of those involved in these processes, has been conducted. This study seeks to fill this knowledge gap through an empirical case study of Health is Global: A UK Government Strategy 2008–2013. It aims to build understanding about how and why health is integrated into foreign policy and derive lessons of potential relevance to other nations interested in developing whole-of-government global health strategies. Methods The major element of the study consisted of an in-depth investigation and analysis of the UK global health strategy. Document analysis and twenty interviews were conducted. Data was organized and described using an adapted version of Walt and Gilson’s policy analysis triangle. A general inductive approach was used to identify themes in the data, which were then analysed and interpreted using Fidler’s health and foreign policy conceptualizations and Kingdon’s multiples streams model of the policymaking process. Results The primary reason that the UK decided to focus more on global health is self-interest - to protect national and international security and economic interests. Investing in global health was also seen as a way to enhance the UK’s international reputation. A focus on global health to primarily benefit other nations and improve global health per se was a prevalent through weaker theme. A well organized, credible policy community played a critical role in the process and a policy entrepreneur with expertise in both international relations and health helped catalyze attention and action on global health when the time was right. Support

  13. The synergy of the whole: building a global system for clinical trials to accelerate medicines development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koski, Greg; Tobin, Mary F; Whalen, Matthew

    2014-10-01

    The pharmaceutical industry, once highly respected, productive, and profitable, is in the throes of major change driven by many forces, including economics, science, regulation, and ethics. A variety of initiatives and partnerships have been launched to improve efficiency and productivity but without significant effect because they have failed to consider the process as a system. Addressing the challenges facing this complex endeavor requires more than modifications of individual processes; it requires a fully integrated application of systems thinking and an understanding of the desired goals and complex interactions among essential components and stakeholders of the whole. A multistakeholder collaborative effort, led by the Alliance for Clinical Research Excellence and Safety (ACRES), a global nonprofit organization operating in the public interest, is now under way to build a shared global system for clinical research. Its systems approach focuses on the interconnection of stakeholders at critical points of interaction within 4 operational domains: site development and support, quality management, information technology, and safety. The ACRES initiatives, Site Accreditation and Standards, Product Safety Culture, Global Ethical Review and Regulatory Innovation, and Quality Assurance and Safety, focus on building and implementing systems solutions. Underpinning these initiatives is an open, shared, integrated technology (site and optics and quality informatics initiative). We describe the rationale, challenges, progress, and successes of this effort to date and lessons learned. The complexity and fragmentation of the intensely proprietary ecosystem of drug development, challenging regulatory climate, and magnitude of the endeavor itself pose significant challenges, but the economic, social, and scientific rewards will more than justify the effort. An effective alliance model requires a willingness of multiple stakeholders to work together to build a shared system

  14. Building a Sustainable Global Surgical Program in an Academic Department of Surgery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Linda P; Silverberg, Daniel; Divino, Celia M; Marin, Michael

    Global surgery and volunteerism in surgery has gained significant interest in recent years for general surgery residents across the country. However, there are few well-established long-term surgical programs affiliated with academic institutions. The present report discusses the implementation process and challenges facing an academic institution in building a long-term sustainable global surgery program. As one of the pioneer programs in global surgery for residents, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai global surgery rotation has been successfully running for the last 10 years in a small public hospital in the Dominican Republic. The present report details many key components of implementing a sustainable global surgery program and the evolution of this program over time. Since 2005, 80 general surgery residents have rotated through Juan Pablo Pina Hospital in the Dominican Republic. They have performed a total of 1239 major operations and 740 minor operations. They have also participated in 328 emergency cases. More importantly, this rotation helped shape residents' sense of social responsibility and ownership in their surgical training. Residents have also contributed to the training of local residents in laparoscopic skills and through cultural exchange. As interest in global surgery grows among general surgery residents, it is essential that supporting academic institutions create sustainable and capacity-building rotations for their residents. These programs must address many of the barriers that can hinder maintenance of a sustainable global surgery experience for residents. After 10 years of sending our residents to the Dominican Republic, we have found that it is possible and valuable to incorporate a formal global surgery rotation into a general surgery residency. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  15. Forced Migration and Global Responsibility for Health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bozorgmehr, Kayvan; Razum, Oliver

    2017-01-01

    Forced migration has become a world-wide phenomenon in the past century, affecting increasing numbers of countries and people. It entails important challenges from a global health perspective. Leppold et al have critically discussed the Japanese interpretation of global responsibility for health in the context of forced migration. This commentary complements their analysis by outlining three priority areas of global health responsibility for European Union (EU) countries. We highlight important stages of the migration phases related to forced migration and propose three arguments. First, the chronic neglect of the large number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the discourses on the "refugee crisis" needs to be corrected in order to develop sustainable solutions with a framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Second, protection gaps in the global system of protection need to be effectively closed to resolve conflicts with border management and normative global health frameworks. Third, effective policies need to be developed and implemented to meet the health and humanitarian needs of forced migrants; at the same time, the solidarity crisis within the EU needs to be overcome. These stakes are high. EU countries, being committed to global health, should urgently address these areas. PMID:28812838

  16. The global one health paradigm: challenges and opportunities for tackling infectious diseases at the human, animal, and environment interface in low-resource settings.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wondwossen A Gebreyes

    Full Text Available Zoonotic infectious diseases have been an important concern to humankind for more than 10,000 years. Today, approximately 75% of newly emerging infectious diseases (EIDs are zoonoses that result from various anthropogenic, genetic, ecologic, socioeconomic, and climatic factors. These interrelated driving forces make it difficult to predict and to prevent zoonotic EIDs. Although significant improvements in environmental and medical surveillance, clinical diagnostic methods, and medical practices have been achieved in the recent years, zoonotic EIDs remain a major global concern, and such threats are expanding, especially in less developed regions. The current Ebola epidemic in West Africa is an extreme stark reminder of the role animal reservoirs play in public health and reinforces the urgent need for globally operationalizing a One Health approach. The complex nature of zoonotic diseases and the limited resources in developing countries are a reminder that the need for implementation of Global One Health in low-resource settings is crucial. The Veterinary Public Health and Biotechnology (VPH-Biotec Global Consortium launched the International Congress on Pathogens at the Human-Animal Interface (ICOPHAI in order to address important challenges and needs for capacity building. The inaugural ICOPHAI (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2011 and the second congress (Porto de Galinhas, Brazil, 2013 were unique opportunities to share and discuss issues related to zoonotic infectious diseases worldwide. In addition to strong scientific reports in eight thematic areas that necessitate One Health implementation, the congress identified four key capacity-building needs: (1 development of adequate science-based risk management policies, (2 skilled-personnel capacity building, (3 accredited veterinary and public health diagnostic laboratories with a shared database, and (4 improved use of existing natural resources and implementation. The aim of this review is to

  17. The global one health paradigm: challenges and opportunities for tackling infectious diseases at the human, animal, and environment interface in low-resource settings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gebreyes, Wondwossen A; Dupouy-Camet, Jean; Newport, Melanie J; Oliveira, Celso J B; Schlesinger, Larry S; Saif, Yehia M; Kariuki, Samuel; Saif, Linda J; Saville, William; Wittum, Thomas; Hoet, Armando; Quessy, Sylvain; Kazwala, Rudovick; Tekola, Berhe; Shryock, Thomas; Bisesi, Michael; Patchanee, Prapas; Boonmar, Sumalee; King, Lonnie J

    2014-01-01

    Zoonotic infectious diseases have been an important concern to humankind for more than 10,000 years. Today, approximately 75% of newly emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) are zoonoses that result from various anthropogenic, genetic, ecologic, socioeconomic, and climatic factors. These interrelated driving forces make it difficult to predict and to prevent zoonotic EIDs. Although significant improvements in environmental and medical surveillance, clinical diagnostic methods, and medical practices have been achieved in the recent years, zoonotic EIDs remain a major global concern, and such threats are expanding, especially in less developed regions. The current Ebola epidemic in West Africa is an extreme stark reminder of the role animal reservoirs play in public health and reinforces the urgent need for globally operationalizing a One Health approach. The complex nature of zoonotic diseases and the limited resources in developing countries are a reminder that the need for implementation of Global One Health in low-resource settings is crucial. The Veterinary Public Health and Biotechnology (VPH-Biotec) Global Consortium launched the International Congress on Pathogens at the Human-Animal Interface (ICOPHAI) in order to address important challenges and needs for capacity building. The inaugural ICOPHAI (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2011) and the second congress (Porto de Galinhas, Brazil, 2013) were unique opportunities to share and discuss issues related to zoonotic infectious diseases worldwide. In addition to strong scientific reports in eight thematic areas that necessitate One Health implementation, the congress identified four key capacity-building needs: (1) development of adequate science-based risk management policies, (2) skilled-personnel capacity building, (3) accredited veterinary and public health diagnostic laboratories with a shared database, and (4) improved use of existing natural resources and implementation. The aim of this review is to highlight

  18. The 'indirect costs' of underfunding foreign partners in global health research: A case study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crane, Johanna T; Andia Biraro, Irene; Fouad, Tamer M; Boum, Yap; R Bangsberg, David

    2017-09-16

    This study of a global health research partnership assesses how U.S. fiscal administrative policies impact capacity building at foreign partner institutions. We conducted a case study of a research collaboration between Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST) in Mbarara, Uganda, and originally the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), but now Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). Our case study is based on three of the authors' experiences directing and working with this partnership from its inception in 2003 through 2015. The collaboration established an independent Ugandan non-profit to act as a local fiscal agent and grants administrator and to assure compliance with the Ugandan labour and tax law. This structure, combined with low indirect cost reimbursements from U.S. federal grants, failed to strengthen institutional capacity at MUST. In response to problems with this model, the collaboration established a contracts and grants office at MUST. This office has built administrative capacity at MUST but has also generated new risks and expenses for MGH. We argue that U.S. fiscal administrative practices may drain rather than build capacity at African universities by underfunding the administrative costs of global health research, circumventing host country institutions, and externalising legal and financial risks associated with international work. MGH: Massachusetts General Hospital; MUST: Mbarara University of Science and Technology; NIH: National Institutes of Health; UCSF: University of California San Francisco; URI: Uganda Research Institute.

  19. Health as foreign policy: harnessing globalization for health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fidler, David P

    2006-12-01

    This paper explores the importance for health promotion of the rise of public health as a foreign policy issue. Although health promotion encompassed foreign policy as part of 'healthy public policy', mainstream foreign policy neglected public health and health promotion's role in it. Globalization forces health promotion, however, to address directly the relationship between public health and foreign policy. The need for 'health as foreign policy' is apparent from the prominence public health now has in all the basic governance functions served by foreign policy. The Secretary-General's United Nations (UN) reform proposals demonstrate the importance of foreign policy to health promotion as a core component of public health because the proposals embed public health in each element of the Secretary-General's vision for the UN in the 21st century. The emergence of health as foreign policy presents opportunities and risks for health promotion that can be managed by emphasizing that public health constitutes an integrated public good that benefits all governance tasks served by foreign policy. Any effort to harness globalization for public health will have to make health as foreign policy a centerpiece of its ambitions, and this task is now health promotion's burden and opportunity.

  20. Quasi-experimental study designs series-paper 12: strengthening global capacity for evidence synthesis of quasi-experimental health systems research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rockers, Peter C; Tugwell, Peter; Grimshaw, Jeremy; Oliver, Sandy; Atun, Rifat; Røttingen, John-Arne; Fretheim, Atle; Ranson, M Kent; Daniels, Karen; Luiza, Vera Lucia; Bärnighausen, Till

    2017-09-01

    Evidence from quasi-experimental studies is often excluded from systematic reviews of health systems research despite the fact that such studies can provide strong causal evidence when well conducted. This article discusses global coordination of efforts to institutionalize the inclusion of causal evidence from quasi-experiments in systematic reviews of health systems research. In particular, we are concerned with identifying opportunities for strengthening capacity at the global and local level for implementing protocols necessary to ensure that reviews that include quasi-experiments are consistently of the highest quality. We first describe the current state of the global infrastructure that facilitates the production of systematic reviews of health systems research. We identify five important types of actors operating within this infrastructure: review authors; synthesis collaborations that facilitate the review process; synthesis interest groups that supplement the work of the larger collaborations; review funders; and end users, including policymakers. Then, we examine opportunities for intervening to build the capacity of each type of actors to support the inclusion of quasi-experiments in reviews. Finally, we suggest practical next steps for proceeding with capacity building efforts. Because of the complexity and relative nascence of the field, we recommend a carefully planned and executed approach to strengthening global capacity for the inclusion of quasi-experimental studies in systematic reviews. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Dampness in buildings and health. Building characteristics as predictors for dampness in 8681 Swedish dwellings

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hagerhed, L.; Bornehag, Carl-Gustaf; Sundell, Jan

    2002-01-01

    Questionnaire data on 8681 dwellings included in the Swedish study "Dampness in Buildings and Health" have been analysed for associations between dampness indicators, perceptions of indoor air quality and building characteristics such as time of construction, type of ventilation and type of found......Questionnaire data on 8681 dwellings included in the Swedish study "Dampness in Buildings and Health" have been analysed for associations between dampness indicators, perceptions of indoor air quality and building characteristics such as time of construction, type of ventilation and type...... of "Dry air" in 17.3 and 33.7% respectively. Older buildings and the use of natural ventilation were associated with increased frequency of dampness indicators as well as to increased frequencies of complaints on bad indoor air quality....

  2. Global Health Engagement: At Home and Abroad.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Phillips, Janet M; Riner, Mary E

    2018-03-01

    Nurses and nurse educators need to be prepared to accelerate progress toward the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals to improve local and global health in the face of continued poverty, hunger, and disease. This four-part Teaching Tips series will focus on developing nurse educators to prepare nurses for global engagement on the following topics: introduction to global health, systems thinking for global health, strategies for integrating global awareness and engagement into clinical practice, and leading and participating in service trips. The authors offer tips for increasing global awareness and using frameworks, strategies, and resources for both students and nurses to use in their own settings and practice. J Contin Educ Nurs. 2018;49(3):109-110. Copyright 2018, SLACK Incorporated.

  3. Occupant comfort and health in green and conventional university buildings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hedge, A; Miller, L; Dorsey, J A

    2014-01-01

    Green building standards are significantly impacting modern construction practices. The resulting structures are more energy efficient, but their impact on occupant health has not been widely studied. To investigate a range of indoor environment and ergonomic issues in green buildings. Retrospective post-occupancy evaluation survey of 319 occupants in two Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified buildings and one conventional building on a Canadian University campus. Results show that working in the LEED buildings was a generally positive experience for their health, performance, and satisfaction. However, the LEED buildings did not always receive the highest ratings for environmental conditions or for health and productivity. Respondents indicated a range of concerns with thermal conditions, office lighting, noise and their overall workstation designs and these were not always better in the green buildings. These results highlight the need for better integration of ergonomic design into green buildings and into the LEED rating system, and these implications are discussed.

  4. The German government's global health strategy--a strategy also to support research and development for neglected diseases?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fehr, Angela; Razum, Oliver

    2014-01-01

    Neglected tropical infectious diseases as well as rare diseases are characterized by structural research and development (R&D) deficits. The market fails for these disease groups. Consequently, to meet public health and individual patient needs, political decision makers have to develop strategies at national and international levels to make up for this R&D deficit. The German government recently published its first global health strategy. The strategy underlines the German government's commitment to strengthening global health governance. We find, however, that the strategy lacks behind the international public health endeavors for neglected diseases. It fails to make reference to the ongoing debate on a global health agreement. Neither does it outline a comprehensive national strategy to promote R&D into neglected diseases, which would integrate existing R&D activities in Germany and link up to the international debate on sustainable, needs-based R&D and affordable access. This despite the fact that only recently, in a consensus-building process, a National Plan of Action for rare diseases was successfully developed in Germany which could serve as a blueprint for a similar course of action for neglected diseases. We recommend that, without delay, a structured process be initiated in Germany to explore all options to promote R&D for neglected diseases, including a global health agreement.

  5. From local adaptation to activism and global solidarity: framing a research and innovation agenda towards true health equity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Friedman, Eric A; Gostin, Lawrence O

    2017-02-21

    The proposal for a global health treaty aimed at health equity, the Framework Convention on Global Health, raises the fundamental question of whether we can achieve true health equity, globally and domestically, and if not, how close we can come. Considerable knowledge currently exists about the measures required to, at the least, greatly improve health equity. Why, then, do immense inequities remain? Building on this basic question, we propose four areas that could help drive the health equity research and innovation agenda over the coming years.First, recognizing that local contexts will often affect the success of policies aimed at health equity, local research will be critical to adapt strategies to particular settings. This part of the research agenda would be well-served by directly engaging intended beneficiaries for their insights, including through participatory action research, where the research contributes to action towards greater health equity.Second, even with the need for more local knowledge, why is the copious knowledge on how to reduce inequities not more frequently acted upon? What are the best strategies to close policymakers' knowledge gaps and to generate the political will to apply existing knowledge about improving health equity, developing the policies and devoting the resources required? Linked to this is the need to continue to build our understanding of how to empower the activism that can reshape power dynamics.Today's unequal power dynamics contribute significantly to disparities in a third area of focus, the social determinants of health, which are the primary drivers of today's health inequities. Continuing to improve our understanding of the pathways through which they operate can help in developing strategies to change these determinants and disrupt harmful pathways.And fourth, we return to the motivating question of whether we can achieve health equity. For example, can all countries have universal health coverage that

  6. A GLOBAL SOLUTION TO TOPOLOGICAL RECONSTRUCTION OF BUILDING ROOF MODELS FROM AIRBORNE LIDAR POINT CLOUDS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. Yan

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents a global solution to building roof topological reconstruction from LiDAR point clouds. Starting with segmented roof planes from building LiDAR points, a BSP (binary space partitioning algorithm is used to partition the bounding box of the building into volumetric cells, whose geometric features and their topology are simultaneously determined. To resolve the inside/outside labelling problem of cells, a global energy function considering surface visibility and spatial regularization between adjacent cells is constructed and minimized via graph cuts. As a result, the cells are labelled as either inside or outside, where the planar surfaces between the inside and outside form the reconstructed building model. Two LiDAR data sets of Yangjiang (China and Wuhan University (China are used in the study. Experimental results show that the completeness of reconstructed roof planes is 87.5%. Comparing with existing data-driven approaches, the proposed approach is global. Roof faces and edges as well as their topology can be determined at one time via minimization of an energy function. Besides, this approach is robust to partial absence of roof planes and tends to reconstruct roof models with visibility-consistent surfaces.

  7. Brand Building in Born Global Firms : The role of digitalization in brand building in young B2B Born Global companies internationalization

    OpenAIRE

    Kjellstrand, Johan; Samar, Ouf

    2017-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to create a deeper understanding of the impact of digitalization on branding and brand building in the internationalization of B2B Born Global SMEs. Design/methodology: The methods used were a mixed qualitative methodology including both interviews and open-ended surveys. With an explorative and descriptive purpose, this study aimed to deliver depth and specific knowledge. The sample companies were young SME, B2B companies in northern Sweden that either ...

  8. The workforce for health in a globalized context – global shortages and international migration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aluttis, Christoph; Bishaw, Tewabech; Frank, Martina W.

    2014-01-01

    The ‘crisis in human resources’ in the health sector has been described as one of the most pressing global health issues of our time. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the world faces a global shortage of almost 4.3 million doctors, midwives, nurses, and other healthcare professionals. A global undersupply of these threatens the quality and sustainability of health systems worldwide. This undersupply is concurrent with globalization and the resulting liberalization of markets, which allow health workers to offer their services in countries other than those of their origin. The opportunities of health workers to seek employment abroad has led to a complex migration pattern, characterized by a flow of health professionals from low- to high-income countries. This global migration pattern has sparked a broad international debate about the consequences for health systems worldwide, including questions about sustainability, justice, and global social accountabilities. This article provides a review of this phenomenon and gives an overview of the current scope of health workforce migration patterns. It further focuses on the scientific discourse regarding health workforce migration and its effects on both high- and low-income countries in an interdependent world. The article also reviews the internal and external factors that fuel health worker migration and illustrates how health workforce migration is a classic global health issue of our time. Accordingly, it elaborates on the international community's approach to solving the workforce crisis, focusing in particular on the WHO Code of Practice, established in 2010. PMID:24560265

  9. New realities: Disarmament, peace-building and global security

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1993-01-01

    This publication contains excerpts from the conference on new realities: Disarmament, peace-building and global security organized by the Non-Governmental Organization Committee on Disarmament at the United Nations, 20-23 April, 1993, during the regular session of the Disarmament Commission which took place in New York in April-May, 1993. This conference focused on important and topical disarmament and peacemaking issues, and was an opportunity for delegates, non-governmental organization representatives, United Nations staff members and interested individuals to exchange information and discuss the issues in an informal and cordial atmosphere

  10. Building a Leadership Culture for Environmental Health in a Nurse-Led Clinic

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shanda L Demorest

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Climate change is the biggest global health threat of the 21st century (Costello et al., 2009. Temperature shifts caused by greenhouse gases have negative health impacts such as worsening of chronic diseases and increases in vector-borne diseases (American Public Health Association, 2016, which nurses are ethically responsible to address (American Nurses Association, 2015. At an interdisciplinary nurse-led clinic, staff were not prepared to assist patients in building resiliency related to the health impacts of climate change or to implement environmental sustainability in their workplace. Based on principles of partnership-based healthcare (Eisler & Potter, 2014, this project included Climate Conversations - sharing stories, values, and knowledge about climate change – (Minnesota Interfaith Power & Light, 2010 and evidence-based transformational leadership. The Nurses’ Environmental Awareness Tool (Schenk et al., 2015 was used to survey staff before and after they participated in behavioral interventions to incorporate environmental sustainability at their workplace. Compared to baseline, staffs’ knowledge of environmental sustainability increased significantly (pp

  11. Dampness in buildings and health

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bornehag, Carl-Gustaf; Blomquist, G.; Gyntelberg, F.

    2001-01-01

    Several epidemiological investigations concerning indoor environments have indicated that "dampness" in buildings is associated to health effects such as respiratory symptoms, asthma and allergy The aim of the present interdisciplinary review is to evaluate this association as shown in the epidem...

  12. Towards a global alcohol policy: alcohol, public health and the role of WHO.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jernigan, D. H.; Monteiro, M.; Room, R.; Saxena, S.

    2000-01-01

    In 1983 the World Health Assembly declared alcohol-related problems to be among the world's major health concerns. Since then, alcohol consumption has risen in developing countries, where it takes a heavy toll. Alcohol-related problems are at epidemic levels in the successor states of the Soviet Union and are responsible for 3.5% of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) lost globally. Substantial evidence exists of the relationship between the levels and patterns of alcohol consumption on the one hand and the incidence of alcohol-related problems on the other. Over the past 20 years, research has demonstrated the effectiveness of public policies involving, for example, taxation and restrictions on alcohol availability, in reducing alcohol-related problems. In the wake of rapid economic globalization, many of these policies at national and subnational levels have been eroded, often with the support of international financial and development organizations. Development agencies and international trade agreements have treated alcohol as a normal commodity, overlooking the adverse consequences of its consumption on productivity and health. WHO is in a strong position to take the lead in developing a global alcohol policy aimed at reducing alcohol-related problems, providing scientific and statistical support, capacity-building, disseminating effective strategies and collaborating with other international organizations. Such leadership can play a significant part in diminishing the health and social problems associated with alcohol use. PMID:10885168

  13. Global public goods and the global health agenda: problems, priorities and potential

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MacKellar Landis

    2007-09-01

    Full Text Available Abstract The 'global public good' (GPG concept has gained increasing attention, in health as well as development circles. However, it has suffered in finding currency as a general tool for global resource mobilisation, and is at risk of being attached to almost anything promoting development. This overstretches and devalues the validity and usefulness of the concept. This paper first defines GPGs and describes the policy challenge that they pose. Second, it identifies two key areas, health R&D and communicable disease control, in which the GPG concept is clearly relevant and considers the extent to which it has been applied. We point out that that, while there have been many new initiatives, it is not clear that additional resources from non-traditional sources have been forthcoming. Yet achieving this is, in effect, the entire purpose of applying the GPG concept in global health. Moreover, the proliferation of disease-specific programs associated with GPG reasoning has tended to promote vertical interventions at the expense of more general health sector strengthening. Third, we examine two major global health policy initiatives, the Global Fund against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM and the bundling of long-standing international health goals in the form of Millennium Development Goals (MDG, asking how the GPG perspective has contributed to defining objectives and strategies. We conclude that both initiatives are best interpreted in the context of traditional development assistance and, one-world rhetoric aside, have little to do with the challenge posed by GPGs for health. The paper concludes by considering how the GPG concept can be more effectively used to promote global health.

  14. Building National Health Research Information Systems (COHRED ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Building National Health Research Information Systems (COHRED). This grant will allow the Council on Health Research for Development (COHRED) to create, host and maintain a web-based resource on national health research in low- and middle-income countries in partnership with institutions in the South. Called ...

  15. History, Structure and Agency in Global Health Governance Comment on "Global Health Governance Challenges 2016 - Are We Ready?"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gill, Stephen; Benatar, Solomon R

    2016-08-29

    Ilona Kickbusch's thought provoking editorial is criticized in this commentary, partly because she fails to refer to previous critical work on the global conditions and policies that sustain inequality, poverty, poor health and damage to the biosphere and, as a result, she misreads global power and elides consideration of the fundamental historical structures of political and material power that shape agency in global health governance. We also doubt that global health can be improved through structures and processes of multilateralism that are premised on the continued reproduction of the ecologically myopic and socially unsustainable market civilization model of capitalist development that currently prevails in the world economy. This model drives net financial flows from poor to rich countries and from the poor to the affluent and super wealthy individuals. By contrast, we suggest that significant progress in global health requires a profound and socially just restructuring of global power, greater global solidarity and the "development of sustainability." © 2017 The Author(s); Published by Kerman University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

  16. Leveraging the Global Health Service Partnership Model for Workforce Development in Global Radiation Oncology

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Omoruyi Credit Irabor

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available A major contributor to the disparity in cancer outcome across the globe is the limited health care access in low- and middle-income countries that results from the shortfall in human resources for health (HRH, fomented by the limited training and leadership capacity of low-resource countries. In 2012, Seed Global Health teamed up with the Peace Corps to create the Global Health Service Partnership, an initiative that has introduced a novel model for tackling the HRH crises in developing regions of the world. The Global Health Service Partnership has made global health impacts in leveraging partnerships for HRH development, faculty activities and output, scholarship engagement, adding value to the learning environment, health workforce empowerment, and infrastructure development.

  17. Perceived health and comfort in relation to energy use and building characteristics

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Roulet, C.-A.; Johner, N. [Ecole Polytechnique Federale, Lausanne (Switzerland); Foradini, F. [E4Tech S., Lausanne (Switzerland); Bluyssen, P.; Cox, C. [TNO Built Environment and Geosciences, Delft (Netherlands); Oliveira Fernandes, E. De [IDMEC-FUEP, Porto (Portugal); Mueller, B. [Technical University of Berlin, Berlin (Germany); Aizlewood, C. [Building Research Establishment, Watford (United Kingdom)

    2006-09-15

    Within the European research project Health Optimisation Protocol for Energy-efficient Building (HOPE), 96 apartment buildings and 64 office buildings (of which approximately 75% have been designed to be energy-efficient) were investigated. The building characteristics were assessed according to a checklist during a walk-through survey. Occupant questionnaires were used to determine satisfaction about comfort (thermal visual, acoustical and indoor air quality (IAQ)) and their health (Sick Building Syndrome and allergies). Building-averaged collected data are compared, looking for correlations between building characteristics on one hand, and perceived comfort and health on the other hand. Strong correlations are found between perceived IAQ, thermal, acoustic and lighting comfort, confirming results from other studies. Significant correlations between the perceived comfort and building related symptoms were also found, comfortable and healthier buildings being well distinct from uncomfortable ones. Differences of perceived comfort or health between low- and high-energy buildings show that it is possible to design buildings that are healthy, comfortable and energy efficient. (author)

  18. Global Health: A Pivotal Moment Of Opportunity And Peril.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gostin, Lawrence O; Friedman, Eric A

    2017-01-01

    A growing tide of populism in Europe and the United States, combined with other factors, threatens the solidarity upon which the global health movement is based. The highest-profile example of the turn toward populism is US president-elect Donald Trump, whose proposals would redefine US engagement in global health, development, and environmental efforts. In this challenging landscape, three influential global institutions-the United Nations, the World Health Organization, and the World Bank-are undergoing leadership transitions. This new global health leadership should prioritize global health security, including antimicrobial resistance, health system strengthening, and action on mass migration and climate change. They will need to work as a team, leveraging the World Health Organization's technical competence and mandate to set health norms and standards, the United Nations' political clout, and the World Bank's economic strength. Human rights, including principles of equality, participation, and accountability, should be their foremost guide, such as holding a United Nations special session on health inequities and advancing the Framework Convention on Global Health. The need for predictable and innovative financing and high ethical standards to prevent conflicts of interest can further guide global health leaders. Project HOPE—The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.

  19. [The Global Model of Public Mental Health and Recovery Mentors].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pelletier, Jean-François; Auclair, Émilie

    capacity building, for instance through quality assessment, and evaluation of human rights' level of respect in healthcare facilities and more broadly. People with mental health challenges ought to be "included in the community" - as this is a right, not a reward (UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, art. 19). This is achievable if the community is informed and welcoming, for instance in getting involved with a Civic Forum and its organizing committee. The degree to which a transformational agenda is participatory is revealed as a predictor of the degree to which the broader community can be reflexive about its own inclusiveness for a genuinely global approach of public mental health, and with a cascading emulation effect.Conclusion Transition from social marginalization to full citizenship represents a daunting challenge in public mental healthcare. Creating access to the valued roles which individuals will be able to occupy in community and workplace settings requires capacity building and inter-sectorial synchronicity, as suggested by recovery mentors who can act as tracers to reveal obstacles and gateways in the recovery journey. Public intervention and debate are required to promote and monitor the bond of citizenship that connects people to their communities, and the quality of this bond needs to be included in the scope of public mental health for continuity and equity of access.

  20. Building capacity in biodiversity monitoring at the global scale

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schmeller, Dirk S.; Bohm, Monika; Arvanitidis, Christos; Barber-Meyer, Shannon; Brummitt, Neil; Chandler, Mark; Chatzinikolaou, Eva; Costello, Mark J.; Ding, Hui; García-Moreno, Jaime; Gill, Michael J.; Haase, Peter; Jones, Miranda; Juillard, Romain; Magnusson, William E.; Martin, Corinne S.; McGeoch, Melodie A.; Mihoub, Jean-Baptiste; Pettorelli, Nathalie; Proença, Vânia; Peng, Cui; Regan, Eugenie; Schmiedel, Ute; Simsika, John P.; Weatherdon, Lauren; Waterman, Carly; Xu, Haigen; Belnap, Jayne

    2017-01-01

    Human-driven global change is causing ongoing declines in biodiversity worldwide. In order to address these declines, decision-makers need accurate assessments of the status of and pressures on biodiversity. However, these are heavily constrained by incomplete and uneven spatial, temporal and taxonomic coverage. For instance, data from regions such as Europe and North America are currently used overwhelmingly for large-scale biodiversity assessments due to lesser availability of suitable data from other, more biodiversity-rich, regions. These data-poor regions are often those experiencing the strongest threats to biodiversity, however. There is therefore an urgent need to fill the existing gaps in global biodiversity monitoring. Here, we review current knowledge on best practice in capacity building for biodiversity monitoring and provide an overview of existing means to improve biodiversity data collection considering the different types of biodiversity monitoring data. Our review comprises insights from work in Africa, South America, Polar Regions and Europe; in government-funded, volunteer and citizen-based monitoring in terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems. The key steps to effectively building capacity in biodiversity monitoring are: identifying monitoring questions and aims; identifying the key components, functions, and processes to monitor; identifying the most suitable monitoring methods for these elements, carrying out monitoring activities; managing the resultant data; and interpreting monitoring data. Additionally, biodiversity monitoring should use multiple approaches including extensive and intensive monitoring through volunteers and professional scientists but also harnessing new technologies. Finally, we call on the scientific community to share biodiversity monitoring data, knowledge and tools to ensure the accessibility, interoperability, and reporting of biodiversity data at a global scale.

  1. The World Health Organization and Global Health Governance: post-1990.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lidén, J

    2014-02-01

    This article takes a historical perspective on the changing position of WHO in the global health architecture over the past two decades. From the early 1990s a number of weaknesses within the structure and governance of the World Health Organization were becoming apparent, as a rapidly changing post Cold War world placed more complex demands on the international organizations generally, but significantly so in the field of global health. Towards the end of that decade and during the first half of the next, WHO revitalized and played a crucial role in setting global health priorities. However, over the past decade, the organization has to some extent been bypassed for funding, and it lost some of its authority and its ability to set a global health agenda. The reasons for this decline are complex and multifaceted. Some of the main factors include WHO's inability to reform its core structure, the growing influence of non-governmental actors, a lack of coherence in the positions, priorities and funding decisions between the health ministries and the ministries overseeing development assistance in several donor member states, and the lack of strong leadership of the organization. Copyright © 2013 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Global health training in US graduate psychiatric education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsai, Alexander C; Fricchione, Gregory L; Walensky, Rochelle P; Ng, Courtney; Bangsberg, David R; Kerry, Vanessa B

    2014-08-01

    Global health training opportunities have figured prominently into medical students' residency program choices across a range of clinical specialties. To date, however, the national scope of global mental health education has not heretofore been systematically assessed. We therefore sought to characterize the distribution of global health training opportunities in US graduate psychiatric education. We examined the web pages of all US psychiatry residency training programs, along with search results from a systematic Google query designed to identify global health training opportunities. Of the 183 accredited US psychiatry residency programs, we identified 17 programs (9.3%) offering 28 global health training opportunities in 64 countries. Ten psychiatry residency programs offered their residents opportunities to participate in one or more elective-based rotations, eight offered research activities, and six offered extended field-based training. Most global health training opportunities occurred within the context of externally administered, institution-wide initiatives generally available to residents from a range of clinical specialties, rather than within internally administered departmental initiatives specifically tailored for psychiatry residents. There are relatively few global health training opportunities in US graduate psychiatric education. These activities have a clear role in enhancing mastery of Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education core competencies, but important challenges related to program funding and evaluation remain.

  3. The global warming potential of building materials : An application of life cycle analysis in Nepal

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bhochhibhoya, Silu; Zanetti, Michela; Pierobon, Francesca; Gatto, Paola; Maskey, Ramesh Kumar; Cavalli, Raffaele

    2017-01-01

    This paper analyzes the global-warming potential of materials used to construct the walls of 3 building types - traditional, semimodern, and modern - in Sagarmatha National Park and Buffer Zone in Nepal, using the life-cycle assessment approach. Traditional buildings use local materials, mainly wood

  4. Good and Bad Research Collaborations: Researchers' Views on Science and Ethics in Global Health Research.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael Parker

    Full Text Available There has been a dramatic rise in the scale and scope of collaborative global health research. A number of structural and scientific factors explain this growth and there has been much discussion of these in the literature. Little, if any, attention has been paid, however, to the factors identified by scientists and other research actors as important to successful research collaboration. This is surprising given that their decisions are likely to play a key role in the sustainability and effectiveness of global health research initiatives. In this paper, we report on qualitative research with leading scientists involved in major international research collaborations about their views on good and bad collaborations and the factors that inform their decision-making about joining and participating actively in research networks. We identify and discuss eight factors that researchers see as essential in judging the merits of active participation in global health research collaborations: opportunities for active involvement in cutting-edge, interesting science; effective leadership; competence of potential partners in and commitment to good scientific practice; capacity building; respect for the needs, interests and agendas of partners; opportunities for discussion and disagreement; trust and confidence; and, justice and fairness in collaboration. Our findings suggest that the sustainability and effectiveness of global health research collaborations has an important ethical or moral dimension for the research actors involved.

  5. Good and Bad Research Collaborations: Researchers' Views on Science and Ethics in Global Health Research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parker, Michael; Kingori, Patricia

    2016-01-01

    There has been a dramatic rise in the scale and scope of collaborative global health research. A number of structural and scientific factors explain this growth and there has been much discussion of these in the literature. Little, if any, attention has been paid, however, to the factors identified by scientists and other research actors as important to successful research collaboration. This is surprising given that their decisions are likely to play a key role in the sustainability and effectiveness of global health research initiatives. In this paper, we report on qualitative research with leading scientists involved in major international research collaborations about their views on good and bad collaborations and the factors that inform their decision-making about joining and participating actively in research networks. We identify and discuss eight factors that researchers see as essential in judging the merits of active participation in global health research collaborations: opportunities for active involvement in cutting-edge, interesting science; effective leadership; competence of potential partners in and commitment to good scientific practice; capacity building; respect for the needs, interests and agendas of partners; opportunities for discussion and disagreement; trust and confidence; and, justice and fairness in collaboration. Our findings suggest that the sustainability and effectiveness of global health research collaborations has an important ethical or moral dimension for the research actors involved.

  6. Recent Topical Research on Global, Energy, Health & Medical, and Tourism Economics, and Global Software

    OpenAIRE

    Chang, Chia-Lin; McAleer, Michael

    2017-01-01

    textabstractThe paper presents an overview of recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software. We have interpreted “global” in the title of the Journal of Reviews on Global Economics to cover contributions that have a global impact on economics, thereby making it “global economics”. In this sense, the paper is concerned with papers on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, as well as global software algorithms that have...

  7. Health Care Building Assessment through Post Occupancy Audit

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ahmad Ezanee Hashim

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Health care and hospital buildings are among the most complex construction in the built environment which comprises a broad range of utility, services, and functional units. The objectives of the study are to review the built environment performance level of the public teaching health care hospital in meeting user’s need. Three (3 public training health care hospitals in Selangor district in Malaysia are selected as a case study sample. Based on the finding the study revealed that the correlation coefficient between technical building performance and the importance of POE Guideline are positively correlated based on security, safety, and efficiency and health criteria.

  8. 'Disaster day': global health simulation teaching.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mohamed-Ahmed, Rayan; Daniels, Alex; Goodall, Jack; O'Kelly, Emily; Fisher, James

    2016-02-01

    As society diversifies and globalisation quickens, the importance of teaching global health to medical undergraduates increases. For undergraduates, the majority of exposure to 'hands-on' teaching on global health occurs during optional elective periods. This article describes an innovative student-led initiative, 'Disaster Day', which used simulation to teach global health to undergraduates. The teaching day began with an introduction outlining the work of Médecins Sans Frontières and the basic principles of resuscitation. Students then undertook four interactive simulation scenarios: Infectious Diseases in a Refugee Camp, Natural Disaster and Crush Injury, Obstetric Emergency in a Low-Income Country, and Warzone Gunshot Wound. Sessions were facilitated by experienced doctors and fourth-year students who had been trained in the delivery of the scenarios. Students completed pre- and post-session evaluation forms that included the self-rating of confidence in eight learning domains (using a five-point Likert scale). Twenty-seven students voluntarily attended the session, and all provided written feedback. Analysis of the pre- and post-session evaluations demonstrated statistically significant improvements in confidence across all but one domains (Wilcoxon signed rank test). Free-text feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with students appreciating the practical aspect of the scenarios. For undergraduates, the majority of exposure to 'hands-on' teaching on global health occurs during optional elective periods Simulation-based teaching can provide students with 'hands-on' exposure to global health in a controlled, reproducible fashion and appears to help develop their confidence in a variety of learning domains. The more widespread use of such teaching methods is encouraged: helping tomorrow's doctors develop insight into global health challenges may produce more rounded clinicians capable of caring for more culturally diverse populations. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons

  9. Global Health Security—An Unfinished Journey

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-01-01

    This supplement is a timely, comprehensive compendium of the critical work being done by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and various partners to enhance and expand the Global Health Security Agenda. This perspective provides a review of, and comments regarding, our past, current, and future challenges in supporting the Global Health Security Agenda.

  10. An Independent Review and Accountability Mechanism for the Sustainable Development Goals: The Possibilities of a Framework Convention on Global Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Friedman, Eric A

    2016-06-01

    The Framework Convention on Global Health (FCGH), a proposed global treaty to be rooted in the right to health and aimed at health equity, could establish a nuanced, layered, and multi-faceted regime of compliance with, and accountability to, the right to health. In so doing, it would significantly strengthen accountability for the health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which it would encompass. Legally binding, the FCGH could facilitate accountability through the courts and catalyze comprehensive domestic accountability regimes, requiring national strategies that include transparency, community and national mechanisms for accountability and participation and an enabling environment for social empowerment. A "Right to Health Capacity Fund" could ensure resources to implement these strategies. Inclusive national processes could establish targets, benchmarks, and indicators consistent with FCGH guidance, with regular reporting to a treaty body, which could also hear individual cases. State reports could be required to include plans to overcome implementation gaps, subjecting poorly complying states to penalties and targeted capacity building measures. Regional special rapporteurs could facilitate compliance through regular country visits, while also responding to serious violations. And reaching beyond government compliance, from capacity building to the courts and contractual obligations, the FCGH could establish nationally enforceable right to health obligations on the private sector.

  11. Management Certainly Matters, and There Are Multiple Ways to Conceptualize the Process; Comment on “Management Matters: A Leverage Point for Health Systems Strengthening in Global Health”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Beaufort B. Longest

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available The authors of “Management matters: a leverage point for health systems strengthening in global health,” raise a crucial issue. Because more effective management can contribute to better performing health systems, attempts to strengthen health systems require attention to management. As a guide toward management capacity building, the authors outline a comprehensive set of core management competencies needed for managing global health efforts. Although, I agree with the authors’ central premise about the important role of management in improving global health and concur that focusing on competencies can guide management capacity building, I think it is important to recognize that a set of relevant competencies is not the only way to conceptualize and organize efforts to teach, learn, practice, or conduct research on management. I argue the added utility of also viewing management as a set of functions or activities as an alternative paradigm and suggest that the greatest utility could lie in some hybrid that combines various ways of conceptualizing management for study, practice, and research.

  12. Comprehensive effective and efficient global public health surveillance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    McNabb Scott JN

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract At a crossroads, global public health surveillance exists in a fragmented state. Slow to detect, register, confirm, and analyze cases of public health significance, provide feedback, and communicate timely and useful information to stakeholders, global surveillance is neither maximally effective nor optimally efficient. Stakeholders lack a globa surveillance consensus policy and strategy; officials face inadequate training and scarce resources. Three movements now set the stage for transformation of surveillance: 1 adoption by Member States of the World Health Organization (WHO of the revised International Health Regulations (IHR[2005]; 2 maturation of information sciences and the penetration of information technologies to distal parts of the globe; and 3 consensus that the security and public health communities have overlapping interests and a mutual benefit in supporting public health functions. For these to enhance surveillance competencies, eight prerequisites should be in place: politics, policies, priorities, perspectives, procedures, practices, preparation, and payers. To achieve comprehensive, global surveillance, disparities in technical, logistic, governance, and financial capacities must be addressed. Challenges to closing these gaps include the lack of trust and transparency; perceived benefit at various levels; global governance to address data power and control; and specified financial support from globa partners. We propose an end-state perspective for comprehensive, effective and efficient global, multiple-hazard public health surveillance and describe a way forward to achieve it. This end-state is universal, global access to interoperable public health information when it’s needed, where it’s needed. This vision mitigates the tension between two fundamental human rights: first, the right to privacy, confidentiality, and security of personal health information combined with the right of sovereign, national entities

  13. Comprehensive effective and efficient global public health surveillance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McNabb, Scott J N

    2010-12-03

    At a crossroads, global public health surveillance exists in a fragmented state. Slow to detect, register, confirm, and analyze cases of public health significance, provide feedback, and communicate timely and useful information to stakeholders, global surveillance is neither maximally effective nor optimally efficient. Stakeholders lack a globa surveillance consensus policy and strategy; officials face inadequate training and scarce resources.Three movements now set the stage for transformation of surveillance: 1) adoption by Member States of the World Health Organization (WHO) of the revised International Health Regulations (IHR[2005]); 2) maturation of information sciences and the penetration of information technologies to distal parts of the globe; and 3) consensus that the security and public health communities have overlapping interests and a mutual benefit in supporting public health functions. For these to enhance surveillance competencies, eight prerequisites should be in place: politics, policies, priorities, perspectives, procedures, practices, preparation, and payers.To achieve comprehensive, global surveillance, disparities in technical, logistic, governance, and financial capacities must be addressed. Challenges to closing these gaps include the lack of trust and transparency; perceived benefit at various levels; global governance to address data power and control; and specified financial support from globa partners.We propose an end-state perspective for comprehensive, effective and efficient global, multiple-hazard public health surveillance and describe a way forward to achieve it. This end-state is universal, global access to interoperable public health information when it's needed, where it's needed. This vision mitigates the tension between two fundamental human rights: first, the right to privacy, confidentiality, and security of personal health information combined with the right of sovereign, national entities to the ownership and stewardship

  14. Celebrating the work of Gavin Mooney: inclusiveness and involvement in global and public health issues.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McIntyre, Diane

    2014-05-01

    the global political economy. Current debates about universal coverage also provide a critical opportunity to move towards health systems that are built on values determined by citizens and are social institutions that build solidarity, redress inequalities and unite fractured societies. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. Canada-Africa Prevention Trials Network : Building African Capacity ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Canada-Africa Prevention Trials Network : Building African Capacity for HIV/AIDS Prevention Trials. The Canada-Africa Prevention Trials Network (CAPT Network) was formed through a capacity building grant from the Global Health Research Initiative (GHRI). The Network comprises eight African centres (four in Uganda, ...

  16. Building African Capacity for HIV/AIDS Prevention Trials

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Canada-Africa Prevention Trials Network : Building African Capacity for HIV/AIDS Prevention Trials. The Canada-Africa Prevention Trials Network (CAPT Network) was formed through a capacity building grant from the Global Health Research Initiative (GHRI). The Network comprises eight African centres (four in Uganda, ...

  17. Medical Student Perceptions of Global Surgery at an Academic Institution: Identifying Gaps in Global Health Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mehta, Ambar; Xu, Tim; Murray, Matthew; Casey, Kathleen M

    2017-12-01

    Robust global health demands access to safe, affordable, timely surgical care for all. The long-term success of global surgery requires medical students to understand and engage with this emerging field. The authors characterized medical students' perceptions of surgical care relative to other fields within global health. An optional, anonymous survey was given to all Johns Hopkins medical students from February to March 2016 to assess perceptions of surgical care and its role in global health. Of 480 students, 365 (76%) completed the survey, with 150 (41%) reporting global health interests. One-third (34%) of responding students felt that surgical care is one of two fields with the greatest potential global health impact in the future, second to infectious disease (49%). A minority (28%) correctly identified that trauma results in more deaths worldwide than obstetric complications or HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria combined. Relative to other examined fields, students perceived surgical care as the least preventive and cost-effective, and few students (3%) considered adequate surgical care the best indicator of a robust health care system. Students believed that practicing in a surgical field was least amenable to pursuing a global health career, citing several barriers. Medical students have several perceptions of global surgery that contradict current evidence and literature, which may have implications for their career choices. Opportunities to improve students' global health knowledge and awareness of global surgery career paths include updating curricula, fostering meaningful international academic opportunities, and creating centers of global surgery and global health consortia.

  18. Global Health Governance Challenges 2016 - Are We Ready?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kickbusch, Ilona

    2016-02-29

    The year 2016 could turn out to be a turning point for global health, new political realities and global insecurities will test governance and financing mechanisms in relation to both people and planet. But most importantly political factors such as the global power shift and "the rise of the rest" will define the future of global health. A new mix of health inequity and security challenges has emerged and the 2015 humanitarian and health crises have shown the limits of existing systems. The global health as well as the humanitarian system will have to prove their capacity to respond and reform. The challenge ahead is deeply political, especially for the rising political actors. They are confronted with the consequences of a model of development that has neglected sustainability and equity, and was built on their exploitation. Some direction has been given by the path breaking international conferences in 2015. Especially the agreement on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris agreement on climate change will shape action. Conceptually, we will need a different understanding of global health and its ultimate goals - the health of people can no longer be seen separate from the health of the planet and wealth measured by parameters of growth will no longer ensure health. © 2016 by Kerman University of Medical Sciences.

  19. Health care globalization: a need for virtual leadership.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holland, J Brian; Malvey, Donna; Fottler, Myron D

    2009-01-01

    As health care organizations expand and move into global markets, they face many leadership challenges, including the difficulty of leading individuals who are geographically dispersed. This article provides global managers with guidelines for leading and motivating individuals or teams from a distance while overcoming the typical challenges that "virtual leaders" and "virtual teams" face: employee isolation, confusion, language barriers, cultural differences, and technological breakdowns. Fortunately, technological advances in communications have provided various methods to accommodate geographically dispersed or "global virtual teams." Health care leaders now have the ability to lead global teams from afar by becoming "virtual leaders" with a responsibility to lead a "virtual team." Three models of globalization presented and discussed are outsourcing of health care services, medical tourism, and telerobotics. These models require global managers to lead virtually, and a positive relationship between the virtual leader and the virtual team member is vital in the success of global health care organizations.

  20. Global Appearance Applied to Visual Map Building and Path Estimation Using Multiscale Analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francisco Amorós

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available In this work we present a topological map building and localization system for mobile robots based on global appearance of visual information. We include a comparison and analysis of global-appearance techniques applied to wide-angle scenes in retrieval tasks. Next, we define multiscale analysis, which permits improving the association between images and extracting topological distances. Then, a topological map-building algorithm is proposed. At first, the algorithm has information only of some isolated positions of the navigation area in the form of nodes. Each node is composed of a collection of images that covers the complete field of view from a certain position. The algorithm solves the node retrieval and estimates their spatial arrangement. With these aims, it uses the visual information captured along some routes that cover the navigation area. As a result, the algorithm builds a graph that reflects the distribution and adjacency relations between nodes (map. After the map building, we also propose a route path estimation system. This algorithm takes advantage of the multiscale analysis. The accuracy in the pose estimation is not reduced to the nodes locations but also to intermediate positions between them. The algorithms have been tested using two different databases captured in real indoor environments under dynamic conditions.

  1. Moving global health forward in academic institutions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Didier Wernli

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Global health has attracted growing attention from academic institutions. Its emergence corresponds to the increasing interdependence that characterizes our time and provides a new worldview to address health challenges globally. There is still a large potential to better delineate the limits of the field, drawing on a wide perspective across sciences and geographical areas. As an implementation and integration science, academic global health aims primarily to respond to societal needs through research, education, and practice. From five academic institutions closely engaged with international Geneva, we propose here a definition of global health based on six core principles: 1 cross–border/multilevel approach, 2 inter–/trans–disciplinarity, 3 systems thinking, 4 innovation, 5 sustainability, and 6 human rights/equity. This definition aims to reduce the century–old divide between medicine and public health while extending our perspective to other highly relevant fields. Overall, this article provides an intellectual framework to improve health for all in our contemporary world with implications for academic institutions and science policy.

  2. Globalization, democracy, and child health in developing countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Welander, Anna; Lyttkens, Carl Hampus; Nilsson, Therese

    2015-07-01

    Good health is crucial for human and economic development. In particular poor health in childhood is of utmost concern since it causes irreversible damage and has implications later in life. Recent research suggests globalization is a strong force affecting adult and child health outcomes. Yet, there is much unexplained variation with respect to the globalization effect on child health, in particular in low- and middle-income countries. One factor that could explain such variation across countries is the quality of democracy. Using panel data for 70 developing countries between 1970 and 2009 this paper disentangles the relationship between globalization, democracy, and child health. Specifically the paper examines how globalization and a country's democratic status and historical experience with democracy, respectively, affect infant mortality. In line with previous research, results suggest that globalization reduces infant mortality and that the level of democracy in a country generally improves child health outcomes. Additionally, democracy matters for the size of the globalization effect on child health. If for example Côte d'Ivoire had been a democracy in the 2000-2009 period, this effect would translate into 1200 fewer infant deaths in an average year compared to the situation without democracy. We also find that nutrition is the most important mediator in the relationship. To conclude, globalization and democracy together associate with better child health in developing countries. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. State Support: A Prerequisite for Global Health Network Effectiveness

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marten, Robert; Smith, Richard D.

    2018-01-01

    Shiffman recently summarized lessons for network effectiveness from an impressive collection of case-studies. However, in common with most global health governance analysis in recent years, Shiffman underplays the important role of states in these global networks. As the body which decides and signs international agreements, often provides the resourcing, and is responsible for implementing initiatives all contributing to the prioritization of certain issues over others, state recognition and support is a prerequisite to enabling and determining global health networks’ success. The role of states deserves greater attention, analysis and consideration. We reflect upon the underappreciated role of the state within the current discourse on global health. We present the tobacco case study to illustrate the decisive role of states in determining progress for global health networks, and highlight how states use a legitimacy loop to gain legitimacy from and provide legitimacy to global health networks. Moving forward in assessing global health networks’ effectiveness, further investigating state support as a determinant of success will be critical. Understanding how global health networks and states interact and evolve to shape and support their respective interests should be a focus for future research. PMID:29524958

  4. A Progressively Realizable Right to Health and Global Governance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Daniels, Norman

    2015-12-01

    A moral right to health or health care is a special instance of a right to fair equality of opportunity. Nation-states generally have the capabilities to specify the entitlements of such a right and to raise the resources needed to satisfy those entitlements. Can these functions be replicated globally, as a global right to health or health care requires? The suggestion that "better global governance" is needed if such a global right is to be claimed requires that these two central capabilities be present. It is unlikely that nation-states would concede these two functions to a form of global governance, for doing so would seriously compromise the authority that is generally included in sovereignty. This claim is a specification of what is often recognized as the "sovereignty problem." The argument of this paper is not an "impossibility" claim, but a best guess about whether the necessary conditions for better global governance that supports a global right to health or health care can be achieved.

  5. Globalization and health: a framework for analysis and action.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Woodward, D.; Drager, N.; Beaglehole, R.; Lipson, D.

    2001-01-01

    Globalization is a key challenge to public health, especially in developing countries, but the linkages between globalization and health are complex. Although a growing amount of literature has appeared on the subject, it is piecemeal, and suffers from a lack of an agreed framework for assessing the direct and indirect health effects of different aspects of globalization. This paper presents a conceptual framework for the linkages between economic globalization and health, with the intention that it will serve as a basis for synthesizing existing relevant literature, identifying gaps in knowledge, and ultimately developing national and international policies more favourable to health. The framework encompasses both the indirect effects on health, operating through the national economy, household economies and health-related sectors such as water, sanitation and education, as well as more direct effects on population-level and individual risk factors for health and on the health care system. Proposed also is a set of broad objectives for a programme of action to optimize the health effects of economic globalization. The paper concludes by identifying priorities for research corresponding with the five linkages identified as critical to the effects of globalization on health. PMID:11584737

  6. Improving global health: counting reasons why.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Selgelid, Michael J

    2008-08-01

    This paper examines cumulative ethical and self-interested reasons why wealthy developed nations should be motivated to do more to improve health care in developing countries. Egalitarian and human rights reasons why wealthy nations should do more to improve global health are that doing so would (1) promote equality of opportunity (2) improve the situation of the worst-off, (3) promote respect of the human right to have one's most basic needs met, and (4) reduce undeserved inequalities in well-being. Utilitarian reasons for improving global health are that this would (5) promote the greater good of humankind, and (6) achieve enormous benefits while requiring only small sacrifices. Libertarian reasons are that this would (7) amend historical injustices and (8) meet the obligation to amend injustices that developed world countries have contributed to. Self-interested reasons why wealthy nations should do more to improve global health are that doing so would (9) reduce the threat of infectious diseases to developed countries, (10) promote developed countries' economic interests, and (11) promote global security. All of these reasons count, and together they add up to make an overwhelmingly powerful case for change. Those opposed to wealthy government funding of developing world health improvement would most likely appeal, implicitly or explicitly to the idea that coercive taxation for redistributive purposes would violate the right of an individual to keep his hard-earned income. The idea that this reason not to improve global health should outweigh the combination of rights and values embodied in the eleven reasons enumerated above, however is implausibly extreme, morally repugnant and perhaps imprudent.

  7. History, Structure and Agency in Global Health Governance; Comment on “Global Health Governance Challenges 2016 – Are We Ready?”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephen Gill

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Ilona Kickbusch’s thought provoking editorial is criticized in this commentary, partly because she fails to refer to previous critical work on the global conditions and policies that sustain inequality, poverty, poor health and damage to the biosphere and, as a result, she misreads global power and elides consideration of the fundamental historical structures of political and material power that shape agency in global health governance. We also doubt that global health can be improved through structures and processes of multilateralism that are premised on the continued reproduction of the ecologically myopic and socially unsustainable market civilization model of capitalist development that currently prevails in the world economy. This model drives net financial flows from poor to rich countries and from the poor to the affluent and super wealthy individuals. By contrast, we suggest that significant progress in global health requires a profound and socially just restructuring of global power, greater global solidarity and the “development of sustainability.”

  8. Capacity building for health inequality monitoring in Indonesia: enhancing the equity orientation of country health information system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hosseinpoor, Ahmad Reza; Nambiar, Devaki; Tawilah, Jihane; Schlotheuber, Anne; Briot, Benedicte; Bateman, Massee; Davey, Tamzyn; Kusumawardani, Nunik; Myint, Theingi; Nuryetty, Mariet Tetty; Prasetyo, Sabarinah; Suparmi; Floranita, Rustini

    Inequalities in health represent a major problem in many countries, including Indonesia. Addressing health inequality is a central component of the Sustainable Development Goals and a priority of the World Health Organization (WHO). WHO provides technical support for health inequality monitoring among its member states. Following a capacity-building workshop in the WHO South-East Asia Region in 2014, Indonesia expressed interest in incorporating health-inequality monitoring into its national health information system. This article details the capacity-building process for national health inequality monitoring in Indonesia, discusses successes and challenges, and how this process may be adapted and implemented in other countries/settings. We outline key capacity-building activities undertaken between April 2016 and December 2017 in Indonesia and present the four key outcomes of this process. The capacity-building process entailed a series of workshops, meetings, activities, and processes undertaken between April 2016 and December 2017. At each stage, a range of stakeholders with access to the relevant data and capacity for data analysis, interpretation and reporting was engaged with, under the stewardship of state agencies. Key steps to strengthening health inequality monitoring included capacity building in (1) identification of the health topics/areas of interest, (2) mapping data sources and identifying gaps, (3) conducting equity analyses using raw datasets, and (4) interpreting and reporting inequality results. As a result, Indonesia developed its first national report on the state of health inequality. A number of peer-reviewed manuscripts on various aspects of health inequality in Indonesia have also been developed. The capacity-building process undertaken in Indonesia is designed to be adaptable to other contexts. Capacity building for health inequality monitoring among countries is a critical step for strengthening equity-oriented national health

  9. Global income related health inequalities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jalil Safaei

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Income related health inequalities have been estimated for various groups of individuals at local, state, or national levels. Almost all of theses estimates are based on individual data from sample surveys. Lack of consistent individual data worldwide has prevented estimates of international income related health inequalities. This paper uses the (population weighted aggregate data available from many countries around the world to estimate worldwide income related health inequalities. Since the intra-country inequalities are subdued by the aggregate nature of the data, the estimates would be those of the inter-country or international health inequalities. As well, the study estimates the contribution of major socioeconomic variables to the overall health inequalities. The findings of the study strongly support the existence of worldwide income related health inequalities that favor the higher income countries. Decompositions of health inequalities identify inequalities in both the level and distribution of income as the main source of health inequality along with inequalities in education and degree of urbanization as other contributing determinants. Since income related health inequalities are preventable, policies to reduce the income gaps between the poor and rich nations could greatly improve the health of hundreds of millions of people and promote global justice. Keywords: global, income, health inequality, socioeconomic determinants of health

  10. Global health governance - the next political revolution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kickbusch, I; Reddy, K S

    2015-07-01

    The recent Ebola crisis has re-opened the debate on global health governance and the role of the World Health Organization. In order to analyze what is at stake, we apply two conceptual approaches from the social sciences - the work on gridlock and the concept of cosmopolitan moments - to assess the ability of the multilateral governance system to reform. We find that gridlock can be broken open by a health crisis which in turn generates a political drive for change. We show that a set of cosmopolitan moments have led to the introduction of the imperative of health in a range of policy arenas and moved health into 'high politics' - this has been called a political revolution. We contend that this revolution has entered a second phase with increasing interest of heads of state in global health issues. Here lies the window of opportunity to reform global health governance. Copyright © 2015 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Defining Health Diplomacy: Changing Demands in the Era of Globalization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Katz, Rebecca; Kornblet, Sarah; Arnold, Grace; Lief, Eric; Fischer, Julie E

    2011-01-01

    Context: Accelerated globalization has produced obvious changes in diplomatic purposes and practices. Health issues have become increasingly preeminent in the evolving global diplomacy agenda. More leaders in academia and policy are thinking about how to structure and utilize diplomacy in pursuit of global health goals. Methods: In this article, we describe the context, practice, and components of global health diplomacy, as applied operationally. We examine the foundations of various approaches to global health diplomacy, along with their implications for the policies shaping the international public health and foreign policy environments. Based on these observations, we propose a taxonomy for the subdiscipline. Findings: Expanding demands on global health diplomacy require a delicate combination of technical expertise, legal knowledge, and diplomatic skills that have not been systematically cultivated among either foreign service or global health professionals. Nonetheless, high expectations that global health initiatives will achieve development and diplomatic goals beyond the immediate technical objectives may be thwarted by this gap. Conclusions: The deepening links between health and foreign policy require both the diplomatic and global health communities to reexamine the skills, comprehension, and resources necessary to achieve their mutual objectives. PMID:21933277

  12. Defining health diplomacy: changing demands in the era of globalization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Katz, Rebecca; Kornblet, Sarah; Arnold, Grace; Lief, Eric; Fischer, Julie E

    2011-09-01

    Accelerated globalization has produced obvious changes in diplomatic purposes and practices. Health issues have become increasingly preeminent in the evolving global diplomacy agenda. More leaders in academia and policy are thinking about how to structure and utilize diplomacy in pursuit of global health goals. In this article, we describe the context, practice, and components of global health diplomacy, as applied operationally. We examine the foundations of various approaches to global health diplomacy, along with their implications for the policies shaping the international public health and foreign policy environments. Based on these observations, we propose a taxonomy for the subdiscipline. Expanding demands on global health diplomacy require a delicate combination of technical expertise, legal knowledge, and diplomatic skills that have not been systematically cultivated among either foreign service or global health professionals. Nonetheless, high expectations that global health initiatives will achieve development and diplomatic goals beyond the immediate technical objectives may be thwarted by this gap. The deepening links between health and foreign policy require both the diplomatic and global health communities to reexamine the skills, comprehension, and resources necessary to achieve their mutual objectives. © 2011 Milbank Memorial Fund. Published by Wiley Periodicals Inc.

  13. WHE-PAGER Project: A new initiative in estimating global building inventory and its seismic vulnerability

    Science.gov (United States)

    Porter, K.A.; Jaiswal, K.S.; Wald, D.J.; Greene, M.; Comartin, Craig

    2008-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquake’s Response (PAGER) Project and the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute’s World Housing Encyclopedia (WHE) are creating a global database of building stocks and their earthquake vulnerability. The WHE already represents a growing, community-developed public database of global housing and its detailed structural characteristics. It currently contains more than 135 reports on particular housing types in 40 countries. The WHE-PAGER effort extends the WHE in several ways: (1) by addressing non-residential construction; (2) by quantifying the prevalence of each building type in both rural and urban areas; (3) by addressing day and night occupancy patterns, (4) by adding quantitative vulnerability estimates from judgment or statistical observation; and (5) by analytically deriving alternative vulnerability estimates using in part laboratory testing.

  14. Education for public health in Europe and its global outreach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bjegovic-Mikanovic, Vesna; Jovic-Vranes, Aleksandra; Czabanowska, Katarzyna; Otok, Robert

    2014-01-01

    Introduction At the present time, higher education institutions dealing with education for public health in Europe and beyond are faced with a complex and comprehensive task of responding to global health challenges. Review Literature reviews in public health and global health and exploration of internet presentations of regional and global organisations dealing with education for public health were the main methods employed in the work presented in this paper. Higher academic institutions are searching for appropriate strategies in competences-based education, which will increase the global attractiveness of their academic programmes and courses for continuous professional development. Academic professionals are taking advantage of blended learning and new web technologies. In Europe and beyond they are opening up debates about the scope of public health and global health. Nevertheless, global health is bringing revitalisation of public health education, which is recognised as one of the core components by many other academic institutions involved in global health work. More than ever, higher academic institutions for public health are recognising the importance of institutional partnerships with various organisations and efficient modes of cooperation in regional and global networks. Networking in a global setting is bringing new opportunities, but also opening debates about global harmonisation of competence-based education to achieve functional knowledge, increase mobility of public health professionals, better employability and affordable performance. Conclusions As public health opportunities and threats are increasingly global, higher education institutions in Europe and in other regions have to look beyond national boundaries and participate in networks for education, research and practice. PMID:24560263

  15. Global Health Diplomacy, "San Francisco Values," and HIV/AIDS: From the Local to the Global.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kevany, Sebastian

    2015-01-01

    San Francisco has a distinguished history as a cosmopolitan, progressive, and international city, including extensive associations with global health. These circumstances have contributed to new, interdisciplinary scholarship in the field of global health diplomacy (GHD). In the present review, we describe the evolution and history of GHD at the practical and theoretical levels within the San Francisco medical community, trace related associations between the local and the global, and propose a range of potential opportunities for further development of this dynamic field. We provide a historical overview of the development of the "San Francisco Model" of collaborative, community-owned HIV/AIDS treatment and care programs as pioneered under the "Ward 86" paradigm of the 1980s. We traced the expansion and evolution of this model to the national level under the Ryan White Care Act, and internationally via the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. In parallel, we describe the evolution of global health diplomacy practices, from the local to the global, including the integration of GHD principles into intervention design to ensure social, political, and cultural acceptability and sensitivity. Global health programs, as informed by lessons learned from the San Francisco Model, are increasingly aligned with diplomatic principles and practices. This awareness has aided implementation, allowed policymakers to pursue related and progressive social and humanitarian issues in conjunction with medical responses, and elevated global health to the realm of "high politics." In the 21st century, the integration between diplomatic, medical, and global health practices will continue under "smart global health" and GHD paradigms. These approaches will enhance intervention cost-effectiveness by addressing and optimizing, in tandem with each other, a wide range of (health and non-health) foreign policy, diplomatic, security, and economic priorities in a synergistic manner

  16. Adoption of Smart Structures for Prevention of Health Hazards in Buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oke, Ayodeji; Aigbavboa, Clinton; Ngema, Wiseman

    2017-11-01

    The importance of building quality to the health and well-being of occupants and surrounding neighbors cannot be overemphasized. Smart structures were construed to proffer solution to various issues of sustainable development including social factors that is concerned with health and safety of people. Based on existing literature materials on building quality, smart structures and general aspect of sustainable developments, this study examined the benefits of smart structures in the prevention of various health issues in infrastructural buildings, which has been a concern for stakeholders in the architecture, engineering and construction industry. The criterion for indoor environmental quality was adopted and various health and bodily issues related to building quality were explained. The adoption of smart structure concept will help to manage physical, chemical, biological and psychological factors of building with a view to enhancing better quality of life of occupants.

  17. Globalization and health care: global justice and the role of physicians.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toumi, Rabee

    2014-02-01

    In today's globalized world, nations cannot be totally isolated from or indifferent to their neighbors, especially in regards to medicine and health. While globalization has brought prosperity to millions, disparities among nations and nationals are growing raising once again the question of justice. Similarly, while medicine has developed dramatically over the past few decades, health disparities at the global level are staggering. Seemingly, what our humanity could achieve in matters of scientific development is not justly distributed to benefit everyone. In this paper, it will be argued that a global theoretical agreement on principles of justice may prove unattainable; however, a grass-roots change is warranted to change the current situation. The UNESCO Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights will be considered as a starting point to achieve this change through extracting the main values embedded in its principles. These values, namely, respecting human dignity and tending to human vulnerability with a hospitable attitude, should then be revived in medical practice. Medical education will be one possible venue to achieve that, especially through role models. Future physicians will then become the fervent advocates for a global and just distribution of health care.

  18. Family Medicine Global Health Fellowship Competencies: A Modified Delphi Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rayess, Fadya El; Filip, Anna; Doubeni, Anna; Wilson, Calvin; Haq, Cynthia; Debay, Marc; Anandarajah, Gowri; Heffron, Warren; Jayasekera, Neil; Larson, Paul; Dahlman, Bruce; Valdman, Olga; Hunt, Vince

    2017-02-01

    Many US medical schools and family medicine departments have responded to a growing interest in global health by developing global health fellowships. However, there are no guidelines or consensus statements outlining competencies for global health fellows. Our objective was to develop a mission and core competencies for Family Medicine Global Health Fellowships. A modified Delphi technique was used to develop consensus on fellowship competencies. A panel, comprised of 13 members with dual expertise in global health and medical education, undertook an iterative consensus process, followed by peer review, from April to December 2014. The panel developed a mission statement and identified six domains for family medicine global health fellowships: patient care, medical knowledge, professionalism, communication and leadership, teaching, and scholarship. Each domain includes a set of core and program-specific competencies. The family medicine global health competencies are intended to serve as an educational framework for the design, implementation, and evaluation of individual family medicine global health fellowship programs.

  19. Global Health after Pentecost: Toward Theological Reflection as a Religious Health Asset

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matthew T Bersagel Braley

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available This article examines the recent turn on the part of global health leaders to Christian communities as allies in the response to the HIV pandemic. A cursory survey of this turn highlights how global health leaders have used the language of religious health assets to revalue the activities of faith-based organizations, including Christian churches. In this way, religious health assets — tangible and intangible — become valuable if they can be rendered intelligible and appreciated using the existing lexicon and logic of global health. As a result, the primary activity of religious entities in partnerships with global health institutions is limited to conforming their practices to the best practices of HIV programs. But a closer examination of this revaluation reveals how it obscures a distinctive dimension of Christian participation, namely, critical theological reflection. The current turn to religion as a global health ally presents an opportunity to reimagine the spaces in which complex social phenomena are described, interpreted, and responded to. Christians live into the role of co-participants in these spaces when they seek to develop a greater competence for engaging the complex arena of global health policy and programming. This competence emerges from demonstrating understanding of the empirical context in which global health is carried out as well as showing in an imaginative and compelling manner how the theological resources from their own tradition illumine the patterns and processes of human suffering. We have a unique presence and reach within communities. We have unique structures and programmes that are already in place. We are available. We are reliable. And we are sustainable. We were there long before AIDS came and we will still be there when AIDS goes away. Rev. Canon Gideon Byamugisha1

  20. Addressing NCDs through research and capacity building in LMICs: lessons learned from tobacco control.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sturke, Rachel; Vorkoper, Susan; Duncan, Kalina; Levintova, Marya; Parascondola, Mark

    2016-01-01

    Confronting the global non-communicable diseases (NCDs) crisis requires a critical mass of scientists who are well versed in regional health problems and understand the cultural, social, economic, and political contexts that influence the effectiveness of interventions. Investments in global NCD research must be accompanied by contributions to local research capacity. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Fogarty International Center have a long-standing commitment to supporting research capacity building and addressing the growing burden of NCDs in low- and middle-income countries. One program in particular, the NIH International Tobacco and Health Research and Capacity Building Program (TOBAC program), offers an important model for conducting research and building research capacity simultaneously. This article describes the lessons learned from this unique funding model and demonstrates how a relatively modest investment can make important contributions to scientific evidence and capacity building that could inform ongoing and future efforts to tackle the global burden of NCDs.

  1. Addressing NCDs through research and capacity building in LMICs: lessons learned from tobacco control

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rachel Sturke

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Confronting the global non-communicable diseases (NCDs crisis requires a critical mass of scientists who are well versed in regional health problems and understand the cultural, social, economic, and political contexts that influence the effectiveness of interventions. Investments in global NCD research must be accompanied by contributions to local research capacity. The National Institutes of Health (NIH and the Fogarty International Center have a long-standing commitment to supporting research capacity building and addressing the growing burden of NCDs in low- and middle-income countries. One program in particular, the NIH International Tobacco and Health Research and Capacity Building Program (TOBAC program, offers an important model for conducting research and building research capacity simultaneously. This article describes the lessons learned from this unique funding model and demonstrates how a relatively modest investment can make important contributions to scientific evidence and capacity building that could inform ongoing and future efforts to tackle the global burden of NCDs.

  2. Capacity Building for HIV/AIDS Prevention Trials | IDRC ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) is funding the Africa HIV/AIDS Prevention Trials Capacity Building Program under the umbrella of the Global Health Research Initiative (GHRI). The aim of the program is to build the capacity of African researchers and institutions to conduct anticipated clinical trials ...

  3. Global health governance in the sustainable development goals: Is it grounded in the right to health?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van de Pas, Remco; Hill, Peter S; Hammonds, Rachel; Ooms, Gorik; Forman, Lisa; Waris, Attiya; Brolan, Claire E; McKee, Martin; Sridhar, Devi

    2017-01-01

    This paper explores the extent to which global health governance - in the context of the early implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals is grounded in the right to health. The essential components of the right to health in relation to global health are unpacked. Four essential functions of the global health system are assessed from a normative, rights-based, analysis on how each of these governance functions should operate. These essential functions are: the production of global public goods, the management of externalities across countries, the mobilization of global solidarity, and stewardship. The paper maps the current reality of global health governance now that the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals are beginning to be implemented. In theory, the existing human rights legislation would enable the principles and basis for the global governance of health beyond the premise of the state. In practice, there is a governance gap between the human rights framework and practices in global health and development policies. This gap can be explained by the political determinants of health that shape the governance of these global policies. Current representations of the right to health in the Sustainable Development Goals are insufficient and superficial, because they do not explicitly link commitments or right to health discourse to binding treaty obligations for duty-bearing nation states or entitlements by people. If global health policy is to meaningfully contribute to the realization of the right to health and to rights based global health governance then future iterations of global health policy must bridge this gap. This includes scholarship and policy debate on the structure, politics, and agency to overcome existing global health injustices.

  4. Global diets link environmental sustainability and human health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tilman, David; Clark, Michael

    2014-11-01

    Diets link environmental and human health. Rising incomes and urbanization are driving a global dietary transition in which traditional diets are replaced by diets higher in refined sugars, refined fats, oils and meats. By 2050 these dietary trends, if unchecked, would be a major contributor to an estimated 80 per cent increase in global agricultural greenhouse gas emissions from food production and to global land clearing. Moreover, these dietary shifts are greatly increasing the incidence of type II diabetes, coronary heart disease and other chronic non-communicable diseases that lower global life expectancies. Alternative diets that offer substantial health benefits could, if widely adopted, reduce global agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, reduce land clearing and resultant species extinctions, and help prevent such diet-related chronic non-communicable diseases. The implementation of dietary solutions to the tightly linked diet-environment-health trilemma is a global challenge, and opportunity, of great environmental and public health importance.

  5. Barriers to global health development: An international quantitative survey.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bahr Weiss

    Full Text Available Global health's goal of reducing low-and-middle-income country versus high-income country health disparities faces complex challenges. Although there have been discussions of barriers, there has not been a broad-based, quantitative survey of such barriers.432 global health professionals were invited via email to participate in an online survey, with 268 (62% participating. The survey assessed participants' (A demographic and global health background, (B perceptions regarding 66 barriers' seriousness, (C detailed ratings of barriers designated most serious, (D potential solutions.Thirty-four (of 66 barriers were seen as moderately or more serious, highlighting the widespread, significant challenges global health development faces. Perceived barrier seriousness differed significantly across domains: Resource Limitations mean = 2.47 (0-4 Likert scale, Priority Selection mean = 2.20, Corruption, Lack of Competence mean = 1.87, Social and Cultural Barriers mean = 1.68. Some system-level predictors showed significant but relatively limited relations. For instance, for Global Health Domain, HIV and Mental Health had higher levels of perceived Social and Cultural Barriers than other GH Domains. Individual-level global health experience predictors had small but significant effects, with seriousness of (a Corruption, Lack of Competence, and (b Priority Selection barriers positively correlated with respondents' level of LMIC-oriented (e.g., weeks/year spent in LMIC but Academic Global Health Achievement (e.g., number of global health publications negatively correlated with overall barrier seriousness.That comparatively few system-level predictors (e.g., Organization Type were significant suggests these barriers may be relatively fundamental at the system-level. Individual-level and system-level effects do have policy implications; e.g., Priority Selection barriers were among the most serious, yet effects on seriousness of how LMIC-oriented a professional

  6. Conceptualising global health: theoretical issues and their relevance for teaching.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rowson, Mike; Willott, Chris; Hughes, Rob; Maini, Arti; Martin, Sophie; Miranda, J Jaime; Pollit, Vicki; Smith, Abi; Wake, Rae; Yudkin, John S

    2012-11-14

    There has long been debate around the definition of the field of education, research and practice known as global health. In this article we step back from attempts at definition and instead ask what current definitions tell us about the evolution of the field, identifying gaps and points of debate and using these to inform discussions of how global health might be taught. What we now know as global health has its roots in the late 19(th) century, in the largely colonial, biomedical pursuit of 'international health'. The twentieth century saw a change in emphasis of the field towards a much broader conceptualisation of global health, encompassing broader social determinants of health and a truly global focus. The disciplinary focus has broadened greatly to include economics, anthropology and political science, among others. There have been a number of attempts to define the new field of global health. We suggest there are three central areas of contention: what the object of knowledge of global health is, the types of knowledge to be used and around the purpose of knowledge in the field of global health. We draw a number of conclusions from this discussion. First, that definitions should pay attention to differences as well as commonalities in different parts of the world, and that the definitions of global health themselves depend to some extent on the position of the definer. Second, global health's core strength lies in its interdisciplinary character, in particular the incorporation of approaches from outside biomedicine. This approach recognises that political, social and economic factors are central causes of ill health. Last, we argue that definition should avoid inclusion of values. In particular we argue that equity, a key element of many definitions of global health, is a value-laden concept and carries with it significant ideological baggage. As such, its widespread inclusion in the definitions of global health is inappropriate as it suggests that only

  7. Neoliberal Optimism: Applying Market Techniques to Global Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mei, Yuyang

    2017-01-01

    Global health and neoliberalism are becoming increasingly intertwined as organizations utilize markets and profit motives to solve the traditional problems of poverty and population health. I use field work conducted over 14 months in a global health technology company to explore how the promise of neoliberalism re-envisions humanitarian efforts. In this company's vaccine refrigerator project, staff members expect their investors and their market to allow them to achieve scale and develop accountability to their users in developing countries. However, the translation of neoliberal techniques to the global health sphere falls short of the ideal, as profits are meager and purchasing power remains with donor organizations. The continued optimism in market principles amidst such a non-ideal market reveals the tenacious ideological commitment to neoliberalism in these global health projects.

  8. Building resilience of the Global Positioning System to space weather

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fisher, Genene; Kunches, Joseph

    2011-12-01

    Almost every aspect of the global economy now depends on GPS. Worldwide, nations are working to create a robust Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), which will provide global positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) services for applications such as aviation, electric power distribution, financial exchange, maritime navigation, and emergency management. The U.S. government is examining the vulnerabilities of GPS, and it is well known that space weather events, such as geomagnetic storms, contribute to errors in single-frequency GPS and are a significant factor for differential GPS. The GPS industry has lately begun to recognize that total electron content (TEC) signal delays, ionospheric scintillation, and solar radio bursts can also interfere with daily operations and that these threats grow with the approach of the next solar maximum, expected to occur in 2013. The key challenges raised by these circumstances are, first, to better understand the vulnerability of GPS technologies and services to space weather and, second, to develop policies that will build resilience and mitigate risk.

  9. Think globally, act locally, and collaborate internationally: global health sciences at the University of California, San Francisco.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macfarlane, Sarah B; Agabian, Nina; Novotny, Thomas E; Rutherford, George W; Stewart, Christopher C; Debas, Haile T

    2008-02-01

    The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) established Global Health Sciences (GHS) as a campus-wide initiative in 2003. The mission of GHS is to facilitate UCSF's engagement in global health across its four schools by (1) creating a supportive environment that promotes UCSF's leadership role in global health, (2) providing education and training in global health, (3) convening and coordinating global health research activities, (4) establishing global health outreach programs locally in San Francisco and California, (5) partnering with academic centers, especially less-well-resourced institutions in low- and middle-income countries, and (6) developing and collaborating in international initiatives that address neglected global health issues.GHS education programs include a master of science (MS) program expected to start in September 2008, an introduction to global health for UCSF residents, and a year of training at UCSF for MS and PhD students from low- and middle-income countries that is "sandwiched" between years in their own education program and results in a UCSF Sandwich Certificate. GHS's work with partner institutions in California has a preliminary focus on migration and health, and its work with academic centers in low- and middle-income countries focuses primarily on academic partnerships to train human resources for health. Recognizing that the existing academic structure at UCSF may be inadequate to address the complexity of global health threats in the 21st century, GHS is working with the nine other campuses of the University of California to develop a university-wide transdisciplinary initiative in global health.

  10. The global context for public health nutrition taxation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thow, Anne Marie; Heywood, Peter; Leeder, Stephen; Burns, Lee

    2011-01-01

    To assess critically the scope for public health nutrition taxation within the framework of the global tax reform agenda. Review of the tax policy literature for global policy priorities relevant to public health nutrition taxation; critical analysis of proposals for public health nutrition taxation judged against the global agenda for tax reform. The global tax reform agenda shapes decisions of tax policy makers in all countries. By understanding this agenda, public health nutritionists can make feasible taxation proposals and thus improve the development, uptake and implementation of recommendations for nutrition-related taxation. The priorities of the global tax reform agenda relevant to public health nutrition taxation are streamlining of taxes, adoption of value-added tax (VAT), minimisation of excise taxes (except to correct for externalities) and removal of import taxes in line with trade liberalisation policies. Proposals consistent with the global tax reform agenda have included excise taxes, extension of VAT to currently exempted (unhealthy) foods and tariff reductions for healthy foods. Proposals for public health nutrition taxation should (i) use existing types and rates of taxes where possible, (ii) use excise taxes that specifically address externalities, (iii) avoid differential VAT on foods and (iv) use import taxes in ways that comply with trade liberalisation priorities.

  11. A spanner in the works? anti-politics in global health policy: Comment on "A ghost in the machine? politics in global health policy".

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCoy, David; Singh, Guddi

    2014-08-01

    The formulation of global health policy is political; and all institutions operating in the global health landscape are political. This is because policies and institutions inevitably represent certain values, reflect particular ideologies, and preferentially serve some interests over others. This may be expressed explicitly and consciously; or implicitly and unconsciously. But it's important to recognise the social and political dimension of global health policy. In some instances however, the politics of global health policy may be actively denied or obscured. This has been described in the development studies literature as a form of 'anti-politics'. In this article we describe four forms of anti-politics and consider their application to the global health sector.

  12. Toward a new architecture for global mental health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kirmayer, Laurence J; Pedersen, Duncan

    2014-12-01

    Current efforts in global mental health (GMH) aim to address the inequities in mental health between low-income and high-income countries, as well as vulnerable populations within wealthy nations (e.g., indigenous peoples, refugees, urban poor). The main strategies promoted by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other allies have been focused on developing, implementing, and evaluating evidence-based practices that can be scaled up through task-shifting and other methods to improve access to services or interventions and reduce the global treatment gap for mental disorders. Recent debates on global mental health have raised questions about the goals and consequences of current approaches. Some of these critiques emphasize the difficulties and potential dangers of applying Western categories, concepts, and interventions given the ways that culture shapes illness experience. The concern is that in the urgency to address disparities in global health, interventions that are not locally relevant and culturally consonant will be exported with negative effects including inappropriate diagnoses and interventions, increased stigma, and poor health outcomes. More fundamentally, exclusive attention to mental disorders identified by psychiatric nosologies may shift attention from social structural determinants of health that are among the root causes of global health disparities. This paper addresses these critiques and suggests how the GMH movement can respond through appropriate modes of community-based practice and ongoing research, while continuing to work for greater equity and social justice in access to effective, socially relevant, culturally safe and appropriate mental health care on a global scale. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

  13. The German government's global health strategy – a strategy also to support research and development for neglected diseases?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Angela Fehr

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available Neglected tropical infectious diseases as well as rare diseases are characterized by structural research and development (R&D deficits. The market fails for these disease groups. Consequently, to meet public health and individual patient needs, political decision makers have to develop strategies at national and international levels to make up for this R&D deficit. The German government recently published its first global health strategy. The strategy underlines the German government's commitment to strengthening global health governance. We find, however, that the strategy lacks behind the international public health endeavors for neglected diseases. It fails to make reference to the ongoing debate on a global health agreement. Neither does it outline a comprehensive national strategy to promote R&D into neglected diseases, which would integrate existing R&D activities in Germany and link up to the international debate on sustainable, needs-based R&D and affordable access. This despite the fact that only recently, in a consensus-building process, a National Plan of Action for rare diseases was successfully developed in Germany which could serve as a blueprint for a similar course of action for neglected diseases. We recommend that, without delay, a structured process be initiated in Germany to explore all options to promote R&D for neglected diseases, including a global health agreement.

  14. Environmental Perceptions and Health before and after Relocation to a Green Building.

    Science.gov (United States)

    MacNaughton, Piers; Spengler, John; Vallarino, Jose; Santanam, Suresh; Satish, Usha; Allen, Joseph

    2016-08-01

    Green buildings are designed to have low environmental impacts and improved occupant health and well-being. Improvements to the built environment including ventilation, lighting, and materials have resulted in improved indoor environmental quality (IEQ) in green buildings, but the evidence around occupant health is currently centered around environmental perceptions and self-reported health. To investigate the objective impact of green buildings on health, we tracked IEQ, self-reported health, and heart rate in 30 participants from green and conventional buildings for two weeks. 24 participants were then selected to be relocated to the Syracuse Center of Excellence, a LEED platinum building, for six workdays. While they were there, ventilation, CO 2 , and volatile organic compound (VOC) levels were changed on different days to match the IEQ of conventional, green, and green+ (green with increased ventilation) buildings. Participants reported improved air quality, odors, thermal comfort, ergonomics, noise and lighting and fewer health symptoms in green buildings prior to relocation. After relocation, participants consistently reported fewer symptoms during the green building conditions compared to the conventional one, yet symptom counts were more closely associated with environmental perceptions than with measured IEQ. On average, participants had 4.7 times the odds of reporting a lack of air movement, 1.4 more symptoms (p-value = 0.019) and a 2 bpm higher heart rate (p-value green and conventional buildings is driven by both environmental perceptions and physiological pathways.

  15. Accessibility: global gateway to health literacy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perlow, Ellen

    2010-01-01

    Health literacy, cited as essential to achieving Healthy People 2010's goals to "increase quality and years of healthy life" and to "eliminate health disparities," is defined by Healthy People as "the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions." Accessibility, by definition, the aforementioned "capacity to obtain," thus is health literacy's primary prerequisite. Accessibility's designation as the global gateway to health literacy is predicated also on life's realities: global aging and climate change, war and terrorism, and life-extending medical and technological advances. People with diverse access needs are health professionals' raison d'être. However, accessibility, consummately cross-cultural and universal, is virtually absent as a topic of health promotion and practice research and scholarly discussion of health literacy and equity. A call to action to place accessibility in its rightful premier position on the profession's agenda is issued.

  16. Contributions of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Implementing the Global Health Security Agenda in 17 Partner Countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fitzmaurice, Arthur G; Mahar, Michael; Moriarty, Leah F; Bartee, Maureen; Hirai, Mitsuaki; Li, Wenshu; Gerber, A Russell; Tappero, Jordan W; Bunnell, Rebecca

    2017-12-01

    The Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA), a partnership of nations, international organizations, and civil society, was launched in 2014 with a mission to build countries' capacities to respond to infectious disease threats and to foster global compliance with the International Health Regulations (IHR 2005). The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) assists partner nations to improve IHR 2005 capacities and achieve GHSA targets. To assess progress through these CDC-supported efforts, we analyzed country activity reports dating from April 2015 through March 2017. Our analysis shows that CDC helped 17 Phase I countries achieve 675 major GHSA accomplishments, particularly in the cross-cutting areas of public health surveillance, laboratory systems, workforce development, and emergency response management. CDC's engagement has been critical to these accomplishments, but sustained support is needed until countries attain IHR 2005 capacities, thereby fostering national and regional health protection and ensuring a world safer and more secure from global health threats.

  17. Local health rules and building regulations: a survey on local hygiene and building regulations in Italian municipalities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gola, Marco; Signorelli, Carlo; Buffoli, Maddalena; Rebecchi, Andrea; Capolongo, Stefano

    2017-01-01

    WHO has highlighted the need to strengthen the relationship between health and built environment factors, such as inappropriate housing conditions. Local Health Rules (LHRs) and Building Regulations (BRs) are tools which provide safety and building hygiene in construction practices. Currently the Italian Government is considering to establish a National Building Regulation and, related to the following purpose, this paper presents a survey on the status of adoption and updating of LHRs and BRs in Italian municipalities. The current Italian state of LHRs, BRs and Municipal Development Plans (MDPs) have been examined by a survey considering a sample of about 550 cities, with different demo graphic and geographic features, starting from the previous research work by Signorelli et al. (1999). The analysis underlines a serious shortage of updated LHRs, especially in small and medium-sized municipalities whereas BRs and MDPs are widespread. Only 30% of them are previously approved and validated by Local Health Authorities. Starting from a survey, the present scenario of Building Regulations requires the introduction of further performance guidelines instead of normative ones and, therefore, the current actions to give rise to a National Building Regulation could be integrated by building hygiene contents of LHRs.

  18. Combating healthcare corruption and fraud with improved global health governance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mackey, Tim K; Liang, Bryan A

    2012-10-22

    Corruption is a serious threat to global health outcomes, leading to financial waste and adverse health consequences. Yet, forms of corruption impacting global health are endemic worldwide in public and private sectors, and in developed and resource-poor settings alike. Allegations of misuse of funds and fraud in global health initiatives also threaten future investment. Current domestic and sectorial-level responses are fragmented and have been criticized as ineffective. In order to address this issue, we propose a global health governance framework calling for international recognition of "global health corruption" and development of a treaty protocol to combat this crucial issue.

  19. University of Global Health Equity’s Contribution to the Reduction of Education and Health Services Rationing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Agnes Binagwaho

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available The inadequate supply of health workers and demand-side barriers due to clinical practice that heeds too little attention to cultural context are serious obstacles to achieving universal health coverage and the fulfillment of the human rights to health, especially for the poor and vulnerable living in remote rural areas. A number of strategies have been deployed to increase both the supply of healthcare workers and the demand for healthcare services. However, more can be done to improve service delivery as well as mitigate the geographic inequalities that exist in this field. To contribute to overcoming these barriers and increasing access to health services, especially for the most vulnerable, Partners In Health (PIH, a US non-governmental organization specializing in equitable health service delivery, has created the University of Global Health Equity (UGHE in a remote rural district of Rwanda. The act of building this university in such a rural setting signals a commitment to create opportunities where there have traditionally been few. Furthermore, through its state-of-the-art educational approach in a rural setting and its focus on cultural competency, UGHE is contributing to progress in the quest for equitable access to quality health services.

  20. WHO's role in the global health system: what can be learned from global R&D debates?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moon, Suerie

    2014-02-01

    Recent global debates on the research and development (R&D) of health technologies, such as drugs, diagnostics and vaccines, can be seen as a microcosm of discussions on the role of the World Health Organization (WHO) in the global health system more broadly. The global R&D system has come under heightened scrutiny with the publication of a 2012 report by the WHO Consultative Expert Working Group on Research and Development (CEWG), which made a number of recommendations to more equitably meet global health needs. The CEWG report followed a decade-long process of debate at the WHO on the weaknesses of the global R&D system, which include problems of affordability, limited research where market returns are small or uncertain (such as the 'neglected diseases' that predominantly affect the world's poorest), inefficient overlap of research efforts, and overuse of medicines such as antibiotics. The CEWG report called on WHO Member States to develop a global framework to improve monitoring, coordination and financing of R&D efforts through the establishment of a Global Health R&D Observatory and the negotiation of a binding treaty on R&D. While the treaty option has been put on the back-burner for several years, Member States nevertheless agreed at the 2013 World Health Assembly (WHA) on concrete steps towards a global framework. Progress at the 2013 WHA reaffirmed the central role of WHO as a convener, and the WHA's decision to create the Observatory within the WHO Secretariat underscored the organization's role as a source of strategic knowledge in the global health system. However, despite WHO's constitutional mandate as the 'directing and coordinating authority on international health work', in reality it faces major challenges in coordinating autonomous R&D actors such as states, firms and foundations in the global system. Strengthening its ability to do so requires, at a minimum, reforming its financing arrangements to provide it with a greater degree of

  1. Conceptualising global health: theoretical issues and their relevance for teaching

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rowson Mike

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background There has long been debate around the definition of the field of education, research and practice known as global health. In this article we step back from attempts at definition and instead ask what current definitions tell us about the evolution of the field, identifying gaps and points of debate and using these to inform discussions of how global health might be taught. Discussion What we now know as global health has its roots in the late 19th century, in the largely colonial, biomedical pursuit of ‘international health’. The twentieth century saw a change in emphasis of the field towards a much broader conceptualisation of global health, encompassing broader social determinants of health and a truly global focus. The disciplinary focus has broadened greatly to include economics, anthropology and political science, among others. There have been a number of attempts to define the new field of global health. We suggest there are three central areas of contention: what the object of knowledge of global health is, the types of knowledge to be used and around the purpose of knowledge in the field of global health. We draw a number of conclusions from this discussion. First, that definitions should pay attention to differences as well as commonalities in different parts of the world, and that the definitions of global health themselves depend to some extent on the position of the definer. Second, global health’s core strength lies in its interdisciplinary character, in particular the incorporation of approaches from outside biomedicine. This approach recognises that political, social and economic factors are central causes of ill health. Last, we argue that definition should avoid inclusion of values. In particular we argue that equity, a key element of many definitions of global health, is a value-laden concept and carries with it significant ideological baggage. As such, its widespread inclusion in the definitions of

  2. Health Policy Brief: Global Mental Health and the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cratsley, Kelso; Mackey, Tim K

    2018-01-25

    Increased awareness of the importance of mental health for global health has led to a number of new initiatives, including influential policy instruments issued by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations (UN). This policy brief describes two WHO instruments, the Mental Health Action Plan for 2013-2020 (World Health Organization, 2013) and the Mental Health Atlas (World Health Organization, 2015), and presents a comparative analysis with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (United Nations, 2015). The WHO's Action Plan calls for several specific objectives and targets, with a focus on improving global mental health governance and service coverage. In contrast, the UN's Sustainable Development Goals include only one goal specific to mental health, with a single indicator tracking suicide mortality rates. The discrepancy between the WHO and UN frameworks suggests a need for increased policy coherence. Improved global health governance can provide the basis for ensuring and accelerating progress in global mental health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

  3. Building capacity for information and communication technology use in global health research and training in China: a qualitative study among Chinese health sciences faculty members.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Jie; Abdullah, Abu S; Ma, Zhenyu; Fu, Hua; Huang, Kaiyong; Yu, Hongping; Wang, Jiaji; Cai, Le; He, Huimin; Xiao, Jian; Quintiliani, Lisa; Friedman, Robert H; Yang, Li

    2017-06-28

    The demand to use information and communications technology (ICT) in education and research has grown fast among researchers and educators working in global health. However, access to ICT resources and the capacity to use them in global health research remains limited among developing country faculty members. In order to address the global health needs and to design an ICT-related training course, we herein explored the Chinese health science faculty members' perceptions and learning needs for ICT use. Nine focus groups discussions (FGDs) were conducted during December 2015 to March 2016, involving 63 faculty members working in areas of health sciences from six universities in China. All FGDs were audio recorded and analysed thematically. The findings suggest that the understandings of ICT were not clear among many researchers; some thought that the concept of ICT was too wide and ambiguous. Most participants were able to cite examples of ICT application in their research and teaching activities. Positive attitudes and high needs of ICT use and training were common among most participants. Recommendations for ICT training included customised training programmes focusing on a specific specialty, maintaining a balance between theories and practical applications, more emphasis on the application of ICT, and skills in finding the required information from the bulk information available in the internet. Suggestions regarding the format and offering of training included short training programmes, flexible timing, lectures with practicum opportunities, and free of charge or with very minimal cost to the participants. Two participants suggested the linking of ICT-related training courses with faculty members' year-end assessment and promotion. This study among health sciences faculty members in China demonstrated a high level of need and interest in learning about ICT use in research and training. The results have important implications for the design and implementation of

  4. Periodontal health and global public health

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petersen, Poul E; Baehni, Pierre C

    2012-01-01

    Chronic diseases are a growing burden to people, to health-care systems and to societies across the world. The rapid increase in the burden of chronic diseases is particularly prevalent in the developing countries. Periodontal disease is one of the two most important oral diseases contributing...... to the global burden of chronic disease. In addition to social determinants, periodontal health status is related to several proximal factors. Modifiable risk factors, such as tobacco use, excessive alcohol consumption, poor diet and nutrition, obesity, psychological stress and insufficient personal....../oral hygiene, are important and these principal risk factors for periodontal disease are shared by other chronic diseases. The present monograph is devoted to the existing evidence on the practice of public health related to periodontal health. Public health is defined as the process of mobilizing and engaging...

  5. Is globalization good for your health?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dollar, D

    2001-01-01

    Four points are made about globalization and health. First, economic integration is a powerful force for raising the incomes of poor countries. In the past 20 years several large developing countries have opened up to trade and investment, and they are growing well--faster than the rich countries. Second, there is no tendency for income inequality to increase in countries that open up. The higher growth that accompanies globalization in developing countries generally benefits poor people. Since there is a large literature linking income of the poor to health status, we can be reasonably confident that globalization has indirect positive effects on nutrition, infant mortality and other health issues related to income. Third, economic integration can obviously have adverse health effects as well: the transmission of AIDS through migration and travel is a dramatic recent example. However, both relatively closed and relatively open developing countries have severe AIDS problems. The practical solution lies in health policies, not in policies on economic integration. Likewise, free trade in tobacco will lead to increased smoking unless health-motivated disincentives are put in place. Global integration requires supporting institutions and policies. Fourth, the international architecture can be improved so that it is more beneficial to poor countries. For example, with regard to intellectual property rights, it may be practical for pharmaceutical innovators to choose to have intellectual property rights in either rich country markets or poor country ones, but not both. In this way incentives could be strong for research on diseases in both rich and poor countries.

  6. African Health Economics and Policy Research Capacity Building ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    African Health Economics and Policy Research Capacity Building and Dissemination. As African countries move toward universal health coverage, it is clear there is a shortage of African experts with applied research skills in health financing such as fiscal space analysis, needs-based resource allocation methods, and ...

  7. Building research and evaluation capacity in population health: the NSW Health approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Edwards, Barry; Stickney, Beth; Milat, Andrew; Campbell, Danielle; Thackway, Sarah

    2016-02-01

    Issue addressed An organisational culture that values and uses research and evaluation (R&E) evidence to inform policy and practice is fundamental to improving health outcomes. The 2016 NSW Government Program Evaluation Guidelines recommend investment in training and development to improve evaluation capacity. The purpose of this paper is to outline the approaches taken by the NSW Ministry of Health to develop R&E capacity and assess these against existing models of practice. Method The Ministry of Health's Centre for Epidemiology and Evidence (CEE) takes an evidence-based approach to building R&E capacity in population health. Strategies are informed by: the NSW Population Health Research Strategy, R&E communities of practice across the Ministry and health Pillar agencies and a review of the published evidence on evaluation capacity building (ECB). An internal survey is conducted biennially to monitor research activity within the Ministry's Population and Public Health Division. One representative from each of the six centres that make up the Division coordinates completion of the survey by relevant staff members for their centre. Results The review identified several ECB success factors including: implementing a tailored multifaceted approach; an organisational commitment to R&E; and offering experiential training and ongoing technical support to the workforce. The survey of research activity found that the Division funded a mix of research assets, research funding schemes, research centres and commissioned R&E projects. CEE provides technical advice and support services for staff involved in R&E and in 2015, 22 program evaluations were supported. R&E capacity building also includes a series of guides to assist policy makers, practitioners and researchers to commission, undertake and use policy-relevant R&E. Staff training includes workshops on critical appraisal, program logic and evaluation methods. From January 2013 to June 2014 divisional staff published 84

  8. Making sense of the global economy: 10 resources for health promoters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mohindra, K S; Labonté, Ronald

    2010-09-01

    Population health is shaped by more than local or national influences-the global matters. Health promotion practitioners and researchers increasingly are challenged to engage with upstream factors related to the global economy, such as global prescriptions for national macroeconomic policies, debt relief and international trade. This paper identifies 10 books (A Brief History of Neoliberalism, Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism, The World is Not Flat: Inequality and Injustice in Our Global Economy, Globalization and its Discontents, The Debt Threat: How Debt is Destroying the Developing World, Global Woman: Nannies, Maids, and Sex Workers in the New Economy, A Race Against Time, Globalization and Health: An Introduction, Global Public Goods for Health: Health Economics and Public Health Perspectives, Trade and Health: Seeking Common Ground) and several key reports that we found to be particularly useful for understanding the global economy's effects on people's health. We draw attention to issues helpful in understanding the present global financial crisis.

  9. Indoor environmental and air quality characteristics, building-related health symptoms, and worker productivity in a federal government building complex.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lukcso, David; Guidotti, Tee Lamont; Franklin, Donald E; Burt, Allan

    2016-01-01

    Building Health Sciences, Inc. (BHS), investigated environmental conditions by many modalities in 71 discreet areas of 12 buildings in a government building complex that had experienced persistent occupant complaints despite correction of deficiencies following a prior survey. An online health survey was completed by 7,637 building occupants (49% response rate), a subset of whom voluntarily wore personal sampling apparatus and underwent medical evaluation. Building environmental measures were within current standards and guidelines, with few outliers. Four environmental factors were consistently associated with group-level building-related health complaints: physical comfort/discomfort, odor, job stress, and glare. Several other factors were frequently commented on by participants, including cleanliness, renovation and construction activities, and noise. Low relative humidity was significantly associated with lower respiratory and "sick building syndrome"-type symptoms. No other environmental conditions (including formaldehyde, PM10 [particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter work but at reduced capacity), and increase in reported symptom-days, including symptoms not related to respiratory disease. We found that in buildings without unusual hazards and with environmental and air quality indicators within the range of acceptable indoor air quality standards, there is an identifiable population of occupants with a high prevalence of asthma and allergic disease who disproportionately report discomfort and lost productivity due to symptoms and that in "normal" buildings these outcome indicators are more closely associated with host factors than with environmental conditions. We concluded from the experience of this study that building-related health complaints should be investigated at the work-area level and not at a building-wide level. An occupant-centric medical evaluation should guide environmental investigations, especially when screening results of building

  10. Global health in foreign policy--and foreign policy in health? Evidence from the BRICS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watt, Nicola F; Gomez, Eduardo J; McKee, Martin

    2014-09-01

    Amidst the growing literature on global health, much has been written recently about the Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (BRICS) countries and their involvement and potential impact in global health, particularly in relation to development assistance. Rather less has been said about countries' motivations for involvement in global health negotiations, and there is a notable absence of evidence when their motivations are speculated on. This article uses an existing framework linking engagement in global health to foreign policy to explore differing levels of engagement by BRICS countries in the global health arena, with a particular focus on access to medicines. It concludes that countries' differing and complex motivations reinforce the need for realistic, pragmatic approaches to global health debates and their analysis. It also underlines that these analyses should be informed by analysis from other areas of foreign policy. Published by Oxford University Press in association with The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine © The Author 2013; all rights reserved.

  11. Building capacity in workplace health promotion: the case of the Healthy Together e-learning project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hodgins, Margaret; Battel-Kirk, Barbara; Asgeirsdottir, Asa G

    2010-03-01

    The current global economic crisis poses major challenges for workplace health promotion (WHP). Activities that are not perceived to obviously and directly contribute to profits could be sacrificed. This paper argues that WHP must remain centre-stage because of the rights of workers to a healthy, safe working environment but also because of WHP's beneficial financial implications for enterprises. Capacity building for WHP can be developed even within a recessionary environment, particularly if the focus is on the wider workforce, described here as people for whom workplace health promotion may not be their primary function but who have an important role to play in health improvement in workplaces. There is a strong case for the development of the wider workforce based both on the lack of suitably qualified specialists and on the practicalities of having WHP implemented within organizations, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). SMEs make up a very significant proportion of the global economy and are identified as a priority area for action internationally. An example of an e-learning course, the Healthy Together programme, developed by a partnership of three countries, is discussed as an approach that has potential to develop capacity for WHP in the current climate. The findings of the evaluation of the Healthy Together programme indicate that there is a real potential in developing e-learning materials for training those with a brief for promoting workplace health and safety in SMEs. Although modifications in some aspects of delivery identified in the evaluation of the pilot course need to be considered, the course was well received, and was reported to be relevant to the learning needs of students, to their workplaces and specifically to small businesses in rural areas. Specific features of the e-learning approach increase its potential to address capacity building for WHP.

  12. The evolution of global health teaching in undergraduate medical curricula.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rowson, Mike; Smith, Abi; Hughes, Rob; Johnson, Oliver; Maini, Arti; Martin, Sophie; Martineau, Fred; Miranda, J Jaime; Pollit, Vicki; Wake, Rae; Willott, Chris; Yudkin, John S

    2012-11-13

    Since the early 1990s there has been a burgeoning interest in global health teaching in undergraduate medical curricula. In this article we trace the evolution of this teaching and present recommendations for how the discipline might develop in future years. Undergraduate global health teaching has seen a marked growth over the past ten years, partly as a response to student demand and partly due to increasing globalization, cross-border movement of pathogens and international migration of health care workers. This teaching has many different strands and types in terms of topic focus, disciplinary background, the point in medical studies in which it is taught and whether it is compulsory or optional. We carried out a survey of medical schools across the world in an effort to analyse their teaching of global health. Results indicate that this teaching is rising in prominence, particularly through global health elective/exchange programmes and increasing teaching of subjects such as globalization and health and international comparison of health systems. Our findings indicate that global health teaching is moving away from its previous focus on tropical medicine towards issues of more global relevance. We suggest that there are three types of doctor who may wish to work in global health - the 'globalised doctor', 'humanitarian doctor' and 'policy doctor' - and that each of these three types will require different teaching in order to meet the required competencies. This teaching needs to be inserted into medical curricula in different ways, notably into core curricula, a special overseas doctor track, optional student selected components, elective programmes, optional intercalated degrees and postgraduate study. We argue that teaching of global health in undergraduate medical curricula must respond to changing understandings of the term global health. In particular it must be taught from the perspective of more disciplines than just biomedicine, in order to reflect

  13. Interdependence, Human Rights and Global Health Law.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Viens, A M

    2015-12-01

    The connection between health and human rights continues to play a prominent role within global health law. In particular, a number of theorists rely on the claim that there is a relation of interdependence between health and human rights. The nature and extent of this relation, however, is rarely defined, developed or defended in a conceptually robust way. This paper seeks to explore the source, scope and strength of this putative relation and what role it might play in developing a global health law framework.

  14. From blockchain technology to global health equity: can cryptocurrencies finance universal health coverage?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Till, Brian M; Peters, Alexander W; Afshar, Salim; Meara, John G

    2017-01-01

    Blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies could remake global health financing and usher in an era global health equity and universal health coverage. We outline and provide examples for at least four important ways in which this potential disruption of traditional global health funding mechanisms could occur: universal access to financing through direct transactions without third parties; novel new multilateral financing mechanisms; increased security and reduced fraud and corruption; and the opportunity for open markets for healthcare data that drive discovery and innovation. We see these issues as a paramount to the delivery of healthcare worldwide and relevant for payers and providers of healthcare at state, national and global levels; for government and non-governmental organisations; and for global aid organisations, including the WHO, International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group. PMID:29177101

  15. From blockchain technology to global health equity: can cryptocurrencies finance universal health coverage?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Till, Brian M; Peters, Alexander W; Afshar, Salim; Meara, John

    2017-01-01

    Blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies could remake global health financing and usher in an era global health equity and universal health coverage. We outline and provide examples for at least four important ways in which this potential disruption of traditional global health funding mechanisms could occur: universal access to financing through direct transactions without third parties; novel new multilateral financing mechanisms; increased security and reduced fraud and corruption; and the opportunity for open markets for healthcare data that drive discovery and innovation. We see these issues as a paramount to the delivery of healthcare worldwide and relevant for payers and providers of healthcare at state, national and global levels; for government and non-governmental organisations; and for global aid organisations, including the WHO, International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group.

  16. Combating healthcare corruption and fraud with improved global health governance

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-01-01

    Corruption is a serious threat to global health outcomes, leading to financial waste and adverse health consequences. Yet, forms of corruption impacting global health are endemic worldwide in public and private sectors, and in developed and resource-poor settings alike. Allegations of misuse of funds and fraud in global health initiatives also threaten future investment. Current domestic and sectorial-level responses are fragmented and have been criticized as ineffective. In order to address this issue, we propose a global health governance framework calling for international recognition of “global health corruption” and development of a treaty protocol to combat this crucial issue. PMID:23088820

  17. Multiscale Drivers of Global Environmental Health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Desai, Manish Anil

    In this dissertation, I motivate, develop, and demonstrate three such approaches for investigating multiscale drivers of global environmental health: (1) a metric for analyzing contributions and responses to climate change from global to sectoral scales, (2) a framework for unraveling the influence of environmental change on infectious diseases at regional to local scales, and (3) a model for informing the design and evaluation of clean cooking interventions at community to household scales. The full utility of climate debt as an analytical perspective will remain untapped without tools that can be manipulated by a wide range of analysts, including global environmental health researchers. Chapter 2 explains how international natural debt (IND) apportions global radiative forcing from fossil fuel carbon dioxide and methane, the two most significant climate altering pollutants, to individual entities -- primarily countries but also subnational states and economic sectors, with even finer scales possible -- as a function of unique trajectories of historical emissions, taking into account the quite different radiative efficiencies and atmospheric lifetimes of each pollutant. Owing to its straightforward and transparent derivation, IND can readily operationalize climate debt to consider issues of equity and efficiency and drive scenario exercises that explore the response to climate change at multiple scales. Collectively, the analyses presented in this chapter demonstrate how IND can inform a range of key question on climate change mitigation at multiple scales, compelling environmental health towards an appraisal of the causes and not just the consequences of climate change. The environmental change and infectious disease (EnvID) conceptual framework of Chapter 3 builds on a rich history of prior efforts in epidemiologic theory, environmental science, and mathematical modeling by: (1) articulating a flexible and logical system specification; (2) incorporating

  18. Global health ethics: an introduction to prominent theories and relevant topics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stapleton, Greg; Schröder-Bäck, Peter; Laaser, Ulrich; Meershoek, Agnes; Popa, Daniela

    2014-01-01

    Global health ethics is a relatively new term that is used to conceptualize the process of applying moral value to health issues that are typically characterized by a global level effect or require action coordinated at a global level. It is important to acknowledge that this account of global health ethics takes a predominantly geographic approach and may infer that the subject relates primarily to macro-level health phenomena. However, global health ethics could alternatively be thought of as another branch of health ethics. It may then relate to specific topics in themselves, which might also include micro-level health phenomena. In its broadest sense, global health ethics is a normative project that is best characterized by the challenge of developing common values and universal norms for responding to global health threats. Consequently, many subjects fall within its scope. Whilst several accounts of global health ethics have been conceptualized in the literature, a concise demarcation of the paradigm is still needed. Through means of a literature review, this paper presents a two-part introduction to global health ethics. First, the framework of 'borrowed' ethics that currently form the core of global health ethics is discussed in relation to two essential ethical considerations: 1) what is the moral significance of health and 2) what is the moral significance of boundaries? Second, a selection of exemplar ethical topics is presented to illustrate the range of topics within global health ethics.

  19. Global health ethics: an introduction to prominent theories and relevant topics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stapleton, Greg; Schröder-Bäck, Peter; Laaser, Ulrich; Meershoek, Agnes; Popa, Daniela

    2014-01-01

    Global health ethics is a relatively new term that is used to conceptualize the process of applying moral value to health issues that are typically characterized by a global level effect or require action coordinated at a global level. It is important to acknowledge that this account of global health ethics takes a predominantly geographic approach and may infer that the subject relates primarily to macro-level health phenomena. However, global health ethics could alternatively be thought of as another branch of health ethics. It may then relate to specific topics in themselves, which might also include micro-level health phenomena. In its broadest sense, global health ethics is a normative project that is best characterized by the challenge of developing common values and universal norms for responding to global health threats. Consequently, many subjects fall within its scope. Whilst several accounts of global health ethics have been conceptualized in the literature, a concise demarcation of the paradigm is still needed. Through means of a literature review, this paper presents a two-part introduction to global health ethics. First, the framework of ‘borrowed’ ethics that currently form the core of global health ethics is discussed in relation to two essential ethical considerations: 1) what is the moral significance of health and 2) what is the moral significance of boundaries? Second, a selection of exemplar ethical topics is presented to illustrate the range of topics within global health ethics. PMID:24560262

  20. Globalisation and global health: issues for nursing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bradbury-Jones, Caroline; Clark, Maria

    2017-05-24

    'Globalisation' is the term used to describe the increasing economic and social interdependence between countries. Shifting patterns of health and disease are associated with globalisation. Global health refers to a health issue that is not contained geographically and that single countries cannot address alone. In response to globalisation and global health issues, nurses practise in new and emerging transnational contexts. Therefore, it is important that nurses respond proactively to these changes and understand the effects of globalisation on health worldwide. This article aims to increase nurses' knowledge of, and confidence in, this important area of nursing practice.

  1. Recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software: An overview

    OpenAIRE

    Chang, Chia-Lin; McAleer, Michael

    2017-01-01

    textabstractThe paper presents an overview of recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software. We have interpreted "global" in the title of the Journal of Reviews on Global Economics to cover contributions that have a global impact on economics, thereby making it "global economics". In this sense, the paper is concerned with papers on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, as well as global software algorithms that have...

  2. Understanding health systems, health economies and globalization: the need for social science perspectives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murray, Susan F; Bisht, Ramila; Baru, Rama; Pitchforth, Emma

    2012-08-31

    The complex relationship between globalization and health calls for research from many disciplinary and methodological perspectives. This editorial gives an overview of the content trajectory of the interdisciplinary journal 'Globalization and Health' over the first six years of production, 2005 to 2010. The findings show that bio-medical and population health perspectives have been dominant but that social science perspectives have become more evident in recent years. The types of paper published have also changed, with a growing proportion of empirical studies. A special issue on 'Health systems, health economies and globalization: social science perspectives' is introduced, a collection of contributions written from the vantage points of economics, political science, psychology, sociology, business studies, social policy and research policy. The papers concern a range of issues pertaining to the globalization of healthcare markets and governance and regulation issues. They highlight the important contribution that can be made by the social sciences to this field, and also the practical and methodological challenges implicit in the study of globalization and health.

  3. Rebalancing brain drain: exploring resource reallocation to address health worker migration and promote global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mackey, Timothy Ken; Liang, Bryan Albert

    2012-09-01

    Global public health is threatened by an imbalance in health worker migration from resource-poor countries to developed countries. This "brain drain" results in health workforce shortages, health system weakening, and economic loss and waste, threatening the well-being of vulnerable populations and effectiveness of global health interventions. Current structural imbalances in resource allocation and global incentive structures have resulted in 57 countries identified by WHO as having a "critical shortage" of health workers. Yet current efforts to strengthen domestic health systems have fallen short in addressing this issue. Instead, global solutions should focus on sustainable forms of equitable resource sharing. This can be accomplished by adoption of mandatory global resource and staff-sharing programs in conjunction with implementation of state-based health services corps. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Performance of Global-Appearance Descriptors in Map Building and Localization Using Omnidirectional Vision

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luis Payá

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available Map building and localization are two crucial abilities that autonomous robots must develop. Vision sensors have become a widespread option to solve these problems. When using this kind of sensors, the robot must extract the necessary information from the scenes to build a representation of the environment where it has to move and to estimate its position and orientation with robustness. The techniques based on the global appearance of the scenes constitute one of the possible approaches to extract this information. They consist in representing each scene using only one descriptor which gathers global information from the scene. These techniques present some advantages comparing to other classical descriptors, based on the extraction of local features. However, it is important a good configuration of the parameters to reach a compromise between computational cost and accuracy. In this paper we make an exhaustive comparison among some global appearance descriptors to solve the mapping and localization problem. With this aim, we make use of several image sets captured in indoor environments under realistic working conditions. The datasets have been collected using an omnidirectional vision sensor mounted on the robot.

  5. Community involvement in constructing village health buildings in Uganda and Sierra Leone.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitchell, M

    1995-11-01

    Three public health projects in Uganda and Sierra Leone are used to illustrate a new approach to construction of health buildings in villages. Emphasis is placed on community involvement. The health projects were comprehensive and relied on health education, employment of local village health workers, and establishment of village health committees. The objective of community involvement was described as encouragement of people to change their own diets and living conditions. This approach to primary health care is considered to be a strong basis for sustainable social development. Each of the three communities initiated the building projects slightly differently. There was a range of structures: traditional meeting halls, simple rooms with imported materials and a pit latrine, new buildings combining local and imported materials and labor, new nontraditional buildings, rehabilitated existing nontraditional buildings with imported labor and materials, and temporary mobile clinics. Community involvement was at different levels. All three projects were the result of a combined effort of national governments or mission hospitals, nongovernmental organizations, and the host community. The following should be considered before beginning construction: a suitable site, appropriate staff accommodation, the likely motivation of the host community, seasonality, local materials available, availability of skilled labor, and design. A plan of work during construction should include a building design, site supervision, transportation of local and non-local materials, unskilled labor, and skilled labor. Village health committees with or without government help would be responsible for maintenance of buildings after construction. A key feature of this approach is the assessment of the community's ability and capacity to contribute.

  6. Global Health Governance and Global Power: A Critical Commentary on the Lancet-University of Oslo Commission Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gill, Stephen; Benatar, Solomon

    2016-01-01

    The Lancet-University of Oslo Commission Report on Global Governance for Health provides an insightful analysis of the global health inequalities that result from transnational activities consequent on what the authors call contemporary "global social norms." Our critique is that the analysis and suggested reforms to prevailing institutions and practices are confined within the perspective of the dominant-although unsustainable and inequitable-market-oriented, neoliberal development model of global capitalism. Consequently, the report both elides critical discussion of many key forms of material and political power under conditions of neoliberal development and governance that shape the nature and priorities of the global governance for health, and fails to point to the extent of changes required to sustainably improve global health. We propose that an alternative concept of progress-one grounded in history, political economy, and ecologically responsible health ethics-is sorely needed to better address challenges of global health governance in the new millennium. This might be premised on global solidarity and the "development of sustainability." We argue that the prevailing market civilization model that lies at the heart of global capitalism is being, and will further need to be, contested to avoid contradictions and dislocations associated with the commodification and privatization of health. © The Author(s) 2016.

  7. Modeled effects of an improved building insulation scenario in Europe on air pollution, health and societal costs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bønløkke, Jakob Hjort; Holst, Gitte Juel; Sigsgaard, Torben

    2015-01-01

    scenario in Europe would have substantial benefits on health through improvements in air pollution. Health effects and societal cost savings may significantly counterbalance investment costs and should be taken into account when evaluating strategies for mitigation of global warming....... with extensions. Mean annual changes in the main air pollutants were derived for each country. World Health Organization (WHO) and European Union (EU) data on populations and on impacts of pollutants were used to derive health effects and costs. Effects on indoor air quality were not assessed. Results: Projected...... 78678 LY in Europe. A total of 7173 cases of persistent chronic bronchitis could be avoided annually. Several other health outcomes improved similarly. The saved societal costs totaled 6.64 billion € annually. Conclusions: In addition to carbon emission reductions, an improved building insulation...

  8. Global Health Systems and Policy Development: Implications for Health Literacy Research, Theory and Practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rowlands, Gillian; Dodson, Sarity; Leung, Angela; Levin-Zamir, Diane

    2017-01-01

    Accessible and responsive health systems are critical to population health and human development. While progress has been made toward global health and development targets, significant inequities remain within and between countries. Expanding health inequities suggest a widespread and systemic neglect of vulnerable citizens, and a failure to enshrine within policies a responsibility to tailor care to the variable capabilities of citizens. Implementation of health and social policies that drive the design of accessible health systems, services, products and infrastructure represents the next frontier for health reform. Within this chapter we argue the need to consider health and health literacy across policy domains, to operationalize the intent to address inequities in health in meaningful and pragmatic ways, and to actively monitor progress and impact within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We contend that viewing and developing policies and systems within a health literacy framework will assist in placing citizens and equity considerations at the center of development efforts. In this chapter, we explore the relationship between health literacy and equitable access to health care, and the role of health system and policy reform. We first explore international policies, health literacy, and the SDGs. We then explore national policies and the role that national and local services and systems play in building health literacy, and responding to the health literacy challenges of citizens. We discuss the World Health Organization's (WHO) Framework for Integrated People-Centered Health Services and the way in which health services are being encouraged to understand and respond to citizen health literacy needs. Each section of the chapter ends with a summary and a review of health literacy research and practice. Throughout, we illustrate our points through 'vignettes' from around the world.

  9. [The public health legislation in conditions of globalization].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yefremov, D V; Jyliyaeva, E P

    2013-01-01

    The article demonstrates the impact of globalization on development of public health legislation at the international level and in particular countries. The legislation is considered as a tool to decrease the globalization health risks for population

  10. Public Health and Unconventional Oil and Gas Extraction Including Fracking: Global Lessons from a Scottish Government Review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watterson, Andrew; Dinan, William

    2018-04-04

    Unconventional oil and gas extraction (UOGE) including fracking for shale gas is underway in North America on a large scale, and in Australia and some other countries. It is viewed as a major source of global energy needs by proponents. Critics consider fracking and UOGE an immediate and long-term threat to global, national, and regional public health and climate. Rarely have governments brought together relatively detailed assessments of direct and indirect public health risks associated with fracking and weighed these against potential benefits to inform a national debate on whether to pursue this energy route. The Scottish government has now done so in a wide-ranging consultation underpinned by a variety of reports on unconventional gas extraction including fracking. This paper analyses the Scottish government approach from inception to conclusion, and from procedures to outcomes. The reports commissioned by the Scottish government include a comprehensive review dedicated specifically to public health as well as reports on climate change, economic impacts, transport, geology, and decommissioning. All these reports are relevant to public health, and taken together offer a comprehensive review of existing evidence. The approach is unique globally when compared with UOGE assessments conducted in the USA, Australia, Canada, and England. The review process builds a useful evidence base although it is not without flaws. The process approach, if not the content, offers a framework that may have merits globally.

  11. CASE STUDY: Building better health | IDRC - International ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Building Better Health A short video on the importance of community involvement to effective health systems. ... They discovered that the World Bank would fund the lion's share of the cost of installing piped water in Kilimani if the villagers raised a portion of the money themselves. Villagers decided to create a fund based on ...

  12. Strengthening global health security by embedding the International Health Regulations requirements into national health systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kluge, Hans; Martín-Moreno, Jose Maria; Emiroglu, Nedret; Rodier, Guenael; Kelley, Edward; Vujnovic, Melitta; Permanand, Govin

    2018-01-01

    The International Health Regulations (IHR) 2005, as the overarching instrument for global health security, are designed to prevent and cope with major international public health threats. But poor implementation in countries hampers their effectiveness. In the wake of a number of major international health crises, such as the 2014 Ebola and 2016 Zika outbreaks, and the findings of a number of high-level assessments of the global response to these crises, it has become clear that there is a need for more joined-up thinking between health system strengthening activities and health security efforts for prevention, alert and response. WHO is working directly with its Member States to promote this approach, more specifically around how to better embed the IHR (2005) core capacities into the main health system functions. This paper looks at how and where the intersections between the IHR and the health system can be best leveraged towards developing greater health system resilience. This merging of approaches is a key component in pursuit of Universal Health Coverage and strengthened global health security as two mutually reinforcing agendas.

  13. [The transition from 'international' to 'global' public health and the World Health Organization].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Theodore M; Cueto, Marcos; Fee, Elizabeth

    2006-01-01

    Within the context of international public health, 'global health' seems to be emerging as a recognized term of preference. This article presents a critical analysis of the meaning and importance of 'global health' and situates its growing popularity within a historical context. A specific focus of this work is the role of the World Health Organization - WHO in both 'international' and 'global' health, and as na agent of transition from one to the other. Between 1948 and 1998, the WHO went through a period of hardship as it came up against an organizational crisis, budget cuts and a diminished status, especially when confronted with the growing influence of new, power players like the World Bank. We suggest that the WHO has responded to this changing international context by inititating its own process of restructuring and repositioning as an agent for coordinating, strategically planning and leading 'global health' initiatives.

  14. Is globalization healthy: a statistical indicator analysis of the impacts of globalization on health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martens, Pim; Akin, Su-Mia; Maud, Huynen; Mohsin, Raza

    2010-09-17

    It is clear that globalization is something more than a purely economic phenomenon manifesting itself on a global scale. Among the visible manifestations of globalization are the greater international movement of goods and services, financial capital, information and people. In addition, there are technological developments, more transboundary cultural exchanges, facilitated by the freer trade of more differentiated products as well as by tourism and immigration, changes in the political landscape and ecological consequences. In this paper, we link the Maastricht Globalization Index with health indicators to analyse if more globalized countries are doing better in terms of infant mortality rate, under-five mortality rate, and adult mortality rate. The results indicate a positive association between a high level of globalization and low mortality rates. In view of the arguments that globalization provides winners and losers, and might be seen as a disequalizing process, we should perhaps be careful in interpreting the observed positive association as simple evidence that globalization is mostly good for our health. It is our hope that a further analysis of health impacts of globalization may help in adjusting and optimising the process of globalization on every level in the direction of a sustainable and healthy development for all.

  15. Is globalization healthy: a statistical indicator analysis of the impacts of globalization on health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martens Pim

    2010-09-01

    Full Text Available Abstract It is clear that globalization is something more than a purely economic phenomenon manifesting itself on a global scale. Among the visible manifestations of globalization are the greater international movement of goods and services, financial capital, information and people. In addition, there are technological developments, more transboundary cultural exchanges, facilitated by the freer trade of more differentiated products as well as by tourism and immigration, changes in the political landscape and ecological consequences. In this paper, we link the Maastricht Globalization Index with health indicators to analyse if more globalized countries are doing better in terms of infant mortality rate, under-five mortality rate, and adult mortality rate. The results indicate a positive association between a high level of globalization and low mortality rates. In view of the arguments that globalization provides winners and losers, and might be seen as a disequalizing process, we should perhaps be careful in interpreting the observed positive association as simple evidence that globalization is mostly good for our health. It is our hope that a further analysis of health impacts of globalization may help in adjusting and optimising the process of globalization on every level in the direction of a sustainable and healthy development for all.

  16. Why the MDGs need good governance in pharmaceutical systems to promote global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kohler, Jillian Clare; Mackey, Tim Ken; Ovtcharenko, Natalia

    2014-01-21

    Corruption in the health sector can hurt health outcomes. Improving good governance can in turn help prevent health-related corruption. We understand good governance as having the following characteristics: it is consensus-oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, equitable and inclusive, effective and efficient, follows the rule of law, is participatory and should in theory be less vulnerable to corruption. By focusing on the pharmaceutical system, we explore some of the key lessons learned from existing initiatives in good governance. As the development community begins to identify post-2015 Millennium Development Goals targets, it is essential to evaluate programs in good governance in order to build on these results and establish sustainable strategies. This discussion on the pharmaceutical system illuminates why. Considering pharmaceutical governance initiatives such as those launched by the World Bank, World Health Organization, and the Global Fund, we argue that country ownership of good governance initiatives is essential but also any initiative must include the participation of impartial stakeholders. Understanding the political context of any initiative is also vital so that potential obstacles are identified and the design of any initiative is flexible enough to make adjustments in programming as needed. Finally, the inherent challenge which all initiatives face is adequately measuring outcomes from any effort. However in fairness, determining the precise relationship between good governance and health outcomes is rarely straightforward. Challenges identified in pharmaceutical governance initiatives manifest in different forms depending on the nature and structure of the initiative, but their regular occurrence and impact on population-based health demonstrates growing importance of addressing pharmaceutical governance as a key component of the post-2015 Millennium Development Goals. Specifically, these challenges need to be acknowledged and

  17. The globalization of health research: harnessing the scientific diaspora.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anand, Nalini P; Hofman, Karen J; Glass, Roger I

    2009-04-01

    The scientific diaspora is a unique resource for U.S. universities. By drawing on the expertise, experience, and catalytic potential of diaspora scientists, universities can capitalize more fully on their diverse intellectual resources to make lasting contributions to global health. This article examines the unique contributions of the diaspora in international research collaborations, advantages of harnessing the diaspora and benefits to U.S. universities of fostering these collaborations, challenges faced by scientists who want to work with their home countries, examples of scientists engaging with their home countries, and specific strategies U.S. universities and donors can implement to catalyze these collaborations. The contributions of the diaspora to the United States are immense: International students enrolled in academic year 2007-2008 contributed an estimated $15 billion to the U.S. economy. As scientific research becomes increasingly global, the percentage of scientific publications with authors from foreign countries has grown from 8% in 1988 to 20% in 2005. Diaspora scientists can help build trusting relationships with scientists abroad, and international collaborations may improve the health of underserved populations at home. Although opportunities for diaspora networks are increasing, most home countries often lack enabling policies, infrastructure, and resources to effectively utilize their diaspora communities abroad. This article examines how some governments have successfully mobilized their scientific diaspora to become increasingly engaged in their national research agendas. Recommendations include specific strategies, including those that encourage U.S. universities to promote mini-sabbaticals and provide seed funding and flexible time frames.

  18. A New Gilded Age, and What It Means for Global Health Comment on "Global Health Governance Challenges 2016 - Are We Ready?"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schrecker, Ted

    2016-08-17

    New contours of global inequality present new challenges for global health, and require that we consider new kinds of health issues as global. I provide a number of illustrations, arguing the need for a political science of health that goes beyond conventional preoccupations with formal institutional and inter-state interactions and takes into account how globalization has affected the health policy landscape and restructured the distribution of economic and political power not only among countries, but also within them. © 2017 The Author(s); Published by Kerman University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

  19. Closing the mental health gap in low-income settings by building research capacity: perspectives from Mozambique.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sweetland, Annika C; Oquendo, Maria A; Sidat, Mohsin; Santos, Palmira F; Vermund, Sten H; Duarte, Cristiane S; Arbuckle, Melissa; Wainberg, Milton L

    2014-01-01

    Neuropsychiatric disorders are the leading cause of disability worldwide, accounting for 22.7% of all years lived with disability. Despite this global burden, fewer than 25% of affected individuals ever access mental health treatment; in low-income settings, access is much lower, although nonallopathic interventions through traditional healers are common in many venues. Three main barriers to reducing the gap between individuals who need mental health treatment and those who have access to it include stigma and lack of awareness, limited material and human resources, and insufficient research capacity. We argue that investment in dissemination and implementation research is critical to face these barriers. Dissemination and implementation research can improve mental health care in low-income settings by facilitating the adaptation of effective treatment interventions to new settings, particularly when adapting specialist-led interventions developed in high-resource countries to settings with few, if any, mental health professionals. Emerging evidence from other low-income settings suggests that lay providers can be trained to detect mental disorders and deliver basic psychotherapeutic and psychopharmacological interventions when supervised by an expert. We describe a new North-South and South-South research partnership between Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (Mozambique), Columbia University (United States), Vanderbilt University (United States), and Universidade Federal de São Paulo (Brazil), to build research capacity in Mozambique and other Portuguese-speaking African countries. Mozambique has both the political commitment and available resources for mental health, but inadequate research capacity and workforce limits the country's ability to assess local needs, adapt and test interventions, and identify implementation strategies that can be used to effectively bring evidence-based mental health interventions to scale within the public sector. Global training and

  20. Health, globalization and developing countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cilingiroglu, Nesrin

    2005-02-01

    In health care today, scientific and technological frontiers are expanding at unprecedented rates, even as economic and financial pressures shrink profit margins, intensify competition, and constrain the funds available for investment. Therefore, the world today has more economic, and social opportunities for people than 10 or 100 years since globalization has created a new ground somewhat characterized by rapid economic transformation, deregulation of national markets by new trade regimes, amazing transport, electronic communication possibilities and high turnover of foreign investment and capital flow as well as skilled labor. These trends can easily mask great inequalities in developing countries such as importation and spreading of infectious and non-communicable diseases; miniaturization of movement of medical technology; health sector trades management driven by economics without consideration to the social and health aspects and its effects, increasing health inequalities and their economic and social burden creation; multinational companies' cheap labor employment promotion in widening income differentials; and others. As a matter of fact, all these factors are major determinants of ill health. Health authorities of developing countries have to strengthen their regulatory framework in order to ensure that national health systems derive maximum benefit in terms of equity, quality and efficiency, while reducing potential social cost to a minimum generated risky side of globalization.

  1. Global Health in the Anthropocene: Moving Beyond Resilience and Capitalism

    Science.gov (United States)

    van de Pas, Remco

    2017-01-01

    There has been much reflection on the need for a new understanding of global health and the urgency of a paradigm shift to address global health issues. A crucial question is whether this is still possible in current modes of global governance based on capitalist values. Four reflections are provided. (1) Ecological –centered values must become central in any future global health framework. (2) The objectives of ‘sustainability’ and ‘economic growth’ present a profound contradiction. (3) The resilience discourse maintains a gridlock in the functioning of the global health system. (4) The legitimacy of multi-stakeholder governance arrangements in global health requires urgent attention. A dual track approach is suggested. It must be aimed to transform capitalism into something better for global health while in parallel there is an urgent need to imagine a future and pathways to a different world order rooted in the principles of social justice, protecting the commons and a central role for the preservation of ecology. PMID:28812849

  2. [The modern international public health and globalization challenges].

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-01-01

    The article deals with the issues of impact of globalization on population health and public health. The positive and negative aspects of this process are analyzed. The role of international organizations (UN, WHO, UNESCO, ILO, UNISEF) is demonstrated in the area of management of globalization impact on public health of different countries, Russia included.

  3. Global Health Watch 2006-2008 | IDRC - International Development ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Health Enterprise Architecture Laboratory (HEAL). A health information system is made up of discreet and modular building blocks that need to interoperate with one another. View moreHealth Enterprise Architecture Laboratory (HEAL) ...

  4. The evolution of global health teaching in undergraduate medical curricula

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rowson Mike

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Since the early 1990s there has been a burgeoning interest in global health teaching in undergraduate medical curricula. In this article we trace the evolution of this teaching and present recommendations for how the discipline might develop in future years. Discussion Undergraduate global health teaching has seen a marked growth over the past ten years, partly as a response to student demand and partly due to increasing globalization, cross-border movement of pathogens and international migration of health care workers. This teaching has many different strands and types in terms of topic focus, disciplinary background, the point in medical studies in which it is taught and whether it is compulsory or optional. We carried out a survey of medical schools across the world in an effort to analyse their teaching of global health. Results indicate that this teaching is rising in prominence, particularly through global health elective/exchange programmes and increasing teaching of subjects such as globalization and health and international comparison of health systems. Our findings indicate that global health teaching is moving away from its previous focus on tropical medicine towards issues of more global relevance. We suggest that there are three types of doctor who may wish to work in global health – the ‘globalised doctor’, ‘humanitarian doctor’ and ‘policy doctor’ – and that each of these three types will require different teaching in order to meet the required competencies. This teaching needs to be inserted into medical curricula in different ways, notably into core curricula, a special overseas doctor track, optional student selected components, elective programmes, optional intercalated degrees and postgraduate study. Summary We argue that teaching of global health in undergraduate medical curricula must respond to changing understandings of the term global health. In particular it must be taught from the

  5. Politics, Power, Poverty and Global Health: Systems and Frames.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benatar, Solomon

    2016-08-06

    Striking disparities in access to healthcare and in health outcomes are major characteristics of health across the globe. This inequitable state of global health and how it could be improved has become a highly popularized field of academic study. In a series of articles in this journal the roles of power and politics in global health have been addressed in considerable detail. Three points are added here to this debate. The first is consideration of how the use of definitions and common terms, for example 'poverty eradication,' can mask full exposure of the extent of rectification required, with consequent failure to understand what poverty eradication should mean, how this could be achieved and that a new definition is called for. Secondly, a criticism is offered of how the term 'global health' is used in a restricted manner to describe activities that focus on an anthropocentric and biomedical conception of health across the world. It is proposed that the discourse on 'global health' should be extended beyond conventional boundaries towards an ecocentric conception of global/planetary health in an increasingly interdependent planet characterised by a multitude of interlinked crises. Finally, it is noted that the paucity of workable strategies towards achieving greater equity in sustainable global health is not so much due to lack of understanding of, or insight into, the invisible dimensions of power, but is rather the outcome of seeking solutions from within belief systems and cognitive biases that cannot offer solutions. Hence the need for a new framing perspective for global health that could reshape our thinking and actions. © 2016 by Kerman University of Medical Sciences.

  6. La Palabre: A New Schema for Global Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luan, William Patrick; Reed, Paul

    2016-08-01

    The Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa has led to a paradigm shift in the way the global community responds to outbreaks of disease. This new paradigm places even greater emphasis on collaboration in global health. The palabre, the traditional African practice of mediation and decision-making in the public sphere, offers a schema from which to view current and future global health engagement. This process of dialogue and exchange has many applications to global health exemplified recently by the West African Disaster Preparedness Initiative (WADPI), a follow-on activity to the Operation United Assistance (OUA) Ebola Response effort. WADPI, utilizing the structure of a palabre, seeks to catalyze and synergize constructive collaboration to set a foundation for disaster response in West Africa for years to come. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2016;10:541-543).

  7. Reorienting health services with capacity building: a case study of the Core Skills in Health Promotion Project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yeatman, H R; Nove, T

    2002-12-01

    This paper presents a case study of the application of a framework for capacity building [Hawe, P., King, L., Noort, M., Jordens, C. and Lloyd, B. (2000) Indicators to Help with Capacity Building in Health Promotion. NSW Health, Sydney] to describe actions aimed at building organizational support for health promotion within an area health service in New South Wales, Australia. The Core Skills in Health Promotion Project (CSHPP) arose from an investigation which reported that participants of a health promotion training course had increased health promotion skills but that they lacked the support to apply their skills in the workplace. The project was action-research based. It investigated and facilitated the implementation of a range of initiatives to support community health staff to apply a more preventive approach in their practice and it contributed to the establishment of new organizational structures for health promotion. An evaluation was undertaken 4 years after the CSHPP was established, and 2 years after it had submitted its final report. Interviews with senior managers, document analysis of written reports, and focus groups with middle managers and service delivery staff were undertaken. Change was achieved in the three dimensions of health infrastructure, program maintenance and problem solving capacity of the organization. It was identified that the critically important elements in achieving the aims of the project-partnership, leadership and commitment-were also key elements of the capacity building framework. This case study provides a practical example of the usefulness of the capacity building framework in orienting health services to be supportive of health promotion.

  8. The United Nations and One Health: the International Health Regulations (2005) and global health security.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nuttall, I; Miyagishima, K; Roth, C; de La Rocque, S

    2014-08-01

    The One Health approach encompasses multiple themes and can be understood from many different perspectives. This paper expresses the viewpoint of those in charge of responding to public health events of international concern and, in particular, to outbreaks of zoonotic disease. Several international organisations are involved in responding to such outbreaks, including the United Nations (UN) and its technical agencies; principally, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO); UN funds and programmes, such as the United Nations Development Programme, the World Food Programme, the United Nations Environment Programme, the United Nations Children's Fund; the UN-linked multilateral banking system (the World Bank and regional development banks); and partner organisations, such as the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). All of these organisations have benefited from the experiences gained during zoonotic disease outbreaks over the last decade, developing common approaches and mechanisms to foster good governance, promote policies that cut across different sectors, target investment more effectively and strengthen global and national capacities for dealing with emerging crises. Coordination among the various UN agencies and creating partnerships with related organisations have helped to improve disease surveillance in all countries, enabling more efficient detection of disease outbreaks and a faster response, greater transparency and stakeholder engagement and improved public health. The need to build more robust national public human and animal health systems, which are based on good governance and comply with the International Health Regulations (2005) and the international standards set by the OIE, prompted FAO, WHO and the OIE to join forces with the World Bank, to provide practical tools to help countries manage their zoonotic disease risks and develop adequate resources to prevent and control disease

  9. Measured moisture in buildings and adverse health effects: a review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mendell, Mark J; Macher, Janet M; Kumagai, Kazukiyo

    2018-04-23

    It has not yet been possible to quantify dose-related health risks attributable to indoor dampness or mold (D/M), to support the setting of health-related limits for D/M. An overlooked target for assessing D/M is moisture in building materials, the critical factor allowing microbial growth. A search for studies of quantified building moisture and occupant health effects identified three eligible studies. Two studies assessed associations between measured wall moisture content and respiratory health in the UK. Both reported dose-related increases in asthma exacerbation with higher measured moisture, with one study reporting an adjusted odds ratio (OR) of 7.0 for night-time asthma symptoms with higher bedroom moisture. The third study assessed relationships between infrared camera-determined wall moisture and atopic dermatitis in South Korea, reporting an adjusted OR of 14.5 for water-damaged homes and moderate or severe atopic dermatitis. Measuring building moisture has, despite extremely limited available findings, potential promise for detecting unhealthy D/M in homes and merits more research attention. Further research to validate these findings should include measured "water activity," which directly assesses moisture availability for microbial growth. Ultimately, evidence-based, health-related thresholds for building moisture, across specific materials and measurement devices, could better guide assessment and remediation of D/M in buildings. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  10. Global health: the ethical responsibility of the pharmaceutical industry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lassen, Lars Christian; Thomsen, Mads Krogsgaard

    2007-02-01

    Health as a global issue concerns all and clearly manifests global inequality. All stakeholders of the healthcare systems and disease treatment--including the pharmaceutical industry--have an ethical obligation to contribute to promoting global health. At Novo Nordisk we primarily focus on providing our contribution to global health through defeating diabetes. At the same time we stand by being a private company required to deliver a financial profit, which is why we must create positive results on the financial, the environmental and the social bottom lines. In this article we attempt to provide a brief overview of some of the initiatives that we think business companies can take--and therefore are also obliged to in promoting global health. Further, we have pointed out a number of dilemmas within research and development as well as business ethics that all companies face when they convert the ethical principles to daily practice globally.

  11. Public engagement on global health challenges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, Emma R M; Masum, Hassan; Berndtson, Kathryn; Saunders, Vicki; Hadfield, Tom; Panjwani, Dilzayn; Persad, Deepa L; Minhas, Gunjeet S; Daar, Abdallah S; Singh, Jerome A; Singer, Peter A

    2008-05-20

    Experience with public engagement activities regarding the risks and benefits of science and technology (S&T) is growing, especially in the industrialized world. However, public engagement in the developing world regarding S&T risks and benefits to explore health issues has not been widely explored. This paper gives an overview about public engagement and related concepts, with a particular focus on challenges and benefits in the developing world. We then describe an Internet-based platform, which seeks to both inform and engage youth and the broader public on global water issues and their health impacts. Finally, we outline a possible course for future action to scale up this and similar online public engagement platforms. The benefits of public engagement include creating an informed citizenry, generating new ideas from the public, increasing the chances of research being adopted, increasing public trust, and answering ethical research questions. Public engagement also fosters global communication, enables shared experiences and methodology, standardizes strategy, and generates global viewpoints. This is especially pertinent to the developing world, as it encourages previously marginalized populations to participate on a global stage. One of the core issues at stake in public engagement is global governance of science and technology. Also, beyond benefiting society at large, public engagement in science offers benefits to the scientific enterprise itself. Successful public engagement with developing world stakeholders will be a critical part of implementing new services and technologies. Interactive engagement platforms, such as the Internet, have the potential to unite people globally around relevant health issues.

  12. Public engagement on global health challenges

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Minhas Gunjeet S

    2008-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Experience with public engagement activities regarding the risks and benefits of science and technology (S&T is growing, especially in the industrialized world. However, public engagement in the developing world regarding S&T risks and benefits to explore health issues has not been widely explored. Methods This paper gives an overview about public engagement and related concepts, with a particular focus on challenges and benefits in the developing world. We then describe an Internet-based platform, which seeks to both inform and engage youth and the broader public on global water issues and their health impacts. Finally, we outline a possible course for future action to scale up this and similar online public engagement platforms. Results The benefits of public engagement include creating an informed citizenry, generating new ideas from the public, increasing the chances of research being adopted, increasing public trust, and answering ethical research questions. Public engagement also fosters global communication, enables shared experiences and methodology, standardizes strategy, and generates global viewpoints. This is especially pertinent to the developing world, as it encourages previously marginalized populations to participate on a global stage. One of the core issues at stake in public engagement is global governance of science and technology. Also, beyond benefiting society at large, public engagement in science offers benefits to the scientific enterprise itself. Conclusion Successful public engagement with developing world stakeholders will be a critical part of implementing new services and technologies. Interactive engagement platforms, such as the Internet, have the potential to unite people globally around relevant health issues.

  13. Mentoring, training and support to global health innovators: a scoping review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cho, Dan-Bi; Cole, Donald; Simiyu, Ken; Luong, Winnie; Neufeld, Vic

    2013-06-28

    Global health innovators must navigate substantial complexities to successfully develop, implement and sustain global health innovations with impact through application of an Integrated InnovationTM approach. We sought to examine the nature of the literature and evidence around mentoring, training and support of global health innovators. We conducted a scoping review searching eight databases with terms capturing different kinds of innovation and support. Assessment of relevance and mapping was completed by two reviewers, with interpretation by the review team. Twenty-eight relevant papers provided perspectives on fostering global health innovators and innovation. Fifteen included empirical data on supports to global health innovators involving a wide range of innovators. Eight included documentation of outcomes but without designs to determine effectiveness. The diverse mentoring, training and support activities included: business incubators, support organizations and centres for entrepreneurship, technology transfer and intellectual property management, internship programs for business skill development, initiatives to bridge industry and researchers, and platforms for South-led innovation for global health. We propose the cultivation of a pipeline of global health innovators to increase the number of appropriate, sustainable innovations with impact in global health. Further empirical work on how to effectively support global health innovators is needed.

  14. The New Global Health

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2013-08-13

    Dr. Mike Miller reads an abridged version of the Emerging Infectious Diseases’ Perspective, The New Global Health.  Created: 8/13/2013 by National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID).   Date Released: 8/14/2013.

  15. Understanding health systems, health economies and globalization: the need for social science perspectives

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Murray Susan F

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract The complex relationship between globalization and health calls for research from many disciplinary and methodological perspectives. This editorial gives an overview of the content trajectory of the interdisciplinary journal ‘Globalization and Health’ over the first six years of production, 2005 to 2010. The findings show that bio-medical and population health perspectives have been dominant but that social science perspectives have become more evident in recent years. The types of paper published have also changed, with a growing proportion of empirical studies. A special issue on ‘Health systems, health economies and globalization: social science perspectives’ is introduced, a collection of contributions written from the vantage points of economics, political science, psychology, sociology, business studies, social policy and research policy. The papers concern a range of issues pertaining to the globalization of healthcare markets and governance and regulation issues. They highlight the important contribution that can be made by the social sciences to this field, and also the practical and methodological challenges implicit in the study of globalization and health.

  16. Building an evidence base for occupational health interventions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Verbeek, Jos; Husman, Kaj; van Dijk, Frank; Jauhiainen, Merja; Pasternack, Iris; Vainio, Harri

    2004-01-01

    This article summarizes arguments for building an evidence base for occupational health. Evidence is needed on the most effective ways of eliminating health hazards in the workplace and at work, enhancing healthy behavior or the empowerment of workers, and preventing and treating occupational

  17. Educating Young People on Global Determinants of Health

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bruselius-Jensen, Maria; Renwick, Kerry; Aagaard-Hansen, Jens

    , and their impact on health practices. Findings from the programme consist of 18 focus group interviews, with a total of 72 Danish and 36 Kenyan students. Results: Students gain insight into the daily life of peers in Kenya and Denmark. The cultural meetings awaken students interest and general engagement in global...... health. They gained insight into their own and their peers’ conditions for health. E.g. connected to access to education, food cultures, gender and family structure. Conclusion: Mirroring ones own health practices in that of peers from another culture appeared to support learning process of global health......, understanding and agency towards global inequality in health. Methods: MEL facilitates cultural meetings, primarily Skype-based, between students from Kenya and Denmark, with the aim to promote reflections on differences and similarities in the everyday living conditions across cultures and nations...

  18. Globalization and social determinants of health: The role of the global marketplace (part 2 of 3

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Schrecker Ted

    2007-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Globalization is a key context for the study of social determinants of health (SDH: broadly stated, SDH are the conditions in which people live and work, and that affect their opportunities to lead healthy lives. In the first article in this three part series, we described the origins of the series in work conducted for the Globalization Knowledge Network of the World Health Organization's Commission on Social Determinants of Health and in the Commission's specific concern with health equity. We identified and defended a definition of globalization that gives primacy to the drivers and effects of transnational economic integration, and addressed a number of important conceptual and methodological issues in studying globalization's effects on SDH and their distribution, emphasizing the need for transdisciplinary approaches that reflect the complexity of the topic. In this second article, we identify and describe several, often interacting clusters of pathways leading from globalization to changes in SDH that are relevant to health equity. These involve: trade liberalization; the global reorganization of production and labour markets; debt crises and economic restructuring; financial liberalization; urban settings; influences that operate by way of the physical environment; and health systems changed by the global marketplace.

  19. Knowledge and networks - key sources of power in global health: Comment on "Knowledge, moral claims and the exercise of power in global health".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanefeld, Johanna; Walt, Gill

    2015-02-01

    Shiffman rightly raises questions about who exercises power in global health, suggesting power is a complex concept, and the way it is exercised is often opaque. Power that is not based on financial strength but on knowledge or experience, is difficult to estimate, and yet it may provide the legitimacy to make moral claims on what is, or ought to be, on global health agendas. Twenty years ago power was exercised in a much less complex health environment. The World Health Organization (WHO) was able to exert its authority as world health leader. The landscape today is very different. Financial resources for global health are being competed for by diverse organisations, and power is diffused and somewhat hidden in such a climate, where each organization has to establish and make its own moral claims loudly and publicly. We observe two ways which allow actors to capture moral authority in global health. One, through power based on scientific knowledge and two, through procedures in the policy process, most commonly associated with the notion of broad consultation and participation. We discuss these drawing on one particular framework provided by Bourdieu, who analyses the source of actor power by focusing on different sorts of capital. Different approaches or theories to understanding power will go some way to answering the challenge Shiffman throws to health policy analysts. We need to explore much more fully where power lies in global health, and how it is exercised in order to understand underlying health agendas and claims to legitimacy made by global health actors today.

  20. World Health Organization global policy for improvement of oral health--World Health Assembly 2007

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petersen, Poul Erik

    2008-01-01

    The World Health Organization (WHO) Global Oral Health Programme has worked hard over the past five years to increase the awareness of oral health worldwide as an important component of general health and quality of life. Meanwhile, oral disease is still a major public health problem in high income...... countries and the burden of oral disease is growing in many low- and middle income countries. In the World Oral Health Report 2003, the WHO Global Oral Health Programme formulated the policies and the necessary actions for the improvement of oral health. The strategy is that oral disease prevention...... and the promotion of oral health needs to be integrated with chronic disease prevention and general health promotion as the risks to health are linked. The World Health Assembly (WHA) and the Executive Board (EB) are supreme governance bodies of WHO and for the first time in 25 years oral health was subject...

  1. Value of partnership for workplace health promotion : guideline for partnership building

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hämäläinen, R.M.; Dijkman, A.; Guobjörg Asgeirsdóttir, A.; Broek, K. van den; Haratau, T.; Kuhn, K.; Masanotti, G.; Pyzalski, J.; Scheppingen, A. van; Solé, M.D.; Ylikoski, M.

    2007-01-01

    This publication is an outcome of the project Workplace Health Promotion (WHP): National Health Policies and Strategies in an Enlarging Europe, carried out during 2005-2007. The guideline aims to offer ideas and ways to build partnerships by providing background for partnership building, a brief

  2. Partnerships for Global Child Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steenhoff, Andrew P; Crouse, Heather L; Lukolyo, Heather; Larson, Charles P; Howard, Cynthia; Mazhani, Loeto; Pak-Gorstein, Suzinne; Niescierenko, Michelle L; Musoke, Philippa; Marshall, Roseda; Soto, Miguel A; Butteris, Sabrina M; Batra, Maneesh

    2017-10-01

    Child mortality remains a global health challenge and has resulted in demand for expanding the global child health (GCH) workforce over the last 3 decades. Institutional partnerships are the cornerstone of sustainable education, research, clinical service, and advocacy for GCH. When successful, partnerships can become self-sustaining and support development of much-needed training programs in resource-constrained settings. Conversely, poorly conceptualized, constructed, or maintained partnerships may inadvertently contribute to the deterioration of health systems. In this comprehensive, literature-based, expert consensus review we present a definition of partnerships for GCH, review their genesis, evolution, and scope, describe participating organizations, and highlight benefits and challenges associated with GCH partnerships. Additionally, we suggest a framework for applying sound ethical and public health principles for GCH that includes 7 guiding principles and 4 core practices along with a structure for evaluating GCH partnerships. Finally, we highlight current knowledge gaps to stimulate further work in these areas. With awareness of the potential benefits and challenges of GCH partnerships, as well as shared dedication to guiding principles and core practices, GCH partnerships hold vast potential to positively impact child health. Copyright © 2017 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

  3. The globalization of public health, I: Threats and opportunities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yach, D; Bettcher, D

    1998-01-01

    The globalization of public health poses new threats to health but also holds important opportunities in the coming century. This commentary identifies the major threats and opportunities presented by the process of globalization and emphasizes the need for transnational public health approaches to take advantage of the positive aspects of global change and to minimize the negative ones. Transnational public health issues are areas of mutual concern for the foreign policies of all countries. These trends indicate a need for cross-national comparisons (e.g., in the areas of health financing and policy development) and for the development of a transnational research agenda in public health. PMID:9585736

  4. Mother and Child Health International Research Network | IDRC ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    Building a virtual global research institute to support maternal and child health ... Learning Initiatives for Network Economies in Asia (LIRNEasia) : Building ... to information and communication technology (ICT) initiatives through its global ...

  5. COMMENTARY: GLOBALIZATION, HEALTH SECTOR REFORM, AND THE HUMAN RIGHT TO HEALTH: IMPLICATIONS FOR FUTURE HEALTH POLICY.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schuftan, Claudio

    2015-01-01

    The author here distills his long-time personal experience with the deleterious effects of globalization on health and on the health sector reforms embarked on in many of the more than 50 countries where he has worked in the last 25 years. He highlights the role that the "human right to health" framework can and should play in countering globalization's negative effects on health and in shaping future health policy. This is a testimonial article.

  6. A plea for Global Health Action bottom-up

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ulrich Laaser

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available This opinion piece focuses on global health action by hands-on bottom-up practice: Initiation of an organizational framework and securing financial efficiency are – however - essential, both clearly a domain of well trained public health professionals. Examples of action are cited in the four main areas of global threats: planetary climate change, global divides and inequity, global insecurity and violent conflicts, global instability and financial crises. In conclusion a stable health systems policy framework would greatly enhance success. However, such organisational framework dries out if not linked to public debates channelling fresh thoughts and controversial proposals: the structural stabilisation is essential but has to serve not to dominate bottom-up activities. In other words a horizontal management is required, a balanced equilibrium between bottom-up initiative and top-down support. Last not least rewarding voluntary and charity work by public acknowledgement is essential.

  7. Improving musculoskeletal health: global issues.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mody, Girish M; Brooks, Peter M

    2012-04-01

    Musculoskeletal (MSK) disorders are among the leading reasons why patients consult a family or primary health practitioner, take time off work and become disabled. Many of the MSK disorders are more common in the elderly. Thus, as the proportion of the elderly increases all over the world, MSK disorders will make a greater contribution to the global burden of disease. Epidemiological studies have shown that the spectrum of MSK disorders in developing countries is similar to that seen in industrialised countries, but the burden of disease tends to be higher due to a delay in diagnosis or lack of access to adequate health-care facilities for effective treatment. Musculoskeletal pain is very common in the community while fibromyalgia is being recognised as part of a continuum of chronic widespread pain rather than a narrowly defined entity. This will allow research to improve our understanding of pain in a variety of diffuse pain syndromes. The availability of newer more effective therapies has resulted in efforts to initiate therapy at an earlier stage of diseases. The new criteria for rheumatoid arthritis, and the diagnosis of axial and peripheral involvement in spondyloarthritis, permit an earlier diagnosis without having to wait for radiological changes. One of the major health challenges is the global shortage of health workers, and based on current training of health workers and traditional models of care for service delivery, the global situation is unlikely to change in the near future. Thus, new models of care and strategies to train community health-care workers and primary health-care practitioners to detect and initiate the management of patients with MSK disorders at an earlier stage are required. There is also a need for prevention strategies with campaigns to educate and raise awareness among the entire population. Lifestyle interventions such as maintaining an ideal body weight to prevent obesity, regular exercises, avoidance of smoking and alcohol

  8. Quality improvement and emerging global health priorities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mensah Abrampah, Nana; Syed, Shamsuzzoha Babar; Hirschhorn, Lisa R; Nambiar, Bejoy; Iqbal, Usman; Garcia-Elorrio, Ezequiel; Chattu, Vijay Kumar; Devnani, Mahesh; Kelley, Edward

    2018-01-01

    Abstract Quality improvement approaches can strengthen action on a range of global health priorities. Quality improvement efforts are uniquely placed to reorient care delivery systems towards integrated people-centred health services and strengthen health systems to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC). This article makes the case for addressing shortfalls of previous agendas by articulating the critical role of quality improvement in the Sustainable Development Goal era. Quality improvement can stimulate convergence between health security and health systems; address global health security priorities through participatory quality improvement approaches; and improve health outcomes at all levels of the health system. Entry points for action include the linkage with antimicrobial resistance and the contentious issue of the health of migrants. The work required includes focussed attention on the continuum of national quality policy formulation, implementation and learning; alongside strengthening the measurement-improvement linkage. Quality improvement plays a key role in strengthening health systems to achieve UHC. PMID:29873793

  9. The rise of global health diplomacy: An interdisciplinary concept linking health and international relations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chattu, Vijay Kumar

    2017-01-01

    Global health diplomacy (GHD) is relatively a very new field that has yet to be clearly defined and developed though there are various definitions given by different experts from foreign policy, global health, diplomacy, international relations, governance, and law. With the intensification of globalization and increasing gaps between countries, new and reemerging health threats such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, influenza, severe acute respiratory syndrome, Ebola, and Zika and a gradual rethinking on security concepts framed a new political context. The health problems addressed diplomatically have also become diverse ranging from neglected tropical diseases, infectious diseases, sale of unsafe, counterfeit drugs to brain drain crisis. We see that global health has become more diverse as the actors widened and also the interests appealing not only to the traditional humanitarian ideals associated with health but also to the principles grounded in national and global security. Recently, we are witnessing the increased priority given to the GHD because the issue of health is discussed by various actors outside the WHO to shape the global policy for health determinants. In fact, the area of health has become the part of UN Summit Diplomacy involving the G8, G20, BRICS, and the EU. The recent WHO Pandemic Influenza Framework, UN High Level Framework on Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases, and the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control are some of the examples of long-term negotiation processes for agreements that took place.

  10. Strategic Implications of Global Health

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Monaghan, Karen

    2008-01-01

    .... This study diverges from that paper, however, in that it expands the field of inquiry to fully encompass all aspects of global health, including maternal mortality, malnutrition, chronic diseases...

  11. Politics, Power, Poverty and Global Health: Systems and Frames

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benatar, Solomon

    2016-01-01

    Striking disparities in access to healthcare and in health outcomes are major characteristics of health across the globe. This inequitable state of global health and how it could be improved has become a highly popularized field of academic study. In a series of articles in this journal the roles of power and politics in global health have been addressed in considerable detail. Three points are added here to this debate. The first is consideration of how the use of definitions and common terms, for example ‘poverty eradication,’ can mask full exposure of the extent of rectification required, with consequent failure to understand what poverty eradication should mean, how this could be achieved and that a new definition is called for. Secondly, a criticism is offered of how the term ‘global health’ is used in a restricted manner to describe activities that focus on an anthropocentric and biomedical conception of health across the world. It is proposed that the discourse on ‘global health’ should be extended beyond conventional boundaries towards an ecocentric conception of global/planetary health in an increasingly interdependent planet characterised by a multitude of interlinked crises. Finally, it is noted that the paucity of workable strategies towards achieving greater equity in sustainable global health is not so much due to lack of understanding of, or insight into, the invisible dimensions of power, but is rather the outcome of seeking solutions from within belief systems and cognitive biases that cannot offer solutions. Hence the need for a new framing perspective for global health that could reshape our thinking and actions. PMID:27694651

  12. An ethics curriculum for short-term global health trainees

    OpenAIRE

    DeCamp, Matthew; Rodriguez, Joce; Hecht, Shelby; Barry, Michele; Sugarman, Jeremy

    2013-01-01

    Background Interest in short-term global health training and service programs continues to grow, yet they can be associated with a variety of ethical issues for which trainees or others with limited global health experience may not be prepared to address. Therefore, there is a clear need for educational interventions concerning these ethical issues. Methods We developed and evaluated an introductory curriculum, ?Ethical Challenges in Short-term Global Health Training.? The curriculum was deve...

  13. International Health Regulations (2005) and the U.S. Department of Defense: building core capacities on a foundation of partnership and trust.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johns, Matthew C; Blazes, David L

    2010-12-03

    A cornerstone of effective global health surveillance programs is the ability to build systems that identify, track and respond to public health threats in a timely manner. These functions are often difficult and require international cooperation given the rapidity with which diseases cross national borders and spread throughout the global community as a result of travel and migration by both humans and animals. As part of the U.S. Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center (AFHSC), the Department of Defense's (DoD) Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System (AFHSC-GEIS) has developed a global network of surveillance sites over the past decade that engages in a wide spectrum of support activities in collaboration with host country partners. Many of these activities are in direct support of International Health Regulations (IHR[2005]). The network also supports host country military forces around the world, which are equally affected by these threats and are often in a unique position to respond in areas of conflict or during complex emergencies. With IHR(2005) as the guiding framework for action, the AFHSC-GEIS network of international partners and overseas research laboratories continues to develop into a far-reaching system for identifying, analyzing and responding to emerging disease threats.

  14. Global trade and health: key linkages and future challenges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bettcher, D W; Yach, D; Guindon, G E

    2000-01-01

    Globalization of trade, marketing and investment has important implications for public health, both negative and positive. This article considers the implications of the single package of World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements for public health research and policy, focusing on three themes: commodities, intellectual property rights, and health services. The main aims of the analysis are as follows: to identify how trade issues are associated with the transnationalization of health risks and possible benefits; to identify key areas of research; and to suggest policy-relevant advice and interventions on trade and health issues. The next wave of international trade law will need to take more account of global public health issues. However, to become more engaged in global trade debates, the public health community must gain an understanding of the health effects of global trade agreements. It must also ensure that its own facts are correct, so that public health is not blindly used for political ends, such as justifying unwarranted economic protectionism. "Healthy trade" policies, based on firm empirical evidence and designed to improve health status, are an important step towards reaching a more sustainable form of trade liberalization.

  15. Global health education: a pilot in trans-disciplinary, digital instruction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wipfli, Heather; Press, David J; Kuhn, Virginia

    2013-05-02

    The development of new global health academic programs provides unique opportunities to create innovative educational approaches within and across universities. Recent evidence suggests that digital media technologies may provide feasible and cost-effective alternatives to traditional classroom instruction; yet, many emerging global health academic programs lag behind in the utilization of modern technologies. We created an inter-departmental University of Southern California (USC) collaboration to develop and implement a course focused on digital media and global health. Course curriculum was based on core tenants of modern education: multi-disciplinary, technologically advanced, learner-centered, and professional application of knowledge. Student and university evaluations were reviewed to qualitatively assess course satisfaction and educational outcomes. 'New Media for Global Health' ran for 18 weeks in the Spring 2012 semester with N=41 students (56.1% global health and 43.9% digital studies students). The course resulted in a number of high quality global health-related digital media products available at http://iml420.wordpress.com/. Challenges confronted at USC included administrative challenges related to co-teaching and frustration from students conditioned to a rigid system of teacher-led learning within a specific discipline. Quantitative and qualitative course evaluations reflected positive feedback for the course instructors and mixed reviews for the organization of the course. The development of innovative educational programs in global health requires on-going experimentation and information sharing across departments and universities. Digital media technologies may have implications for future efforts to improve global health education.

  16. International obligations through collective rights: Moving from foreign health assistance to global health governance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meier, Benjamin Mason; Fox, Ashley M

    2010-06-15

    This article analyzes the growing chasm between international power and state responsibility in health rights, proposing an international legal framework for collective rights - rights that can reform international institutions and empower developing states to realize the determinants of health structured by global forces. With longstanding recognition that many developing state governments cannot realize the health of their peoples without international cooperation, scholars have increasingly sought to codify international obligations under the purview of an evolving human right to health, applying this rights-based approach as a foundational framework for reducing global health inequalities through foreign assistance. Yet the inherent limitations of the individual human rights framework stymie the right to health in impacting the global institutions that are most crucial for realizing underlying determinants of health through the strengthening of primary health care systems. Whereas the right to health has been advanced as an individual right to be realized by a state duty-bearer, the authors find that this limited, atomized right has proven insufficient to create accountability for international obligations in global health policy, enabling the deterioration of primary health care systems that lack the ability to address an expanding set of public health claims. For rights scholars to advance disease protection and health promotion through national primary health care systems - creating the international legal obligations necessary to spur development supportive of the public's health - the authors conclude that scholars must look beyond the individual right to health to create collective international legal obligations commensurate with a public health-centered approach to primary health care. Through the development and implementation of these collective health rights, states can address interconnected determinants of health within and across countries

  17. Health as freedom: addressing social determinants of global health inequities through the human right to development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fox, Ashley M; Meier, Benjamin Mason

    2009-02-01

    In spite of vast global improvements in living standards, health, and well-being, the persistence of absolute poverty and its attendant maladies remains an unsettling fact of life for billions around the world and constitutes the primary cause for the failure of developing states to improve the health of their peoples. While economic development in developing countries is necessary to provide for underlying determinants of health--most prominently, poverty reduction and the building of comprehensive primary health systems--inequalities in power within the international economic order and the spread of neoliberal development policy limit the ability of developing states to develop economically and realize public goods for health. With neoliberal development policies impacting entire societies, the collective right to development, as compared with an individual rights-based approach to development, offers a framework by which to restructure this system to realize social determinants of health. The right to development, working through a vector of rights, can address social determinants of health, obligating states and the international community to support public health systems while reducing inequities in health through poverty-reducing economic growth. At an international level, where the ability of states to develop economically and to realize public goods through public health systems is constrained by international financial institutions, the implementation of the right to development enables a restructuring of international institutions and foreign-aid programs, allowing states to enter development debates with a right to cooperation from other states, not simply a cry for charity.

  18. Using Children's Literature to Build Concepts of Teaching about Global Citizenship

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bradbery, Debbie

    2012-01-01

    Children's literature can be used to help teachers to build into their teaching programs ways to examine and change personal lifestyles to secure a sustainable future; to identify, investigate, evaluate and undertake appropriate action to maintain, protect and enhance local and global environments; to challenge preconceived ideas, accept…

  19. The ebola crisis : challenges for global health law

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Toebes, Brigit

    2015-01-01

    he recent Ebola crisis has caused approximately 20.000 deaths so far. Compared to other global health crises, including the deaths caused by armed conflicts and chronic diseases, this is still a small amount. Yet, from a global and domestic health law and governance perspective, this crisis raises a

  20. Public Health and Unconventional Oil and Gas Extraction Including Fracking: Global Lessons from a Scottish Government Review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew Watterson

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Unconventional oil and gas extraction (UOGE including fracking for shale gas is underway in North America on a large scale, and in Australia and some other countries. It is viewed as a major source of global energy needs by proponents. Critics consider fracking and UOGE an immediate and long-term threat to global, national, and regional public health and climate. Rarely have governments brought together relatively detailed assessments of direct and indirect public health risks associated with fracking and weighed these against potential benefits to inform a national debate on whether to pursue this energy route. The Scottish government has now done so in a wide-ranging consultation underpinned by a variety of reports on unconventional gas extraction including fracking. This paper analyses the Scottish government approach from inception to conclusion, and from procedures to outcomes. The reports commissioned by the Scottish government include a comprehensive review dedicated specifically to public health as well as reports on climate change, economic impacts, transport, geology, and decommissioning. All these reports are relevant to public health, and taken together offer a comprehensive review of existing evidence. The approach is unique globally when compared with UOGE assessments conducted in the USA, Australia, Canada, and England. The review process builds a useful evidence base although it is not without flaws. The process approach, if not the content, offers a framework that may have merits globally.

  1. Public Health and Unconventional Oil and Gas Extraction Including Fracking: Global Lessons from a Scottish Government Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watterson, Andrew

    2018-01-01

    Unconventional oil and gas extraction (UOGE) including fracking for shale gas is underway in North America on a large scale, and in Australia and some other countries. It is viewed as a major source of global energy needs by proponents. Critics consider fracking and UOGE an immediate and long-term threat to global, national, and regional public health and climate. Rarely have governments brought together relatively detailed assessments of direct and indirect public health risks associated with fracking and weighed these against potential benefits to inform a national debate on whether to pursue this energy route. The Scottish government has now done so in a wide-ranging consultation underpinned by a variety of reports on unconventional gas extraction including fracking. This paper analyses the Scottish government approach from inception to conclusion, and from procedures to outcomes. The reports commissioned by the Scottish government include a comprehensive review dedicated specifically to public health as well as reports on climate change, economic impacts, transport, geology, and decommissioning. All these reports are relevant to public health, and taken together offer a comprehensive review of existing evidence. The approach is unique globally when compared with UOGE assessments conducted in the USA, Australia, Canada, and England. The review process builds a useful evidence base although it is not without flaws. The process approach, if not the content, offers a framework that may have merits globally. PMID:29617318

  2. Recent Topical Research on Global, Energy, Health & Medical, and Tourism Economics, and Global Software

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    C-L. Chang (Chia-Lin); M.J. McAleer (Michael)

    2017-01-01

    textabstractThe paper presents an overview of recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software. We have interpreted “global” in the title of the Journal of Reviews on Global Economics to cover contributions that have a global impact on

  3. Framing the Role of the Faith Community in Global Health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mark A. Strand

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Globalization has brought many people and organizations together. Healthcare is one of the fields that has been the most prominent in global collaboration. Healthcare professionals working from the framework of Christian faith have been participants and leaders in global health for many years. The current challenges in global health call for the active involvement of all concerned players, Christian healthcare professionals among them. In this paper, the authors suggest a unique framework for Christians involved in global health to make contributions to research, scholarship, and practice innovation in this field.

  4. Governance of Transnational Global Health Research Consortia and Health Equity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pratt, Bridget; Hyder, Adnan A

    2016-10-01

    Global health research partnerships are increasingly taking the form of consortia of institutions from high-income countries and low- and middle-income countries that undertake programs of research. These partnerships differ from collaborations that carry out single projects in the multiplicity of their goals, scope of their activities, and nature of their management. Although such consortia typically aim to reduce health disparities between and within countries, what is required for them to do so has not been clearly defined. This article takes a conceptual approach to explore how the governance of transnational global health research consortia should be structured to advance health equity. To do so, it applies an account called shared health governance to derive procedural and substantive guidance. A checklist based on this guidance is proposed to assist research consortia determine where their governance practices strongly promote equity and where they may fall short.

  5. Promoting health in response to global tourism expansion in Cuba.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spiegel, J M; Gonzalez, M; Cabrera, G J; Catasus, S; Vidal, C; Yassi, A

    2008-03-01

    The ability of communities to respond to the pressures of globalization is an important determinant of community health. Tourism is a rapidly growing industry and there is an increasing concern about its health impact on local communities. Nonetheless, little research has been conducted to identify potential mitigating measures. We therefore took advantage of the 'natural experiment' provided by the expansion of tourism in Cuba, and conducted four focus groups and key informants interviews in each of two coastal communities. Participants expressed concerns about psycho-social impacts as well as occupational and environmental concerns, and both infectious and chronic diseases. A wide array of programs that had been developed to mitigate potential negative were described. Some of the programs were national in scope and others were locally developed. The programs particularly targeted youth as the most vulnerable population at risk of addictions and sexually transmitted infections. Occupational health concerns for workers in the tourism sector were also addressed, with many of the measures implemented protecting tourists as well. The health promotion and various other participatory action initiatives implemented showed a strong commitment to address the impacts of tourism and also contributed to building capacity in the two communities. Although longitudinal studies are needed to assess the sustainability of these programs and to evaluate their long-term impact in protecting health, other communities can learn from the initiatives taken.

  6. Stigmatized ethnicity, public health, and globalization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ali, S Harris

    2008-01-01

    The prejudicial linking of infection with ethnic minority status has a long-established history, but in some ways this association may have intensified under the contemporary circumstances of the "new public health" and globalization. This study analyzes this conflation of ethnicity and disease victimization by considering the stigmatization process that occurred during the 2003 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in Toronto. The attribution of stigma during the SARS outbreak occurred in multiple and overlapping ways informed by: (i) the depiction of images of individuals donning respiratory masks; (ii) employment status in the health sector; and (iii) Asian-Canadian and Chinese-Canadian ethnicity. In turn, stigmatization during the SARS crisis facilitated a moral panic of sorts in which racism at a cultural level was expressed and rationalized on the basis of a rhetoric of the new public health and anti-globalization sentiments. With the former, an emphasis on individualized self-protection, in the health sense, justified the generalized avoidance of those stigmatized. In relation to the latter, in the post-9/11 era, avoidance of the stigmatized other was legitimized on the basis of perceiving the SARS threat as a consequence of the mixing of different people predicated by economic and cultural globalization.

  7. BRICS countries and the global movement for universal health coverage.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tediosi, Fabrizio; Finch, Aureliano; Procacci, Christina; Marten, Robert; Missoni, Eduardo

    2016-07-01

    This article explores BRICS' engagement in the global movement for Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and the implications for global health governance. It is based on primary data collected from 43 key informant interviews, complemented by a review of BRICS' global commitments supporting UHC. Interviews were conducted using a semi-structured questionnaire that included both closed- and open-ended questions. Question development was informed by insights from the literature on UHC, Cox's framework for action, and Kingdon's multiple-stream theory of policy formation. The closed questions were analysed with simple descriptive statistics and the open-ended questions using grounded theory approach. The analysis demonstrates that most BRICS countries implicitly supported the global movement for UHC, and that they share an active engagement in promoting UHC. However, only Brazil, China and to some extent South Africa, were recognized as proactively pushing UHC in the global agenda. In addition, despite some concerted actions, BRICS countries seem to act more as individual countries rather that as an allied group. These findings suggest that BRICS are unlikely to be a unified political block that will transform global health governance. Yet the documented involvement of BRICS in the global movement supporting UHC, and their focus on domestic challenges, shows that BRICS individually are increasingly influential players in global health. So if BRICS countries should probably not be portrayed as the centre of future political community that will transform global health governance, their individual involvement in global health, and their documented concerted actions, may give greater voice to low- and middle-income countries supporting the emergence of multiple centres of powers in global health. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  8. The Ebola Outbreak: Catalyzing a "Shift" in Global Health Governance?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mackey, Tim K

    2016-11-24

    As the 2014 Ebola virus disease outbreak (EVD) transitions to its post-endemic phase, its impact on the future of global public health, particularly the World Health Organization (WHO), is the subject of continued debate. Criticism of WHO's performance grew louder in the outbreak's wake, placing this international health UN-specialized agency in the difficult position of navigating a complex series of reform recommendations put forth by different stakeholders. Decisions on WHO governance reform and the broader role of the United Nations could very well shape the future landscape of 21st century global health and how the international community responds to health emergencies. In order to better understand the implications of the EVD outbreak on global health and infectious disease governance, this debate article critically examines a series of reports issued by four high-level commissions/panels convened to specifically assess WHO's performance post-Ebola. Collectively, these recommendations add increasing complexity to the urgent need for WHO reform, a process that the agency must carry out in order to maintain its legitimacy. Proposals that garnered strong support included the formation of an independent WHO Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response, the urgent need to increase WHO infectious disease funding and capacity, and establishing better operational and policy coordination between WHO, UN agencies, and other global health partners. The recommendations also raise more fundamental questions about restructuring the global health architecture, and whether the UN should play a more active role in global health governance. Despite the need for a fully modernized WHO, reform proposals recently announced by WHO fail to achieve the "evolution" in global health governance needed in order to ensure that global society is adequately protected against the multifaceted and increasingly complex nature of modern public health emergencies. Instead, the lasting

  9. Globalization, human rights, and the social determinants of health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chapman, Audrey R

    2009-02-01

    Globalization, a process characterized by the growing interdependence of the world's people, impacts health systems and the social determinants of health in ways that are detrimental to health equity. In a world in which there are few countervailing normative and policy approaches to the dominant neoliberal regime underpinning globalization, the human rights paradigm constitutes a widely shared foundation for challenging globalization's effects. The substantive rights enumerated in human rights instruments include the right to the highest attainable level of physical and mental health and others that are relevant to the determinants of health. The rights stipulated in these documents impose extensive legal obligations on states that have ratified these documents and confer health entitlements on their residents. Human rights norms have also inspired civil society efforts to improve access to essential medicines and medical services, particularly for HIV/AIDS. Nevertheless, many factors reduce the potential counterweight human rights might exert, including and specifically the nature of the human rights approach, weak political commitments to promoting and protecting health rights on the part of some states and their lack of institutional and economic resources to do so. Global economic markets and the relative power of global economic institutions are also shrinking national policy space. This article reviews the potential contributions and limitations of human rights to achieving greater equity in shaping the social determinants of health.

  10. Are national policies on global health in fact national policies on global health governance? A comparison of policy designs from Norway and Switzerland.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, Catherine M; Clavier, Carole; Potvin, Louise

    2017-01-01

    Since the signing of the Oslo Ministerial Declaration in 2007, the idea that foreign policy formulation should include health considerations has gained traction on the United Nations agenda as evidenced by annual General Assembly resolutions on global health and foreign policy. The adoption of national policies on global health (NPGH) is one way that some member states integrate health and foreign policymaking. This paper explores what these policies intend to do and how countries plan to do it. Using a most similar systems design, we carried out a comparative study of two policy documents formally adopted in 2012. We conducted a directed qualitative content analysis of the Norwegian White Paper on Global health in foreign and development policy and the Swiss Health Foreign Policy using Schneider and Ingram's policy design framework. After replicating analysis methods for each document, we analysed them side by side to explore the commonalities and differences across elements of NPGH design. Analyses indicate that NPGH expect to influence change outside their borders. Targeting the international level, they aim to affect policy venues, multilateral partnerships and international institutions. Instruments for supporting desired changes are primarily those of health diplomacy, proposed as a tool for negotiating interests and objectives for global health between multiple sectors, used internally in Switzerland and externally in Norway. Findings suggest that NPGH designs contribute to constructing the global health governance system by identifying it as a policy target, and policy instruments may elude the health sector actors unless implementation rules explicitly include them. Research should explore how future NPGH designs may construct different kinds of targets as politicised groups of actors on which national governments seek to exercise influence for global health decision-making.

  11. Are national policies on global health in fact national policies on global health governance? A comparison of policy designs from Norway and Switzerland

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clavier, Carole; Potvin, Louise

    2017-01-01

    Background Since the signing of the Oslo Ministerial Declaration in 2007, the idea that foreign policy formulation should include health considerations has gained traction on the United Nations agenda as evidenced by annual General Assembly resolutions on global health and foreign policy. The adoption of national policies on global health (NPGH) is one way that some member states integrate health and foreign policymaking. This paper explores what these policies intend to do and how countries plan to do it. Methods Using a most similar systems design, we carried out a comparative study of two policy documents formally adopted in 2012. We conducted a directed qualitative content analysis of the Norwegian White Paper on Global health in foreign and development policy and the Swiss Health Foreign Policy using Schneider and Ingram's policy design framework. After replicating analysis methods for each document, we analysed them side by side to explore the commonalities and differences across elements of NPGH design. Results Analyses indicate that NPGH expect to influence change outside their borders. Targeting the international level, they aim to affect policy venues, multilateral partnerships and international institutions. Instruments for supporting desired changes are primarily those of health diplomacy, proposed as a tool for negotiating interests and objectives for global health between multiple sectors, used internally in Switzerland and externally in Norway. Conclusion Findings suggest that NPGH designs contribute to constructing the global health governance system by identifying it as a policy target, and policy instruments may elude the health sector actors unless implementation rules explicitly include them. Research should explore how future NPGH designs may construct different kinds of targets as politicised groups of actors on which national governments seek to exercise influence for global health decision-making. PMID:28589007

  12. Global Governance for Health: how to motivate political change?

    Science.gov (United States)

    McNeill, D; Ottersen, O P

    2015-07-01

    In this article, we address a central theme that was discussed at the Durham Health Summit: how can politics be brought back into global health governance and figure much more prominently in discussions around policy? We begin by briefly summarizing the report of the Lancet - University of Oslo Commission on Global Governance for Health: 'The Political Origins of Health Inequity' Ottersen et al. In order to provide compelling evidence of the central argument, the Commission selected seven case studies relating to, inter alia, economic and fiscal policy, food security, and foreign trade and investment agreements. Based on an analysis of these studies, the report concludes that the problems identified are often due to political choices: an unwillingness to change the global system of governance. This raises the question: what is the most effective way that a report of this kind can be used to motivate policy-makers, and the public at large, to demand change? What kind of moral or rational argument is most likely to lead to action? In this paper we assess the merits of various alternative perspectives: health as an investment; health as a global public good; health and human security; health and human development; health as a human right; health and global justice. We conclude that what is required in order to motivate change is a more explicitly political and moral perspective - favouring the later rather than the earlier alternatives just listed. Copyright © 2015 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Power in global health agenda-setting: the role of private funding Comment on "Knowledge, moral claims and the exercise of power in global health".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levine, Ruth E

    2015-03-04

    The editorial by Jeremy Shiffman, "Knowledge, moral claims and the exercise of power in global health", highlights the influence on global health priority-setting of individuals and organizations that do not have a formal political mandate. This sheds light on the way key functions in global health depend on private funding, particularly from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. © 2015 by Kerman University of Medical Sciences.

  14. The impact of globalization on public health: implications for the UK Faculty of Public Health Medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, K

    2000-09-01

    There has been substantial discussion of globalization in the scholarly and popular press yet limited attention so far among public health professionals. This is so despite the many potential impacts of globalization on public health. Defining public health broadly, as focused on the collective health of populations requiring a range of intersectoral activities, globalization can be seen to have particular relevance. Globalization, in turn, can be defined as a process that is changing the nature of human interaction across a wide range of spheres and along at least three dimensions. Understanding public health and globalization in these ways suggests the urgent need for research to better understand the linkages between the two, and effective policy responses by a range of public health institutions, including the UK Faculty of Public Health Medicine. The paper is based on a review of secondary literature on globalization that led to the development of a conceptual framework for understanding potential impacts on the determinants of health and public health. The paper then discusses major areas of public health in relation to these potential impacts. It concludes with recommendations on how the UK Faculty of Public Health Medicine might contribute to addressing these impacts through its various activities. Although there is growing attention to the importance of globalization to public health, there has been limited research and policy development in the United Kingdom. The UK Faculty of Public Health Medicine needs to play an active role in bringing relevant issues to the attention of policy makers, and encourage its members to take up research, teaching and policy initiatives. The potential impacts of globalization support a broader understanding and practice of public health that embraces a wide range of health determinants.

  15. Methodology developed for the energy-productive diagnosis and evaluation in health buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Martini, I.; Discoli, C.; Rosenfeld, E. [Instituto de Estudios del Habitat (IDEHAB), Facultad de Arquitectura y Urbanismo, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Buenos Aires (Argentina)

    2007-07-01

    The public health network in Argentina consists of a wide variety of buildings presenting a complex system of services and structures. In order to modulate and study the energy behaviour of each type of health facility, a database of Energy-Productive Building Modules (Modulos Edilicios Energeticos Productivos: MEEP) was built. This involved evaluating the interactions among physical spaces, building envelope, infrastructure, and equipment usage with the energy consumption, for each specialty service provided in the most common buildings present in the health service network. The MEEP database enables investigators to: (i) Obtain detailed information on each facility. (ii) Identify variables critical to an energy consumption perspective. (iii) Detect areas of over consumption and/or inadequate infrastructure. (iv) Gather essential reference material for the design of health facilities and other similar sectors. The information of each MEEP can be summarized in typological charts. (author)

  16. Politics or Technocracy – What Next for Global Health?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kickbusch, Ilona

    2016-01-01

    Politics play a central part in determining health and development outcomes as Gorik Ooms highlights in his recent commentary. As health becomes more global and more politicized the need grows to better understand the inherently political processes at all levels of governance, such as ideological positions, ideas, value judgments, and power. I agree that global health research should strengthen its contribution to generating such knowledge by drawing more on political science, such research is gaining ground. Even more important is – as Ooms indicates – that global health scholars better understand their own role in the political process. It is time to acknowledge that expert-based technocratic approaches are no less political. We will need to reflect and analyse the role of experts in global health governance to a greater extent and in that context explore the links between politics, expertise and democracy. PMID:26927593

  17. Health care voluntourism: addressing ethical concerns of undergraduate student participation in global health volunteer work.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCall, Daniel; Iltis, Ana S

    2014-12-01

    The popularity and availability of global health experiences has increased, with organizations helping groups plan service trips and companies specializing in "voluntourism," health care professionals volunteering their services through different organizations, and medical students participating in global health electives. Much has been written about global health experiences in resource poor settings, but the literature focuses primarily on the work of health care professionals and medical students. This paper focuses on undergraduate student involvement in short term medical volunteer work in resource poor countries, a practice that has become popular among pre-health professions students. We argue that the participation of undergraduate students in global health experiences raises many of the ethical concerns associated with voluntourism and global health experiences for medical students. Some of these may be exacerbated by or emerge in unique ways when undergraduates volunteer. Guidelines and curricula for medical student engagement in global health experiences have been developed. Guidelines specific to undergraduate involvement in such trips and pre-departure curricula to prepare students should be developed and such training should be required of volunteers. We propose a framework for such guidelines and curricula, argue that universities should be the primary point of delivery even when universities are not organizing the trips, and recommend that curricula should be developed in light of additional data.

  18. Estimating shaking-induced casualties and building damage for global earthquake events: a proposed modelling approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    So, Emily; Spence, Robin

    2013-01-01

    Recent earthquakes such as the Haiti earthquake of 12 January 2010 and the Qinghai earthquake on 14 April 2010 have highlighted the importance of rapid estimation of casualties after the event for humanitarian response. Both of these events resulted in surprisingly high death tolls, casualties and survivors made homeless. In the Mw = 7.0 Haiti earthquake, over 200,000 people perished with more than 300,000 reported injuries and 2 million made homeless. The Mw = 6.9 earthquake in Qinghai resulted in over 2,000 deaths with a further 11,000 people with serious or moderate injuries and 100,000 people have been left homeless in this mountainous region of China. In such events relief efforts can be significantly benefitted by the availability of rapid estimation and mapping of expected casualties. This paper contributes to ongoing global efforts to estimate probable earthquake casualties very rapidly after an earthquake has taken place. The analysis uses the assembled empirical damage and casualty data in the Cambridge Earthquake Impacts Database (CEQID) and explores data by event and across events to test the relationships of building and fatality distributions to the main explanatory variables of building type, building damage level and earthquake intensity. The prototype global casualty estimation model described here uses a semi-empirical approach that estimates damage rates for different classes of buildings present in the local building stock, and then relates fatality rates to the damage rates of each class of buildings. This approach accounts for the effect of the very different types of buildings (by climatic zone, urban or rural location, culture, income level etc), on casualties. The resulting casualty parameters were tested against the overall casualty data from several historical earthquakes in CEQID; a reasonable fit was found.

  19. [Global public health: international health is tested to its limits by the human influenza A epidemic].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Franco-Giraldo, Alvaro; Alvarez-Dardet, Carlos

    2009-06-01

    This article comes from the intense international pressure that follows a near-catastrophy, such as the human influenza A H1N1 epidemic, and the limited resources for confronting such events. The analysis covers prevailing 20th century trends in the international public health arena and the change-induced challenges brought on by globalization, the transition set in motion by what has been deemed the "new" international public health and an ever-increasing focus on global health, in the context of an international scenario of shifting risks and opportunities and a growing number of multinational players. Global public health is defined as a public right, based on a new appreciation of the public, a new paradigm centered on human rights, and altruistic philosophy, politics, and ethics that undergird the changes in international public health on at least three fronts: redefining its theoretical foundation, improving world health, and renewing the international public health system, all of which is the byproduct of a new form of governance. A new world health system, directed by new global public institutions, would aim to make public health a global public right and face a variety of staggering challenges, such as working on public policy management on a global scale, renewing and democratizing the current global governing structure, and conquering the limits and weaknesses witnessed by international health.

  20. Four centuries on from Bacon: progress in building health research systems to improve health systems?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanney, Stephen R; González-Block, Miguel A

    2014-09-23

    In 1627, Francis Bacon's New Atlantis described a utopian society in which an embryonic research system contributed to meeting the needs of the society. In this editorial, we use some of the aspirations described in New Atlantis to provide a context within which to consider recent progress in building health research systems to improve health systems and population health. In particular, we reflect on efforts to build research capacity, link research to policy, identify the wider impacts made by the science, and generally build fully functioning research systems to address the needs identified. In 2014, Health Research Policy and Systems has continued to publish one-off papers and article collections covering a range of these issues in both high income countries and low- and middle-income countries. Analysis of these contributions, in the context of some earlier ones, is brought together to identify achievements, challenges and possible ways forward. We show how 2014 is likely to be a pivotal year in the development of ways to assess the impact of health research on policies, practice, health systems, population health, and economic benefits.We demonstrate how the increasing focus on health research systems will contribute to realising the hopes expressed in the World Health Report, 2013, namely that all nations would take a systematic approach to evaluating the outputs and applications resulting from their research investment.

  1. Great expectations for the World Health Organization: a Framework Convention on Global Health to achieve universal health coverage.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ooms, G; Marten, R; Waris, A; Hammonds, R; Mulumba, M; Friedman, E A

    2014-02-01

    Establishing a reform agenda for the World Health Organization (WHO) requires understanding its role within the wider global health system and the purposes of that wider global health system. In this paper, the focus is on one particular purpose: achieving universal health coverage (UHC). The intention is to describe why achieving UHC requires something like a Framework Convention on Global Health (FCGH) that have been proposed elsewhere,(1) why WHO is in a unique position to usher in an FCGH, and what specific reforms would help enable WHO to assume this role. Copyright © 2013 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Understanding the Development and Perception of Global Health for More Effective Student Education

    OpenAIRE

    Chen, Xinguang

    2014-01-01

    The concept of “global health” that led to the establishment of the World Health Organization in the 1940s is still promoting a global health movement 70 years later. Today’s global health acts first as a guiding principle for our effort to improve people’s health across the globe. Furthermore, global health has become a branch of science, “global health science,” supporting institutionalized education. Lastly, as a discipline, global health should focus on medical and health issues that: 1) ...

  3. Global health inequalities and the need for solidarity: a view from the Global South.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tosam, Mbih J; Chi, Primus Che; Munung, Nchangwi Syntia; Oukem-Boyer, Odile Ouwe Missi; Tangwa, Godfrey B

    2017-12-20

    Although the world has experienced remarkable progress in health care since the last half of the 20th century, global health inequalities still persist. In some poor countries life expectancy is between 37-40 years lower than in rich countries; furthermore, maternal and infant mortality is high and there is lack of access to basic preventive and life-saving medicines, as well a high prevalence of neglected diseases, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. Moreover, globalization has made the world more connected than before such that health challenges today are no longer limited within national or regional boundaries, making all persons equally vulnerable. Because of this, diseases in the most affluent countries are closely connected with diseases in the poorest countries. In this paper, we argue that, because of global health inequalities, in a situation of equal vulnerability, there is need for global solidarity not only as a means of reducing health inequalities, but also as a way of putting up a united force against global health challenges. We argue for an African approach to solidarity in which the humanity of a person is not determined by his/her being human or rational capacity, but by his/her capacity to live a virtuous life. According to this view of solidarity, because no one is self-sufficient, no individual can survive alone. If we are to collectively flourish in a world where no individual, nation or region has all the health resources or protection needed for survival, we must engage in solidarity where we remain compassionate and available to one another at all times. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  4. Global health in an open world requires an open mind

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sodemann, Morten

    Why global health? Health has never been more clearly global than now. Social media have reorganized our way of talking, discussing and interacting globally by spreading happiness, hate speech, obesity and knowledge at the same time. Diseases have never had respect for border control. Polio has s...... is not a fashionable subject anymore but the story of HIV/AIDS is a lesson to global health decision makers. Rephrasing Elisabeth Pisani: whores have wisdom, and we had better open our minds and face it...

  5. CAPACITY BUILDING PROCESS IN ENVIRONMENTAL AND HEALTH IMPACT ASSESSMENT FOR A THAI COMMUNITY.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chaithui, Suthat; Sithisarankul, Pornchai; Hengpraprom, Sarunya

    2017-03-01

    This research aimed at exploring the development of the capacitybuilding process in environmental and health impact assessment, including the consideration of subsequent, capacity-building achievements. Data were gathered through questionnaires, participatory observations, in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and capacity building checklist forms. These data were analyzed using content analysis, descriptive statistics, and inferential statistics. Our study used the components of the final draft for capacity-building processes consisting of ten steps that were formulated by synthesis from each respective process. Additionally, the evaluation of capacity building levels was performed using 10-item evaluation criteria for nine communities. The results indicated that the communities performed well under these criteria. Finally, exploration of the factors influencing capacity building in environmental and health impact assessment indicated that the learning of community members by knowledge exchange via activities and study visits were the most influential factors of the capacity building processes in environmental and health impact assessment. The final revised version of capacitybuilding process in environmental and health impact assessment could serve as a basis for the consideration of interventions in similar areas, so that they increased capacity in environmental and health impact assessments.

  6. Powerful Concepts in Global Health Comment on “Knowledge, Moral Claims and the Exercise of Power in Global Health”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eivind Engebretsen

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we emphasize the importance of questioning the global validity of significant concepts underpinning global health policy. This implies questioning the concept of global health as such and accepting that there is no global definition of the global. Further, we draw attention to ‘quality’ and ‘empowerment’ as examples of world-forming concepts. These concepts are exemplary for the gentle and quiet forms of power that underpin our reasoning within global health.

  7. Improving health care globally: a critical review of the necessity of family medicine research and recommendations to build research capacity.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Weel, C. van; Rosser, W.W.

    2004-01-01

    An invitational conference led by the World Organization of Family Doctors (Wonca) involving selected delegates from 34 countries was held in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, March 8 to12, 2003. The conference theme was "Improving Health Globally: The Necessity of Family Medicine Research." Guiding

  8. Building interdisciplinary leadership skills among health practitioners in the 21st century: an innovative training model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Preeti eNegandhi

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Transformational learning is the focus of 21st century global educational reforms. In India there is a need to amalgamate the skills and knowledge of medical, nursing and public health practitioners and to develop robust leadership competencies among them. This initiative proposed to identify interdisciplinary leadership competencies among Indian health practitioners, and to develop a training program for interdisciplinary leadership skills through an Innovation Collaborative. Medical, nursing and public health institutions partnered in this endeavour. An exhaustive literature search was undertaken to identify leadership competencies in these three professions. Published evidence was utilized in searching for the need for interdisciplinary training of health practitioners, including current scenarios in inter-professional health education and the key competencies required. The interdisciplinary leadership competencies identified were: self-awareness, vision, self-regulation, motivation, decisiveness, integrity, interpersonal communication skills, strategic planning, team-building, innovation and being an effective change agent. Subsequently, a training program was developed and three training sessions were piloted with 66 participants. Each cohort comprised of a mix of participants from different disciplines. The pilot training guided the development of a training model for building interdisciplinary leadership skills and organizing interdisciplinary leadership workshops. The need for interdisciplinary leadership competencies is recognized. The long-term objective of the training model is integration into the regular medical, nursing and public health curricula, with the aim of developing interdisciplinary leadership skills among them. Although challenging, formal incorporation of leadership skills into health professional education is possible within the interdisciplinary classroom setting using principles of transformative learning.

  9. Building Interdisciplinary Leadership Skills among Health Practitioners in the Twenty-First Century: An Innovative Training Model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Negandhi, Preeti; Negandhi, Himanshu; Tiwari, Ritika; Sharma, Kavya; Zodpey, Sanjay P; Quazi, Zahiruddin; Gaidhane, Abhay; Jayalakshmi N; Gijare, Meenakshi; Yeravdekar, Rajiv

    2015-01-01

    Transformational learning is the focus of twenty-first century global educational reforms. In India, there is a need to amalgamate the skills and knowledge of medical, nursing, and public health practitioners and to develop robust leadership competencies among them. This initiative proposed to identify interdisciplinary leadership competencies among Indian health practitioners and to develop a training program for interdisciplinary leadership skills through an Innovation Collaborative. Medical, nursing, and public health institutions partnered in this endeavor. An exhaustive literature search was undertaken to identify leadership competencies in these three professions. Published evidence was utilized in searching for the need for interdisciplinary training of health practitioners, including current scenarios in interprofessional health education and the key competencies required. The interdisciplinary leadership competencies identified were self-awareness, vision, self-regulation, motivation, decisiveness, integrity, interpersonal communication skills, strategic planning, team building, innovation, and being an effective change agent. Subsequently, a training program was developed, and three training sessions were piloted with 66 participants. Each cohort comprised a mix of participants from different disciplines. The pilot training guided the development of a training model for building interdisciplinary leadership skills and organizing interdisciplinary leadership workshops. The need for interdisciplinary leadership competencies is recognized. The long-term objective of the training model is integration into the regular medical, nursing, and public health curricula, with the aim of developing interdisciplinary leadership skills among them. Although challenging, formal incorporation of leadership skills into health professional education is possible within the interdisciplinary classroom setting using principles of transformative learning.

  10. Forced Migration and Global Responsibility for Health; Comment on “Defining and Acting on Global Health: The Case of Japan and the Refugee Crisis”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kayvan Bozorgmehr

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Forced migration has become a world-wide phenomenon in the past century, affecting increasing numbers of countries and people. It entails important challenges from a global health perspective. Leppold et al have critically discussed the Japanese interpretation of global responsibility for health in the context of forced migration. This commentary complements their analysis by outlining three priority areas of global health responsibility for European Union (EU countries. We highlight important stages of the migration phases related to forced migration and propose three arguments. First, the chronic neglect of the large number of internally displaced persons (IDPs in the discourses on the “refugee crisis” needs to be corrected in order to develop sustainable solutions with a framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs. Second, protection gaps in the global system of protection need to be effectively closed to resolve conflicts with border management and normative global health frameworks. Third, effective policies need to be developed and implemented to meet the health and humanitarian needs of forced migrants; at the same time, the solidarity crisis within the EU needs to be overcome. These stakes are high. EU countries, being committed to global health, should urgently address these areas.

  11. Understanding global health governance as a complex adaptive system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hill, Peter S

    2011-01-01

    The transition from international to global health reflects the rapid growth in the numbers and nature of stakeholders in health, as well as the constant change embodied in the process of globalisation itself. This paper argues that global health governance shares the characteristics of complex adaptive systems, with its multiple and diverse players, and their polyvalent and constantly evolving relationships, and rich and dynamic interactions. The sheer quantum of initiatives, the multiple networks through which stakeholders (re)configure their influence, the range of contexts in which development for health is played out - all compound the complexity of this system. This paper maps out the characteristics of complex adaptive systems as they apply to global health governance, linking them to developments in the past two decades, and the multiple responses to these changes. Examining global health governance through the frame of complexity theory offers insight into the current dynamics of governance, and while providing a framework for making meaning of the whole, opens up ways of accessing this complexity through local points of engagement.

  12. Obligations of low income countries in ensuring equity in global health financing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barugahare, John; Lie, Reidar K

    2015-09-08

    Despite common recognition of joint responsibility for global health by all countries particularly to ensure justice in global health, current discussions of countries' obligations for global health largely ignore obligations of developing countries. This is especially the case with regards to obligations relating to health financing. Bearing in mind that it is not possible to achieve justice in global health without achieving equity in health financing at both domestic and global levels, our aim is to show how fulfilling the obligation we propose will make it easy to achieve equity in health financing at both domestic and international levels. Achieving equity in global health financing is a crucial step towards achieving justice in global health. Our general view is that current discussions on global health equity largely ignore obligations of Low Income Country (LIC) governments and we recommend that these obligations should be mainstreamed in current discussions. While we recognise that various obligations need to be fulfilled in order to ultimately achieve justice in global health, for lack of space we prioritise obligations for health financing. Basing on the evidence that in most LICs health is not given priority in annual budget allocations, we propose that LIC governments should bear an obligation to allocate a certain minimum percent of their annual domestic budget resources to health, while they await external resources to supplement domestic ones. We recommend and demonstrate a mechanism for coordinating this obligation so that if the resulting obligations are fulfilled by both LIC and HIC governments it will be easy to achieve equity in global health financing. Although achieving justice in global health will depend on fulfillment of different categories of obligations, ensuring inter- and intra-country equity in health financing is pivotal. This can be achieved by requiring all LIC governments to allocate a certain optimal per cent of their domestic

  13. BRICS countries and the global movement for universal health coverage

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Tediosi, Fabrizio; Finch, Aureliano; Procacci, Christina; Marten, Robert; Missoni, Eduardo

    2016-01-01

    This article explores BRICS' engagement in the global movement for Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and the implications for global health governance. It is based on primary data collected from 43 key informant interviews, complemented by a review of BRICS' global commitments supporting UHC.

  14. Global health education: a pilot in trans-disciplinary, digital instruction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wipfli, Heather; Press, David J.; Kuhn, Virginia

    2013-01-01

    Background The development of new global health academic programs provides unique opportunities to create innovative educational approaches within and across universities. Recent evidence suggests that digital media technologies may provide feasible and cost-effective alternatives to traditional classroom instruction; yet, many emerging global health academic programs lag behind in the utilization of modern technologies. Objective We created an inter-departmental University of Southern California (USC) collaboration to develop and implement a course focused on digital media and global health. Design Course curriculum was based on core tenants of modern education: multi-disciplinary, technologically advanced, learner-centered, and professional application of knowledge. Student and university evaluations were reviewed to qualitatively assess course satisfaction and educational outcomes. Results ‘New Media for Global Health’ ran for 18 weeks in the Spring 2012 semester with N=41 students (56.1% global health and 43.9% digital studies students). The course resulted in a number of high quality global health-related digital media products available at http://iml420.wordpress.com/. Challenges confronted at USC included administrative challenges related to co-teaching and frustration from students conditioned to a rigid system of teacher-led learning within a specific discipline. Quantitative and qualitative course evaluations reflected positive feedback for the course instructors and mixed reviews for the organization of the course. Conclusion The development of innovative educational programs in global health requires on-going experimentation and information sharing across departments and universities. Digital media technologies may have implications for future efforts to improve global health education. PMID:23643297

  15. Global health education: a pilot in trans-disciplinary, digital instruction

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Heather Wipfli

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available Background: The development of new global health academic programs provides unique opportunities to create innovative educational approaches within and across universities. Recent evidence suggests that digital media technologies may provide feasible and cost-effective alternatives to traditional classroom instruction; yet, many emerging global health academic programs lag behind in the utilization of modern technologies. Objective: We created an inter-departmental University of Southern California (USC collaboration to develop and implement a course focused on digital media and global health. Design: Course curriculum was based on core tenants of modern education: multi-disciplinary, technologically advanced, learner-centered, and professional application of knowledge. Student and university evaluations were reviewed to qualitatively assess course satisfaction and educational outcomes. Results: ‘New Media for Global Health’ ran for 18 weeks in the Spring 2012 semester with N=41 students (56.1% global health and 43.9% digital studies students. The course resulted in a number of high quality global health-related digital media products available at http://iml420.wordpress.com/. Challenges confronted at USC included administrative challenges related to co-teaching and frustration from students conditioned to a rigid system of teacher-led learning within a specific discipline. Quantitative and qualitative course evaluations reflected positive feedback for the course instructors and mixed reviews for the organization of the course. Conclusion: The development of innovative educational programs in global health requires on-going experimentation and information sharing across departments and universities. Digital media technologies may have implications for future efforts to improve global health education.

  16. Learning global health: a pilot study of an online collaborative intercultural peer group activity involving medical students in Australia and Indonesia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ambrose, Mark; Murray, Linda; Handoyo, Nicholas E; Tunggal, Deif; Cooling, Nick

    2017-01-13

    There is limited research to inform effective pedagogies for teaching global health to undergraduate medical students. Theoretically, using a combination of teaching pedagogies typically used in 'international classrooms' may prove to be an effective way of learning global health. This pilot study aimed to explore the experiences of medical students in Australia and Indonesia who participated in a reciprocal intercultural participatory peer e-learning activity (RIPPLE) in global health. Seventy-one third year medical students (49 from Australia and 22 from Indonesia) from the University of Tasmania (Australia) and the University of Nusa Cendana (Indonesia) participated in the RIPPLE activity. Participants were randomly distributed into 11 intercultural 'virtual' groups. The groups collaborated online over two weeks to study a global health topic of their choice, and each group produced a structured research abstract. Pre- and post-RIPPLE questionnaires were used to capture students' experiences of the activity. Descriptive quantitative data were analysed with Microsoft Excel and qualitative data were thematically analysed. Students' motivation to volunteer for this activity included: curiosity about the innovative approach to learning; wanting to expand knowledge of global health; hoping to build personal and professional relationships; and a desire to be part of an intercultural experience. Afer completing the RIPPLE program, participants reported on global health knowledge acquisition, the development of peer relationships, and insight into another culture. Barriers to achieving the learning outcomes associated with RIPPLE included problems with establishing consistent online communication, and effectively managing time to simultaneously complete RIPPLE and other curricula activities. Medical students from both countries found benefits in working together in small virtual groups to complement existing teaching in global health. However, our pilot study

  17. Tobacco industry issues management organizations: Creating a global corporate network to undermine public health

    Science.gov (United States)

    McDaniel, Patricia A; Intinarelli, Gina; Malone, Ruth E

    2008-01-01

    Background The global tobacco epidemic claims 5 million lives each year, facilitated by the ability of transnational tobacco companies to delay or thwart meaningful tobacco control worldwide. A series of cross-company tobacco industry "issues management organizations" has played an important role in coordinating and implementing common strategies to defeat tobacco control efforts at international, national, and regional levels. This study examines the development and enumerates the activities of these organizations and explores the implications of continuing industry cooperation for global public health. Methods Using a snowball sampling strategy, we collected documentary data from tobacco industry documents archives and assembled them into a chronologically organized case study. Results The International Committee on Smoking Issues (ICOSI) was formed in 1977 by seven tobacco company chief executives to create common anti-tobacco control strategies and build a global network of regional and national manufacturing associations. The organization's name subsequently changed to INFOTAB. The multinational companies built the organization rapidly: by 1984, it had 69 members operating in 57 countries. INFOTAB material, including position papers and "action kits" helped members challenge local tobacco control measures and maintain tobacco-friendly environments. In 1992 INFOTAB was replaced by two smaller organizations. The Tobacco Documentation Centre, which continues to operate, distributes smoking-related information and industry argumentation to members, some produced by cross-company committees. Agro-Tobacco Services, and now Hallmark Marketing Services, assists the INFOTAB-backed and industry supported International Tobacco Growers Association in advancing claims regarding the economic importance of tobacco in developing nations. Conclusion The massive scale and scope of this industry effort illustrate how corporate interests, when threatened by the globalization of

  18. Tobacco industry issues management organizations: creating a global corporate network to undermine public health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McDaniel, Patricia A; Intinarelli, Gina; Malone, Ruth E

    2008-01-17

    The global tobacco epidemic claims 5 million lives each year, facilitated by the ability of transnational tobacco companies to delay or thwart meaningful tobacco control worldwide. A series of cross-company tobacco industry "issues management organizations" has played an important role in coordinating and implementing common strategies to defeat tobacco control efforts at international, national, and regional levels. This study examines the development and enumerates the activities of these organizations and explores the implications of continuing industry cooperation for global public health. Using a snowball sampling strategy, we collected documentary data from tobacco industry documents archives and assembled them into a chronologically organized case study. The International Committee on Smoking Issues (ICOSI) was formed in 1977 by seven tobacco company chief executives to create common anti-tobacco control strategies and build a global network of regional and national manufacturing associations. The organization's name subsequently changed to INFOTAB. The multinational companies built the organization rapidly: by 1984, it had 69 members operating in 57 countries. INFOTAB material, including position papers and "action kits" helped members challenge local tobacco control measures and maintain tobacco-friendly environments. In 1992 INFOTAB was replaced by two smaller organizations. The Tobacco Documentation Centre, which continues to operate, distributes smoking-related information and industry argumentation to members, some produced by cross-company committees. Agro-Tobacco Services, and now Hallmark Marketing Services, assists the INFOTAB-backed and industry supported International Tobacco Growers Association in advancing claims regarding the economic importance of tobacco in developing nations. The massive scale and scope of this industry effort illustrate how corporate interests, when threatened by the globalization of public health, sidestep competitive

  19. Tobacco industry issues management organizations: Creating a global corporate network to undermine public health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Malone Ruth E

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The global tobacco epidemic claims 5 million lives each year, facilitated by the ability of transnational tobacco companies to delay or thwart meaningful tobacco control worldwide. A series of cross-company tobacco industry "issues management organizations" has played an important role in coordinating and implementing common strategies to defeat tobacco control efforts at international, national, and regional levels. This study examines the development and enumerates the activities of these organizations and explores the implications of continuing industry cooperation for global public health. Methods Using a snowball sampling strategy, we collected documentary data from tobacco industry documents archives and assembled them into a chronologically organized case study. Results The International Committee on Smoking Issues (ICOSI was formed in 1977 by seven tobacco company chief executives to create common anti-tobacco control strategies and build a global network of regional and national manufacturing associations. The organization's name subsequently changed to INFOTAB. The multinational companies built the organization rapidly: by 1984, it had 69 members operating in 57 countries. INFOTAB material, including position papers and "action kits" helped members challenge local tobacco control measures and maintain tobacco-friendly environments. In 1992 INFOTAB was replaced by two smaller organizations. The Tobacco Documentation Centre, which continues to operate, distributes smoking-related information and industry argumentation to members, some produced by cross-company committees. Agro-Tobacco Services, and now Hallmark Marketing Services, assists the INFOTAB-backed and industry supported International Tobacco Growers Association in advancing claims regarding the economic importance of tobacco in developing nations. Conclusion The massive scale and scope of this industry effort illustrate how corporate interests, when

  20. A time for new north–south relationships in global health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kim JU

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Jin Un Kim,1 Obinna Oleribe,2 Ramou Njie,3 Simon D Taylor-Robinson1 1Division of Digestive Health, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, London, UK; 2Excellence and Friends Management Care Centre, Abuja, Nigeria; 3MRC, Serekunda, The Gambia Abstract: The modern concept of globalization in health care and clinical research often carries a positive message for the “Global South” nations of Africa, South America and Southeast Asia. However, bioethical abuse of participants in clinical trials still exists in the Global South. Unethical studies directed by the “Global North”, formed by the medically advanced nations in North America, Western Europe and Japan, have been hugely concerning. The issue between the Global North and South is a well-recognized socioeconomic phenomenon of globalization. Medical exploitation has its roots in the socioeconomic interactions of a postcolonial world, and solutions to reducing exploitation require a deeper understanding of these societal models of globalization. We explore the fundamental causes of imbalance and suggest solutions. Reflecting on the globalization model, there must be an effort to empower the Global South nations to direct and govern their own health care systems efficiently on the basis of equality. Keywords: global health, bioethics, clinical trials, Africa, exploitation, imperialism

  1. Global health-related publications in otolaryngology are increasing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chambers, Kyle J; Creighton, Francis; Abdul-Aziz, Dunia; Cheney, Mack; Randolph, Gregory W

    2015-04-01

    Determine trends in global health-related publication in otolaryngology. A review of research databases. A search of publications available on PubMed and nine additional databases was undertaken reviewing two time periods 10 years apart for the timeframes 1998 to 2002 (early time period) and 2008 to 2012 (recent time period) using specific search terms to identify global health-related publications in otolaryngology. Publications were examined for region of origin, subspecialty, type of publication, and evidence of international collaboration. χ and t test analyses were used to identify trends. In the 1998 to 2002 time period, a total of 26 publications met inclusion criteria for the study, with a mean of 5.2 ± 2.8 publications per year. In the 2008 to 2012 time period, a total of 61 publications met inclusion criteria, with a mean of 12.3 ± 5.6 publications per year. The 235% increase in global health-related publications identified between the two study periods was statistically significant (P = .02). The absolute number of publications in which collaboration occurred between countries increased from three in the early time period to nine the recent time period. There has been a significant increase in the volume of global health-related publications in English language otolaryngology journals over the past decade, providing strong evidence of the increasing trend of global health as an academic pursuit within the field of otolaryngology. © 2014 The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society, Inc.

  2. Global Health Innovation Technology Models

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kimberly Harding

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Chronic technology and business process disparities between High Income, Low Middle Income and Low Income (HIC, LMIC, LIC research collaborators directly prevent the growth of sustainable Global Health innova‐ tion for infectious and rare diseases. There is a need for an Open Source-Open Science Architecture Framework to bridge this divide. We are proposing such a framework for consideration by the Global Health community, by utiliz‐ ing a hybrid approach of integrating agnostic Open Source technology and healthcare interoperability standards and Total Quality Management principles. We will validate this architecture framework through our programme called Project Orchid. Project Orchid is a conceptual Clinical Intelligence Exchange and Virtual Innovation platform utilizing this approach to support clinical innovation efforts for multi-national collaboration that can be locally sustainable for LIC and LMIC research cohorts. The goal is to enable LIC and LMIC research organizations to acceler‐ ate their clinical trial process maturity in the field of drug discovery, population health innovation initiatives and public domain knowledge networks. When sponsored, this concept will be tested by 12 confirmed clinical research and public health organizations in six countries. The potential impact of this platform is reduced drug discovery and public health innovation lag time and improved clinical trial interventions, due to reliable clinical intelligence and bio-surveillance across all phases of the clinical innovation process.

  3. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's grant-making programme for global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCoy, David; Kembhavi, Gayatri; Patel, Jinesh; Luintel, Akish

    2009-05-09

    The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is a major contributor to global health; its influence on international health policy and the design of global health programmes and initiatives is profound. Although the foundation's contribution to global health generally receives acclaim, fairly little is known about its grant-making programme. We undertook an analysis of 1094 global health grants awarded between January, 1998, and December, 2007. We found that the total value of these grants was US$8.95 billion, of which $5.82 billion (65%) was shared by only 20 organisations. Nevertheless, a wide range of global health organisations, such as WHO, the GAVI Alliance, the World Bank, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, prominent universities, and non-governmental organisations received grants. $3.62 billion (40% of all funding) was given to supranational organisations. Of the remaining amount, 82% went to recipients based in the USA. Just over a third ($3.27 billion) of funding was allocated to research and development (mainly for vaccines and microbicides), or to basic science research. The findings of this report raise several questions about the foundation's global health grant-making programme, which needs further research and assessment.

  4. Global warming and its implication to emission reduction strategies for residential buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang, Xiaoming; Chen, Dong; Ren, Zhengen [CSIRO Climate Adaptation Flagship and CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), P.O. Box 56, Graham Road, Highett, Victoria 3190 (Australia)

    2011-04-15

    Carbon emission reduction schemes by improving residential building energy performance are often developed and assessed upon the assumption of current or stationary climates. This study investigated the heating and cooling (H-C) energy requirements and corresponding carbon emissions of residential houses in different climatic conditions in relation to global warming. This included assessing and quantifying the efficacy of emission reduction schemes based on emission reduction capacity (ERC). ERC represents the percentage of projected carbon emission reduction under changing climate in a specific year compared to the expected reduction by a scheme at current or stationary climates. It is shown that in a heating-dominated region with a cold climate or temperate climate with cold winter, ERC is projected to increase (or the projected emission reduction is higher than the expected reduction under the emission reduction scheme) in the presence of global warming. In contrast, in a cooling-dominated region with a hot dry or hot humid climate or an H-C balanced temperate climate, ERC is projected to decline. This implies that emission reductions will be lower than those initially targeted by the emission reduction scheme without consideration of global warming. Additionally, to reflect the changing carbon emission over years due to climate change, the average emission reduction capacity (AERC) was also proposed for the assessment of reduction schemes. It was concluded that the design and assessment of carbon emission reduction schemes for residential buildings need to move beyond its assumptions of a current or stationary climate to take into account climate change impacts. (author)

  5. Building policy-making capacity in the Ministry of Health: the Kazakhstan experience.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chanturidze, Tata; Adams, Orvill; Tokezhanov, Bolat; Naylor, Mike; Richardson, Erica

    2015-01-20

    Recent economic growth in Kazakhstan has been accompanied by slower improvements in population health and this has renewed impetus for health system reform. Strengthening strategic planning and policy-making capacity in the Ministry of Health has been identified as an important priority, particularly as the Ministry of Health is leading the health system reform process. The intervention was informed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) framework for capacity building which views capacity building as an ongoing process embedded in local institutions and practices. In response to local needs extra elements were included in the framework to tailor the capacity building programme according to the existing policy and budget cycles and respective competence requirements, and link it with transparent career development structures of the Ministry of Health. This aspect of the programme was informed by the institutional capability assessment model used by the United Kingdom National Health Service (NHS) which was adapted to examine the specific organizational and individual competences of the Ministry of Health in Kazakhstan. There were clear successes in building capacity for policy making and strategic planning within the Ministry of Health in Kazakhstan, including better planned, more timely and in-depth responses to policy assignments. Embedding career development as a part of this process was more challenging. This case study highlights the importance of strong political will and high level support for capacity building in ensuring the sustainability of programmes. It also shows that capacity-building programmes need to ensure full engagement with all local stakeholders, or where this is not possible, programmes need to be targeted narrowly to those stakeholders who will benefit most, for the greatest impact to be achieved. In sum, high quality tailor-made capacity development programmes should be based on thorough needs assessment of individual and

  6. Governing Global Health : Knowledge and power in the global tobacco epidemic

    OpenAIRE

    Kenny, Katherine Elizabeth

    2015-01-01

    This dissertation examines the coproduction of epistemic and regulatory authority in the field of global health using the case of international tobacco control. In 2005, the world's first public health treaty -- the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) -- was brought into force by the World Health Organization (WHO). Unanimously adopted by the World Health Assembly in 2003, the FCTC has since become one of the most widely and rapidly adopted treaties in the history of the United Nat...

  7. Medicalization of global health 4: The universal health coverage campaign and the medicalization of global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clark, Jocalyn

    2014-01-01

    Universal health coverage (UHC) has emerged as the leading and recommended overarching health goal on the post-2015 development agenda, and is promoted with fervour. UHC has the backing of major medical and health institutions, and is designed to provide patients with universal access to needed health services without financial hardship, but is also projected to have 'a transformative effect on poverty, hunger, and disease'. Multiple reports and resolutions support UHC and few offer critical analyses; but among these are concerns with imprecise definitions and the ability to implement UHC at the country level. A medicalization lens enriches these early critiques and identifies concerns that the UHC campaign contributes to the medicalization of global health. UHC conflates health with health care, thus assigning undue importance to (biomedical) health services and downgrading the social and structural determinants of health. There is poor evidence that UHC or health care alone improves population health outcomes, and in fact health care may worsen inequities. UHC is reductionistic because it focuses on preventative and curative actions delivered at the individual level, and ignores the social and political determinants of health and right to health that have been supported by decades of international work and commitments. UHC risks commodifying health care, which threatens the underlying principles of UHC of equity in access and of health care as a collective good.

  8. Meeting global health challenges through operational research and management science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Royston, Geoff

    2011-09-01

    This paper considers how operational research and management science can improve the design of health systems and the delivery of health care, particularly in low-resource settings. It identifies some gaps in the way operational research is typically used in global health and proposes steps to bridge them. It then outlines some analytical tools of operational research and management science and illustrates how their use can inform some typical design and delivery challenges in global health. The paper concludes by considering factors that will increase and improve the contribution of operational research and management science to global health.

  9. Global oral health of older people--call for public health action

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petersen, P E; Kandelman, D; Arpin, S

    2010-01-01

    The aim of this report is (1) to provide a global overview of oral health conditions in older people, use of oral health services, and self care practices; (2) to explore what types of oral health services are available to older people, and (3) to identify some major barriers to and opportunities...... for the establishment of oral health services and health promotion programmes....

  10. Globalization and the diffusion of ideas: why we should acknowledge the roots of mainstream ideas in global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robert, Emilie; Hajizadeh, Mohammad; El-Bialy, Rowan; Bidisha, Sayema Haque

    2014-06-01

    Although globalization has created ample opportunities and spaces to share experiences and information, the diffusion of ideas, especially in global health, is primarily influenced by the unequal distribution of economic, political and scientific powers around the world. These ideas in global health are generally rooted in High-Income Countries (HICs), and then reach Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). We argue that acknowledging and addressing this invisible trend would contribute to a greater degree of open discussions in global health. This is expected to favor innovative, alternative, and culturally sound solutions for persistent health problems and reducing inequities.

  11. Global health initiative investments and health systems strengthening: a content analysis of global fund investments

    OpenAIRE

    Warren, Ashley E; Wyss, Kaspar; Shakarishvili, George; Atun, Rifat; de Savigny, Don

    2013-01-01

    Background: Millions of dollars are invested annually under the umbrella of national health systems strengthening. Global health initiatives provide funding for low- and middle-income countries through disease-oriented programmes while maintaining that the interventions simultaneously strengthen systems. However, it is as yet unclear which, and to what extent, system-level interventions are being funded by these initiatives, nor is it clear how much funding they allocate to disease-specific a...

  12. Seafloor 2030 - Building a Global Ocean Map through International Collaboration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferrini, V. L.; Wigley, R. A.; Falconer, R. K. H.; Jakobsson, M.; Allen, G.; Mayer, L. A.; Schmitt, T.; Rovere, M.; Weatherall, P.; Marks, K. M.

    2016-12-01

    With more than 85% of the ocean floor unmapped, a huge proportion of our planet remains unexplored. Creating a comprehensive map of seafloor bathymetry remains a true global challenge that can only be accomplished through collaboration and partnership between governments, industry, academia, research organizations and non-government organizations. The objective of Seafloor 2030 is to comprehensively map the global ocean floor to resolutions that enable exploration and improved understanding of ocean processes, while informing maritime policy and supporting the management of natural marine resources for a sustainable Blue Economy. Seafloor 2030 is the outcome of the Forum for Future of Ocean Floor Mapping held in Monaco in June 2016, which was held under the auspices of GEBCO and the Nippon Foundation of Japan. GEBCO is the only international organization mandated to map the global ocean floor and is guided by the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO. The task of completely mapping the ocean floor will require new global coordination to ensure that both existing data are identified and that new mapping efforts are coordinated to help efficiently "map the gaps." Fundamental to achieving Seafloor 2030 will be greater access to data, tools and technology, particularly for developing and coastal nations. This includes bathymetric post-processing and analysis software, database technology, computing infrastructure and gridding techniques as well as the latest developments in seafloor mapping methods and emerging crowd-sourced bathymetry initiatives. The key to achieving this global bathymetric map is capacity building and education - including greater coordination between scientific research and industry and the effective engagement of international organizations such as the United Nations.

  13. More than just a hobby: building an academic career in global emergency medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martin, Ian B K; Levine, Adam C; Kayden, Stephanie; Hauswald, Mark

    2014-07-01

    As the specialty of emergency medicine (EM) continues to spread around the world, a growing number of academic emergency physicians have become involved in global EM development, research, and teaching. While academic departments have always found this work laudable, they have only recently begun to accept global EM as a rigorous academic pursuit in its own right. This article describes how emergency physicians can translate their global health work into "academic currency" within both the clinician-educator and clinician-researcher tracks. The authors discuss the impact of various types of additional training, including global EM fellowships, for launching a career in global EM. Clearly delineated clinician-researcher and clinician-educator tracks are important for documenting achievement in global EM. Reflecting a growing interest in global health, more of today's EM faculty members are ascending the academic ranks as global EM specialists. Whether attempting to climb the academic ladder as a clinician-educator or clinician-researcher, advanced planning and the firm support of one's academic chair is crucial to the success of the promotion process. Given the relative youth of the subspecialty of global EM, however, it will take time for the pathways to academic promotion to become well delineated. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Global health care leadership development: trends to consider

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MacPhee M

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Maura MacPhee,1 Lilu Chang,2 Diana Lee,3 Wilza Spiri4 1University of British Columbia School of Nursing, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; 2Center for Advancement of Nursing Education, Koo Foundation, Sun Yat-Sen Cancer Center, Taipei, Taiwan; 3Nethersole School of Nursing, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 4São Paulo State University, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil Abstract: This paper provides an overview of trends associated with global health care leadership development. Accompanying these trends are propositions based on current available evidence. These testable propositions should be considered when designing, implementing, and evaluating global health care leadership development models and programs. One particular leadership development model, a multilevel identity model, is presented as a potential model to use for leadership development. Other, complementary approaches, such as positive psychology and empowerment strategies, are discussed in relation to leadership identity formation. Specific issues related to global leadership are reviewed, including cultural intelligence and global mindset. An example is given of a nurse leadership development model that has been empirically tested in Canada. Through formal practice–academic–community collaborations, this model has been locally adapted and is being used for nurse leader training in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Brazil. Collaborative work is under way to adapt the model for interprofessional health care leadership development. Keywords: health care leadership, development models, global trends, collective

  15. Building Canadian Support for Global Health Research - Phase III ...

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    supported researcher is receiving international attention for his work to address maternal and child death rates in East Africa. View moreMaternal and child health research featured in Canadian Geographic ...

  16. Physical Education and Health: Global Perspectives and Best Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chin, Ming-Kai, Ed.; Edginton, Christopher R.

    2014-01-01

    "Physical Education and Health: Global Perspectives and Best Practice" draws together global scholars, researchers, and practitioners to provide a review and analysis of new directions in physical education and health worldwide. The book provides descriptive information from 40 countries regarding contemporary practices, models, and…

  17. Recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software: An overview

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    C-L. Chang (Chia-Lin); M.J. McAleer (Michael)

    2017-01-01

    textabstractThe paper presents an overview of recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software. We have interpreted "global" in the title of the Journal of Reviews on Global Economics to cover contributions that have a global impact on

  18. On Becoming a Global Citizen: Transformative Learning Through Global Health Experiences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Litzelman, Debra K; Gardner, Adrian; Einterz, Robert M; Owiti, Philip; Wambui, Charity; Huskins, Jordan C; Schmitt-Wendholt, Kathleen M; Stone, Geren S; Ayuo, Paul O; Inui, Thomas S; Umoren, Rachel A

    Globalization has increased the demand for international experiences in medical education. International experiences improve medical knowledge, clinical skills, and self-development; influence career objectives; and provide insights on ethical and societal issues. However, global health rotations can end up being no more than tourism if not structured to foster personal transformation and global citizenship. We conducted a qualitative assessment of trainee-reported critical incidents to more deeply understand the impact of our global health experience on trainees. A cross-sectional survey was administered to trainees who had participated in a 2-month elective in Kenya from January 1989 to May 2013. We report the results of a qualitative assessment of the critical incident reflections participants (n = 137) entered in response to the prompt, "Write about one of your most memorable experiences and explain why you chose to describe this particular one." Qualitative analyses were conducted using thematic analysis and crystallization immersion analytic methods based on the principles of grounded theory, employing a constructivists' research paradigm. Four major themes emerged. These themes were Opening Oneself to a Broader World View; Impact of Suffering and Death; Life-Changing Experiences; and Commitment to Care for the Medically Underserved. Circumstances that learners encounter in the resource-scarce environment in Kenya are eye-opening and life-changing. When exposed to these frame-shifting circumstances, students elaborate on or transform existing points of view. These emotionally disruptive experiences in an international health setting allowed students to enter a transformational learning process with a global mind. Students can see the world as an interdependent society and develop the capacity to advance both their enlightened self-interest and the interest of people elsewhere in the world as they mature as global citizens. Medical schools are encouraged to

  19. Indoor Thermal Environment in Tropical Climate Residential Building

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jamaludin Nazhatulzalkis

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Indoor thermal environment is one of the criteria in sustainable building. This criterion is important in ensuring a healthy indoor environment for the occupants. The consideration of environmental concerns at the early design stage would effectively integrate the sustainability of the building environment. Global climate changes such as global warming do affect human comfort since people spend most of their time and activities in the building. The increasing of urban population required additional housing for households, as well as places to shop, office and other facilities. Occupants are now more conscious the importance of sustainability for a better quality of life. Good thermal environment is essential for human wellness and comfort. A residential environment will influence residents’ health and safety. The global warming increase the earth’s temperature and greenhouse emission to the atmosphere cause adverse effects to the outdoor environment. Residential developments modify the materials, structure and energy balance in urban climate effects of human economic activities. As an indoor environment is influenced by the outdoor condition, the factors affecting indoor thermal environment are crucial in improving a comfortable and healthy environment in residential building. The microclimatic of a site such as temperature and relative humidity, and wind movement led to the variation of indoor thermal environment in the building.

  20. Global Health Warning: Definitions Wield Power Comment on "Navigating Between Stealth Advocacy and Unconscious Dogmatism: The Challenge of Researching the Norms, Politics and Power of Global Health".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marten, Robert

    2015-12-25

    Gorik Ooms recently made a strong case for considering the centrality of normative premises to analyzing and understanding the underappreciated importance of the nexus of politics, power and process in global health. This critical commentary raises serious questions for the practice and study of global health and global health governance. First and foremost, this commentary underlines the importance of the question of what is global health, and why as well as how does this definition matter? This refocuses discussion on the importance of definitions and how they wield power. It also re-affirms the necessity of a deeper analysis and understanding of power and how it affects and shapes the practice of global health. © 2016 by Kerman University of Medical Sciences.

  1. Being global in public health practice and research: complementary competencies are needed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cole, Donald C; Davison, Colleen; Hanson, Lori; Jackson, Suzanne F; Page, Ashley; Lencuch, Raphael; Kakuma, Ritz

    2011-01-01

    Different sets of competencies in public health, global health and research have recently emerged, including the Core Competencies for Public Health in Canada (CCPHC). Within this context, we believe it is important to articulate competencies for globalhealth practitioners-educators and researchers that are in addition to those outlined in the CCPHC. In global health, we require knowledge and skills regarding: north-south power dynamics, linkages between local and global health problems, and the roles of international organizations. We must be able to work responsibly in low-resource settings, foster self-determination in a world rife with power differentials, and engage in dialogue with stakeholders globally. Skills in cross-cultural communication and the ability to critically self-reflect on one's own social location within the global context are essential. Those in global health must be committed to improving health equity through global systems changes and be willing to be mentored and to mentor others across borders. We call for dialogue on these competencies and for development of ways to assess both their demonstration in academic settings and their performance in global health practice and research.

  2. Enhancing global health and education in Malawi, Zambia, and the United States through an interprofessional global health exchange program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, Lynda Law; Somerall, D'Ann; Theus, Lisa; Rankin, Sally; Ngoma, Catherine; Chimwaza, Angela

    2014-05-01

    This article describes participant outcomes of an interprofessional collaboration between health professionals and faculty in Malawi, Zambia, and the United States (US). One strategy critical for improving global health and addressing Millennium Development goals is promotion of interprofessional education and collaboration. Program participants included 25 health professionals from Malawi and Zambia, and 19 faculty/health professionals from Alabama and California. African Fellows participated in a 2 week workshop on Interprofessional Education in Alabama followed by 2 weeks working on individual goals with faculty collaborators/mentors. The US Fellows also spent 2 weeks visiting their counterparts in Malawi and Zambia to develop plans for sustainable partnerships. Program evaluations demonstrated participants' satisfaction with the program and indicated that the program promoted interprofessional and cross-cultural understanding; fostered development of long-term sustainable partnerships between health professionals and educators in Zambia and the US; and created increased awareness and use of resources for global health education. © 2014.

  3. Forced Migration and Global Responsibility for Health Comment on "Defining and Acting on Global Health: The Case of Japan and the Refugee Crisis".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bozorgmehr, Kayvan; Razum, Oliver

    2016-11-05

    Forced migration has become a world-wide phenomenon in the past century, affecting increasing numbers of countries and people. It entails important challenges from a global health perspective. Leppold et al have critically discussed the Japanese interpretation of global responsibility for health in the context of forced migration. This commentary complements their analysis by outlining three priority areas of global health responsibility for European Union (EU) countries. We highlight important stages of the migration phases related to forced migration and propose three arguments. First, the chronic neglect of the large number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the discourses on the "refugee crisis" needs to be corrected in order to develop sustainable solutions with a framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Second, protection gaps in the global system of protection need to be effectively closed to resolve conflicts with border management and normative global health frameworks. Third, effective policies need to be developed and implemented to meet the health and humanitarian needs of forced migrants; at the same time, the solidarity crisis within the EU needs to be overcome. These stakes are high. EU countries, being committed to global health, should urgently address these areas. © 2017 The Author(s); Published by Kerman University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

  4. Knowledge, politics and power in global health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Garrett Wallace

    2015-01-01

    This article agrees with recent arguments suggesting that normative and epistemic power is rife within global health policy and provides further examples of such. However, in doing so, it is argued that it is equally important to recognize that global health is, and always will be, deeply political and that some form of power is not only necessary for the system to advance, but also to try and control the ways in which power within that system operates. In this regard, a better focus on health politics can both expose illegitimate sources of power, but also provide better recommendations to facilitate deliberations that can, although imperfectly, help legitimate sources of influence and power. PMID:25674575

  5. Building sustainable health and education partnerships: stories from local communities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blank, Martin J

    2015-11-01

    Growing health disparities have a negative impact on young people's educational achievement. Community schools that involve deep relationships with partners across multiple domains address these disparities by providing opportunities and services that promote healthy development of young people, and enable them to graduate from high school ready for college, technical school, on-the-job training, career, and citizenship. Results from Milwaukie High School, North Clackamas, OR; Oakland Unified School District, Oakland, CA; and Cincinnati Community Learning Centers, Cincinnati, OH were based on a review of local site documents, web-based information, interviews, and e-mail communication with key local actors. The schools and districts with strong health partnerships reflecting community schools strategy have shown improvements in attendance, academic performance, and increased access to mental, dental, vision, and health supports for their students. To build deep health-education partnerships and grow community schools, a working leadership and management infrastructure must be in place that uses quality data, focuses on results, and facilitates professional development across sectors. The leadership infrastructure of community school initiatives offers a prototype on which others can build. Moreover, as leaders build cross-sector relationships, a clear definition of what scaling up means is essential for subsequent long-term systemic change. © 2015 Institute for Educational Leadership. Journal of School Health published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American School Health Association.

  6. Combating corruption in global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mackey, Tim K; Kohler, Jillian; Lewis, Maureen; Vian, Taryn

    2017-08-09

    Corruption is a critical challenge to global health efforts, and combating it requires international action, advocacy, and research. Copyright © 2017 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.

  7. Challenges and opportunities in building health research capacity in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Capacity building is considered a priority for health research institutions in developing countries to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. However, in many countries including Tanzania, much emphasis has been directed towards human resources for health with the total exclusion of human resources for ...

  8. Routledge handbook of global public health

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Parker, Richard G; Sommer, Marni

    2011-01-01

    ... processes such as the growth of inequalities between the rich and the poor in countries around the world, the globalisation of trade and commerce, new patterns of travel and migration, as well as a reduction in resources for the development and sustainability of public health infrastructures. The Routledge Handbook of Global Public Health explores ...

  9. Towards Establishing Fiscal Legitimacy Through Settled Fiscal Principles in Global Health Financing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Waris, Attiya; Latif, Laila Abdul

    2015-12-01

    Scholarship on international health law is currently pushing the boundaries while taking stock of achievements made over the past few decades. However despite the forward thinking approach of scholars working in the field of global health one area remains a stumbling block in the path to achieving the right to health universally: the financing of heath. This paper uses the book Global Health Law by Larry Gostin to reflect and take stock of the fiscal support provided to the right to health from both a global and an African perspective. It then sets out the key fiscal challenges facing global and African health and proposes an innovative solution for consideration: use of the domestic principles of tax to design the global health financing system.

  10. Banking for health: the role of financial sector actors in investing in global health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kickbusch, Ilona; Franz, Christian; Wells, Nadya

    2018-01-01

    The world faces multiple health financing challenges as the global health burden evolves. Countries have set an ambitious health policy agenda for the next 15 years with prioritisation of universal health coverage under the Sustainable Development Goals. The scale of investment needed for equitable access to health services means global health is one of the key economic opportunities for decades to come. New financing partnerships with the private sector are vital. The aim of this study is to unlock additional financing sources, acknowledging the imperative to link financial returns to the providers of capital, and create profitable, sustainable financing structures. This paper outlines the global health investment opportunity exploring intersections of financial and health sector interests, and the role investment in health can play in economic development. Considering increasing demand for impact investments, the paper explores responsible financing initiatives and expansion of the global movement for sustainable capital markets. Adding an explicit health component (H) to the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investment criteria, creating the ESG+H initiative, could serve as catalyst for the inclusion of health criteria into mainstream financial actors’ business practices and investment objectives. The conclusion finds that health considerations directly impact profitability of the firm and therefore should be incorporated into financial analysis. Positive assessment of health impact, at a broad societal or environmental level, as well as for a firm’s employees can become a value enhancing competitive advantage. An ESG+H framework could incorporate this into mainstream financial decision-making and into scalable investment products. PMID:29736278

  11. Banking for health: the role of financial sector actors in investing in global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krech, Rüdiger; Kickbusch, Ilona; Franz, Christian; Wells, Nadya

    2018-01-01

    The world faces multiple health financing challenges as the global health burden evolves. Countries have set an ambitious health policy agenda for the next 15 years with prioritisation of universal health coverage under the Sustainable Development Goals. The scale of investment needed for equitable access to health services means global health is one of the key economic opportunities for decades to come. New financing partnerships with the private sector are vital. The aim of this study is to unlock additional financing sources, acknowledging the imperative to link financial returns to the providers of capital, and create profitable, sustainable financing structures. This paper outlines the global health investment opportunity exploring intersections of financial and health sector interests, and the role investment in health can play in economic development. Considering increasing demand for impact investments, the paper explores responsible financing initiatives and expansion of the global movement for sustainable capital markets. Adding an explicit health component (H) to the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investment criteria, creating the ESG+H initiative, could serve as catalyst for the inclusion of health criteria into mainstream financial actors' business practices and investment objectives. The conclusion finds that health considerations directly impact profitability of the firm and therefore should be incorporated into financial analysis. Positive assessment of health impact, at a broad societal or environmental level, as well as for a firm's employees can become a value enhancing competitive advantage. An ESG+H framework could incorporate this into mainstream financial decision-making and into scalable investment products.

  12. Human Health Science Building Geothermal Heat Pump Systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Leidel, James [Oakland Univ., Rochester, MI (United States)

    2014-12-22

    The grant objectives of the DOE grant funded project have been successfully completed. The Human Health Building (HHB) was constructed and opened for occupancy for the Fall 2012 semester of Oakland University. As with any large construction project, some issues arose which all were overcome to deliver the project on budget and on time. The facility design is a geothermal / solar-thermal hybrid building utilizing both desiccant dehumidification and variable refrigerant flow heat pumps. It is a cooling dominant building with a 400 ton cooling design day load, and 150 ton heating load on a design day. A 256 vertical borehole (320 ft depth) ground source heat pump array is located south of the building under the existing parking lot. The temperature swing and performance over 2013 through 2015 shows the ground loop is well sized, and may even have excess capacity for a future building to the north (planned lab facility). The HHB achieve a US Green Building Counsel LEED Platinum rating by collecting 52 of the total 69 available LEED points for the New Construction v.2 scoring checklist. Being Oakland's first geothermal project, we were very pleased with the building outcome and performance with the energy consumption approximately 1/2 of the campus average facility, on a square foot basis.

  13. Tobacco control, global health policy and development: towards policy coherence in global governance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Collin, Jeff

    2015-01-01

    The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) demonstrates the international political will invested in combating the tobacco pandemic and a newfound prominence for tobacco control within the global health agenda. However, major difficulties exist in managing conflicts with foreign and trade policy priorities, and significant obstacles confront efforts to create synergies with development policy and avoid tensions with other health priorities. This paper uses the concept of policy coherence to explore congruence and inconsistencies in objectives, policy, and practice between tobacco control and trade, development and global health priorities. Following the inability of the FCTC negotiations to satisfactorily address the relationship between trade and health, several disputes highlight the challenges posed to tobacco control policies by multilateral and bilateral agreements. While the work of the World Bank has demonstrated the potential contribution of tobacco control to development, the absence of non-communicable diseases from the Millennium Development Goals has limited scope to offer developing countries support for FCTC implementation. Even within international health, tobacco control priorities may be hard to reconcile with other agendas. The paper concludes by discussing the extent to which tobacco control has been pursued via a model of governance very deliberately different from those used in other health issues, in what can be termed ‘tobacco exceptionalism’. The analysis developed here suggests that non-communicable disease (NCD) policies, global health, development and tobacco control would have much to gain from re-examining this presumption of difference. PMID:22345267

  14. The Ebola Outbreak: Catalyzing a “Shift” in Global Health Governance?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tim K. Mackey

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background As the 2014 Ebola virus disease outbreak (EVD transitions to its post-endemic phase, its impact on the future of global public health, particularly the World Health Organization (WHO, is the subject of continued debate. Criticism of WHO’s performance grew louder in the outbreak’s wake, placing this international health UN-specialized agency in the difficult position of navigating a complex series of reform recommendations put forth by different stakeholders. Decisions on WHO governance reform and the broader role of the United Nations could very well shape the future landscape of 21st century global health and how the international community responds to health emergencies. Discussion In order to better understand the implications of the EVD outbreak on global health and infectious disease governance, this debate article critically examines a series of reports issued by four high-level commissions/panels convened to specifically assess WHO’s performance post-Ebola. Collectively, these recommendations add increasing complexity to the urgent need for WHO reform, a process that the agency must carry out in order to maintain its legitimacy. Proposals that garnered strong support included the formation of an independent WHO Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response, the urgent need to increase WHO infectious disease funding and capacity, and establishing better operational and policy coordination between WHO, UN agencies, and other global health partners. The recommendations also raise more fundamental questions about restructuring the global health architecture, and whether the UN should play a more active role in global health governance. Summary Despite the need for a fully modernized WHO, reform proposals recently announced by WHO fail to achieve the “evolution” in global health governance needed in order to ensure that global society is adequately protected against the multifaceted and increasingly complex

  15. Global oral health inequalities: task group--periodontal disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jin, L J; Armitage, G C; Klinge, B; Lang, N P; Tonetti, M; Williams, R C

    2011-05-01

    Periodontal diseases constitute one of the major global oral health burdens, and periodontitis remains a major cause of tooth loss in adults worldwide. The World Health Organization recently reported that severe periodontitis exists in 5-20% of adult populations, and most children and adolescents exhibit signs of gingivitis. Likely reasons to account for these prevalent diseases include genetic, epigenetic, and environmental risk factors, as well as individual and socio-economic determinants. Currently, there are fundamental gaps in knowledge of such fundamental issues as the mechanisms of initiation and progression of periodontal diseases, which are undefined; inability to identify high-risk forms of gingivitis that progress to periodontitis; lack of evidence on how to prevent the diseases effectively; inability to detect disease activity and predict treatment efficacy; and limited information on the effects of integration of periodontal health as a part of the health care program designed to promote general health and prevent chronic diseases. In the present report, 12 basic, translational, and applied research areas have been proposed to address the issue of global periodontal health inequality. We believe that the oral health burden caused by periodontal diseases could be relieved significantly in the near future through an effective global collaboration.

  16. International Health Regulations (2005 and the U.S. Department of Defense: building core capacities on a foundation of partnership and trust

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Blazes David L

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract A cornerstone of effective global health surveillance programs is the ability to build systems that identify, track and respond to public health threats in a timely manner. These functions are often difficult and require international cooperation given the rapidity with which diseases cross national borders and spread throughout the global community as a result of travel and migration by both humans and animals. As part of the U.S. Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center (AFHSC, the Department of Defense’s (DoD Globa Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System (AFHSC-GEIS has developed a global network of surveillance sites over the past decade that engages in a wide spectrum of support activities in collaboration with host country partners. Many of these activities are in direct support of International Health Regulations (IHR[2005]. The network also supports host country military forces around the world, which are equally affected by these threats and are often in a unique position to respond in areas of conflict or during complex emergencies. With IHR(2005 as the guiding framework for action, the AFHSC-GEIS network of international partners and overseas research laboratories continues to develop into a far-reaching system for identifying, analyzing and responding to emerging disease threats.

  17. An online education approach to population health in a global society.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Utley-Smith, Queen

    2017-07-01

    Health professions education content must keep pace with the ever-evolving and changing health care system. Population-based health care is advocated as a way to improve health outcomes, particularly in a technologically advanced health system like the United States. At the same time, global health knowledge is increasingly valued in health professions education, including nursing. This article describes the design and implementation of an online population health course with a global viewpoint intended to accommodate the need for improved knowledge and skill application for graduate nurses. Attention was also given to faculty efficiency during the process of design and implementation. This population-global health course was piloted in a renovated master's curriculum for two semesters. Administering a Course Improvement Survey after initial course offerings assisted faculty to assess and target essential course changes. Data were collected from 106 registered nurse graduate students. Population and global health course objectives were met and students identified areas for course enhancement. Students (90%-94%) reported achieving increased knowledge of population health and global health. Like other creative works, the first rendition of a course requires pedagogical adjustments and editing. Formal student input, when built into the design and implementation of a course can assist faculty to be efficient when crafting essential course changes for subsequent semesters. Data from the survey showed that major population and global subject matter was being grasped by students, the data also revealed that tweaking specific online strategies like making all course content mobile would enhance the course. The course development process and course improvement evaluation for this Population Health in a Global Society course proved valuable in the education of nurses, and helped maintain faculty work efficiency. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  18. Ethical and Economic Perspectives on Global Health Interventions

    OpenAIRE

    Sonia Bhalotra; Thomas Pogge

    2012-01-01

    Interventions that improve childhood health directly improve the quality of life and, in addition, have multiplier effects, producing sustained population and economic gains in poor countries. We suggest how contemporary global institutions shaping the development, pricing and distribution of vaccines and drugs may be modified to deliver large improvements in health. To support a justice argument for such modification, we show how the current global economic order may contribute to perpetuati...

  19. Why US Health Care Should Think Globally.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruchman, Samuel G; Singh, Prabhjot; Stapleton, Anna

    2016-07-01

    Why should health care systems in the United States engage with the world's poorest populations abroad while tremendous inequalities in health status and access are pervasive domestically? Traditionally, three arguments have bolstered global engagement: (1) a moral obligation to ensure opportunities to live, (2) a duty to protect against health threats, and (3) a desire to protect against economic downturns precipitated by health crises. We expand this conversation, arguing that US-based clinicians, organizational stewards, and researchers should engage with and learn from low-resource settings' systems and products that deliver high-quality, cost-effective, inclusive care in order to better respond to domestic inequities. Ultimately, connecting "local" and "global" efforts will benefit both populations and is not a sacrifice of one for the other. © 2016 American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved. ISSN 2376-6980.

  20. The Afya Bora Fellowship: An Innovative Program Focused on Creating an Interprofessional Network of Leaders in Global Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Green, Wendy M; Farquhar, Carey; Mashalla, Yohana

    2017-09-01

    Most current health professions education programs are focused on the development of clinical skills. As a result, they may not address the complex and interconnected nature of global health. Trainees require relevant clinical, programmatic, and leadership skills to meet the challenges of practicing in an increasingly globalized environment. To develop health care leaders within sub-Saharan Africa, the Afya Bora Consortium developed a one-year fellowship for medical doctors and nurses. Fellows from nine institutions in the United States and sub-Saharan Africa participate in 12 learning modules focused on leadership development and program management. Classroom-based training is augmented with an experiential apprenticeship component. Since 2011, 100 fellows have graduated from the program. During their apprenticeships, fellows developed projects beneficial to their development and to host organizations. The program has developed fellows' skills in leadership, lent expertise to local organizations, and built knowledge in local contexts. Most fellows have returned to their countries of origin, thus building local capacity. U.S.-based fellows examine global health challenges from regional perspectives and learn from sub-Saharan African experts and peers. The Consortium provides ongoing support to alumni through career development awards and alumni network engagement with current and past fellow cohorts. The Consortium expanded from its initial network of five countries to six and continues to seek opportunities for geographical and institutional expansion.

  1. Aid alignment for global health research: the role of HIROs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Viergever Roderik F

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract The lack of a mechanism that aligns financial flows for global health research towards public health priorities limits the impact of health research on health and health equity. Collaborative groups of health research funders appear to be particularly well situated to ameliorate this situation and to initiate discussion on aid alignment for global health research. One such group is the Heads of International Research Organizations (HIROs, which brings together a large number of major government and philanthropic funders of biomedical research. Surprisingly, there is hardly any information publicly available on HIROs' objectives, or on how it aims to achieve more harmonization in the field of research for health. Greater transparency on HIROs' objectives and on its current efforts towards addressing the gap between global health research needs and investments would be desirable, given the enormous potential benefits of more coordination by this group.

  2. Challenges, health implications, and advocacy opportunities for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender global health providers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nagata, Jason M

    2017-01-01

    In this commentary, I reflect on challenges with conducting global health research internationally as a lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) person, grapple with decisions related to coming out in regions with anti-LGBT laws, and outline the risks and benefits of different advocacy options related to the promotion of LGBT health globally. Despite significant advances in LGBT rights in many countries, homosexuality remains illegal in many others. Using a critical medical anthropology framework, I argue that anti-LGBT laws constitute structural violence and have many detrimental consequences including discrimination and violence; poorer mental and physical health outcomes; and risky sexual behaviors. As a global health provider, there are many options for the promotion of LGBT health worldwide.

  3. Global health funding: how much, where it comes from and where it goes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCoy, David; Chand, Sudeep; Sridhar, Devi

    2009-11-01

    Global health funding has increased in recent years. This has been accompanied by a proliferation in the number of global health actors and initiatives. This paper describes the state of global heath finance, taking into account government and private sources of finance, and raises and discusses a number of policy issues related to global health governance. A schematic describing the different actors and three global health finance functions is used to organize the data presented, most of which are secondary data from the published literature and annual reports of relevant actors. In two cases, we also refer to currently unpublished primary data that have been collected by authors of this paper. Among the findings are that the volume of official development assistance for health is frequently inflated; and that data on private sources of global health finance are inadequate but indicate a large and important role of private actors. The fragmented, complicated, messy and inadequately tracked state of global health finance requires immediate attention. In particular it is necessary to track and monitor global health finance that is channelled by and through private sources, and to critically examine who benefits from the rise in global health spending.

  4. The Grand Convergence: Closing the Divide between Public Health Funding and Global Health Needs.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mary Moran

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available The Global Health 2035 report notes that the "grand convergence"--closure of the infectious, maternal, and child mortality gap between rich and poor countries--is dependent on research and development (R&D of new drugs, vaccines, diagnostics, and other health tools. However, this convergence (and the R&D underpinning it will first require an even more fundamental convergence of the different worlds of public health and innovation, where a largely historical gap between global health experts and innovation experts is hindering achievement of the grand convergence in health.

  5. Developing global health technology standards: what can other industries teach us?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masum, Hassan; Lackman, Rebecca; Bartleson, Karen

    2013-10-17

    There is a lack of effective and affordable technologies to address health needs in the developing world. One way to address problems of innovation and affordability is to design global health technologies to follow agreed-upon standards. This Debate article argues that we can better develop standards for global health technologies if we learn lessons from other industries. The article's Background section begins by explaining why standards are needed in global health. For example, if global health technologies can be modularized into independent interfacing parts, these parts can then interact via well-defined standards in a "plug and play" fashion. This can avoid development of mutually incompatible solutions by different organizations, speed the pace of innovation, unlock health systems from single providers and approaches, and lower barriers to entry. The Background then gives a brief primer on standards and discusses incentives for health standards. The article's Discussion section begins with brief relevant cases of standards development from other industries, including electricity, container shipping, CD standards, Universal Serial Bus (USB), and the Internet. It then explores lessons from these and other industries that suggest how to develop standards for global health technologies. The remainder of the Discussion considers intellectual property and regulatory issues and standards-based global health business models, and ends with a checklist of considerations for health standards development leaders. (The associated Additional file discusses observations from standards development for cell phones and semiconductors, as well as challenges in the standards development process itself.) Throughout the article, point-of-care diagnostics are used as an illustrative example. An initiative is already underway to explore standardized diagnostics platforms. This Debate article aims to convince the reader that standards can benefit global health technologies if we

  6. Unequal ‘Partners’. AIDS, Academia, and the Rise of Global Health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Johanna T. Crane

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available The last decade has seen the proliferation of “global health” departments, centers, programs, and majors across top research universities in North America and Europe. This trend has been particularly pronounced in the United States, where it is connected to America′s new role as a major sponsor of HIV treatment in Africa. This paper describes the rise of “global health” as a research, funding, and training priority within U.S. academic medicine, and the increasing desirability of “global health partnerships” with institutions in sub-Saharan Africa. Leading spokespersons emphasize that “partnership” with poor nations is central to the mission of global health, an ethic that distinguishes it from older, more paternalistic traditions of international health and tropical medicine. However, at the same time, the field of academic global health depends on steep inequalities for its very existence, as it is the opportunity to work in impoverished, low-tech settings with high disease burdens that draws North American researchers and clinicians to global health programs and ensures their continued funding. This paradox – in which inequality is both a form of suffering to be redressed and a professional, knowledge-generating, opportunity to be exploited – makes the partnerships to which global health aspires particularly challenging.

  7. Creating mold-free buildings: a key to avoiding health effects of indoor molds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Small, Bruce M

    2003-08-01

    In view of the high costs of building diagnostics and repair subsequent to water damage--as well as the large medical diagnostic and healthcare costs associated with mold growth in buildings--commitment to a philosophy of proactive preventive maintenance for home, apartment, school, and commercial buildings could result in considerable cost savings and avoidance of major health problems among building occupants. The author identifies common causes of mold growth in buildings and summarizes key building design and construction principles essential for preventing mold contamination indoors. Physicians and healthcare workers must be made aware of conditions within buildings that can give rise to mold growth, and of resulting health problems. Timely advice provided to patients already sensitized by exposure to molds could save these individuals, and their families, from further exposures as a result of inadequate building maintenance or an inappropriate choice of replacement housing.

  8. An Assessment of Global Oral Health Education in U.S. Dental Schools.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sung, Janet; Gluch, Joan I

    2017-02-01

    Dental schools need to produce graduates who are adequately prepared to respond to the complex needs and challenges of the increasingly diverse and interconnected world in which they will practice dentistry. To enhance discussions about the coverage of global oral health competencies in dental education, the aims of this study were to assess how global health education is currently incorporated into predoctoral dental training in the U.S. and which global oral health competencies are being covered. Surveys were emailed to all 64 accredited U.S. dental schools during the 2015-16 academic year. Respondents from 52 schools completed the survey (response rate 81%). The results showed that social determinants of oral diseases and conditions, how to identify barriers to use of oral health services, and how to work with patients who have limited dental health literacy were covered in the greatest number of responding schools' curricula. Key areas of global health curricula that were covered rarely included global dental infrastructure, data collection design, and horizontal and vertical programming approaches to health improvement. Despite current dialogue on the addition of global oral health competencies to dental curricula, only 41% of the responding schools were currently planning to expand their global oral health education. Based on these results, the authors conclude that it may be most feasible for dental schools to add recommended global oral health competencies to their curricula by incorporating didactic content into already established courses.

  9. The effects of Global Fund financing on health governance in Brazil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gómez, Eduardo J; Atun, Rifat

    2012-07-16

    The impact of donors, such as national government (bi-lateral), private sector, and individual financial (philanthropic) contributions, on domestic health policies of developing nations has been the subject of scholarly discourse. Little is known, however, about the impact of global financial initiatives, such as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, on policies and health governance of countries receiving funding from such initiatives. This study employs a qualitative methodological design based on a single case study: Brazil. Analysis at national, inter-governmental and community levels is based on in-depth interviews with the Global Fund and the Brazilian Ministry of Health and civil societal activists. Primary research is complemented with information from printed media, reports, journal articles, and books, which were used to deepen our analysis while providing supporting evidence. Our analysis suggests that in Brazil, Global Fund financing has helped to positively transform health governance at three tiers of analysis: the national-level, inter-governmental-level, and community-level. At the national-level, Global Fund financing has helped to increased political attention and commitment to relatively neglected diseases, such as tuberculosis, while harmonizing intra-bureaucratic relationships; at the inter-governmental-level, Global Fund financing has motivated the National Tuberculosis Programme to strengthen its ties with state and municipal health departments, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs); while at the community-level, the Global Fund's financing of civil societal institutions has encouraged the emergence of new civic movements, participation, and the creation of new municipal participatory institutions designed to monitor the disbursement of funds for Global Fund grants. Global Fund financing can help deepen health governance at multiple levels. Future work will need to explore how the financing of civil society by the

  10. Media reporting of global health issues and events in New Zealand daily newspapers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCool, Judith; Cussen, Ashleigh; Ameratunga, Shanthi

    2011-12-01

    In the context of a globalised world, reports on health that extend personal or country borders have increasing relevance. Media can promote opportunities to identify and address gaps in important global health issues. In light of the potential role of media as an advocacy tool for global health, we examined how global health issues are represented in mainstream media in New Zealand. We conducted a content analysis of media reports on global health issues in the four highest circulation newspapers in New Zealand between June 2007 and May 2009. Search terms included 'global health, 'international health' and 'world health'. Communicable disease was the most frequently reported global health issue in New Zealand newspapers, followed by environment (e.g. climate change), general health risks (unsafe pharmaceuticals) and substance use (tobacco and alcohol). Chronic disease, injury or their determinants were less frequently reported. Mainstream media favours health-related reports based on crisis, epidemic or acute conditions over chronic or non-communicable diseases or disability. Health issues facing the Asia Pacific region increasingly include chronic diseases, which would benefit from greater media coverage to increase advocacy and political awareness of global health challenges.

  11. The effects of global health initiatives on country health systems: a review of the evidence from HIV/AIDS control.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Biesma, Regien G; Brugha, Ruairí; Harmer, Andrew; Walsh, Aisling; Spicer, Neil; Walt, Gill

    2009-07-01

    This paper reviews country-level evidence about the impact of global health initiatives (GHIs), which have had profound effects on recipient country health systems in middle and low income countries. We have selected three initiatives that account for an estimated two-thirds of external funding earmarked for HIV/AIDS control in resource-poor countries: the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, the World Bank Multi-country AIDS Program (MAP) and the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). This paper draws on 31 original country-specific and cross-country articles and reports, based on country-level fieldwork conducted between 2002 and 2007. Positive effects have included a rapid scale-up in HIV/AIDS service delivery, greater stakeholder participation, and channelling of funds to non-governmental stakeholders, mainly NGOs and faith-based bodies. Negative effects include distortion of recipient countries' national policies, notably through distracting governments from coordinated efforts to strengthen health systems and re-verticalization of planning, management and monitoring and evaluation systems. Sub-national and district studies are needed to assess the degree to which GHIs are learning to align with and build the capacities of countries to respond to HIV/AIDS; whether marginalized populations access and benefit from GHI-funded programmes; and about the cost-effectiveness and long-term sustainability of the HIV and AIDS programmes funded by the GHIs. Three multi-country sets of evaluations, which will be reporting in 2009, will answer some of these questions.

  12. The Legal Strength of International Health Instruments - What It Brings to Global Health Governance?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Haik Nikogosian

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Public health instruments have been under constant development and renewal for decades. International legal instruments, with their binding character and strength, have a special place in this development. The start of the 21st century saw, in particular, the birth of the first World Health Organization (WHO-era health treaties – the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC and its first Protocol. The authors analyze the potential impact of these instruments on global health governance and public health, beyond the traditional view of their impact on tobacco control. Overall, the very fact that globally binding treaties in modern-era health were feasible has accelerated the debate and expectations for an expanded role of international legal regimes in public health. The impact of treaties has also been notable in global health architecture as the novel instruments required novel institutions to govern their implementation. The legal power of the WHO FCTC has enabled rapid adoption of further instruments to promote its implementation, thus, enhancing the international instrumentarium for health, and it has also prompted stronger role for national legislation on health. Notably, the Convention has elevated several traditionally challenging public health features to the level of international legal obligations. It has also revealed how the legal power of the international health instrument can be utilized in safeguarding the interests of health in the face of competing agendas and legal disputes at both the domestic and international levels. Lastly, the legal power of health instruments is associated with their potential impact not only on health but also beyond; the recently adopted Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products may best exemplify this matter. The first treaty experiences of the 21st century may provide important lessons for the role of legal instruments in addressing the unfolding challenges in global

  13. Globalization and workers' health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kawachi, Ichiro

    2008-10-01

    The global integration of economies worldwide has led to increased pressure for "labor flexibility". A notable aspect of this trend has been the rise in non-standard work arrangements, which include part-time work, temporary agency-based work, fixed-term contingent work, and independent contracting. Although non-standard work arrangements are convenient for employers, they are often associated with poor pay, absence of pension and health benefits, as well as lack of protection from unions and labor laws. Studies have begun to address the question of whether these "precarious" jobs pose a health hazard for workers. The challenge for causal inference is that precarious workers are likely to differ from non-precarious workers in a variety of characteristics that also influence health outcomes, i.e. there is confounding and selection bias. However, even after taking account of these biases--through propensity score-matched analysis--there is evidence to suggest that non-standard work may be damaging to workers' health. Policies modeled after the European Union's Directive on Part-Time Work may help to mitigate some of the health hazards associated with precarious work.

  14. A call to action on women's health: putting corporate CSR standards for workplace health on the global health agenda.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wofford, David; MacDonald, Shawn; Rodehau, Carolyn

    2016-11-04

    Business operates within a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) system that the global health community should harness to advance women's health and related sustainable development goals for workers and communities in low- and middle-income countries. Corporations and their vast networks of supplier companies, particularly in manufacturing and agribusiness, employ millions of workers, increasingly comprised of young women, who lack access to health information, products and services. However, occupational safety and health practices focus primarily on safety issues and fail to address the health needs, including reproductive health, of women workers. CSR policy has focused on shaping corporate policies and practices related to the environment, labor, and human rights, but has also ignored the health needs of women workers. The authors present a new way for global health to understand CSR - as a set of regulatory processes governed by civil society, international institutions, business, and government that set, monitor, and enforce emerging standards related to the role of business in society. They call this the CSR system. They argue that the global health community needs to think differently about the role of corporations in public health, which has been as "partners," and that the global health practitioners should play the same advocacy role in the CSR system for corporate health policies as it does for government and international health policies.

  15. Synthesis of vibration control and health monitoring of building structures under unknown excitation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    He, Jia; Huang, Qin; Xu, You-Lin

    2014-01-01

    The vibration control and health monitoring of building structures have been actively investigated in recent years but often treated separately according to the primary objective pursued. In this study, a time-domain integrated vibration control and health monitoring approach is proposed based on the extended Kalman filter (EKF) for identifying the physical parameters of the controlled building structures without the knowledge of the external excitation. The physical parameters and state vectors of the building structure are then estimated and used for the determination of the control force for the purpose of the vibration attenuation. The interaction between the health monitoring and vibration control is revealed and assessed. The feasibility and reliability of the proposed approach is numerically demonstrated via a five-story shear building structure equipped with magneto-rheological (MR) dampers. Two types of excitations are considered: (1) the EI-Centro ground excitation underneath of the building and (2) a swept-frequency excitation applied on the top floor of the building. Results show that the structural parameters as well as the unknown dynamic loadings could be identified accurately; and, at the same time, the structural vibration is significantly reduced in the building structure. (paper)

  16. Global health diplomacy, national integration, and regional development through the monitoring and evaluation of HIV/AIDS programs in Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, and Samoa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kevany, Sebastian; Gildea, Amy; Garae, Caleb; Moa, Serafi; Lautusi, Avaia

    2015-04-27

    The South Pacific countries of Vanuatu, Samoa, and Papua New Guinea have ascended rapidly up the development spectrum in recent years, refining an independent and post-colonial economic and political identity that enhances their recognition on the world stage. All three countries have overcome economic, political and public health challenges in order to stake their claim to sovereignty. In this regard, the contributions of national and international programs for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of HIV/AIDS, with specific reference to their monitoring and evaluation (M&E) aspects, have contributed not just to public health, but also to broader political and diplomatic goals such as 'nation-building'. This perspective describes the specific contributions of global health programs to the pursuit of national integration, development, and regional international relations, in Vanuatu, Samoa and Papua New Guinea, respectively, based on in-country M&E activities on behalf of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis (TB) and Malaria and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) during 2014 and 2015. Key findings include: (1) that global health programs contribute to non-health goals; (2) that HIV/AIDS programs promote international relations, decentralized development, and internal unity; (3) that arguments in favour of the maintenance and augmentation of global health funding may be enhanced on this basis; and (4) that "smart" global health approaches have been successful in South Pacific countries. © 2015 by Kerman University of Medical Sciences.

  17. Creating a global observatory for health R&D.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terry, Robert F; Salm, José F; Nannei, Claudia; Dye, Christopher

    2014-09-12

    A global map of health R&D activity would improve the coordination of research and help to match limited resources with public health priorities, such as combating antimicrobial resistance. The challenges of R&D mapping are large because there are few standards for research classification and governance and limited capacity to report on R&D data, especially in low-income countries. Nevertheless, based on developments in semantic classification, and with better reporting of funded research though the Internet, it is now becoming feasible to create a global observatory for health R&D. Copyright © 2014, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  18. Business as Usual: A Lack of Institutional Innovation in Global Health Governance Comment on "Global Health Governance Challenges 2016 - Are We Ready?"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Kelley

    2016-08-17

    There were once again high expectations that a major global health event - the Ebola virus outbreak of 2014-2015 - would trigger meaningfully World Health Organization (WHO) reform and strengthen global health governance (GHG). Rather than a "turning point," however, the global community has gone back to business as usual. This has occurred against a backdrop of worldwide political turmoil, characterised by a growing rejection of existing political leaders and state-centric institutions. Debates about GHG so far have given insufficient attention to the need for institutional innovation. This entails rethinking the traditional bureaucratic model of postwar intergovernmental organizations which is disconnected from the transboundary, fast-paced nature of today's globalizing world. © 2017 The Author(s); Published by Kerman University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

  19. Knowledge and networks – key sources of power in global health

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanefeld, Johanna; Walt, Gill

    2015-01-01

    Shiffman rightly raises questions about who exercises power in global health, suggesting power is a complex concept, and the way it is exercised is often opaque. Power that is not based on financial strength but on knowledge or experience, is difficult to estimate, and yet it may provide the legitimacy to make moral claims on what is, or ought to be, on global health agendas. Twenty years ago power was exercised in a much less complex health environment. The World Health Organization (WHO) was able to exert its authority as world health leader. The landscape today is very different. Financial resources for global health are being competed for by diverse organisations, and power is diffused and somewhat hidden in such a climate, where each organization has to establish and make its own moral claims loudly and publicly. We observe two ways which allow actors to capture moral authority in global health. One, through power based on scientific knowledge and two, through procedures in the policy process, most commonly associated with the notion of broad consultation and participation. We discuss these drawing on one particular framework provided by Bourdieu, who analyses the source of actor power by focusing on different sorts of capital. Different approaches or theories to understanding power will go some way to answering the challenge Shiffman throws to health policy analysts. We need to explore much more fully where power lies in global health, and how it is exercised in order to understand underlying health agendas and claims to legitimacy made by global health actors today. PMID:25674577

  20. Global health in the European Union--a review from an agenda-setting perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aluttis, Christoph; Krafft, Thomas; Brand, Helmut

    2014-01-01

    This review attempts to analyse the global health agenda-setting process in the European Union (EU). We give an overview of the European perspective on global health, making reference to the developments that led to the EU acknowledging its role as a global health actor. The article thereby focuses in particular on the European interpretation of its role in global health from 2010, which was formalised through, respectively, a European Commission Communication and European Council Conclusions. Departing from there, and based on Kingdon's multiple streams theory on agenda setting, we identify some barriers that seem to hinder the further establishment and promotion of a solid global health agenda in the EU. The main barriers for creating a strong European global health agenda are the fragmentation of the policy community and the lack of a common definition for global health in Europe. Forwarding the agenda in Europe for global health requires more clarification of the common goals and perspectives of the policy community and the use of arising windows of opportunity.

  1. The global dimensions of public health preparedness and implications for US action.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moore, Melinda

    2012-06-01

    The globalization of public health is both real and relevant throughout the United States and to Americans traveling or residing abroad. US public policy responses are evolving, but a crisper and more comprehensive global perspective is needed. I suggest four timely US actions to address today's competing realities of globalization and economic austerity: raise awareness among clinicians and local health departments; capture and share exemplary disaster management practices across countries; ensure that US global health investments are effective, efficient, and sustainable; and think globally while acting locally to enhance US health security. The reauthorization of the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act of 2006 provides an opportunity to more clearly address the global dimensions of domestic preparedness.

  2. Global health and development: conceptualizing health between economic growth and environmental sustainability.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borowy, Iris

    2013-07-01

    After World War II, health was firmly integrated into the discourse about national development. Transition theories portrayed health improvements as part of an overall development pattern based on economic growth as modeled by the recent history of industrialization in high-income countries. In the 1970s, an increasing awareness of the environmental degradation caused by industrialization challenged the conventional model of development. Gradually, it became clear that health improvements depended on poverty-reduction strategies including industrialization. Industrialization, in turn, risked aggravating environmental degradation with its negative effects on public health. Thus, public health in low-income countries threatened to suffer from lack of economic development as well as from the results of global economic development. Similarly, demands of developing countries risked being trapped between calls for global wealth redistribution, a political impossibility, and calls for unrestricted material development, which, in a world of finite land, water, air, energy, and resources, increasingly looked like a physical impossibility, too. Various international bodies, including the WHO, the Brundtland Commission, and the World Bank, tried to capture the problem and solution strategies in development theories. Broadly conceived, two models have emerged: a "localist model," which analyzes national health data and advocates growth policies with a strong focus on poverty reduction, and a "globalist" model, based on global health data, which calls for growth optimization, rather than maximization. Both models have focused on different types of health burdens and have received support from different institutions. In a nutshell, the health discourse epitomized a larger controversy regarding competing visions of development.

  3. Human Rights Treaties Are an Important Part of the "International Health Instrumentariam" Comment on "The Legal Strength of International Health Instruments - What It Brings to Global Health Governance?"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forman, Lisa

    2017-10-02

    In their commentary, Haik Nikogosian and Ilona Kickbusch argue for the necessity of new binding international legal instruments for health to address complex health determinants and offer a cogent analysis of the implications of such treaties for future global health governance. Yet in doing so they pay no attention to the existing instrumentarium of international legally binding treaties relevant to health, in the form of human rights treaties. International human rights law has entrenched individual entitlements and state obligations in relation to individual and public health through iterative human rights treaties since 1946. These treaties offer normative specificity, institutional monitoring and the possibility of enforcement and accountability. If we are to build a new 'international health instrumentariam' we should not ignore existing and important tools that can assist in this endeavor. © 2018 The Author(s); Published by Kerman University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

  4. Measuring the Impact of the Human Rights on Health in Global Health Financing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davis, Sara L M

    2015-12-10

    In response to new scientific developments, UNAIDS, WHO, and global health financing institutions have joined together to promote a "fast-track" global scale-up of testing and treatment programs. They have set ambitious targets toward the goal of ending the three diseases by 2030. These numerical indicators, based on infectious disease modeling, can assist in measuring countries' progressive realization of the right to health. However, they only nominally reference the catastrophic impact that human rights abuses have on access to health services; they also do not measure the positive impact provided by law reform, legal aid, and other health-related human rights programs. Drawing on experience at the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which has incorporated expanded stakeholder consultation and human rights programming into its grants, the article argues that addressing human rights barriers to access is often an ad hoc activity occurring on the sidelines of a health grantmaking process that has focused on the scale-up of biomedical programs to meet global health indicators. To ensure that these biomedical programs have impact, UN agencies and health financing mechanisms must begin to more systematically and proactively integrate human rights policy and practice into their modeling and measurement tools. Copyright © 2015 Davis. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/), which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

  5. Team Investment and Longitudinal Relationships: An Innovative Global Health Education Model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Myers, Kimberly R; Fredrick, N Benjamin

    2017-12-01

    Increasing student interest in global health has resulted in medical schools offering more global health opportunities. However, concerns have been raised, particularly about one-time, short-term experiences, including lack of follow-through for students and perpetuation of unintentional messages of global health heroism, neocolonialism, and disregard for existing systems and communities of care. Medical schools must develop global health programs that address these issues. The Global Health Scholars Program (GHSP) was created in 2008-2009 at Penn State College of Medicine. This four-year program is based on values of team investment and longitudinal relationships and uses the service-learning framework of preparation, service, and reflection. Teams of approximately five students, with faculty oversight, participate in two separate monthlong trips abroad to the same host community in years 1 and 4, and in campus- and Web-based activities in years 2 and 3. As of December 2016, 191 students have been accepted into the GHSP. Since inception, applications have grown by 475% and program sites have expanded from one to seven sites on four continents. The response from students has been positive, but logistical challenges persist in sustaining team investment and maintaining longitudinal relationships between student teams and host communities. Formal methods of assessment should be used to compare the GHSP model with more traditional approaches to global health education. Other medical schools with similar aims can adapt the GHSP model to expand their global health programming.

  6. Moving towards global health equity: Opportunities and threats: An ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Background: The theme of the 13th World Congress on Public Health, “Moving Towards Global Health Equity: Opportunities and Threats”, strikes an optimistic note as the gaps within and between countries are greater than at any time in recent history. There is no consensus on what globalization is, but most agree that it will ...

  7. Globalisation and health: the need for a global vision.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schrecker, Ted; Labonté, Ronald; De Vogli, Roberto

    2008-11-08

    The reduction of health inequities is an ethical imperative, according to the WHO Commission on Social Determinants of Health (CSDH). Drawing on detailed multidisciplinary evidence assembled by the Globalization Knowledge Network that supported the CSDH, we define globalisation in mainly economic terms. We consider and reject the presumption that globalisation will yield health benefits as a result of its contribution to rapid economic growth and associated reductions in poverty. Expanding on this point, we describe four disequalising dynamics by which contemporary globalisation causes divergence: the global reorganisation of production and emergence of a global labour-market; the increasing importance of binding trade agreements and processes to resolve disputes; the rapidly increasing mobility of financial capital; and the persistence of debt crises in developing countries. Generic policies designed to reduce health inequities are described with reference to the three Rs of redistribution, regulation, and rights. We conclude with an examination of the interconnected intellectual and institutional challenges to reduction of health inequities that are created by contemporary globalisation.

  8. Building research infrastructure in community health centers: a Community Health Applied Research Network (CHARN) report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Likumahuwa, Sonja; Song, Hui; Singal, Robbie; Weir, Rosy Chang; Crane, Heidi; Muench, John; Sim, Shao-Chee; DeVoe, Jennifer E

    2013-01-01

    This article introduces the Community Health Applied Research Network (CHARN), a practice-based research network of community health centers (CHCs). Established by the Health Resources and Services Administration in 2010, CHARN is a network of 4 community research nodes, each with multiple affiliated CHCs and an academic center. The four nodes (18 individual CHCs and 4 academic partners in 9 states) are supported by a data coordinating center. Here we provide case studies detailing how CHARN is building research infrastructure and capacity in CHCs, with a particular focus on how community practice-academic partnerships were facilitated by the CHARN structure. The examples provided by the CHARN nodes include many of the building blocks of research capacity: communication capacity and "matchmaking" between providers and researchers; technology transfer; research methods tailored to community practice settings; and community institutional review board infrastructure to enable community oversight. We draw lessons learned from these case studies that we hope will serve as examples for other networks, with special relevance for community-based networks seeking to build research infrastructure in primary care settings.

  9. How have Global Health Initiatives impacted on health equity?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanefeld, Johanna

    2008-01-01

    This review examines the impact of Global Health Initiatives (GHIs) on health equity, focusing on low- and middle-income countries. It is a summary of a literature review commissioned by the WHO Commission on the Social Determinants of Health. GHIs have emerged during the past decade as a mechanism in development assistance for health. The review focuses on three GHIs, the US President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the World Bank's Multi-country AIDS Programme (MAP) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria. All three have leveraged significant amounts of funding for their focal diseases - together these three GHIs provide an estimated two-thirds of external resources going to HIV/AIDS. This paper examines their impact on gender equity. An analysis of these Initiatives finds that they have a significant impact on health equity, including gender equity, through their processes of programme formulation and implementation, and through the activities they fund and implement, including through their impact on health systems and human resources. However, GHIs have so far paid insufficient attention to health inequities. While increasingly acknowledging equity, including gender equity, as a concern, Initiatives have so far failed to adequately translate this into programmes that address drivers of health inequity, including gender inequities. The review highlights the comparative advantage of individual GHIs, which point to an increased need for, and continued difficulties in, harmonisation of activities at country level. On the basis of this comparative analysis, key recommendations are made. They include a call for equity-sensitive targets, the collection of gender-disaggregated data, the use of policy-making processes for empowerment, programmes that explicitly address causes of health inequity and impact assessments of interventions' effect on social inequities.

  10. How might global health master deadly sins and strive for greater virtues?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Catherine Panter-Brick

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available In the spirit of critical reflection, we examine how the field of global health might surmount current challenges and prioritize its ethical mandate, namely to achieve, for all people, equity in health. We use the parlance of mastering deadly sins and striving for greater virtues in an effort to review what is needed to transform global health action. Global health falls prey to four main temptations: coveting silo gains, lusting for technological solutions, leaving broad promises largely unfulfilled, and boasting of narrow successes. This necessitates a change of heart: to keep faith with the promise it made, global health requires a realignment of core values and a sharper focus on the primacy of relationships with the communities it serves. Based on the literature to date, we highlight six steps to re-orienting global health action. Articulating a coherent global health agenda will come from principled action, enacted through courage and prudence in decision-making to foster people-centered systems of care over the entire lifespan.

  11. Sexual Health Promotion Programme: Participants' Perspectives on Capacity Building

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keogh, Brian; Daly, Louise; Sharek, Danika; De Vries, Jan; McCann, Edward; Higgins, Agnes

    2016-01-01

    Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate a Health Service Executive (HSE) Foundation Programme in Sexual Health Promotion (FPSHP) with a specific emphasis on capacity building. Design: A mixed-method design using both quantitative and qualitative methods was used to collect the data. Setting: The FPSHP was delivered to staff working in…

  12. Business as Usual: A Lack of Institutional Innovation in Global Health Governance; Comment on “Global Health Governance Challenges 2016 – Are We Ready?”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kelley Lee

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available There were once again high expectations that a major global health event - the Ebola virus outbreak of 2014-2015 - would trigger meaningfully World Health Organization (WHO reform and strengthen global health governance (GHG. Rather than a “turning point,” however, the global community has gone back to business as usual. This has occurred against a backdrop of worldwide political turmoil, characterised by a growing rejection of existing political leaders and state-centric institutions. Debates about GHG so far have given insufficient attention to the need for institutional innovation. This entails rethinking the traditional bureaucratic model of postwar intergovernmental organizations which is disconnected from the transboundary, fast-paced nature of today’s globalizing world.

  13. Leveraging non-binding instruments for global health governance: reflections from the Global AIDS Reporting Mechanism for WHO reform.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taylor, A L; Alfven, T; Hougendobler, D; Tanaka, S; Buse, K

    2014-02-01

    As countries contend with an increasingly complex global environment with direct implications for population health, the international community is seeking novel mechanisms to incentivize coordinated national and international action towards shared health goals. Binding legal instruments have garnered increasing attention since the World Health Organization adopted its first convention in 2003. This paper seeks to expand the discourse on future global health lawmaking by exploring the potential value of non-binding instruments in global health governance, drawing on the case of the 2001 United Nations General Assembly Special Session Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS. In other realms of international concern ranging from the environment to human rights to arms control, non-binding instruments are increasingly used as effective instruments of international cooperation. The experience of the Global AIDS Reporting Mechanism, established pursuant to the Declaration, evidences that, at times, non-binding legal instruments can offer benefits over slower, more rigid binding legal approaches to governance. The global AIDS response has demonstrated that the use of a non-binding instrument can be remarkably effective in galvanizing increasingly deep commitments, action, reporting compliance and ultimately accountability for results. Based on this case, the authors argued that non-binding instruments deserve serious consideration by the international community for the future of global health governance, including in the context of WHO reform. Copyright © 2013 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Motivators, enablers, and barriers to building allied health research capacity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pager, Susan; Holden, Libby; Golenko, Xanthe

    2012-01-01

    Purpose A sound, scientific base of high quality research is needed to inform service planning and decision making and enable improved policy and practice. However, some areas of health practice, particularly many of the allied health areas, are generally considered to have a low evidence base. In order to successfully build research capacity in allied health, a clearer understanding is required of what assists and encourages research as well as the barriers and challenges. Participants and methods This study used written surveys to collect data relating to motivators, enablers, and barriers to research capacity building. Respondents were asked to answer questions relating to them as individuals and other questions relating to their team. Allied health professionals were recruited from multidisciplinary primary health care teams in Queensland Health. Eighty-five participants from ten healthcare teams completed a written version of the research capacity and culture survey. Results The results of this study indicate that individual allied health professionals are more likely to report being motivated to do research by intrinsic factors such as a strong interest in research. Barriers they identified to research are more likely to be extrinsic factors such as workload and lack of time. Allied health professionals identified some additional factors that impact on their research capacity than those reported in the literature, such as a desire to keep at the “cutting edge” and a lack of exposure to research. Some of the factors influencing individuals to do research were different to those influencing teams. These results are discussed with reference to organizational behavior and theories of motivation. Conclusion Supporting already motivated allied health professional individuals and teams to conduct research by increased skills training, infrastructure, and quarantined time is likely to produce better outcomes for research capacity building investment. PMID

  15. Building better health care leadership for Canada: implementing evidence

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Denis, Jean-Louis; Sullivan, Terrence James

    2011-01-01

    ... of the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund for our publishing activities. Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication Building better health care leadership for Canada: imple...

  16. Public health component in building information modeling

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trufanov, A. I.; Rossodivita, A.; Tikhomirov, A. A.; Berestneva, O. G.; Marukhina, O. V.

    2018-05-01

    A building information modelling (BIM) conception has established itself as an effective and practical approach to plan, design, construct, and manage buildings and infrastructure. Analysis of the governance literature has shown that the BIM-developed tools do not take fully into account the growing demands from ecology and health fields. In this connection, it is possible to offer an optimal way of adapting such tools to the necessary consideration of the sanitary and hygienic specifications of materials used in construction industry. It is proposed to do it through the introduction of assessments that meet the requirements of national sanitary standards. This approach was demonstrated in the case study of Revit® program.

  17. The evolution, etiology and eventualities of the global health security regime.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoffman, Steven J

    2010-11-01

    Attention to global health security governance is more important now than ever before. Scientists predict that a possible influenza pandemic could affect 1.5 billion people, cause up to 150 million deaths and leave US$3 trillion in economic damages. A public health emergency in one country is now only hours away from affecting many others. Using regime analysis from political science, the principles, norms, rules and decision-making procedures by which states govern health security are examined in the historical context of their punctuated evolution. This methodology illuminates the catalytic agents of change, distributional consequences and possible future orders that can help to better inform progress in this area. Four periods of global health security governance are identified. The first is characterized by unilateral quarantine regulations (1377-1851), the second by multiple sanitary conferences (1851-92), the third by several international sanitary conventions and international health organizations (1892-1946) and the fourth by the hegemonic leadership of the World Health Organization (1946-????). This final regime, like others before it, is challenged by globalization (e.g. limitations of the new International Health Regulations), changing diplomacy (e.g. proliferation of global health security organizations), new tools (e.g. global health law, human rights and health diplomacy) and shock-activated vulnerabilities (e.g. bioterrorism and avian/swine influenza). This understanding, in turn, allows us to appreciate the impact of this evolving regime on class, race and gender, as well as to consider four possible future configurations of power, including greater authority for the World Health Organization, a concert of powers, developing countries and civil society organizations. This regime analysis allows us to understand the evolution, etiology and eventualities of the global health security regime, which is essential for national and international health

  18. Global health intervention from North to South: (Academic) preparation of students

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Singla, Rashmi; Rasmussen, Louise Mubanda

    2018-01-01

    psychiatry/ psychology (Fernando), culture-centered health communication (Dutta) and medical anthropology (Farmer, Nguyen & Lock). The course is framed around a critical conceptualization of globalisation covering spatial and ideological dimensions (Fassin). Today’s practice of global health interventions......Global health intervention from North to South: (Academic) preparation of students By Rashmi Singla & Louise Mubanda Rasmussen, Roskilde University, Denmark This chapter discusses how to conduct before- intervention preparation of students based on a pioneer course collaboration between...... the subjects Health Promotion and International Development Studies at Roskilde University. The focus is on agents of intervention from the Global North with Global South targets. The theoretical framework of the course includes, among others approaches from cultural psychological (Valsiner), critical...

  19. A time for new north-south relationships in global health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Jin Un; Oleribe, Obinna; Njie, Ramou; Taylor-Robinson, Simon D

    2017-01-01

    The modern concept of globalization in health care and clinical research often carries a positive message for the "Global South" nations of Africa, South America and Southeast Asia. However, bioethical abuse of participants in clinical trials still exists in the Global South. Unethical studies directed by the "Global North", formed by the medically advanced nations in North America, Western Europe and Japan, have been hugely concerning. The issue between the Global North and South is a well-recognized socioeconomic phenomenon of globalization. Medical exploitation has its roots in the socioeconomic interactions of a postcolonial world, and solutions to reducing exploitation require a deeper understanding of these societal models of globalization. We explore the fundamental causes of imbalance and suggest solutions. Reflecting on the globalization model, there must be an effort to empower the Global South nations to direct and govern their own health care systems efficiently on the basis of equality.

  20. From a declaration of values to the creation of value in global health: a report from Harvard University's Global Health Delivery Project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, J Y; Rhatigan, J; Jain, S H; Weintraub, R; Porter, M E

    2010-01-01

    To make best use of the new dollars available for the treatment of disease in resource-poor settings, global health practice requires a strategic approach that emphasises value for patients. Practitioners and global health academics should seek to identify and elaborate the set of factors that drives value for patients through the detailed study of actual care delivery organisations in multiple settings. Several frameworks can facilitate this study, including the care delivery value chain. We report on our efforts to catalyse the study of health care delivery in resource-limited settings in the hope that this inquiry will lead to insights that can improve the health of the neediest worldwide.