Friday, September 25, 2009

[EQ] Access: how do good health technologies get to poor people in poor countries?

Access : how do good health technologies get to poor people in poor countries?

Laura J. Frost & Michael R. Reich.

Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies

Published in the Harvard Series on Population and International Health, 2008

Available online PDF [264p.] at: http://www.accessbook.org/download/AccessBook.pdf

“…..Many bottlenecks thus block access to health technologies in developing countries. Sometimes the barriers seem to overwhelm all efforts to expand access

to beneficial health technologies.

 

A growing literature examines the challenges that confront efforts to address particular barriers (such as pricing or patents or end-user demand). As part of this project, we conducted a literature review on specific barriers to access and produced an annotated bibliography of 44 selected recent articles.4 But few studies have comprehensively explored the many social, economic, political, and cultural processes that shape access to health technologies in developing countries—including how such technologies are perceived differently by key players.

 

Despite progress with placing access to medicines on the global policy agenda, enormous problems persist in the access gap for all sorts of health technologies— not just medicines. While the most contentious debates have focused on drugs and vaccines, similar problems exist for other kinds of health technologies.

 

The problems with access to diagnostics, for example, have remained relatively unexplored in policy debates. And the focus on certain types of access barriers (especially pricing and patents) has tended to obscure other important barriers to access, such as distribution, delivery, and adoption problems. Too often, the assumption has been that once a medicine is included in a list of essential medicines, the problems of access are solved.

 

This perspective overlooks the problems of distribution, delivery, and demand. For instance, even after praziquantel (the medicine for treatment of schistosomiasis) declined in price during the 1990s, serious problems of access persisted, especially in the poorest countries of the world (where the disease existed). When patents for praziquantel expired, more producers entered the global market, but these changes alone did not produce access. In chapter 3, we explore what happened with praziquantel, why problems in access persisted, and what has recently changed to improve the situation.

 

This book explores the challenges and approaches to improving access to health technologies for poor people in poor countries. Our goals are to develop and illustrate a way to think systematically about the barriers to access and to identify strategies that can help improve access……”

 

Content

 


Preface 

CHAPTER 1, The Issue of Access
CHAPTER 2, The Access Framework

CHAPTER 3, Praziquantel: Access to Medicines

CHAPTER 4, Hepatitis B Vaccine: Access to Vaccines

CHAPTER 5, Malaria Rapid Diagnostic Tests: Access to Diagnostics

CHAPTER 6, Norplant: Access to Contraceptives

CHAPTER 7, Vaccine Vial Monitors: Access to Devices

CHAPTER 8, Female Condoms: Access to Dual Protection Technologies

CHAPTER 9, Synthesis: No Success Without Access

GLOSSARY

 

*      *     *

This message from the Pan American Health Organization, PAHO/WHO, is part of an effort to disseminate
information Related to: Equity; Health inequality; Socioeconomic inequality in health; Socioeconomic
health differentials; Gender; Violence; Poverty; Health Economics; Health Legislation; Ethnicity; Ethics;
Information Technology - Virtual libraries; Research & Science issues.  [DD/ KMC Area]

“Materials provided in this electronic list are provided "as is". Unless expressly stated otherwise, the findings
and interpretations included in the Materials are those of the authors and not necessarily of The Pan American
Health Organization PAHO/WHO or its country members”.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PAHO/WHO Website

Equity List - Archives - Join/remove: http://listserv.paho.org/Archives/equidad.html
Twitter http://twitter.com/eqpaho

 

 

    IMPORTANT: This transmission is for use by the intended recipient and it may contain privileged, proprietary or confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient or a person responsible for delivering this transmission to the intended recipient, you may not disclose, copy or distribute this transmission or take any action in reliance on it. If you received this transmission in error, please notify us immediately by email to infosec@paho.org, and please dispose of and delete this transmission. Thank you.  

[EQ] Call for Nominations: Solutions for Global Health Global South-South Development Expo 2009

Call for Nominations: Solutions for Global Health

Global South-South Development Expo 2009

Website: www.paho.org/gssdexpo09

Deadline for submission: October 30th 2009

 

The World Health Organization and the Special Unit for South-South Cooperation of the United Nations Development Program - UNDP

 

This Call for nominations is looking for initiatives that provided an effective solution to a public health problem by succeeding on the basis of :
Leadership, Innovation and Partnership.

Who can participate?

Any public or private institution, group or project that have made significant contributions to human development in the global South and that have provided solutions to address Global Health that could be replicated, scaled up or adapted across developing countries.

The South Development Solution (SDS) could be a Southern-grown solution, a South–South partnership solution, a North-South-South triangular partnership solution, a South-South-Multilateral Organization solution, a Public-Private partnership solution and/or combination of these.

Criteria for nomination submission
http://new.paho.org/hq/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1792&Itemid=1563


An independent committee will review all submissions to select the three South Development Initiatives that has provided an effective solution to:
Public Health problem by succeeding on the basis of leadership, innovation, and partnership.

Please be sure how these attributes apply to your initiative:  

1.       South priority/demand driven

2.       South ownership

3.       South leadership

4.       Broad-based partnership

5.       Innovation

6.       Efficiency

7.       Sustainability

8.       Scalability

The selected solutions in Global Health will receive:

·         An opportunity to exhibit  the initiative at the Global South-South Development Expo in the World Bank Main Complex

·         The possibility to interact with partners and donors interested to fund or replicate the initiative in other developing countries.

·         To receive a Commemorative plaque at the Special Ceremony with World Leaders.

South-South Development Solutions Forum on Global Health - Preliminary Agenda

http://new.paho.org/hq/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1791&Itemid=1563

 

 

*** Spanish Version:

 

Llamado a nominaciones : Soluciones Sur-Sur por la Salud Global


Feria Mundial sobre Cooperación Sur-Sur 2009

Fecha límite para someter el formulario de nominación: 30 de Octubre de 2009


La Organización Mundial de la Salud y la Unidad Especial para Cooperación Sur-Sur del Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo (UNDP)

Website: www.paho.org/fmcss09  

Invitación para nominar un proyecto o programa que haya ofrecido una solución efectiva a un problema de salud pública y cuyo éxito pueda medirse en base a características de liderazgo, innovación y asociación.

 

¿Quiénes pueden participar?

 

Instituciones pública o privadas, grupos o proyectos que han contribuido significativamente al desarrollo humano en el Sur y que han ofrecido soluciones para enfrentar los desafíos de la Salud Global, y que a su vez pueden ser replicadas, adaptadas y ampliadas en los países en desarrollo. La Solución del Sur para el Desarrollo (SSD) puede ser una solución propiamente del Sur, una solución por asociación entre dos países del Sur, una solución entre países del Sur triangulada por agencias de países del Norte y/o organizaciones multilaterales, una solución del Sur con asociación entre el sector publico y privado, o alguna combinación de estas.

 

Criterios para la nominación
http://new.paho.org/hq/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1787&Itemid=1570&lang=es

Un comité independiente revisará todas las propuestas nominadas y seleccionará las tres Soluciones del Sur en materia de Salud Global que ha ofrecido una solución efectiva a un problema de:
Salud Pública y cuyo éxito pueda medirse en base a características de liderazgo, innovación y alianzas/asociación.

Por favor asegurarse de incluir cómo los siguientes atributos se pueden aplicar a su iniciativa:

- Prioridad del Sur/impulsada por demanda

- Autor/Propiedad del Sur

- Liderazgo del Sur

- Amplia asociación / alianzas

- Innovación

- Eficiencia

- Sostenibilidad

- Ampliación/replicación

La solución seleccionada en salud global recibirá:

·         La oportunidad de exhibir su iniciativa en la Feria Mundial sobre Cooperación Sur-Sur ubicada en el edificio principal del Banco Mundial

·         La posibilidad de interactuar con socios y donantes interesados en replicar o financiar la iniciativa en otros países en desarrollo

·         Placa conmemorativa en una ceremonia especial que contará con la presencia de líderes mundiales

 

 

*      *     *

This message from the Pan American Health Organization, PAHO/WHO, is part of an effort to disseminate
information Related to: Equity; Health inequality; Socioeconomic inequality in health; Socioeconomic
health differentials; Gender; Violence; Poverty; Health Economics; Health Legislation; Ethnicity; Ethics;
Information Technology - Virtual libraries; Research & Science issues.  [DD/ KMC Area]

“Materials provided in this electronic list are provided "as is". Unless expressly stated otherwise, the findings
and interpretations included in the Materials are those of the authors and not necessarily of The Pan American
Health Organization PAHO/WHO or its country members”.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PAHO/WHO Website

Equity List - Archives - Join/remove: http://listserv.paho.org/Archives/equidad.html
Twitter http://twitter.com/eqpaho

 

    IMPORTANT: This transmission is for use by the intended recipient and it may contain privileged, proprietary or confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient or a person responsible for delivering this transmission to the intended recipient, you may not disclose, copy or distribute this transmission or take any action in reliance on it. If you received this transmission in error, please notify us immediately by email to infosec@paho.org, and please dispose of and delete this transmission. Thank you.