Friday, June 29, 2012

[EQ] Pillars for progress on the right to health

Pillars for progress on the right to health:
Harnessing the potential of human rights through a Framework Convention on Global Health

Eric A. Friedman and Lawrence O. Gostin
O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law

Georgetown University Law Center

Health and Human Rights: An International Journal 14(1) (June 2012)

Available online at: http://bit.ly/LyKlCZ

“…….Ever more constitutions incorporate the right to health, courts continue to expand their right to health jurisprudence, and communities and civil society increasingly turn to the right to health in their advocacy. Yet the right remains far from being realized.

Even with steady progress on numerous fronts of global health, vast inequities at the global and national levels persist, and are responsible for millions of deaths annually.

We propose a four-part approach to accelerating progress towards fulfilling the right to health:


1) national legal and policy reform, incorporating right to health obligations and principles including equity, participation, and accountability in designing, implementing, and monitoring the health sector, as well as an all-of-government approach in advancing the public’s health;

2) litigation, using creative legal strategies, enhanced training, and promotion of progressive judgments to increase courts’ effectiveness in advancing the right to health;

3) civil society and community engagement, empowering communities to understand and claim this right and building the capacity of right to health organizations; and
4) innovative global governance for health, strengthening World Health Organization leadership on health and human rights, further clarifying the international right to health, ensuring sustained and scalable development assistance, and conforming other international legal regimes (e.g., trade, intellectual property, and finance) to health and human rights norms.

We offer specific steps to advance each of these areas, including how a new global health treaty, a Framework Convention on Global Health, could help construct these four pillars…..”


KMC/2012/HSD
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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]
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“Materials provided in this electronic list are provided "as is". Unless expressly stated otherwise, the findings
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[EQ] Socioeconomic inequality in the prevalence of noncommunicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries

Socioeconomic inequality in the prevalence of noncommunicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries:
Results from the World Health Survey


Ahmad Reza Hosseinpoor1, Nicole Bergen1,
Shanthi Mendis2, Sam Harper 3, Emese Verdes1, Anton Kunst4, Somnath Chatterji1

1 Department of Health Statistics and Informatics, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland

2 Department of Chronic Diseases and Health Promotion, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland

3 Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics & Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, Canada

4 Department of Public Health, AMC, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands


BMC Public Health – 22 June 2012, 12:474 doi:10.1186/1471-2458-12-474

Available online PDF [26p.] at: http://bit.ly/LGmhwJ

“……Noncommunicable diseases are an increasing health concern worldwide, but particularly in low- and middle-income countries. This study quantified and compared education- and wealth-based inequalities in the prevalence of five noncommunicable diseases (angina, arthritis, asthma, depression and diabetes) and comorbidity in low- and middle-income country groups.


Methods

Using 2002-04 World Health Survey data from 41 low- and middle-income countries, the prevalence estimates of angina, arthritis, asthma, depression, diabetes and comorbidity in adults aged 18 years or above are presented for wealth quintiles and five education levels, by sex and country income group. Symptom-based classification was used to determine angina, arthritis, asthma and depression rates, and diabetes diagnoses were self-reported. Socioeconomic inequalities according to wealth and education were measured absolutely, using the slope index of inequality, and relatively, using the relative index of inequality.


Results

Wealth and education inequalities were more pronounced in the low-income country group than the middle-income country group. Both wealth and education were inversely associated with angina, arthritis, asthma, depression and comorbidity prevalence, with strongest inequalities reported for angina, asthma and comorbidity. Diabetes prevalence was positively associated with wealth and, to a lesser extent, education. Adjustments for confounding variables tended to decrease the magnitude of the inequality. ….”


KMC/2012/HSD
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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]
Washington DC USA

“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”.
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[EQ] Natural disasters and communicable diseases in the Americas

Natural disasters and communicable diseases in the Americas:
contribution of veterinary public health

Maria Cristina Schneider, Maria Cristina Tirado, Shruthi Rereddy, Raymond Dugas, Maria Isabel Borda, Eduardo Alvarez Peralta,
Sylvain Aldighieri & Ottorino Cosivi - Pan American Health Organization PAHO/WHO


Rivista trimestrale di Sanità Pubblica Veterinaria
edita dall'Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell'Abruzzo e del Molise G. Caporale

2012 - Volume 48 (2), April-June

Available online PDF [26p.] at: http://bit.ly/N3lDr2

“……The consequences of natural disasters on the people living in the Americas are often amplified by socio-economic conditions. This risk may be increased by climate-related changes.

The public health consequences of natural disasters include fatalities as well as an increased risk of communicable diseases. Many of these diseases are zoonotic and foodborne diseases.

The aim of this article is to provide an overview of the importance of natural disasters for the Americas and to emphasise the contribution of veterinary public health (VPH) to the management of zoonotic and foodborne disease risks. An analysis was conducted of natural disasters that occurred in the Americas between 2004 and 2008. Five cases studies illustrating the contributions of VPH in situations of disaster are presented.


The data shows that natural disasters, particularly storms and floods, can create very important public health problems. Central America and the Caribbean, particularly Haiti, presented a higher risk than the other areas of the Americas.

Two priority areas of technical cooperation are recommended for this region, namely: reducing the risk of leptospirosis and other vector-borne disease outbreaks related to floods and hurricanes and improving food safety. The contribution of different disciplines and sectors in disaster preparedness and response is of paramount importance to minimise morbidity and mortality….”

 
KMC/2012/HSD
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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]
Washington DC USA

“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”.
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[EQ] Selected articles from Universal Coverage: Can We Guarantee Health For All?

Volume 12 Supplement 1

Selected articles from Universal Coverage: Can We Guarantee Health For All?

Proceedings from Universal Coverage: Can We Guarantee Health For All?

BMC Public Health 2012, Volume 12 Supplement 1 (22 June 2012)

Website: http://bit.ly/N38z6Q

Bandar Sunway, Malaysia

3-4 October 2011

Edited by Pascale Allotey, Daniel D Reidpath, Shenglan Tang, Shajahan Yasin, Su Lin Chong and Julius Chee Ho Cheah

Supported by Global Public Health, Monash University Sunway Campus; Philips Healthcare; Deloitte and Touche, Singapore; and Sanofi Aventis Malaysia

Universal coverage in an era of privatisation: can we guarantee health for all?

Pascale Allotey, Shajahan Yasin, Shenglan Tang, Su Lin Chong, Julius Cheah, Daniel D Reidpath

“……A government that claims to provide universal health coverage (UHC) needs to establish that access to health services is available for the whole population for the full spectrum of services without risk of undue financial hardship. Embedded within the idea of UHC are two distinct notions.
First, access to the full spectrum of health services needs to include access to preventive care through to palliative care and rehabilitative services.
Second, access to services for a whole population means that everyone should be able to enjoy the benefits of the health system, regardless of individual economic, social, or geographic position.

 

Those in favour of UHC see health as a public good not simply an individual benefit, and they recognise that, as a consequence of this view, the implementation of UHC requires a level of regulation and a kind of investment that is inconsistent with an unconstrained free market.

The challenge for government is in selecting the mix of regulatory and financing mechanisms for the chosen, universally available, health services. This also presupposes that the parcel of health services that will be available has been identified, and there are systems in place to monitor and evaluate the system. ….”

 


Vulnerability, equity and universal coverage – a concept note

Sharuna Verghis, Fatima Alvarez-Castillo, Daniel D Reidpath

The fallacy of the equity-efficiency trade off: rethinking the efficient health system

Daniel D Reidpath, Anna Olafsdottir, Subhash Pokhrel, Pascale Allotey

Universal access: making health systems work for women

TK Sundari Ravindran

The role of insurance in the achievement of universal coverage within a developing country context:
South Africa as a case study

Alex M van den Heever

Why has the Universal Coverage Scheme in Thailand achieved a pro-poor public subsidy for health care?

Supon Limwattananon, Viroj Tangcharoensathien, Kanjana Tisayaticom, Tawekiat Boonyapaisarncharoen, Phusit Prakongsai


Financing Universal Coverage in Malaysia: a case study

Hong Teck Chua, Julius Cheah

Controlling cost escalation of healthcare: making universal health coverage sustainable in China

Shenglan Tang, Jingjing Tao, Henk Bekedam

On residents’ satisfaction with community health services after health care system reform in Shanghai, China, 2011

Zhijian Li, Jiale Hou, Lin Lu, Shenglan Tang, Jin Ma

Policy initiation and political levers in health policy: lessons from Ghana’s health insurance

Anthony Seddoh, Samuel Akor


KMC/2012/HSS
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 *      *     *
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]
Washington DC USA

“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”.
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