“You must lobby the parliament for your research to be considered! Rigorous evidence needs to be coupled with intense lobbying in order for political parties, who are steered by interest groups, to be willing to listen.” This was the advice of a Kenyan parliamentarian at the opening session of the ResUpMeetUp symposium in Nairobi, Kenya […]
Category: Global health
Gado Napo-Koura: Togo joins the Family Planning 2020 Movement
As a former medical intern, I witnessed the devastating impact that lack of access to modern family planning had on the lives of women and young girls. I recall admitting a teenager who had an unsafe abortion that was done in secret. Her own mother was what we call an “avorteuse”—a traditional, unqualified practitioner who performs […]
Jocalyn Clark: Where cancer is a neglected disease
A great deal of attention is being paid to non-communicable diseases (NCDs) as an emerging source of illness, death, and healthcare costs—recognising that low and middle income countries (LMICs) in particular are faced with a growing threat. The NCDs movement tends to coalesce around four priority conditions—heart disease, diabetes, lung disease, and common cancers—and has […]
Janneke Hartvig Blomberg: Insights into infant feeding practices in Indonesia
Experts in nutrition, researchers, academics, and business leaders gathered in London last week for the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN)’s Symposium to progress thinking around infant and young child nutrition. When seeking to develop effective communications to bring about lasting change, understanding the motivations and cultural and societal beliefs that inform behaviours is essential. Indonesia faces major nutritional challenges. […]
Peter Baker: Men’s health—a problem hidden in plain sight?
The poor state of men’s health must be one of the biggest health issues routinely not talked about. It is ignored or sidelined by virtually all national governments and by global public health organisations, such as the World Health Organization. It is barely addressed by policymakers, professional organisations, public health non-governmental organisations, researchers, or practitioners. […]
William Cayley: What are the (hidden) costs?
“The economics of education are changed dramatically by delivering online courses to large numbers, making expensive education much cheaper.” That line in Richard Smith’s blog post describing a proposed “global university” for healthcare workers caught my attention—especially since my own local statewide university system, of which I am an employee as a medical school faculty […]
Sandra Lako: The challenges of identifying and isolating Ebola cases in Sierra Leone
Although the situation in Sierra Leone with respect to Ebola has improved considerably since November, there are still cases in Freetown every day. With Ebola still present, it is important to stay vigilant and have a high index of suspicion. Every single person that enters the hospital compound needs to be screened according to the […]
Richard Smith: A global university for healthcare workers
WHO estimates that the world is short of 12.9 million healthcare workers, and Devi Shetty, the cardiac surgeon and chairman and founder of Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospitals, thinks that radical steps are needed to provide these workers. Money for healthcare for all will come, he believes, but it cannot be achieved unless healthcare workers are available […]
Richard Smith: Surgeons spend their time putting a price tag on human life
Physicians and surgeons across Asia, Africa, and Latin America spend their time putting a price tag on human life, said Devi Shetty, cardiac surgeon and chairman and founder of Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospitals, at the World Summit on Innovation in Heath in Doha last week. His mission is to reduce the costs of health to make […]
Aser García Rada: Some thorny questions posed by our response to Ebola
Over the last few months, I had been getting ready for being deployed to Liberia or Sierra Leone with a non-governmental organisation. Regrettably, owing to several doubts I had with the project, I finally will not be going. However, I have been trying to learn as much as possible about the Ebola virus disease (EVD) and […]