Global humanitarian crisis & famine
Readers of this newsletter are surely aware of this unfolding tragedy. Some reads & links:
AP -
Worst humanitarian crisis hits as Trump slashes foreign aid “
The world's largest humanitarian crisis in 70 years has been declared in three African countries on the brink of famine, just as President Donald Trump's proposed foreign aid cuts threaten to pull the United States from its historic role as the world's top emergency donor. If the deep cuts are approved by Congress and the U.S. does not contribute to Africa's current crisis, experts warn that the continent's growing drought and famine could have far-ranging effects, including a new wave of migrants heading to Europe and possibly more support for Islamic extremist groups….”
UN News -
Around 22 million children could soon starve without urgent aid, UNICEF warns. “
Millions of children are on the brink of starvation in the worst humanitarian crisis in decades, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) [today] warned, urgently calling for nearly $255 million to respond to immediate needs in northeast Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen. “Time is running out,” UNICEF said, noting the threat from famine, drought and war. Some 22 million children are hungry, sick, displaced and out of school in the four countries, according to the UN agency. Nearly 1.4 million are at imminent risk of death this year from severe malnutrition.”
Inspired a
tweet of Laurie Garrett, among others: “
How will we all handle televised mass famine in the post-globalization world? It's a test. “
Some pundits reckon the Trump administration should, instead of ignoring this tragedy, consider it a
national security threat. See also
FT -
Aid officials sound warning on Trump’s proposed cuts - Critics of president’s budget warn it may inflame extremism and destabilise nations.
Meanwhile, while
Nigeria, Somalia & South Sudan (in addition to Yemen) face famine,
19 countries in Africa are facing acute crisis-level food security. See
Africa center for strategic studies. Ten of these are experiencing internal conflict.
Special Issue Health Economics, Policy & Law: Towards a Global Framework for Health Financing
T Ottersen et al;
https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/health-economics-policy-and-law/latest-issue
Start with the
Editorial and then read the rest of the issue. They all look like must-reads, frankly. And open-access!! The Editorial provides the background of this issue (i.e.
Chatham House Centre on Global Health Security Working Group on Health Financing and its
final report ‘Shared Responsibilities for Health: a Coherent Global Framework for Financing’) and an overview of what the special issue contains.
The issue ends with a final article listing the
20 recommendations offered by the Chatham House working group.
In just 2 hours (or was it 1 hour)
, Rob Yates already knew: “
Take home message from this whole series: “PUBLIC financing is the key to universal health coverage””
WHO DG election campaign
All candidates are frantically campaigning in the weeks & months before the WHA. Some reads from this week:
The wire – WHO is Electing a New Leader. Here’s What’s at Stake
https://thewire.in/118372/who-director-general-elections/
“
A look at member states’ considerations, candidates plans for the future of global public health management and contemporary issues for the WHO.”
Must-read from late last week.
Tedros “in the lead” (at least so far),
Sania a “dark horse” in the race, etc.
All in all, for some reason, it seemed David Nabarro & Dr Tedros were most in the media, this week. See:
Devex – My vision for the WHO
https://www.devex.com/news/opinion-my-vision-for-the-who-89917
By
David Nabarro. Check out also an interview with Nabarro in
Planet Earth.
Scroll in - Health needs to be looked at as a rights issue, says front-runner for post of WHO chief
Interview with
Dr. Tedros;
https://scroll.in/pulse/832982/interview-health-needs-to-be-looked-at-as-a-rights-issue-says-front-runner-for-post-of-who-chief
“In
Delhi to campaign for the WHO elections, Tedros spoke to
Scroll.in about his vision for the organisation.” See also an interview with him in
Planet Earth.
Meanwhile, as for
South-America, “
Following the meeting of the UNASUR Health Council (in Quito March 31), which gathers Health Ministers from the 12 South American countries, the authorities will take part in a roundtable with Sania Nishtar, Tedros Ghebreyesus Adhanom and David Nabarro to ask specific questions of interest to the region and hear their proposals. It is the first time a regional bloc set up such a forum hoping to provide the best insights in order to assist its Health Ministers’ decision-making.” (event organized by ISAGS, the UNASUR health think tank). “
Trump
This section will focus on (1) Trump & US health (care); (2) Trump & global health; (3) Trump & planetary health. In that order.
Trump & US health (& health care reform)
We all much enjoyed Trump & House Speaker Ryan’s humiliating defeat end of last week, when Ryan pulled the Republican health care bill from voting. And it’s clear that
grassroots action played a huge role.
But now what?
Some reads & links:
Laurie Garrett –
A huge sigh of relief on health care By way of example. Laurie pointed out more in particular that the AHCA act would have eliminated 1 billion in disease prevention funds from CDC (12 % of CDC’s funding).
(Worth noting, also:
Angus Deaton – in a
Book review in the
NYT –
It’s not just unfair: inequality is a threat to our governance. He singled out the health system in the US, in one paragraph, and suggested: “…
I would add the creation of a single payer health system, not because I am in favor of socialized medicine but because the artificially inflated costs of health care are powering up inequality by producing large fortunes for a few while holding down wages; the pharmaceutical industry alone had 1,400 lobbyists in Washington in 2014. American health care does a poor job of delivering health, but is exquisitely designed as an inequality machine, commanding an ever larger share of G.D.P. and funneling resources to the top of the income distribution.”)
While Rob Yates was still nodding in agreement, we read on:
Guardian -
Donald Trump blames everyone but himself for healthcare legislation failure Being an compulsive narcissist, that was to be expected: “
President’s targets include conservatives, Democrats and a possible veiled jab at Paul Ryan as Republican hand-wringing over repeal-and-replace failure continues…”
By the end of this week,
Trump already sounded quite optimistic again (
Trump tells lawmakers he expects deal 'very quickly' on healthcare (Reuters) ) and
GOP House leaders said “they are 'closer ' than ever to Obamacare repeal, but won't commit to timeline”. Yeah, right.
Meanwhile, it’s not that clear (yet) what the Trump administration might(/intends to) do now on the health care front. There are various hypotheses (as well as stakeholder positions).
Washington Post -
Affordable Care Act remains ‘law of the land,’ but Trump vows to explode it
“Although House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) acknowledged Friday that “Obamacare is the law of the land
,” its survival or collapse in practical terms now rests with decisions that are in President Trump’s hands.
In the coming weeks and months, the White House and a highly conservative health and human services secretary will be faced with a series of choices over whether to shore up insurance marketplaces created under the Affordable Care Act — or let them atrophy. These marketplaces are currently a conduit to health coverage for 10 million Americans, but they have been financially fragile, prompting spiking rates and defections of major insurers. In an interview on Friday with The Washington Post, Trump made his inclinations clear: “The best thing politically is to let Obamacare explode.”…”
See also
The Guardian -
Republicans' choice after AHCA failure: back Obamacare or undermine it?
See also the
‘sinister plan’ as put forward as a key option in a recent O’Neill Institute
blog. “…
The path forward is perhaps far more sinister. The journey ahead may lie in executive power and with Tom Price as Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. According to Spencer Perlman, director of health-care research at Veda Partners: “If they want to completely sabotage it they probably could, and call it a self-fulfilling prophecy.” He added, “purposefully sabotaging the exchanges and the ACA probably isn’t difficult. [And the HHS is] probably the only game in town right now [that can do it.]” President Trump, himself, tweeted on Saturday: “ObamaCare will explode and we will all get together and piece together a great healthcare plan for THE PEOPLE. Do not worry!” Presumably, the administration could purposefully undermine the Affordable Care Act through executive power
and force new legislation after causing sufficient damage to the healthcare landscape.”
Others are more optimistic, though, or at least hoping for collaboration between the two parties.
BMJ News -
US doctors’ groups call for parties to work together on healthcare reform – which is perhaps not very surprising.
Washington Post - With AHCA defeat, some Democrats see chance to push for universal coverage Egged on by
Bernie Sanders, for one. Or see
Republicans for Single-Payer Health Care (NYT) (with some political thinking ahead…). In any case,
Americans increasingly seem to endorse a right of all to health care.
You might also want to read
Ashish Jha’s take (on
BMJ Opinion) -
The ABC of healthcare reform—understanding the Republican debacle.
Check out also a
JAMA infographic - US Public Opinion on Health Care Reform, March 2017
FT – How healthcare reform affects Trump tax plans
“Donald Trump signalled after last week’s bruising decision to pull the Republican bill to repeal Obamacare that he was moving on to tackle tax reform. But the two policy priorities are intertwined in complex ways.”
Guardian -
'Death by a thousand cuts': LGBT rights fading under Trump, advocates say
Meanwhile, “
Gay rights advocates are sounding the alarm over what they say is a quiet campaign being waged by Donald Trump’s administration to chip away at hard-fought protections for LGBT Americans. While the White House has insisted Trump is a vocal supporter of the LGBT community, breaking from previous Republican presidents, advocacy groups were left questioning that commitment following a series of recent actions dubbed by one gay rights lawyer as “death by a thousand cuts”. The latest missive arrived on Wednesday, when the US Census Bureau said a proposal to count LGBT Americans in its 2020 report and annual survey had been a mistake….”
Trump & global health
KFF – White House Submits FY17 Reduction Options to Congress
http://kff.org/news-summary/white-house-submits-fy17-reduction-options-to-congress/
“This budget summary highlights global health-related funding contained in the White House’s proposed cuts for FY17, submitted to Congress on March 24, 2017. The proposal identifies reduction options for PEPFAR’s HIV efforts, TB, family planning and reproductive health, polio, global health security, neglected tropical diseases, nutrition, and vulnerable children, as well as provides descriptions and justifications for the funding cuts.” Including a
breakdown.
See also
Science Speaks -
Trump proposes $18 billion cuts to spending this year, with steep, immediate drops in science, health, human services investments “
From slowing HIV treatment access, to an immediate $1.2 billion cut in biomedical research funding, to eliminating a program providing income for older Americans, Trump proposal to slash domestic and overseas aid spending this year is deemed unlikely to be accepted, but further highlights administration priorities.”
(see also
Bloomberg & Stat News -
White House proposes new, sweeping budget cuts at NIH or
Vox).
http://globalhealthgovernance.org/blog/2017/3/24/trumps-proposed-cuts-in-us-foreign-aid-will-put-lives-at-risk
Devex on PEPFAR -
Is PEPFAR a Trump budget winner? Not so fast... From a week ago. And apparently the caution was warranted, as we saw this week already. (
recommended read)
Worth noting also –
New York Times Editorial:
The Trump Administration's War on Science
“
…Some research cuts, particularly to the NIH, aren't likely to make it past Congress. But they show Mr. Trump's lack of understanding of science's role in national and domestic security, in protecting air and water and other resources, and in preventing disease and lowering the cost of health care ... In service to small-government ideology, it proposes to whack 18 percent from the NIH's budget, and even more from the Department of Energy and the EPA's science programs. ... The cuts in human health programs have drawn the heaviest criticism..."
NEJM – Scientific Drought, Golden Eggs, and Global Leadership — Why Trump’s NIH Funding Cuts Would Be a Disaster
http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1703734?query=featured_home
Analysis of the Trump budget blueprint from March 16, 2017 - “America First,” with a proposal to cut the 2018 National Institutes of Health (NIH) budget by 18.3%, or approximately $5.8 billion.
Trump & planetary health
Vox – Trump’s big new executive order to tear up Obama’s climate policies, explained
http://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2017/3/27/14922516/trump-executive-order-climate
“..
In a sweeping new executive order, President Trump ordered his Cabinet to start demolishing a wide array of Obama-era policies on global warming — including emissions rules for power plants, limits on methane leaks, a moratorium on federal coal leasing, and the use of the social cost of carbon to guide government actions.”
We reckon you got this (disastrous) news via the media already this week. Trump won’t be able to implement everything he has in mind – if only because activists & lawyers will put up a fight, but it’s clear his administration is already doing a lot of damage, even if he’s fighting a now unstoppable (but far too slow) trend towards low-carbon economies.
So far, no mention of pulling out of the Paris Climate agreement.
Some other reads:
CGD (blog) (J Bush) (recommended) -
Trump’s Retrogressive Executive Order on Climate Change: A Development Perspective in Three Charts
Even if it wasn’t mentioned, a key question is
what will now happen to the Paris climate Agreement. There are different perspectives on this:
Blog –
Neil Bird (ODI) –
Trump’s climate move will put rich and poor countries at odds.
Guardian -
EU leads attacks on Trump's rollback of Obama climate policy “
The European Union has led criticism of Donald Trump’s effort to unravel Barack Obama’s measures to combat climate change, suggesting that Europe will now take the lead in global efforts.” Together with
China.
(recommended)
Foreign Policy -
Is the Paris Climate Agreement dead? Trump’s new enviro-rollback seeks to undermine the landmark accord, but an America First energy plan might not mean pulling out entirely. No, this pundit reckons. But,
“…More interesting is the absence of any mention of the landmark Paris Agreement, which was adopted by 197 countries in 2015 to ratchet global carbon pollution to net-zero levels over the course of this century. Trump promised during the campaign to “cancel” that accord, but the realities of governing seem to have given the White House pause. And rightly so — you don’t have to be an environmentalist, or even a Democrat, to appreciate why walking away from the Paris Agreement would harm the material interests of the United States….”
Institutionalizing Community Health Conference (ICHC) - 27-30 March Jo’Burg
http://ichc2017.org/?utm_content=bufferd1904&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin.com&utm_campaign=buffer
Quite some heavyweight sponsors of this conference, I have to say... “
Advancing community health is central to achieving sustainable development and universal primary healthcare. The foundations of community health within the context of primary health care are increasingly recognized as crucial components of national policies and strategies to accelerate progress in health. We need to further integrate community health approaches into national and local health policy and systems in order to achieve the SDGs and the implementation of the new UN Global Strategy for Women's, Children's and Adolescents' Health. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and USAID's flagship Maternal and Child Survival Program (MCSP), [will] host a four-day conference focused on supporting countries to strengthen partnerships with communities as resources to transform the future and ensure that every mother, newborn, and child not only survives, but thrives. … … The Institutionalizing Community Health Conference [will] focus on: Sharing state-of-the-art lessons and experience; Enabling country stakeholders to share progress and identify solutions to persistent challenges; Informing national policies and plans though evidence, success, and adaptive learning; and Engaging communities as dynamic resources and agents within national and local systems. Anticipated outcomes of the conference include: Advancing the understanding of the opportunities and challenges – financial and human resources, programmatic, socio-political – for institutionalizing viable and resilient platforms for community health investments, Learning from community health programs in diverse systems contexts, with documented processes and impact on comprehensive RMNCAH issues, Forging new and strengthening existing partnerships between governments, civil society (i.e. international and local NGOs, professional associations, academia), private sector, and other relevant development partners, to leverage new resources and achieve results with equity, shared accountability, and national ownership, Developing country-specific action plans for addressing priority issues/challenges to guide country action and harmonize donor support around those actions; Prioritizing learning themes within and across countries towards a comprehensive learning agenda to inform community health policies and programs.”
You might want to check out a USAID blog series on CHWs -
http://www.mcsprogram.org/institutionalizing-community-health-conference-blogs/
We quite enjoyed this
blog (20 March) (by
N Kureshy & J Pfaffmann) -
Transforming the Community Health Landscape: From Alma Ata to the Institutionalizing Community Health Conference “…
Could more countries have achieved the MDGss if community participation had been an integral part of the health system? Are we prepared to work differently in the SDG era, elevating community engagement as a priority area for action within the framework of the new Global Strategy for Women’s Children’s and Adolescents’ Health? Can we finally deliver on the promise of the Alma Ata declaration in 1978 to ensure access to primary health care for all? 2018 will see the 40th anniversary of the Alma Ata Conference. Though important successes have been achieved in increasing access to health, there is much work to be done. Years of vertical, horizontal, diagonal approaches to primary health care have not yet been successful in providing a fair chance for all women and children to thrive and transform their communities and societies. Are we ready to lead a paradigm shift in health systems thinking? Has the time finally come for building robust community health systems– supported by empowered and engaged communities – as a foundation of effective health systems?...”
See
hashtag #HealthforAll for some of the action and quotes. Some
examples of tweets:
Community health does not refer to CHWs only, it includes community empowerment by groups & local volunteers. Anthony Costello
#HealthForAll
@globalhlthtwit CHWs r important but they are not the sole actor or solution 2 community health systems
#HealthForAll
- K. Tarigopula, @gatesfoundation India on partnerships to elevate CH: What are success metrics? Who should be at the table? #HealthForAll
Ask not what the CHW can do for the health system but what the health system can do for the CHW (quoting
@RobinKaruga)
#HealthForAll (
an EV 2016 going JFK !)
David Sanders of U of Western Cape asks: What are the costs & benefits to health sector in long run for community health?
#HealthForAll
Luwei Pearson UNICEF: our 23 country plans and commitments to strengthen community health systems come from our hearts
@stefanswartpet
Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention launches five-year strategic plan to improve surveillance, emergency response and prevention of infectious diseases
African Union press release;
Last week on Friday, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention launched its strategic plan to improve surveillance, emergency response, and prevent infectious diseases on the continent. The plan requires 34.4 million United States dollars for 2017 and 2018.
UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) – 61st session
Guardian - Nations pledge to cut women's unpaid work and close the gender pay gap
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2017/mar/27/nations-pledge-to-close-gender-pay-gap-commission-status-women-un
“
UN member states have pledged to close the gender pay gap and reduce and redistribute unpaid care and domestic work that falls disproportionately on women. After two weeks of intense discussions in New York, the Commission on the Status of Women ended with commitments by states to advance women’s economic empowerment by implementing equal pay policies, gender audits and job evaluations. The gender pay gap stands at 23% globally, according to UN figures….”
Devex – Top takeaways from the UN's largest women's rights gathering
https://www.devex.com/news/top-takeaways-from-the-un-s-largest-women-s-rights-gathering-89904
Complementary read on the 61
st session of CSW. Includes this paragraph:
““…There was this big boo-ha-ha made of creating UN Women and bringing gender to all of the work of the U.N. in a way that is consistent — and then you look at the budget and it has by far the tiniest budget of any institution within the U.N. system. It is almost embarrassing and it is a mockery and a lie to say the U.N. is committed when you look at the numbers across the board,” said Kavita Ramdas, an independent consultant and philanthropic advisor who formerly served as CEO for the Global Fund for Women.”
World Autism Awareness Day – 2 April
http://www.un.org/en/events/autismday/
The #UN has announced the theme of World #Autism Awareness Day 2017 (2 April): "Toward Autonomy and Self-Determination" /
Coming up – World Health Day: 7 April
Reuters – "Let's Talk", WHO says, as depression rates rise 18 percent in a decade
http://in.reuters.com/article/health-depression-idINKBN1711BB
“
Depression is now the leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday, with more than 300 million people suffering. Rates of depression have risen by more than 18 percent since 2005, but a lack of support for the mental health combined with a common fear of stigma means many do not get the treatment they need to live healthy, productive lives. "These new figures are a wake-up call for all countries to re-think their approaches to mental health and to treat it with the urgency it deserves," Margaret Chan, the WHO's director-general, said in a statement from the U.N. agency's Geneva headquarters.”
7 April is World Health Day. See also
WHO -
"Depression: let’s talk" says WHO, as depression tops list of causes of ill health
“
Depression is the leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide. According to the latest estimates from the World Health Organization, more than 300 million people are now living with depression, an increase of more than 18% between 2005 and 2015. Lack of support for people with mental disorders, coupled with a fear of stigma, prevent many from accessing the treatment they need to live healthy, productive lives. The new estimates have been released in the lead-up to World Health Day on 7 April, the high point in WHO’s year-long campaign “Depression: let’s talk”. The overall goal of the campaign is that more people with depression, everywhere in the world, both seek and get help…”
WHO –WHO Launches Global Effort to Halve Medication-Related Errors in 5 Years
http://who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2017/medication-related-errors/en/
“
WHO today launched a global initiative to reduce severe, avoidable medication-associated harm in all countries by 50% over the next 5 years. The Global Patient Safety Challenge on Medication Safety aims to address the weaknesses in health systems that lead to medication errors and the severe harm that results. It lays out ways to improve the way medicines are prescribed, distributed and consumed, and increase awareness among patients about the risks associated with the improper use of medication.”
“..This challenge is WHO’s third global patient safety challenge, following the Clean Care is Safe Care challenge on hand hygiene in 2005 and the Safe Surgery Saves Lives challenge in 2008.”
Lancet – Health care must mean safe care: enshrining patient safety in global health
K Flott et al ;
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(17)30868-1/fulltext
“
The drive to universal health coverage (UHC) has gathered momentum and features across the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, with major UHC gains in countries such as Brazil, Chile, China, Mexico, Thailand, and Turkey.1 But efforts to advance UHC are mainly focused on improving access to health services and the financing structures behind them. Quality and patient safety are largely neglected, especially in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). On March 29–30, 2017, Germany's Federal Ministry of Health [will] host the Second Global Ministerial Summit on Patient Safety alongside WHO. It is crucial that this meeting reiterates the role of patient safety in LMICs, and makes the case that unsafe care is no care at all….”
Devex – For first time, WHO as implementer in Mosul trauma 'chain of care'
https://www.devex.com/news/for-first-time-who-as-implementer-in-mosul-trauma-chain-of-care-89840
“…
Mosul has been the rare humanitarian emergency that everyone could see coming as the Iraqi government telegraphed its intent to retake the city. That has allowed an enormous amount of innovation to happen on the frontlines. One of the most unexpected players close to the battle has been the World Health Organization, a U.N. agency that usually prefers to coordinate from the sidelines. In Northern Iraq, WHO is essentially running a referral chain for trauma cases that sees patients from inside Mosul move through stabilization points, field hospitals, and eventually tertiary facilities within the “golden hour” — the crucial 60 minutes in which critical patients must get care to survive….”
“… The story of how and why WHO stepped in offers a look at what the agency can do — and hopes to do more of here in Iraq — if and when circumstances call for a more activist role. The work comes at a transformative time for WHO itself, which is wrapped in an intense debate about how it should reform and what sort of role it could and should play across the globe, ahead of elections in May for a new director-general. The West Africa Ebola crisis of 2014 sparked difficult discussions about how and why the WHO fell short both in its coordinating and implementing role — and raised some questions about whether the organization should scale back its role in the field altogether. The Iraqi work makes a case for a frontline role in emergencies….”
BMJ Global Health –Towards an agenda for implementation science in global health: there is nothing more practical than good (social science) theories
Sara Van Belle et al;
http://gh.bmj.com/content/2/2/e000181
Summary box - “
There have been calls for more use of theory in implementation studies and implementation science. There is currently little attention for systematically using theories from social sciences in implementation science. Realist evaluation, and other theory-driven evaluation and research approaches, provide a useful approach to better build implementation science studies on theories as well as to test and develop theories.” Recommended!
Dementia
Plos Medicine (Editorial) –Dementia and aging populations—A global priority for contextualized research and health policy
C Brayne et al;
http://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1002275
Editorial from the
Dementia Special issue from this month in Plos. « …
There is increasing realization that public health measures will play an important role in the drive to protect world populations from cognitive impairment and dementia, but there is relatively little research in this area, acknowledgement of lack of knowledge (e.g., recent road map) and a wide variability in actions taken to address these in different societies and certainly in their effectiveness. In the public health domain, this special issue of PLOS Medicine explores potential for addressing reversible factors in varied cultural and socioeconomic environments. Not surprisingly, a “one size fits all” approach does not appear to work. In parallel, research studies published in this special issue also help to advance understanding of genetics and dementia, emphasizing a heterogeneity of risk factors for different individuals and populations…. » “… As science improves our understanding of dementia as well as its relationship to ageing in different populations, better prediction and prevention will be greatly facilitated by studies such as those reported in this month’s PLOS Medicine issue, with progress being made around public health and the genetic and behavioral risks for dementia….”
Plos – Dementia in low-income and middle-income countries: Different realities mandate tailored solutions
C P Ferri et al;
http://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1002271
“In a Perspective for the Dementia Special Issue, Cleusa Ferri and K. S. Jacob discuss people living with dementia in low- and middle-income countries.”
Global Policy –The Paris Agreement – Protecting the Human Right to Health?
A Dietzel;
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1758-5899.12421/full
“The Paris Agreement was largely viewed as a resounding success by those who took part in its negotiation. This paper examines whether these claims hold up to closer scrutiny. More specifically, the paper will assess whether the Paris Agreement protects the human right to health….”
Global Health Promotion – Using sustainability as a collaboration magnet to encourage multi-sector collaborations for health
A K-Mahani, R Labonté et al;
http://journals.sagepub.com/eprint/ZIHZyGBsagNn3jJtfczH/full
“
The World Health Organization Commission on Social Determinants of Health (SDH) places great emphasis on the role of multi-sector collaboration in addressing SDH. Despite this emphasis on this need, there is surprisingly little evidence for this to advance health equity goals. One way to encourage more successful multi-sector collaborations is anchoring SDH discourse around ‘sustainability’, subordinating within it the ethical and empirical importance of ‘levelling up’. Sustainability, in contrast to health equity, has recently proved to be an effective collaboration magnet. The recent adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provides an opportunity for novel ways of ideationally re-framing SDH discussions through the notion of sustainability. The 2030 Agenda for the SDGs calls for greater policy coherence across sectors to advance on the goals and targets. The expectation is that diverse sectors are more likely and willing to collaborate with each other around the SDGs, the core idea of which is ‘sustainability’.”
IP-Watch – Funding Injection For New Antibiotics: The CARB-X Transatlantic Partnership
https://www.ip-watch.org/2017/03/30/funding-injection-new-antibiotics-carb-x-transatlantic-partnership/
“
A partnership of government agencies and organisations in the United States and United Kingdom have announced an investment of up to US$48 million into the development of new antibiotics and products to fight antibiotic resistant bacteria, with the aim of having two new antibiotics in human trials in the next five years. CARB-X, the Combating Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator, is a partnership between public and private organisations in the US and UK….”.
For the press release, see
CARB-X. “…This is the first phase of funding by CARB-X, launched July 28, 2016 as one of the world's largest public-private partnership to accelerate global antibacterial innovation, including drugs, vaccines, rapid diagnostics and devices.”
Lancet Infectious Diseases (Editorial) - Antibiotic research priorities: ready, set, now go
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(17)30140-8/fulltext
Must-read. Assessment of the compilation of pathogens on which research and development of new antimicrobials should be focused (see the WHO list from a few weeks ago), including some of the omissions, and the link with the upcoming G20 meeting. The editorial concludes:” …
The top priority now for antimicrobial research and development is not A baumannii S aureus, or MDR-TB. It is to find a way to bring together pharmaceutical companies, governments, civic society, and academics to overcome decades of stagnation, to stimulate research, and to generate some effective new medicines.”
Guardian - Africans are rising – we can hold our leaders to account and build a better kind of future
Kumi Naidoo;
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2017/mar/26/africans-are-rising-we-can-hold-our-leaders-to-account-and-build-a-better-kind-of-future
“Fed up with ineffective leaders who aren’t dealing with the crises on the continent, people are coming together to
launch a pan-African solidarity movement.”
“
The expression “Africa rising” was popularised by the Economist and focuses on GDP growth. … … But while GDP has been rising across Africa, Africans themselves have been sinking – into deepening inequality, increasing corruption, shrinking civic space and in low lying areas, literally due to climate change. This is why 272 people from 44 African countries (and the diaspora) founded Africans Rising for Justice, Peace & Dignity, in August last year, out of a deep desire to rewrite the rising narrative. The vision is a decentralised, citizen-owned future. Social inclusion, peace and shared prosperity are the key touch points of this new pan-African movement. … … Africans Rising is about calling out our leaders on [these failures] and building a better, more just, more peaceful and sustainable Africa. On 25 May – commonly known as Africa Day and officially as African Liberation Day – there will be a series of actions and events across the continent to mark the launch of the movement….”
ODI (blog) – Take development off the Article 50 negotiation table
David Watson ;
https://www.odi.org/comment/10501-take-development-article-50-negotiation-table
For the many Brexit fans among you: “…So rather than waste time on phoney negotiations, the UK and EU should immediately pledge to meet their obligations to partners in the Global South through development programming, support and partnerships…. ”
SDG implementation
IISD - UN Member States Discuss Climate-SDGs Linkages at High-Level Event (23-24 March, New York)
http://sdg.iisd.org/news/un-member-states-discuss-climate-sdgs-linkages-at-high-level-event/
“President of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) Peter Thomson convened a
High-Level Event, titled ‘
Climate Change and the Sustainable Development Agenda,’ in collaboration with the Secretariat of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The event sought to provide an opportunity to highlight synergies between actions to address climate change and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The event sought to provide an opportunity to highlight synergies between actions to address climate change and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Tajikistan, the Philippines, Armenia and Andorra announced that they just submitted their respective instruments of ratification of or accession to the Paris Agreement.
Discussions focused on, inter alia, the possibilities for changes in the energy sector, financing sustainable development, and the role of big data and information in accelerating change….”
Deliver 2030- Taming complexity: From SDG interactions to policy priorities
C Trimmer
http://deliver2030.org/?p=8177
Must-read on the
Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) which is “
developing practical ways to reflect the interplay of goals and targets in Agenda 2030 implementation strategies.”
“…faced with the reality of governance and policy set-ups and the sheer variety of ways that the 169 targets under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can interact, policy-makers tasked with drawing up national implementation strategies have often found themselves quickly overwhelmed. “From the policy-makers we’ve spoken to in Sweden, and from what we’re hearing from partners around the world, there is a real demand for practical ways to translate this integrated agenda into realistic policy ambitions,” says SEI’s Nina Weitz. To meet this urgent need, SEI is developing a range of decision-support tools and methods to help identify strategic priorities, high-synergy pathways and cross-sectoral partnerships for practically implementing the 2030 Agenda.” Stay tuned for an SEI working paper soon: “…
A forthcoming SEI Working Paper applies this scale to characterize interactions emanating from six SDG goals. It looks at how targets under these goals interact with other SDG targets, how far this interaction is affected by context, and the state of the evidence and knowledge base around the interaction.” Based on analyses by Måns Nilsson for the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), the paper focuses on the six SDG goals that will come under the spotlight at this year’s High-Level Political Forum process: Goals 1, 2, 3, 5, 9 and 14.”
See Nilsson et al’s paper in
Nature last year -
Policy: Map the interactions between Sustainable Development Goals.
IISD – Monthly forecast – April 2017
http://sdg.iisd.org/commentary/policy-briefs/monthly-forecast-april-2017/
It’ll be a lot about “show me the (sustainable development finance) money”: “
The spring meetings of the World Bank and the IMF will include the gathering of the joint Development Committee and the IMF's International Monetary and Financial Committee. In the first week of April, two meetings on mobilizing domestic resources through taxation will focus on how institutions and governments can better coordinate to make the most of this key MOI. … ”
HP&P - Performance-based financing: the same is different
D Renmans et al ;
https://academic.oup.com/heapol/article-abstract/doi/10.1093/heapol/czx030/3091187/Performance-based-financing-the-same-is-different?redirectedFrom=fulltext
Must-read. “
Although it is increasingly acknowledged within the Performance-Based Financing (PBF) research community that PBF is more than just payments based on outputs verified for quality, this narrow definition of PBF is still very present in many studies and evaluations. This leads to missed opportunities, misunderstandings and an unhelpful debate. Therefore, we reinforce the claim that PBF should be viewed as a reform package focused on targeted services with many different aspects that go beyond the health worker level. Failing to acknowledge the importance of the different elements of PBF negatively influences the task of practitioners, researchers and policymakers alike. After making the case for this wider definition, we propose three research pathways (describing, understanding and framing PBF) and give a short and tentative starting point for future research, leaving the floor open for more in-depth discussions. From these three vantage points it appears that when it comes to PBF ‘the same is different’. Notwithstanding the increased complexity due to the use of the wider definition, progress on these three different research pathways will strongly improve our knowledge, lead to better adapted PBF programs and create a more nuanced debate on PBF.”
Global immunization impact constrained by outdated vaccine delivery systems, researchers say
https://eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-03/b-gii032317.php
“Outdated vaccine supply and distribution systems are delaying and limiting the impact that vaccines have on safeguarding people's health, according to the editors of a collection of new articles published today in Vaccine journal. Among the challenges of ensuring a consistent supply of potent vaccines identified by researchers: one in every three countries in the world experiences at least one stockout of at least one vaccine for at least one month; and 19 to 38 percent of vaccines worldwide are accidentally exposed to freezing temperatures, potentially compromising the potency of those vaccines….” “…The 29 articles are part of a special supplement to Vaccine coordinated by the global health nonprofit, PATH--with guest editors from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, UNICEF, and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health--that identify challenges and point to solutions that countries can employ to modernize their immunization supply chains.”
See also
the Economist -
Managing supplies of vaccines is a huge problem.
Lancet – Offline : Difficult truths about a post-truth world
Richard Horton ;
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(17)30878-4/fulltext
“…
At our Global Health Lab, which The Lancet holds jointly with the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Mark Petticrew, Director of the Public Health Research Consortium at the School, discussed how the tobacco and alcohol industries distort health policy by claiming that expertise and evidence are just other forms of bias. His prize exhibit of the post-truth world was the Brussels Declaration. This document, published in February this year, purported to set out “ethics and principles to inform work at the boundaries of science, society, and policy”. In one recommendation, the Declaration stated that, “Scientists need to recognise that they are advocates with vested interests too—in their case, in their own science.”…” Horton’s take on that (and on other stances on how global health should deal with ‘post-truth’, for example that “Global health should “embrace the trend and play the emotional game”.
In the end, Horton seems to agree with Pettigrew’s suggestion on how to deal with this, as his concluding lines are: “…
Instead, Mark Petticrew urged our recommitment to independence, objectivity, science, and peer review. Truths are contested and contextual. But a rigorous quest for fact is all that separates us from chaos and damnation.”
UHC2030 working group on Sustainability, Transition from Aid and Health System Strengthening
https://www.internationalhealthpartnership.net/en/news-videos/article/uhc2030-working-group-on-sustainability-transition-from-aid-and-health-system-strengthening-401839/
“
The UHC2030 working group on Sustainability, Transition from Aid and Health Systems Strengthening is holding its first face-to-face meeting on 30-31 March 2017 in Geneva, Switzerland.” “… health system strengthening (HSS) is at the core of the response to transition if progress towards UHC is to be sustained. The focus of work for this new working group will be to build consensus around core issues and objectives in response to the transition from aid, develop guidance and principles for good practice and explore the types of reforms and investments needed to support an effective transition process….”
Fifth meeting IAEG-SDGs (Ottawa, 28-31 March)
https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/news/
The fifth meeting of the Inter-agency and Expert Group on Sustainable Development Goal Indicators (IAEG-SDGs), is being
held from 28 to 31 March 2017 in Ottawa, Canada. The meeting is hosted by Statistics Canada. You find agenda & background documents on the website. See also
Medium for a quick overview of the objectives.
Coming up - Africa Development week (31 March-5 April)
UN Economic Commission for Africa ;
http://www.uneca.org/stories/register-now-african-development-week
Some info on this week: “The inaugural Africa Development Week is being hosted by the Economic Commission for Africa and the African Union from 31 March to 5th April. Close to thirty side events on topical issues including migration, industrialization, regional integration, and recent global agreements such as the Paris Agreement and the SDGss, will also be convened during the week. The annual high-level joint ECA-AU ministerial Conference, bringing together AU Ministers of the Economy and Finance and the ECA Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, will also take place during the week under the theme Towards an Integrated and Coherent Approach to Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation of Agenda 2063 and the SDGs…”
Africa Development Week: ways to increase health budgets for universal access
http://www.cnbcafrica.com/uncategorized/2017/03/25/health/
“
Africa’s health experts gathered in Dakar [Saturday] to discuss health financing and social protection to ensure there’s universal access to health on the continent amid worries that commitments by most governments and stakeholders on this issue were not being translated into action on the ground. Speaking at the
joint Economic Commission for Africa-World Health Organization event on health financing in Africa, the ECA’s Social Development Policy Division Director, Takyiwaa Manuh, said though African governments committed through the Abuja Declaration of 2001 and more recently the Tunis Declaration and others to put more money into health, many such commitments remain untranslated into concrete actions for reasons that range from inadequate resources to weak administrative and institutional mechanisms.”
WHO 21st meeting of the WHO Expert Committee on the Selection and Use of Essential Medicines
http://www.who.int/selection_medicines/committees/expert/21/en/
The meeting of
the 21st WHO Expert Committee on the Selection and Use of Essential Medicines is held at WHO Headquarters, Geneva,
from 27 to 31 March 2017 to revise and update the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines (EML) including Essential Medicines for Children (EMLc).
Let’s see what they come up with. See also
KEI (statement focusing on cancer drugs)
IP Watch – WHO Flu Framework Looks At Virus Genetic Information Sharing, Private Sector Contribution
https://www.ip-watch.org/2017/03/28/flu-framework-looks-virus-genetic-information-sharing-private-sector-contribution/
“
How to deal with genetic information rather than physical samples of pandemic influenza virus continues to be discussed at the World Health Organization. For the moment, only physical samples are part of a framework of access and benefit sharing set up and run by the WHO. [This week], the framework advisory group is meeting and according to sources, suggested steps to establish guidance on how to address virus genetic information will be shared by the WHO during the meeting. Other topics are expected to include the industry contribution to the framework and the next-level implementation plan from this contribution, starting in 2018. The
Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (PIP) Framework Advisory Group is
meeting from 28-31 March. …”
Health Systems Governance Collaborative constitutive forum in Brussels (26 March)
Last week,
@asoucat kicked off the
Health Systems Governance Collaborative's constitutive forum in Brussels. For more on this constitutive forum and the aims of this Collaborative, do keep an eye on IHP next week! Sneak preview already on
Twitter.
Health in All Policies: What is its role in progressing the SDGs ( Adelaide, Australia – 30-31 March)
http://www.wcph2017.com/satellite-events.php
The Government of South Australia in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO) holds a (satellite) conference in Adelaide, in the run-up to the
World Congress on Public Health in Melbourne (to start very soon).
“
The Adelaide Conference will explore the role of Health in All Policies in successful implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and will reflect upon the South Australian experience, and that of other countries, of Health in All Policies over ten years. The conference will build on the outcomes of the 9th Global Conference on Health Promotion in Shanghai November 2016. “ With Ilona Kickbush as keynote speaker, among others.
See hashtag
#HIAP2017
Coming up: World Health Worker Week (2-8 April)
https://www.frontlinehealthworkers.org/worldhealthworkerweek/?utm_content=buffer250a8&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer