Imagine some place on Colombia’s Pacific coast: an idyllic riverine community reachable only by boat, where the river is the main road, the rain sets the rhythm of the day, and the sound of the forest blends with the voices of the people. That’s where “María” lives. One day, during a hospital stay for a cardiovascular condition, she...

Last year, on June 19, Colombia elected its first leftist president, committed to sustainable peace and tackling social and economic inequality and corruption, in a historic result. The stewardship of the country’s health system, headed by the Ministry of Health (MoH), was henceforth going to be presided over by civil and political forces roo...

Less than a week has passed since the successful conclusion of the 8th edition of the Emerging Voices for Global Health (EV4GH) program. This year’s EV venture (EV2022) was held in Colombia, in sync with the Seventh Global Symposium on Health Systems Research (HSR2022) in Bogota (31 Oct-4 Nov). By now, sixty people, including participants and f...

Before COVID-19 hit, Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries already displayed plenty of health inequalities rooted in the Social Determinants of Health (SDH), the conditions in the social environment – where people live, learn, work, and play – that affect health outcomes. Typically, this includes income, education, occupation, and social...