At the 2025 World Health Summit (WHS) in Berlin, Traditional Medicine (TM) found a historic place in the global health dialogue. For the first time, dedicated sessions explored its role in advancing Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and transforming how health systems connect with communities. My curiosity about how TM is gaining visibility at the...

Tuberculosis (TB) remains the world’s leading cause of death from a single infectious agent. Combating this global epidemic requires combined actions against its five main health-related risk factors, namely, diabetes mellitus, HIV, smoking, undernutrition, and disorders due to alcohol use. I am particularly interested in the association of TB...

The World Health Summit (WHS) brings together political leaders, corporate executives, academics, global health agencies, entrepreneurs and start-ups, but rarely the communities most affected by the issues discussed. Panels in Berlin remain dominated by ministers, CEOs, and agency heads. Even if some progress has been made over the years, citiz...

The Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) is more than just a number. It is one of the clearest mirrors of a nation’s wellbeing. A high IMR tells a story of unmet health needs, malnutrition, unsafe water and sanitation, and gaps in prenatal and newborn care. Although India’s IMR has fallen to 25 deaths per 1,000 live births, regional disparities persi...

In this short article, Grace Ku reflects upon the Political Declaration and proceedings of the 4th High Level Meeting on Non-Communicable Diseases during the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) held in New York on 25 September. The 4th Political Declaration Almost 6 months prior to the UNGA 4th High-Level Meeting on Non-Communicable Dise...

Traditionally, medical neutrality has been taken for granted: while remaining devastating for populations and individuals, combat and weapon attacks would stop in front of a hospital, a health centre or an ambulance. Health care facilities and vehicles were ‘bubbles of humanity’ in the midst of violence and inhumanity.  But in the last decad...

The ultimate aim of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is to ensure that every person has access to basic healthcare, anywhere and anytime. The Government of India, along with many health organizations, has relentlessly made efforts over the years to reach this goal through a variety of policies & interventions, but the journey ahead is still long....

Globally, oral health is often overlooked in policy discussions, program planning, and resource allocations, diminishing its perceived importance for overall well-being. Understanding the roots of this neglect requires a fresh lens, employing historical approaches to analyse the invisible forces that have shaped health outcomes over time. Drawin...

Three decades ago, the Lady Health Workers (LHW) program was launched in Pakistan to bring primary health services to communities, a flagship program by the Government of Pakistan. Local women were recruited and trained to provide basic maternal and childcare, family planning, immunizations, and health education at people’s doorsteps, as refle...