[EQ] Human Rights in Healthcare

Human Rights in Healthcare - A framework for local action

 

Equality and Human Rights Group

UK Department of Health - October 2008

 

Available online at: http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_088970

 

“…..the Human Rights in Healthcare project, we have shown that taking a human rights based approach can provide a way for everyone in an organisation to make real improvements in people’s lives. The project has been a collaboration between five NHS organisations, the British Institute of Human Rights and the Department of Health. The learning from this project has been incorporated into this new edition of Human Rights in Healthcare –

A framework for local action, which aims to show how a human rights based approach can be of practical value to organisations and individuals providing better services for patients and service users….” Alan Johnson Secretary of State for Health

 

“…Every single person in the UK comes into contact with the NHS at some point in their lives, usually when they are at their most vulnerable. Therefore it is essential that human rights are taken into account when delivering services to ensure quality care.

 

Putting human rights at the heart of the way healthcare services are designed and delivered can make for better services for everyone, with patient and staff experiences reflecting the core values of fairness, respect, equality, dignity and autonomy…..”

 

Contents

Foreword

Executive summary

Introduction – about this framework

Section 1: Introducing human rights and links to healthcare

1.1 What are human rights and why do they matter?

1.2 Human rights – the core values

1.3 How are rights made real?

1.4 How do human rights relate to health and well-being?

1.5 Why should NHS organisations put human rights at the heart of their work?

1.6 The full range of human rights and where to find them

Section 2: Bringing rights home – the Human Rights Act 1998

2.1 Introduction

2.2 What is the Human Rights Act trying to achieve?

2.3 What does the Human Rights Act mean in practice for NHS organisations?

2.4 More about human rights duties and obligations for NHS organisations

2.5 Rights in reality – some key rights to consider in the everyday work of NHS organisations

Section 3: From principles to practice – human rights based approaches in action

3.1 Introduction

3.2 What is meant by a human rights based approach?

3.3 Examples of human rights based approaches in action

3.4 A summary of learning from the project to date

3.5 Case studies

Glossary

Further Resources

Useful Websites

Endnotes

 

 

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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/ KMS Area]

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[EQ] Health is global: a UK Government strategy

Health is Global: a UK Government strategy

 

UK Department of Health September 30, 2008

 

Available online at: http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_088702

 

 

“….Safeguarding good health is not simply the province of individual countries. A globalised, interdependent world, characterised by the increasing movement of individuals and populations – and where disease recognises no borders – means that health has become a global issue.
Our responsibility is to harness the opportunities of globalisation to improve the health of people across the world, and in particular people in the UK.

 

 A healthy population is fundamental to prosperity, security and stability – a cornerstone of economic growth and social development. In contrast, poor health does more than damage the economic and political viability of any one country – it is a threat to the economic and political interests of all countries. Improving global health is vital if we are to achieve the Government’s domestic and international objectives. The health targets of the MDGs are among those least likely to be met and this demands a coherent strategy and decisive action.

 

Global health is determined by factors which themselves often show scant respect for national boundaries – such as international trade, climate change, pollution, conflict, environmental degradation and poverty.

 

The UK Government cannot achieve the ambition set out in this strategy alone. Because so many sectors affect health, and so many countries and agencies are involved in healthcare, improving health around the world requires co-operative actions and solutions. This means creative, joined-up partnership both between UK government departments, and between the UK Government and a host of other partners, ranging from the EU and the UN to non-governmental organisations (NGOs), foundations, academia and business. Such a co-operative vision demands a strategy for improving global health and, while the strategy we outline is for the next five years, its vision covers a 10- to 15-year period. The strategy sets out the breadth of global health issues and our plan for tackling them…”

 

There are ten principles that underpin Health is Global

They are that we will:

 

1.       set out to do no harm and, as far as feasible, evaluate the impact of our domestic and foreign policies on global health to ensure that our intention is fulfilled;

2.       base our global health policies and practice on sound evidence, especially public health evidence, and work with others to develop evidence where it does not exist;

3.       use health as an agent for good in foreign policy, recognising that improving the health of the world’s population can make a strong contribution towards promoting a low-carbon, high-growth global economy;

4.       promote outcomes on global health that support the achievement of the MDGs and the MDG Call for Action;

5.       promote health equity within and between countries through our foreign and domestic policies;

6.       ensure that the effects of foreign and domestic policies on global health are much more explicit and that we are transparent about where the objectives of different policies may conflict;

7.       work for strong and effective leadership on global health through strengthened and reformed international institutions;

8.       learn from other countries’ policies and experience in order to improve the health and well-being of the UK population and the way we deliver healthcare;

9.       protect the health of the UK proactively, by tackling health challenges that begin outside our borders; and

10.   work in partnership with other governments, multilateral agencies, civil society and business in pursuit of our objectives

 

Contents

Foreword by the Prime Minister

Summary

Why the UK needs a strategy to address global health

Health is Global: The strategy

Ten principles

Five areas for action

1. Better global health security

2. Stronger, fairer and safer systems to deliver health

3. More effective international health organisations

4. Stronger, freer and fairer trade for better health

5. Strengthening the wa y we develop and use evidence to improve policy and practice

Working with others

Resources

Implementation and monitoring progress

References

 

·         Download summary (PDF, 42K)

·         Download annexes (PDF, 1724K)

·         Download impact assessments (PDF, 741K)

 

Box 21:WHO Evidence Informed Policy Network

EVIPNet is an innovative initiative to promote the systematic use of health research evidence in policy making.

 Focusing on low- and middle-income countries, EVIPNet promotes partnerships at the country level between policy makers, researchers and civil society in order to facilitate both policy development and policy implementation through the use of the best scientific evidence available.
Low- and middle-income countries have scarce resources to address their health system challenges and need high-quality evidence to use those resources efficiently. Scientific evidence is a fundamental building block to improve the public health situation.
 If health sector managers and policy makers ignore evidence on the root causes of problems or what works best to address these problems, they risk wasting precious resources on inadequately designed programmes and policies.The direct consequence of ignoring this evidence is poor health for the population

WHO Evidence Informed Policy Network website (www.who.int/rpc/evipnet/en )

 

 *      *     *

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/ KMS Area]

“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”.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PAHO/WHO Website
Equity List - Archives - Join/remove: http://listserv.paho.org/Archives/equidad.html

 

 

    IMPORTANT: This transmission is for use by the intended recipient and it may contain privileged, proprietary or confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient or a person responsible for delivering this transmission to the intended recipient, you may not disclose, copy or distribute this transmission or take any action in reliance on it. If you received this transmission in error, please notify us immediately by email to infosec@paho.org, and please dispose of and delete this transmission. Thank you.