Health Equity: 09/10/09

Thursday, September 10, 2009

[EQ] Poverty, inequality and human rights

Poverty, inequality and human rights

Do human rights make a difference?

Alice Donald and Elizabeth Mottershaw

Joseph Rowntree Foundation - September 2009

Available online at: http://www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/poverty-human-rights-full.pdf

“…..How other countries have used human rights to tackle poverty and how this could be applied in the UK.
People working to tackle poverty in the UK are increasingly interested in using human rights in their work. This study looks at how this has been done in other countries, its impact on affected communities, debate, policy and government programmes, and its relevance for the UK.

The report covers:

• how human rights have been used to understand poverty;

• how communities experiencing poverty use human rights to act against injustice, build alliances between disparate groups, and articulate their conditions and claims;

• the tools that communities and their allies use to hold the state accountable for its human rights obligations;

• how human rights have been implemented in practice in anti-poverty work by governments and other organisations; and

• lessons for integrating human rights and anti-poverty work in the UK.

Content

Executive summary

Introduction

1 Using human rights to think about poverty

2 Using human rights to mobilize communities and alliances

3 Accountability: monitoring and measuring human rights

4 Accountability: using legal process to realise rights and combat poverty

5 Duty-bearers: implementing human rights

6 Connecting human rights and poverty in the UK

7 Conclusions and next steps

Resources

Appendix A: International human rights law

Appendix B: Human rights in the UK

Appendix C: List of interviewees

* * * *
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/ KMC 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: http://66.101.212.219/equity/
Equity List - Archives - Join/remove: http://listserv.paho.org/Archives/equidad.html
Twitter http://twitter.com/eqpaho

    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.

[EQ] Health technology assessment and health policy-making

Health technology assessment and health policy-making in Europe

Current status, challenges and potential

Marcial Velasco Garrido, Finn Børlum Kristensen, Camilla Palmhøj Nielsen and Reinhard Busse

2008, xiv + 181 pages ISBN 978 92 890 4293 2

World Health Organization 2008, on behalf of the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies

Available online as PDF file [197p.] at: http://www.euro.who.int/Document/E91922.pdf

“…..New technologies with the potential to improve the health of populations are continuously being introduced. But not every technological development results in clear health gains. Health technology assessment provides evidence-based information on the coverage and usage of health technologies, enabling them to be evaluated properly and applied to health care efficaciously, promoting the most effective ones while also taking into account organizational, societal and ethical issues.

This book reviews the relationship between health technology assessment and policy-making, and examines how to increase the contribution such research makes to policy- and decision-making processes. By communicating the value and potential of health technology assessment to a wider audience, both within and beyond decision-making and health care management, it aims ultimately to contribute to improving the health status of the population through the delivery of optimum health services….”

Content:

Introduction

Chapter 1. Transnational collaboration on health technology assessment – a political priority in Europe

Chapter 2. Policy processes and health technology assessment

Chapter 3. What is health technology assessment?

Chapter 4. Health systems, health policy and health technology assessment

Chapter 5. Health technology assessment in Europe – overview of the producers

Chapter 6. What are the effects of HTA reports on the health system? Evidence from the research literature

Chapter 7. Needs and demands of policy-makers

Chapter 8. Future challenges for HTA in Europe