Thursday, November 3, 2011

[EQ] Health Worker Shortages and Global Justice

Health Worker Shortages and Global Justice

Paula O’Brien and Lawrence O. Gostin
Milbank Memorial Fund, 2011


Available online PDF [119p.] at: http://bit.ly/vFN17B

“………….The world is experiencing a critical and growing shortage of health workers needed to deliver essential health services, particularly in the poorest countries around the globe. This report details the scope of the shortage, examines its complex underlying causes within and across borders, and offers seven recommendations to the United States for using its leadership status to address the problem, while stressing the need for all countries and stakeholders to take action. These recommendations take into account and carefully balance the rights, interests, and obligations of individuals, communities, and governments alike.

The global human resource shortage is certainly much greater than 4.3 million health workers. And the shortage includes more than physicians and nurses—extending to health workers across the spectrum, including pharmacists, dentists, laboratory technicians, emergency medical personnel, public health specialists, health sector management, and administrative staff.

The human resource crisis affects developed and developing countries, but the global poor suffer disproportionately, not only because they have a much smaller workforce but also because their needs are so much greater. Of the 57 countries with critical shortages, 36 are in Africa. Africa has 25% of the world’s disease burden, but only 3% of the world’s health workers and 1% of the economic resources. In particular, there is an extreme imbalance in the distribution of the estimated 12 million working nurses worldwide: the nurse-to-population ratio is 10 times higher in Europe than in Africa or Southeast Asia, and 10 times higher in North America than in South America.


These sterile numbers mask the real human tragedy of health personnel shortages. Where there are vastly inadequate numbers of health workers trained and employed, people cannot enjoy the good health that will enable them to flourish. They have fewer opportunities to prevent and treat injuries and diseases or to relieve pain and suffering when they are sick or dying. According to the WHO, in many poor countries, the lack of health workers is a major factor in the deaths of large numbers of individuals who would survive if they had access to health care…..”


Content:

Foreword .

Chapter 1: The Global Health Worker Crisis—Executive Summary

Chapter 2: The Global Shortage of Health Workers

Chapter 3: The Global Health Worker Shortage—Causes .

Chapter 4: Toward a US Policy on the Global Health Workforce Shortage—Rights, Interests, and Obligations

Chapter 5: US Policy on the Global Human Resource

Shortage—Recommendations for Action

Notes

Bibliography

 

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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/ KMC Area]
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[EQ] Priorities for Research on Equity and Health: Towards an Equity-Focused Health Research Agenda

Priorities for Research on Equity and Health: Towards an Equity-Focused Health Research Agenda

Piroska Östlin1*, Ted Schrecker2, Ritu Sadana3, Josiane Bonnefoy4, Lucy Gilson5, Clyde Hertzman6, Michael P. Kelly7, Tord Kjellstrom8, Ronald Labonté9, Olle Lundberg10, Carles Muntaner11, Jennie Popay12, Gita Sen13, Ziba Vaghri14

1 World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark, 2 Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine and Institute of Population Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada, 3 World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, 4 School of Public Health, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile, 5 University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa, and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom, 6 Human Early Learning Partnership (HELP), University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada, 7 Centre for Public Health Excellence, National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, London, United Kingdom, 8 National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia, 9 Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine and Institute of Population Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada, 10 Centre for Health Equity Studies, Stockholm, and Department of Health Sciences, Mid Sweden University, Östersund, Sweden, 11 Social Equity and Health Section, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing and Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada, 12 Division of Health Research, Lancaster University, Lancaster, United Kingdom, 13 Indian Institute of Management, Centre for Public Policy, Bangalore, India, 14 Human Early Learning Partnership (HELP), University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

PLoS Med 8(11): e1001115. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1001115 -  November 1, 2011

Available online at: http://bit.ly/tK4Ahx

SUMMARY POINTS


“…..Based on extensive review of global evidence, the recommendations of the WHO Commission on Social Determinants of Health highlight the need for strengthening research on health equity with a focus on social determinants of health.

 

To do so requires a paradigm shift that explicitly addresses social, political and economic processes that influence population health; this shift is under way and complements existing research in medicine, the life sciences and public health.

Reflecting further synthesis and stakeholder consultations, an agenda for future research on health equity is outlined in four distinct yet interrelated areas:
(1) global factors and processes that affect health equity;
(2) structures and processes that differentially affect people's chances to be healthy within a given society;
(3) health system factors that affect health equity; and
(4) policies and interventions to reduce health inequity.

Influencing regional and national research priorities on equity and health and their implementation requires joint efforts towards creating a critical mass of researchers, expanding collaborations and networks, and refining norms and standards, with WHO having an important role given recent mandates…..” 

 


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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/ KMC Area]
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“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”.
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[EQ] Taking Action to Address the Social and Environmental Determinants of Health Inequity in Asia Pacific 2011

Taking Action to Address the Social and Environmental Determinants of Health Inequity
in Asia Pacific 2011


A collaborative initiative, with contributions from over 40 researchers, policy-makers and health equity advocates from across the Asia Pacific region.
Global Action for Health Equity Network
, AP-HealthGAEN, with the support of WHO (WPRO), VicHealth and
the Australian National University. 2011

Available online PDF [199p.] at: http://bit.ly/rCuBxy

The report argues for a paradigm shift in the way we think about and improve health equity. The report provides a basis for hope – it identifies many entry points across different sectors through which improvements in the distribution of power, money and resources, and conditions of daily living can be tackled.

 

As the review of actions across the region shows, there is indeed a lot happening within countries to address these determinants of health inequities. But a huge challenge remains. Without leadership, political courage, progressive social policy and social struggle people will continue to live with illness and die needlessly….”

Content:

 

INTRODUCTION: TRANSLATING A GLOBAL VISION INTO REGIONAL AND LOCAL ACTION

Global vision

An Asia Pacific perspective: why this report?

SECTION 1: AN ASIA PACIFIC APPROACH TO INVESTIGATING HEALTH INEQUITY

Chapter 1: Framing the causes of health inequities across Asia Pacific: a social and environmental determinants framework

Chapter 2: Contextualising the concepts of health equity and social determinants of health in Asia Pacific

Chapter 3: An action framework to illustrate what is happening in the social and environmental determinants of health equity in Asia Pacific

SECTION 2: THE EXTENT OF HEALTH INEQUITY ACROSS ASIA PACIFIC

Overview

Chapter 1: Inequities in health between countries

Chapter 2: Inequities in health within countries

 

SECTION 3: TAKING ACTION TO IMPROVE DAILY LIVING CONDITIONS

Overview

Chapter 1: Action to ensure healthy and equitable urbanisation across Asia Pacific

Chapter 2: Improving working conditions and social protection across Asia Pacific

Chapter 3: Health systems to promote health equity

SECTION 4: ADDRESSING THE UNEQUAL DISTRIBUTION OF POWER, MONEY AND RESOURCES

Overview

Chapter 1: Fairer distribution of power and resources through systems and processes that promote social inclusion

Chapter 2: Distributing resources for health through macroeconomic and trade policy in Asia Pacific

Chapter 3: Protecting the natural environment to ensure a public good for everyone

Chapter 4: Governance models that rebalance power and resource distribution

Chapter 5: Distributing power and resources using regional and global mechanisms

SECTION 5: MEASUREMENT, MONITORING AND EVALUATION

Overview

Chapter 1: Indicators for equity and SEDH in routine monitoring

Chapter 2: Equity assessment tools

SECTION 6: A FUTURE FOR HEALTH EQUITY IN ASIA PACIFIC THROUGH ACTION IN
THE SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH

Challenges for health equity in Asia Pacific

Moving forward

REFERENCES

LIST OF TABLES, FIGURES AND CASE STUDIES

 

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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/ KMC Area]
Washington DC USA

“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”.
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any action in reliance on it. If you received this transmission
in error, please dispose of and delete this transmission.

Thank you.