Oral

Much of reproductive health is not a single disease or health intervention amenable to a vertical approach; ICPD emphasizes underlying social conditions, i.e. those that foster women’s capacities to make decisions about their reproductive health. Panelists link the language of global public health with the language of human rights and argue for the salience of ICPD’s health and human rights framework, despite the current enchantment with vertical campaigns and funding for specific diseases. The panelists discuss opportunities for advancing reproductive health and rights by linking with other initiatives, including poverty reduction and HIV/AIDS. The session includes discussion of the lack of unity of the reproductive health field in opposing efforts to erode gains. A social network mapping process is described by another author that identifies 338 unique institutions with varying degrees of perceived influence in the reproductive health field. One panelist argues for breaking down the silos that have long divided the reproductive health field into “domestic” and “international.”

Session Objectives: • Assess the ICPD’s achievements as well as gaps in the framework that have posed problems for implementation and advocacy • Identify opportunities to advance the ICPD’s RH and rights agenda within the context of a new global health environment • Recognize the many silos into which the SRH and rights field is divided and the effect of these divisions • Describe the structure of the field of RH and rights and analyze how this can be used to advance the RH and rights agenda of in international policy debates • Learn strategies for connecting domestic and international advocacy efforts • Describe the utility of a human rights approach to improving RH

CE Credits: CME, Health Education (CHES), Nursing