290011
Definition and guiding principles of global health: Health for all, by all, in all
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Juan Garay, MD, MPH, MSc,
Center for Global Public Health at UC Berkeley, European Union/ UC Berkeley, Brussels, Belgium
Michelle Beam, MPH,
School of Public Health, Infectious Disease and Vaccinology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
Laura Harris, MPH,
School of Public Health, Maternal and Child Health, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA
Introduction: Frequency of use of the term global health has surpassed the use of international health, yet some proposed definitions do not clearly delineate the differences between these terms. Institutions and initiatives use the term in different ways, and so-called global health policies cover different and ill-defined scopes. Methods: To examine the frequency of use of terms over time the Ngram viewer data tool was used to query the frequency of international health and global health in published French, English, and Spanish literature. Current international policies were examined and summarized to capture the broader socio-political context that may be associated with this change. Results/ Conclusions: The etymology of the term global, the influence of globalization on the health of populations worldwide, and the internationally agreed upon objective of highest attainable state of health by all peoples in the original constitutional objective of WHO, reveal common themes. These themes link with three guiding principles for global health: health for all (for all people worldwide), health by all (by a representative range of stakeholders and actors), and health in all (multi-sectorial efforts to increase health). These principles should be considered as potential unifying foundations to direct collective global health action through policy. While actors involved in global health work may focus on specific approaches or issues related to their capacities, added values, or interests, collective action should aim to bring these guiding principles in balance towards the shared objective of attaining the highest possible level of health for all peoples.
Learning Areas:
Public health or related public policy
Learning Objectives:
Define global health in the current socio-political context.
Identify and discuss guiding principles for future global health policy directions.
Keyword(s): International Health
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have done research on the subject of global health equity as part of my MPH studies, and continue to be involved with UC Berkeley's Global Health Equity Working Group under the Center for Global Public Health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines,
and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed
in my presentation.
