Unit 3: Health Trends, Issues, and Concerns ( Global Level)
Global Health and the Millennium Development Goals
The term “global health” rose in popularity along with the rise of globalization.
Both terms improved public awareness of vulnerabilities and shared responsibilities among people for
the different injustices in the world. Ilona Kickbush (2006), director of the Global Health Program at
the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland states that
global health pertains to various health issues, concerns, and trends which go beyond national
boundaries and call for global initiatives for the protection and promotion of peoples’ health across the
world.
Koplan and Associates (2009) states that global health is an area for study, research and practice that
prioritizes health improvement and achieving impartiality in healthcare and wellness worldwide.
Beaglehole and Bonita (2010) gave a short but meaningful definition of global health: cooperative
research and action of international communities to promote health for all.
The United Nations Millennium Development Goals are eight targets that all 191 UN Member States
have agreed to achieve by 2015.
The United Nations Millennium Declaration, signed in September 2000 commits world leaders to fight
discrimination against women and children, disease, hunger, poverty, illiteracy, and environmental
degradation. All of these goals cannot be attained without addressing each and everyone. All of them
influence, affect and depend on better global health programs and policies.
Millennium Development Goals
1. Developing countries particularly in Africa and Asia suffer from extreme poverty and hunger.
Poverty and hunger leads to severe malnutrition which leads to lifelong physical and cognitive
(learning and reasoning) damage and affects health, well-being and the economy. Some key
suggestions to eradicate poverty and hunger are:
Education
Promoting gender equality
Producing more jobs
Investing more in agriculture
Strengthened nutrition programs for children and infants
Support and protection of developing and vulnerable countries during crises
2. Persons, particularly women who are educated, are more likely to seek medical care especially
during pregnancy, ensuring proper nutrition for their family, adopting healthy sanitary practices
and ensuring immunization of children. As an effect, infants and children have better survival
rates, are healthier and better nourished. If these are attained, children who receive primary
education are more likely to:
Marry and have their own families at a later stage in life
Practice family planning and have fewer children
Know rights, responsibilities and civic obligations
Seek employment and sustain personal and family needs
Have decreased risk of getting sexually transmitted infections like HIV/AIDS
Support and protection of developing and vulnerable countries during crises
3. Gender equality means equal representation of men and women. It implies that all gender
should have equal value and treatment. Equal gender treatment empowers women and other
groups creating opportunities in education, work, finances, and other aspects which improves
the economy and lessen effects of financial crises. Gender equality can be achieved through:
4. Programs and policies which help reduce child mortality like improving nutritional intake,
healthcare facilities and infrastructure, and other fields which improve children’s lives.
Strengthening local and national health programs and policies is one way to reduce child
mortality. This includes:
Immunization programs
Assuring the survival and better health of mothers
Improving reproductive health programs and policies
Better nutrition program for infants, children and mothers
5. Improved maternal health is not only about mother’s health but also involves the health and
wellness of the family. Maternal health also helps eradicate other problems like poverty, gender
inequality, decreased workforce, lower birth deaths, and disability of women.
Some ways to improve maternal health include:
Improved and proper nutrition of mothers
Teaching the benefits of birth spacing and small family size
Educating young boys and girls about the importance of maternal health
Better and improved access to hospital care especially obstetrics-gynecology, prenatal and
postnatal care
Early childhood development intervention
Promotion of women’s political rights and involvement
Improved reproductive health programs and policies
Education and integrating gender equality in school curriculum
Improved women’s access to work and strengthened labor policies for women
Support and protection of developing and vulnerable countries during crises
6. Emerging and re-emerging diseases like HIV/AIDS, malaria, influenza and other diseases
affect productivity and growth of nations. Some of the effects of disease outbreak are loss of
jobs, shortage in professional workers, and creating social crises. Children are the most
vulnerable and are exposed to exploitation and abuse undermining their normal growth and
development. Some ways to combat diseases include effective prevention, treatment and care
like:
Improved housing conditions
Increased access to anti-malarial medicines
Promoting safer sex behavior and preventive education for all
Promoting Tuberculosis (TB) screening of HIV/AIDS persons and
TB - Directly Observed Treatment Short (TB-DOTS) Course therapy
Promoting the use of insecticide-treated nets to fight mosquito-borne diseases
7. Investing and supporting sustainable energy like solar, wind and water energy help support
jobs, create business opportunities, and save remaining non-renewable energy sources.
Environmental sustainability assures peoples to live healthier and enjoy a clean and green
environment. Some of the benefits of a sustainable environment are:
Cleaner air and environment
Clean, environment-friendly, and renewable energy
New and aspiring jobs and business in energy
Increased access to sanitation
8. The United Nations, World Health Organization, World Bank and governments work together to
make sure there is fair trade and that heavily indebted countries obtain relief and funds to
combat poverty, malnutrition and funds for education and social projects.
Some benefits of global partnership are:
Improved housing conditions
Increased access to anti-malarial medicines
Promoting safer sex behavior and preventive education for all
Promoting Tuberculosis (TB) screening of HIV/AIDS persons and
TB - Directly Observed Treatment Short (TB-DOTS) Course therapy
Promoting the use of insecticide-treated nets to fight mosquito-borne diseases
Global Health Initiatives
One of the benefits of globalization to the world is the development and improvement of
various health initiatives initiated by different nations and governments to address health issues and
concerns. Global health initiatives are programs set in motion by the United Nations through the
World Health Organization and in partnership with the World Bank which targets specific health
problems including but not limited to emerging and re-emerging diseases, climate change,
environmental sanitation, mental health, tobacco regulation, and alcohol use.
Some of the global health initiatives spearheaded by the World Health Organization include the
following:
The Global Fight against Communicable Diseases
C. Roll Back Malaria.
Roll Back Malaria is a global effort to reduce the number of deaths from malaria infection through
heightened prevention tools, rapid response to outbreaks, development of new anti-malarial products,
and effective treatment of the infection.
Specific objective:
1. To enable and to increase the capacity of caregivers to recognize malaria promptly and take early
appropriate action;
2. To empower service providers by imparting adequate knowledge, skill and capacity which enable
them to respond to malaria illness appropriately;
3. To create an enabling environment for implementation.
D. Stop TB.
Stop TB is a global effort to prevent further transmission of tuberculosis or TB around the world.
One of the programs for Stop TB is the implementation of the TB-DOTS short-course strategy.
Objectives
1. To achieve universal access to high-quality diagnosis and patient-centered treatment
2. To reduce the suffering and socio-economic burden associated with TB
3. To protect poor and vulnerable populations from TB, TB/HIV and multi drug-resistant – TB (MDR-
TB)
4. To support development of new tools and enable their timely and effective use.
E. Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization
The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization is a global strategy which aims to strengthen
children’s immunization programs and introduce new generation of licensed vaccines into use in
developing countries across the globe. These new vaccines which could help reduce the number of
deaths in children aged 5 years old and below includes:
• Hepatitis B vaccine
• Childhood meningitis vaccine
• Yellow fever vaccine
• Influenza vaccine
• Vaccine for pneumonia
F. The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria.
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria is a funding project rather than an initiative.
Nevertheless it helps in the prevention, reduction, and mitigation of the negative impacts of the three
diseases to humanity which contributes to the fulfillment of the Millennium Development Goals.
Global Prevention and Control of Tobacco and
Alcohol Use
• WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is the prime international treaty
negotiated under WHO. The WHO FCTC came into existence in reaction to the global epidemic of
tobacco use and abuse. It reaffirms the right of every individual across the world to the highest
standard of health promoting public health and providing new legal means for global health
cooperation.
The following summarizes the WHO FCTC provisions:
1. Price and tax measures to reduce the demand for tobacco, and
2. Non-price measures to reduce the demand for tobacco, namely:
• Protection from exposure to tobacco smoke;
• Regulation of the contents of tobacco products;
• Regulation of tobacco product disclosures;
• New packaging and labeling of tobacco products;
• Education, communication, training and public awareness;
• Demand reduction measures concerning tobacco dependence and cessation; and
• Tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship.
Global Strategy to Reduce the Harmful Use of Alcohol.
The Global Strategy to Reduce the Harmful Use of Alcohol recognizes the close ties between the
harmful use of alcohol and the socio-economic development of a nation. Likewise, this strategy builds
and supports other global health initiatives like the global strategy for the prevention and control of
non-communicable diseases.
Global Strategy for the Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases.
The Global Strategy for the Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases is a global action
plan to prevent and control the following non-communicable diseases: cardiovascular diseases,
chronic respiratory diseases, cancers, and diabetes and the four shared risk factors: unhealthy
eating, physical inactivity, tobacco use and alcohol use.
Objectives of the Action Plan:
1. To raise the priority accorded to non-communicable disease at global and national levels and to
integrate prevention and control of such diseases into policies across all governments
2. To establish and strengthen national policies and plans for the prevention and control of non-
communicable diseases
3. To promote interventions to reduce the main shared but preventable risk factors for non-
communicable diseases: unhealthy eating, physical inactivity, tobacco use, and harmful use of
alcohol
4. To promote research for the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases
5. To promote partnerships for the prevention and control of non –communicable diseases
6. To monitor non-communicable diseases and their causal factors and evaluate progress at the local,
national and global levels
Global Initiative for Mental Health
• Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2020
The “Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2020” is the result of extensive research
and consultations by stakeholders, member- nations, academic and non-government centers across
the globe. The mental health action plan should be impartial, life-based, and preventive in nature. It
basically addresses the following:
• To fight and alleviate negative trends in mental health,
• To improve and make mental health services and care accessible, and
• To prevent abuse of rights and unjust treatment against people with mental problems, disorders, and
disabilities which are still prevalent around the world.
