Health Policy In A Globalising World

This book examines the impact of globalisation on global public health issues and policy.

Increasing recognition of the impact globalisation is having on public health has led to widespread concern about the risks arising from emerging and re-emerging diseases, environmental degradation and demographic change. A distinguished international team of contributors explores these issues within a wide range of topics and geographic regions.

Although the last two decades have seen the healthcare systems of most developed countries face pressure for major reform, the impact of this reform on the relationship between empowerment, consumerism and citizen’s rights has received limited research attention. Globalisation, Markets and Healthcare Policy sets out to redress this imbalance. This book explores the extent to which globalisation and commercialisation relate to current and emerging health policies. It also looks at the implications for citizens, patients and social rights, as well as how policy making interacts with the interests of global and European trade and economic policies. Topics discussed include: How the impact of globalisation on health systems is apparent in the influence of international actors and European policies. How the impact of globalisation is mediated by national priorities and policies and is therefore reflected in diverse influences. How commercialisation of health is presented as benefiting citizens and patients but has the potential to undermine the aims and values inherent in health systems. How the role of citizens' interests, social rights, patient’s rights and priorities of patient and public involvement need to be separated from commercialisation, choice and consumerism in health care. Essential reading for policy makers and students of public policy, politics, law and health services, Globalisation, Markets and Healthcare Policy will also appeal to those interested in patient involvement international healthcare, international relations, trans-national organisations and the EU.

Contemporary globalization has had tremendous impact on health equity across the globe. However, no volume has systematically analyzed the relationship between globalization and global trends in health outcomes. This book consolidates and updates the findings of a global research project undertaken by the Globalisation Knowledge Network (GKN) of the World Health Organization’s Commission on Social Determinants of Health. Chapters examine such questions as: How has trade liberalisation affected the social determinants of health? How has globalization affected food security, nutrition and equitable access to water and sanitation? How well do present global governance structures take account of the health equity effects associated with the social determinants of health? This landmark volume will be a necessary addition for researchers and scholars studying the field of globalization, health and social policy, and public health across the social sciences.

The Handbook of Global Health Policy provides adefinitive source of the key areas in the field. It examines theethical and practical dimensions of new and current policy modelsand their effect on the future development of global health andpolicy. Maps out key debates and policy structures involved in allareas of global health policy Isolates and examines new policy initiatives in global healthpolicy Provides an examination of these initiatives that captures boththe ethical/critical as well as practical/empirical dimensionsinvolved with global health policy, global health policy formationand its implications Confronts the theoretical and practical questions of ‘whogets what and why’ and ‘how, when andwhere?’ Captures the views of a wide array of scholars andpractitioners, including from low- and middle-income countries, toensure an inclusive view of current policy debates

Global health is a relatively new but rapidly expanding field, recognizing the important challenges that global changes are posing for human health.

Why do some countries and populations suffer from poverty and ill health, whilst others are more prosperous and healthy? What are the inherently global (trans-border) issues that affect inequities in disease burden and health opportunities for individuals and nations? Traditionally, the focus of global health has been 'international health': the concern for high burdens of disease in generally low-income countries. To answer these questions however, we need to modernise our understanding of globalization as a phenomenon. Health Equity in a Globalizing Era: Past Challenges, Future Prospects examines how globalization processes since the on-set of neoliberalism affect equity in global health outcomes, and emphasises access to important social determinants of health. With a basis in political economy, the book covers key globalization concepts and theory, and presents a thorough background to the field. Case studies, illustrations, and new research all combine to make this title a comprehensive and current discussion of the various pathways that connect globalization to health equity outcomes. It looks at changes in migration, labour markets, trade and investment rules, international development assistance, health systems, infectious and non-communicable disease risks, environmental health, and gendered aspects of globalization's health dialectic. In addition, it argues for a reform of the global governance structure, the significant role of human rights, and the importance of a strong civil society in achieving greater social justice in health. Ideal for senior undergraduate and graduate students in global health programs, global health scholars and practitioners in government policy and health/development NGOs, Health Equity in a Globalizing Era: Past Challenges, Future Prospects is a significant contribution to our new understanding of globalization and global public health.