Being Global in Public Health Practice and Research: Complementary Competencies Are Needed

Cole, Donald C.; Davison, Colleen; Hanson, Lori; Jackson, Suzanne F.; Page, Ashley; Lencucha, Raphael; Kakuma, Ritsuko

doi:10.1007/bf03404183

Cited by 38 publications

(52 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Innovations in funding for GHR emerged through the 2001 establishment of the Global Health Research Initiative (GHRI), with their flagship Teasdale-Corti grants, which infused more than CA$18 million into GHR funding between 2003 and 2005 [ 23 ]. Growth in academic programmes focusing on global (sometimes named international) health has boomed over the last decade [ 24 , 25 ]. This growing interest and investment in GHR came at a time when heightened awareness of the inherently global nature of infectious diseases was amplified by the 2004 SARS crisis [ 26 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Promoting equitable global health research: a policy analysis of the Canadian funding landscape

Plamondon

Walters

Campbell

et al. 2017

Health Res Policy Sys

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BackgroundRecognising radical shifts in the global health research (GHR) environment, participants in a 2013 deliberative dialogue called for careful consideration of equity-centred principles that should inform Canadian funding polices. This study examined the existing funding structures and policies of Canadian and international funders to inform the future design of a responsive GHR funding landscape.MethodsWe used a three-pronged analytical framework to review the ideas, interests and institutions implicated in publically accessible documents relevant to GHR funding. These data included published literature and organisational documents (e.g. strategic plans, progress reports, granting policies) from Canadian and other comparator funders. We then used a deliberative approach to develop recommendations with the research team, advisors, industry informants and low- and middle-income country (LMIC) partners.ResultsIn Canada, major GHR funders invest an estimated CA$90 M per annum; however, the post-2008 re-organization of funding structures and policies resulted in an uncoordinated and inefficient Canadian strategy. Australia, Denmark, the European Union, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States of America invest proportionately more in GHR than Canada. Each of these countries has a national strategic plan for global health, some of which have dedicated benchmarks for GHR funding and policy to allow funds to be held by partners outside of Canada. Key constraints to equitable GHR funding included (1) funding policies that restrict financial and cost burden aspects of partnering for GHR in LMICs; and (2) challenges associated with the development of effective governance mechanisms. There were, however, some Canadian innovations in funding research that demonstrated both unconventional and equitable approaches to supporting GHR in Canada and abroad. Among the most promising were found in the International Development Research Centre and the (no longer active) Global Health Research Initiative.ConclusionPromoting equitable GHR funding policies and practices in Canada requires cooperation and actions by multiple stakeholders, including government, funding agencies, academic institutions and researchers. Greater cooperation and collaboration among these stakeholders in the context of recent political shifts present important opportunities for advancing funding policies that enable and encourage more equitable investments in GHR.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Promoting equitable global health research: a policy analysis of the Canadian funding landscape

Plamondon

Walters

Campbell

et al. 2017

Health Res Policy Sys

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“…While the historical emphasis on infectious disease remains prominent in the training of medical (8), there have been increasing calls for the inclusion of a broadened slate of issues including health equity and justice (9-11), governance and law (2) and other topics drawn from non-medical disciplines (3). In fact, a recent definition of global health has incorporated the expansive elements of the field:…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is a growing need to establish core competencies for those engaged in global health research and practice, and to examine whether there should be common components in global health courses across academic institutions (2,3). What is widely agreed upon is that global health is an important aspect of an education in the health sciences given that our current context is undeniably 'globalized' and that health is interconnected with international and transnational developments (4)(5)(6)(7).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A snapshot of global health education at North American universities

Lencucha

Mohindra

2014

Glob Health Promot

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Global health education is becoming increasingly prominent in North America. It is widely agreed upon that global health is an important aspect of an education in the health sciences and increasingly in other disciplines such as law, economics and political science. There is currently a paucity of studies examining the content of global health courses at the post-secondary level. The purpose of our research is to identify the content areas being covered in global health curricula in North American universities, as a first step in mapping global health curricula across North America. We collected 67 course syllabi from 31 universities and analyzed the topics covered in the course. This snapshot of global health education will aid students searching for global health content, as well as educators and university administrators who are developing or expanding global health programs in Canada and the United States.

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“…Taking action for health equity is a basic obligation of humanity [1,2] that has become central to many global governance benchmarks for decades [3][4][5][6]. Though the commitment to health equity in these fields and among the health professions is clear [7][8][9], alignment between good equity intentions and action is a challenge [10][11][12][13]. This work regularly encounters the same power structures that are known to cause health inequities.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A tool to assess alignment between knowledge and action for health equity

Plamondon

2020

BMC Public Health

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Advancing health equity is a central goal and ethical imperative in public and global health. Though the commitment to health equity in these fields and among the health professions is clear, alignment between good equity intentions and action remains a challenge. This work regularly encounters the same power structures that are known to cause health inequities. Despite consensus about causes, health inequities persist-illustrating an uncomfortable paradox: good intentions and good evidence do not necessarily lead to meaningful action. This article describes a theoretically informed, reflective tool for assessing alignment between knowledge and action for health equity. It is grounded in an assumption that progressively more productive action toward health inequities is justified and desired and an explicit acceptance of the evidence about the socioeconomic, political, and powerrelated root causes of health inequities. Intentionally simple, the tool presents six possible actions that describe ways in which health equity work could respond to causes of health inequities: discredit, distract, disregard, acknowledge, illuminate, or disrupt. The tool can be used to assess or inform any kind of health equity work, in different settings and at different levels of intervention. It is a practical resource against which practice, policy, or research can be held to account, encouraging steps toward equity-and evidence-informed action. It is meant to complement other tools and training resources to build capacity for allyship, de-colonization, and cultural safety in the field of health equity, ultimately contributing to growing awareness of how to advance meaningful health equity action.

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Being Global in Public Health Practice and Research: Complementary Competencies Are Needed

Cited by 38 publications

References 13 publications

Promoting equitable global health research: a policy analysis of the Canadian funding landscape

Promoting equitable global health research: a policy analysis of the Canadian funding landscape

A snapshot of global health education at North American universities

A tool to assess alignment between knowledge and action for health equity

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