Implementation of health and health-related sustainable development goals: progress, challenges and opportunities – a systematic literature review

Abstract

IntroductionWhile health is one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), many other ‘health-related’ goals comprise determinants of health. Integrated implementation across SDGs is needed for the achievement of Agenda 2030. While existing literature is rich in normative recommendations about potentially useful approaches, evidence of implementation strategies being adopted by countries is limited.MethodsWe conducted a systematic review with qualitative synthesis of findings using peer reviewed and grey literature from key databases. We included publications examining implementation of health and health-related SDGs (HHSDGs) at national or subnational level published between June 2013 and July 2019.ResultsOf the 32 included publications, 24 provided information at the national level while eight provided information for multiple countries or regions. Our findings indicate that high-level political commitment is evident in most countries and HHSDGs are being aligned with existing national development strategies and plans. A multisectoral, integrated approach is being adopted in institutional setups but evidence on effectiveness of these approaches is limited. Funding constraints are a major challenge for many countries. HHSDGs are generally being financed from within existing funded plans and, in some instances, through SDG-specific budgeting and tracking; additional funding is being mobilised by increasing domestic taxation and subsidisation, and by collaborating with development partners and private sector. Equity is being promoted by improving health service access through universal health coverage and social insurance schemes, especially for disadvantaged populations. Governments are collaborating with development partners and UN agencies for support in planning, institutional development and capacity building. However, evidence on equity promotion, capacity building initiatives and implementation approaches at subnational level is limited. Lack of coordination among various levels of government emerges as a key challenge.Conclusionstrengthening implementation of multisectoral work, capacity building, financial sustainability and data availability are key considerations to accelerate implementation of HHSDGs.

Meta-analysis of the literature related to SDG 3 and its investment

“…2020 has shown that the key issues challenging the achievement of SDG3 are a lack of financing. This is not a new problem as the limited financial resources (allocated by the government to the implementation of health-related sustainable development goals) is one of the most mentioned challenges in the academic literature (Aftab et al, 2020;Georgeson & Maslin, 2018;Siddiqi et al, 2020). As the number of large out-of-pocket expenses has increased and will continue to increase in the future, the United Nations has reported that the achievement of universal healthcare coverage remains a global challenge.…”

The Field of “Public Health” as a Component of Sustainable Development—Poland Compared to the European Union

“…However, this share varies from country to country [41], being low in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe [42,43], and this is not conducive to addressing social inequalities, including in public health [44]. This makes the connection between health and elements of sustainable development increasingly clear [45]. The SD approach allows for a holistic view of all causes of adverse health effects [46].…”

Global Health in Swedish Nursing Curricula: Navigating the Desirable and the Necessary

“…Several of these interrelated issues to which nations worldwide have committed are summarised in the Agenda 2030 sustainable development goals [9,10,30,31] and included in the definition of 'global health' and 'global nursing' proposed by Wilson et al [3]. The strategic connections between global health and sustainability are also highlighted in Sweden [32].…”