EQUINET-l Newsletter No 5, 26 March 2001
Newsletter of the Network for Equity in Health in Southern Africa (EQUINET)
EQUINET-l Newsletter No 5, 26 March 2001
Newsletter of the Network for Equity in Health in Southern Africa (EQUINET)
1. Editorial
2. Equity and health general
3. Resource allocation
4. Public-private subsidies
5. Household poverty
6. WTO, economic and social policy
7. Human resources
8. Human rights and health
9. Research and Policy
10. Popular participation / governance and health
11. SADC News
12. Letters and comments
13. Useful Resources
14. Jobs and announcements
This and previous issues of the newsletter available at
http://www.equinet.org.zw/news.html
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1. Editorial: Facets of the global health divide
Editor's Choice, BMJ 2001; 322 ( 17 March )
http://bmj.com/cgi/content/full/322/7287/0
"Global inequities in health is the number one ethical issue of our age,
argues Peter Singer, the Canadian bioethicist. Most of the sickness in the
world is in the developing world, but most of the health care is in the
developed world. This week's BMJ illustrates four facets of the divide.
Pharmaceutical companies are under increasing pressure to make their drugs
affordable in the developing world and to produce drugs for the conditions
that are unique to the developing world. Drugs for treating HIV infection
are, for example, unaffordable to most of the world's poor, and yet they can
stop the disease from killing. Countries like South Africa, Brazil, and
India are responding by producing generic versions of patented drugs.
Pharmaceutical companies take action against them, and the rich and poor
worlds collide. David Taylor calls for "mutual respect and a pragmatic
willingness to work together," but argues that commercial companies can't
solve the health divide alone.
Poor countries are deprived not only of drugs but also of scientific
information. Research libraries in rich countries have had to pay more for
less information as publishers have increased their prices, and libraries in
the poor world have lost all access. The digital divide (measured by access
to information on the internet) is more extreme than any financial or health
divide. This is especially sad because increasing access to information
increases its value for everybody (because people add new insights) and the
marginal cost of electronic information is zero. Publishers, like
pharmaceutical companies, need to find ways to provide their goods cheaply
in the developing world, and an increasing number are doing so.
Even more fundamental than access to drugs or information is access to clean
water, and it is only in the poor world that people do not have such access.
Rhona MacDonald describes the terrible problem faced by Bangladesh, where
people are being slowly poisoned by arsenic in their water. Wells were sunk
to supply biologically clean water, but the geology of the rock means that
the water contains arsenic. The problem is also seen in China, Mexico,
Argentina, and Chile, and the solution is far from clear. Arsenic or
dysentery is a poor choice.
About 98% of the 3.43 million adult deaths related to poor reproductive
health occur in the developing world. Many international agencies have thus
worked hard to try and reduce this dreadful toll, but their work has been
severely disrupted by President Bush prohibiting the use of US funds by any
agency offering abortion related services. The family planning organisations
want the prohibition reversed.
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2. Equity and health general
WORLD WATER DAY: MARCH 22 2001
http://www.worldwaterday.org/
Concrete efforts are necessary to provide clean drinking water and improve
health as well as to increase awareness world-wide of the problems and of
the solutions. 22 March is a unique occasion to remind everybody that
solutions are possible. Use the resources on this WHO site to help turn
words into political commitment and action.
WATER, HEALTH AND HUMAN RIGHTS
http://www.worldwaterday.org/thematic/hmnrights.html
Around one sixth of the 6.1 billion people in the world lack access to
improved sources of water, while 40% are without access to improved
sanitation services (WHO 2000). This theme article explores the human right
to water.
'IN 25 YEARS, HALF THE WORLD WILL BE SHORT OF WATER'
http://allafrica.com/stories/200103220003.html
The World Resources Institute in Washington DC has warned that the world's
freshwater systems are in peril. It predicts that "by 2025, at least 3.5
billion people or nearly 50 percent of the world's population will face
water scarcity."
IRC: INTERNATIONAL WATER AND SANITATION CENTRE
http://www.irc.nl/
News and information, advice, research and training, on low-cost water
supply and sanitation in developing countries
AIDS DRUGS FIRMS PRACTICE 'NEW GLOBAL RACISM'
http://www.afrol.com/News2001/sa013_medicine_racism.htm
13 March - Human rights demonstrators all over the world this week accused
American pharmaceutical companies of 'new global apartheid' for denying
cheap anti-AIDS drugs to the Third World. Protestors from the Gray Panthers,
Doctors-Without-Borders and Oxfam America made the accusation while
picketing the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)
offices in Washington DC on Monday in support of the South African
government's court challenge against 40 drug firms.
CUBA OFFERS HELP ON CHEAPER AIDS DRUGS
http://www.bday.co.za/bday/content/direct/1,3523,814701-6078-0,00.html
President Fidel Castro has announced that Cuba has developed world-class
AIDS drugs and wants to help SA and Brazil circumvent patent laws to produce
cheap generic drugs for AIDS sufferers in their countries.
"Cuba is producing those famous cocktails," Castro told Cuban television on
Sunday before challenging multinational pharmaceutical companies to protest.
"I would like to hear a protest so I could grin from ear to ear," he said.
DRUGS ON G8 AGENDA
http://www.news24.com/News24/Health/Aids_Focus/0,1113,2-14-659_999672,0…
l
Leaders of the rich industrial world will study ways to help developing
countries access Aids drugs and other life-saving medicines at their July
summit in Genoa, Italy, a British official said on Wednesday. Pressure is
growing for action, particularly in Africa where a high-profile court case
brought by pharmaceutical companies against the South African government has
highlighted the problem of high-cost treatments which are out of reach of
the poor.
DEMAND FOR NEW AIDS DRUG
http://www.news24.com/News24/Health/Aids_Focus/0,1113,2-14-659_999256,0…
l
Aids activists demanded on Tuesday that two companies improve access to a
revolutionary new Aids drug, T-20, which could save the lives of thousands
of people who fail to respond to conventional therapy.
'10M AIDS DEATHS IN SA BY 2015'
http://www.news24.com/News24/Health/Aids_Focus/0,1113,2-14-659_998615,0…
l
Aids could claim more than 10.5 million lives in South Africa by 2015, and
leave one million children motherless by 2005, according to a report
released on Monday.
TAC DEMANDS GOVT HIV/AIDS TREATMENT PLAN FOR 2001
http://www.iclinic.co.za/mar01/tacconf19.htm
Leading AIDS activist group the Treatment Action Campaign plans to pressure
the SA government into developing an HIV/AIDS treatment plan this year, TAC
Chair Zackie Achmat told SABC radio on Monday.
His statement follows the opening of the TAC's first National Congress held
in Soweto, south of Johannesburg, on Sunday. "Over the last two years the
TAC has built the foundations for a formidable mass movement to fight for
access to treatment," the TAC says on their website.
WHO: ONE BILLION NEW TB CASES BY 2020 UNLESS CONTROL INTENSIFIED
http://www.iclinic.co.za/mar01/tb16.htm
The opening of Tyger Trade and Training Centre near Cape Town on Friday
became an international curtain raiser for World Tuberculosis (TB) Day, to
be held on March 24. It is estimated that between 2000 and 2020, nearly one
billion people will be newly infected, 200 million people will get sick, and
35 million will die from TB - if control is not further strengthened.
TRADITIONAL HEALERS TO PRACTICE IN SWAZI HOSPITALS
http://www.iclinic.co.za/mar01/tradheal22b.htm
Traditional healers in Swaziland will now work hand-in-hand with hospitals
and clinics in the fight against HIV/AIDS, the five-year Strategic Plan by
the HIV/AIDS Crisis Management and Technical Committee said.
SOUTH AFRICAN HEALTH REVIEW 2000
http://www.hst.org.za/sahr/2000/
The Health Systems Trust launched the South African Health Review 2000 on
the 1st of March 2001. This is an annual publication that provides an annual
and longer-term review of health policy developments in South Africa.
WHO: HUMAN HEALTH SEVERELY AFFECTED BY DESERTIFICATION AND DROUGHT
http://www.unccd.int
Increased desertification and drought represent a serious threat to human
health. The World Health Organization (WHO) expressed this concern at the
fourth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations
Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) which was held in Bonn, Germany
(11-22 December 2000). For more information Rajeb Boulharouf
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Equinet Policy Series
Can Research Fill the Equity Gap in Southern Africa? Dr. Rene Loewenson.
Available from:TARSC, 47, Van Praagh Avenue, Milton Park, Harare, Zimbabwe.
US$5.00 [email protected]
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3. Resource allocation
SOCIAL WELFARE SYSTEMS IN SOUTHERN AFRICA
By Charles Crothers. Paper to the ISA RC 19 Annual Conference 2000: Social
Protection in the New Era: What Future for Welfare?
http://cwis.kub.nl/~fsw_2/home/worschot/rc19/papers/croth.htm
"In their opening sentence, Amhad et al note that 'In the literature on
development issues, it has often been assumed (explicitly or by implication)
that developing countries are too poor to be able to ‘afford’ social
security systems. There are good reasons, however, to question this
assumption'. This paper is a brief exploration of this issue, using Southern
Africa as a case example."
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Equinet Policy Series
Equity in Health in Southern Africa: Overview and Issues from annotated
bibliography Equinet Steering Committee. Available from:TARSC, 47, Van
Praagh Avenue, Milton Park, Harare, Zimbabwe. US$5.00 [email protected]
This paper examines the key issues arising out of the annotated bibliography
on health and equity compiled by a network of institutions who came together
at the 1997 meeting on Equity in Health, held at Kasane, Botswana.
In discussing of the concept of equity, the paper shows how these can differ
depending on the political philosophy concepts 'equity' relates to and is
derived from. However, much of the material under discussion stresses that
inequity referes to differences in health care that are unecessary,
avoidable and unfair, and that equity goals in health care would seek to
identify and remove such differences - however subjective and socially
defined they may be. In a region ridden by gross inequalities in health,
differential inputs in those whose needs are greatest - or vertical equity -
seems the most important principle to pursue. However, a focus on vertical
equity, it is argued, requires an emphasis on a wide range of social and
economic areas - such as public housing or childhood poverty for example -
if it is to be adequately addressed within the health sector. It also
requires an emphasis on the active involvement of people to make choices
over goods, and to direct resources to themselves.
In constitutional terms, while most Southern African countries endorse
distribution of health resources based on need, the practical difficulties
associated with this has led countries to adopt an approach where equity in
health is seen as a social obligation rather than a right. Moreover, where a
right to health does exists (as in South Africa for example), this may in
fact be exercised only by those with greater access to and familarity with
legal recourse. There has been little focus on how to legally enshrine a
commitment to equity in health in the region - an area that needs further
monitoring and debate.
Much of the research discussed in this paper notes the relationship between
wider social and economic inequalities and health. It also outlines positive
features of health care that reduce health inequalities and improves the
health status of high risk groups, and those features of the health system
that exacerbate inequity. These are all areas that need further
investigation if research is to motivate changes in health systems. Ensuring
that health care resources are allocated progressively is also a key concern
in health equity research, and many papers cited here explore how resource
allocation needs to be improved at both household and state levels. Cost
recovery objectives, and their impact on equity is also a central subject of
ongoing debate. It is also clear that if health resources are to be directed
towards poorer groups, there is a need for further research on how
demythologising the medical profession and vesting greater authority in the
community itself leads to greater health benefits for those communities.
The variety of methodologies for monitoring equity are discussed, and it is
concluded that at present, there are no commonly agreed equity indicators in
the SADC region. Monitoring equity needs to become a tool for development
rather than a tool for measurment. If it is to play this role, it is also
important to define the triggers for change in policy and practice.
The report concludes that critical future areas of research include: the
definition and extent of differences in health status that are unecessary,
avoidable and unfair; the determinants of those inequalities in health; the
specific differences in the distribution of health inputs to people whose
health needs are different, and how vertical equity is to be addressed. The
most important areas of need are identified as: a focus on the social
dimensions of equity; a focus on the equity impact of resource allocation in
health; an exploration of human resource development in relation to equity
and identifying triggers for equity oriented decsion making within and
beyond the health sector; to inform debates on wider relationships between
non health sector inputs and health outcomes and to assess the equity
impacts of minumum health care packages and decentralisation of health care
systems. The report also notes the importance of taking these issues forward
at a regional level, of informing policy dialogue and of improving
professional-stakeholder interaction.
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4. Public-private subsidies
PUBLIC HEALTH LAW: POWER, DUTY, RESTRAINT
http://www.milbank.org/books_quar.html
by Lawrence O. Gostin. The California/Milbank Series on Health and the
Public, 3 January 2001. 518 pages. Co-published with and distributed by the
University of California Press.
This book offers the first systematic definition and theory of public health
law. Gostin demonstrates that while regulation achieves powerful public
good, it often does so at the expense of private rights. Consequently, in
thinking about public health regulation, he takes a hard look at the
tradeoffs—between the common welfare on the one hand and the personal
burdens and economic interests of individuals and businesses on the other.
Public Health Law creates an intellectual framework for the field of public
health—as distinct from related fields that center on personal health care
delivery and regulation—and supports that framework with rich material
illustrating the intellectual, scientific, political, and ethical issues
involved. It provides the basis for cross-disciplinary exchange between law
and the various allied public health disciplines and complements texts in
the fields of AIDS, human rights, health care, and health law. In proposing
innovative solutions for the future of public health, Gostin's essential
study provides a blueprint for future public and political debates on the
questions this vital and burgeoning field engenders.
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Equinet Policy Series
A review of experience concerning household ability to cope with the
resource demands of ill health and health care utilisisation Jane Goudge and
Veloshnee Govender. Available from:TARSC, 47, Van Praagh Avenue, Milton
Park, Harare, Zimbabwe. US$5.00 [email protected]
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5. Household poverty
UNDP REPORT: CHOICES FOR THE POOR
http://www.undp.org/dpa/publications/choicesforpoor/ENGLISH/index.html
March, 2001. "Choices for the Poor presents the results of a a comprehensive
external evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the Poverty
Strategies Initiative that was launched in 1996 by the United Nations
Development Programme, together with the Government of Norway and other
bilateral donors. Part I draws on the findings from a literature review
based on poverty assessments and surveys, national human development reports
and poverty reduction strategies prepared in some 50 countries around the
world. Part II is based on an assessment of the activities sponsored by the
programme in 18 countries visited by the evaluation team in early 2000:
Angola, Bulgaria, Guatemala, India, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, the
Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Nepal, Palestine, São Tomé e Principe,
Tajikistan, Uganda, Uruguay and Zambia. The book demonstrates that despite
comparable objectives, there is wide variation and contrast from one country
to another. Most of the lessons, therefore, apply to specific national
circumstances. There are, however, some general lessons that could be of
great value for donors engaged in a process of stimulating policy change in
their partner countries.
BREADLINE EUROPE: THE MEASUREMENT OF POVERTY
For further details, a full list of contents and to view the press release,
please visit The Policy Press web site at: http://www.policypress.org.uk
Edited by David Gordon, School for Policy Studies, University of Bristol and
Peter Townsend, London School of Economics Published by The Policy Press,
March 2001. 'Breadline Europe' examine poverty in Europe within the
international framework agreed at the 1995 World Summit on Social
Development. Its aim is to provide a scientific and international basis for
the analysis and reduction of poverty. With contributions from leading
European poverty researchers, it demonstrates that there is far more
important research into the problem of poverty going on in many European
countries than international agencies and national goverments admit or even
realise. Main themes are: the need for a scientific poverty line; the need
for better theories distinguishing between poverty and social exclusion; the
need for better international social policy and for better policy-related
analyses of poverty.
MEDICAL OUT-OF-POCKET SPENDING IN POVERTY THRESHOLDS
Richard Bavier, Poverty Measurement Working Papers, U.S. Census Bureau,
October 2000.
Available online at:
http://www.census.gov/hhes/poverty/povmeas/papers/altmoop.html
"Of all the recommendations and suggestions in the National Research
Council's report, Measuring Poverty, A New Approach, probably the most
controversial has been the proposal that medical needs not be included in
the "basic bundle" of food, clothing, shelter, and "a little more" making up
the recommended poverty budget. Rather, medical needs were to be the subject
of a "medical care risk" index to be developed separately. Because medical
needs were not to be included in the poverty budget, the panel also
recommended that spending out-of-pocket on such needs be subtracted before
each family's resources were tested against the thresholds.
CHILD LABOUR AND ITS EFFECT ON HEALTH: EVIDENCE FROM BRAZIL
HEALTH POLICY AND PLANNING; 16(1): 21–28 © Oxford University Press 2001
Available as PDF file at:
http://heapol.oupjournals.org/cgi/reprint/16/1/21.pdf
Ana Lucia Kassouf, Economics Department, ESALQ, University of São Paulo,
Brazil, Martin Mckee, European Centre on Health of Societies in Transition,
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Elias Mossialos, London
School of Economics and Political Science, UK
"The debate about the appropriate policy response to child labour is
complex, requiring a balance between protecting the health of the child and
safeguarding the income of the family. These findings indicate the need for
more research on the long-term sequelae of beginning work at an early age."
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Equinet Policy Series
World Trade Organisation Agreements: implications for equity and health in
Southern Africa
G. Munot and V. Tyson. Available from:TARSC, 47, Van Praagh Avenue, Milton
Park, Harare, Zimbabwe. US$5.00 [email protected]
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6. WTO, economic and social policy
WTO TRIPS AGREEMENT: HINDERING ACCESS TO MEDICINES IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES?
Watal, J., Center for International Development (CID), Harvard University,
(2000)
http://www.cid.harvard.edu/cidbiotech/dp/index.htm
"Expenditures on medicines can represent up to 66% of total health spending
in developing countries and could be a major cause of household
impoverishment, as 50-90% of such expenditures are out-of-pocket expenses.
Today, over one-third of the world’s population and over one-half of the
poorest in Asia and Africa still lack access to essential drugs. However,
policy instruments available under TRIPS, such as compulsory licenses or
government use, parallel imports and price controls, if designed with care,
could attenuate such adverse effects on the affordable access to medicines
considered essential."
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Equinet Policy Series
Health and Human Rights in the SADC Region Barbara Klugman and Nana
Kgosidintsi. Available from:TARSC, 47, Van Praagh Avenue, Milton Park,
Harare, Zimbabwe. US$5.00 [email protected]
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7. Human resources
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF POLICY RESEARCH: ISSUE ON SOCIAL CAPITAL
Available online at: http://www.isuma.net/v02n01/index.htm
"Several of the articles in this issue are based on papers that were
presented at a recent symposium on “The Contribution of Human and Social
Capital to Sustained Economic Growth and Well-being,” organized by the
Applied Research Branch of Human Resources Development Canada, in
conjunction with OECD. Social Capital is a key concept in the growing
recognition of the interconnections between social and economic outcomes.
Social capital is generally defined as the relationships, networks and norms
that facilitate collective action. Some include trust in the definition but
others, like Michael Woolcock, argue for keeping what social capital is
distinct from what it does. Another fundamental distinction is often made
between “bonding” and “bridging” social capital. Bonding social capital
refers to those relationships and norms that strengthen ties within groups.
Bridging refers to linking across groups. Social capital is closely related
to both social cohesion and human capital, two other very important concepts
in policy and policy research circles. As Tom Schuller says in his paper,
“social capital is both a consequence and a producer of social cohesion.”
Whereas social cohesion emphasizes processes and outcomes, social capital
emphasizes the notion of investments and assets that bring benefits,
benefits that are not fully appropriated by the individuals making the
investments. And while human capital focuses on the individual agents who
invest in education and training, social capital emphasizes the
relationships and norms that link those individuals."
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Equinet Policy Series
Public Participation in Health Systems. Rene Loewenson.
Available from:TARSC, 47, Van Praagh Avenue, Milton Park, Harare, Zimbabwe.
US$5.00 [email protected]
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8. Human rights and health
INTENSIVE COURSE IN HEALTH AND HUMAN RIGHTS
http://erc.hrea.org/Calendar/222.html
Organisation: Harvard School of Public Health. Dates: 11-14 June 2001.
Level: professional. Focus: This rigorous 4-day program helps a wide range
of professionals acquire the skills and background knowledge they need to
successfully incorporate a human rights framework into their daily
activities. Participants will acquire a basic understanding of both the
history and present status of international human rights and international
humanitarian law as they apply to public health practice. Location: Boston
(USA).
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Equinet Policy Series
Equity in Health in Southern Africa: Turning Values into Practice. Equinet
Steering Committe.
Available from:TARSC, 47, Van Praagh Avenue, Milton Park, Harare, Zimbabwe
US$5.00 [email protected]
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9. Research and Policy
ETHICAL ISSUES IN INTERNATIONAL HEALTH RESEARCH
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/ccpe/programs/ETHICS.shtml
June 11-15, 2001 Boston, Massachusetts. As More research is conducted in
developing countries, ethical issues that reflect differences in cultures,
politics, wealth, standards of care, individual and group rights, and
priorities are surfacing with increasing frequency. The present ethical
codes are not always sufficient for the broad new set of problems faced by
funders of international health research, members of Ethical Review Boards,
government agencies, and researchers themselves.
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10. Popular participation / governance and health
CASE REPORT: BENEFICIARY ASSESSMENT ON PERCEPTIONS OF HEALTH: A STUDY OF
FOUR
PROVINCES IN MOZAMBIQUE
http://www.case.org.za/htm/health.htm
Commissioned by the Swiss Agency for Cooperation and Development
(SDC-Mozambique) and the Mozambican Ministry of Health, this is the first
study to provide baseline data on health perceptions, by beneficiaries and
service providers, at the primary health care level. A total of 1,200
households were interviewed in four provinces, namely Maputo Cidade,
Nampula, Tete and Inhambane. Specifically, the study seeks to identify the
attitudinal, geographical and financial barriers to access, assess the
impact of user fees on access to health care, assess the use of traditional
and modern health care and the relationship between the two, as well as
identify mechanisms to allow communities to voice concerns and ensure
accountability at local level.
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11. SADC News
SADC CHANGES WILL BRING EFFICIENCY
http://allafrica.com/stories/200103160446.html
A new managerial structure adopted at the Southern African Development
Community's (SADC) extraordinary summit in Windhoek last week would go a
long way towards furthering regional coordination and cooperation, experts
told IRIN on Tuesday.
MUGABE LOSES CONTROL OF REGIONAL DEFENCE BODY
http://allafrica.com/stories/200103160447.html
Southern African leaders have announced measures to rein in a controversial
regional defence body chaired by Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, who had
battled to keep it under his control.
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Equinet Policy Series
Public sector subsidies to the private health sector in Zimbabwe Oliver
Mudyarabikwa. Available from:TARSC, 47, Van Praagh Avenue, Milton Park,
Harare, Zimbabwe. US$5.00 [email protected]
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12. Letters and comments
Give us your feedback on this newsletter! Send in information and articles
on the work of your organisation, and on equity and health issues in
Southern Africa. Send all letters and submissions to
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13. Useful Resources
STUDY MEDICINE ONLINE IN AFRICA
http://www.stlukesom.edu.hosting.pacbell.net.
St. Luke School of Medicine, Ghana and Liberia, West Africa, is now
accepting applications for students wishing to study medicine online. The
Basic Science curriculum (the first two years of medical school) will be
presented online starting with Human Anatomy. This course is scheduled to
begin May 14, 2001, leading to a Doctor of Medicine degree (M.D.). St. Luke
SOM is only one of a few schools in the world to present this curriculum.
St. Luke SOM is developing this curriculum to meet the needs of its African
constituency. We are trying to develop ways to educate African peoples using
the latest in modern technology. The curriculum is rigorous and
comprehensive. Some scheduled onsite visits to our campuses in Africa are
required. After successful completion of the online basic science program,
the medical students must complete at least two years of clinical training
in approved hospitals. For further information, please contact Dr. Jerroll
Dolphin at
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE
For full information and access to sample articles from the
encyclopedia, go to:
http://wiley.com/reference/cgi-bin/trackthrough.cgi?urlcode=wm000015
The first major reference work in this multi-disciplinary field presenting
over 200 articles, 50 bibliographies, 50 definitions and 50 acronyms. Taking
a thematic approach rather than simply alphabetical, the encyclopedia
includes theory, empirical studies and applications emphasising the inter
relationship between various disciplines and systems. The structure reflects
the current development of environmental research and will make the product
useful for research and an advanced level teaching tool.
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PROJECT WEB SITE: UPDATE
http://www.ehproject.org/
What's New at EHP? http://www.ehproject.org/live/Whtsnew.htm
Knowledge sharing forum in Nicaragua. Integrated baseline surveys in
Madagascar. Strengthening vector control programs in Africa. Cost comparison
of DDT and alternative insecticides for malaria control. Sanitation in small
towns in Latin America and the Caribbean.
EHP Spanish Page: http://www.ehproject.org/live/Spanish.htm
EHP Activities Page: http://www.ehproject.org/live/ehp_activities.htm
Information services: http://www.ehproject.org/live/Infoser.html
EHP Publications: http://www.ehproject.org/live/Rptspub.html
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14. JOBS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
HIV/AIDS ADVISOR, SAVE THE CHILDREN
Location: Blantyre, Malawi. Save the Children, a leading international
child-centered relief and
development agency is searching for an HIV/AIDS Advisor to be responsible
for providing technical assistance to Umoyo Network NGO sub-grantees and PVO
partners on HIV/AIDS. The incumbent will work directly with staff of
sub-grantees, PVO partners and their staff to build their capacity to
implement quality HIV/AIDS prevention. Technical assistance will occur at
all program stages including program design, implementation, monitoring and
evaluation. Additionally, the incumbent will serve as a member of Umoyo's
Senior Management Team. Qualifications: Masters Degree in Public Health
(MPH, DrPH, PhD, MD); 3-5 years professional experience in HIV/AIDS program
design and management, preferably in Sub-Saharan Africa; 2-3 years
experience in community-based health programming; strong monitoring and
evaluation skills, English fluency.To apply, please e-mail CV to Joanne
Derwallis
POSTS IN POSTGRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Liverpool School of Tropical
Medicine, Danish Bilharziasis Laboratory and Centre for Medical
Parasitology, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Senior lecturer/lecturer in postgraduate education, London School of Hygiene
& Tropical Medicine, (Ref: BG-LDN). Senior lecturer/lecturer in postgraduate
education with interest/expertise in the development of web-based/multimedia
teaching material, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, (Ref: BG-LIV).
Senior lecturer/senior adviser in medical education, Danish Bilharziasis
Laboratory and Centre for Medical Parasitology, Copenhagen, Denmark, (Ref:
BG-CPN).
The holders of these positions will jointly be responsible for establishing
and supporting a programme of postgraduate training on research and control
of malaria in collaboration with overseas centres in Ghana, Malawi, Tanzania
and The Gambia as a component of a research and training programme on
malaria supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The training
programme will involve both conventional course work and distance-based
learning. An appointment of 3 to 5 years will be offered dependent upon
previous experience. Annual salaries for positions in the UK will be in the
range of GBP 18,731 - GBP 39,241, monthly salaries in Denmark will be in the
range 30,000 - 33,000 DKr. For further information on the institutions see:
Medicine,
Medicine,
Laboratory, Copenhagen and
Parasitology, Copenhagen. Further details relating to the jobs may be
obtained from Brian Greenwood
particulars on how to apply for all three of these positions can be obtained
from: The Personnel Officer, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
for applications is 27 April 2001.
SECOND WELLCOME TRUST WORKSHOP ON HIV/AIDS AND TB
November 27th December 5th 2001, Cape Town, South Africa
HIV/AIDS and TB present an enormous challenge to the public health of
sub-Saharan Africa. An 8-day workshop, which aims to highlight the research
issues around these diseases, will be held at the University of Cape Town
from November 27th to December 5th 2001. This will include overviews on
epidemiology, immunology and pathogenesis, virology and bacteriology as well
as treatment issues and prospects for vaccination. In addition there will be
sessions on how to write a grant application, how to prepare a manuscript
for publication as well as updates on the latest techniques and information
technology. It will also be an excellent opportunity to meet other
researchers in the field. A number of prominent international and local
speakers have been invited.
The Workshop is supported by a Grant from the Wellcome Trust and sponsored
by the South African Medical Research Council. All travel, accommodation and
subsistence costs will be covered. Applicants must be currently and actively
involved in laboratory-based research into HIV/AIDS or TB. Preference will
be given to applications from Africa and from those involved in projects in
Africa. The workshop is aimed at pre-doctoral students and recent
post-doctoral fellows and is limited to 30 participants. Please send a copy
of your CV including publications, a motivation for why you wish to
participate in the Workshop, a brief account of your research as well as 2
sealed referees reports to: Carole Roberts, Medical Research Council, PO Box
19070, 7505 TYGERBERG, South Africa.
0359 Fax 21-938 0368. Closing date for application is 31 May 2001. Note:
Should you not receive a reply from me within five working days of sending
your mail, please contact: Ms Heidi Josephs at
Tel:+27-21-938-0234,
Fax:+27-21-938-0356.
INAUGURAL GLOBAL HEALTH PHILANTHROPY SUMMIT
9-11 May 2001, London, England. World leaders in health philanthropy will
convene in London for an
Inaugural Global Health Philanthropy Summit, to be held at the Royal College
of Physicians from 9-11 May 2001. The Academy for International Health
Philanthropy's Summit will address how philanthropists can make a greater
and lasting impact on world health by pooling knowledge and by more
effective targetting of their support. Registrations applications are
available at the AIHP website
NORDIC CONFERENCE ON SOCIAL MEDICINE AND PUBLIC HEALTH
Bergen, Norway 17 - 19 August 2001
http://www.uib.no/isf/social/conf2001/
The main theme of the conference is social inequality and inequity in
health. The 16th Nordic Conference in Social Medicine & Public Health is
arranged on behalf of the national associations of social medicine and
public health in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden by the Section
for Social Medicine at the Department of Public Health and Primary Health
Care, University of Bergen.
IMMUNIZATION FOCUS, MARCH 2001
http://www.vaccinealliance.org
The March 2001 issue of Immunization Focus, an "e-published" quarterly from
the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) is now available on
the GAVI website. In this issue: Special Feature - First, do no harm:
mapping the road to injection safety. Grassroots - Introducing hepatitis B
vaccine: a practical guide from countries that have done it already.The Idea
Exchange - a new section for debates on topical issues. In the first
contribution, Catriona Waddington, a health economist for the UK Department
for International Development (one of the donors to the Global Fund for
Children's Vaccines), asks whether GAVI and na-
tional governments have got their priorities right, and Tore Godal,
executive secretary of GAVI, responds.Feel free to download, print and
distribute the entire issue, or specific articles or excerpts. If you have
any questions about GAVI or Immunization Focus, please write to
us:
or
IT CONFERENCE: COMPUTER LITERACY, DISTANCE EDUCATION & HEALTH AND MEDICINE
http://www.ghaclad.org
Call for abstracts, papers, organizers, volunteers. Join the GhaCLAD List
and help with planning and organizing the upcoming 3rd International
Conference on Computer Literacy, Distance Education & Health/Medicine in
Africa [Aided by Info Technology].
HIV/AIDS IN MUSIC: REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
There is an initiative in Namibia to create music and songs about HIV and
AIDS. We are trying to find African groups and persons who already have done
some (positive) music and songs about HIV and AIDS for co-operation and
sharing ideas. Please contact Mr. Sakari Loytty
Namibia
for further details and sharing of ideas.
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