Global health research and policy is an important area of study and practice. It seeks to reduce global health disparities through attention to modifiable determinants of health and the provision of sustainable health services and human development.
The quest for equity in health within nations and among nations should be the guiding principle of global health research. However, a clearer sense of what that means would be desirable in order to decide on strategy, content and priorities for the field.
Global health research is a field of study focused on the determinants and distribution of health in international contexts. It involves research in a variety of areas, including public health, social sciences and clinical disciplines. It also includes research that aims to understand health from the perspective of people living in low-income countries. These studies often address the delivery gap and how to improve health outcomes for populations facing a wide range of socioeconomic challenges.
However, many scholars argue that the definition of 'global health' is more complex than that. They argue that 'global health research' is a broad term and one that can encompass all types of studies conducted in non-U.S. locations, as well as all those that speak directly to equity breaches.
To improve the quality of global health research, it is critical to ensure that researchers have access to the same resources that they would in the U.S. These resources include funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which has an obligation to support health equity. In addition, it is important for the NIH to increase the Interdepartmental Cooperative Agreement (IDC) rate to reflect equitable differences in the level of academic and economic resources across geographic regions.
Global health policy focuses on the management of global health issues that transcend national borders. These issues range from the threat of infectious diseases, to climate change, to the growing economic and social inequalities of the world.
While global health concerns can be a source of conflict, they also bring together a variety of disciplines from international relations and public policy to sociology, health economics, law and political science. The interconnections between these fields and the shared health concerns of people around the world have led to a shift in how global health is perceived, studied and debated.
Today, global health challenges require a polymathic capacity to engage with heterogeneous concepts in macroeconomics, microeconomics, behavioural economics, sociology, politics, and international relations, among other disciplinary perspectives. It requires understanding of the nuances of these issues and their connections to wider global concerns such as development, security and trade.
There are a variety of factors that influence global health research, including government policies, business R&D, and pharmaceutical companies. In addition, researchers have to consider the cultural, economic, environmental, infrastructural, political, and social dimensions of their work.
Developing sustainable solutions requires alliances that include multiple sectors and organizations, including the governments of the countries in which the problem is located. These partnerships require time to develop, solidify, and become effective.
To evaluate the impact of their research, teams needed skills in working across time frames and learning how to effectively communicate their contribution to politicians, donors, and decision makers. They also needed to understand how long-term investments toward a long-term vision could lead to health outcomes that were meaningful.
Over the past decade, USAID's commitment to global health has grown significantly. The agency is investing in research and development that has led to critical breakthroughs in prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases affecting people worldwide.
The benefits of these investments far outweigh their costs for low- and middle-income countries, which can improve the lives of individuals, families, and communities. Moreover, they can help reduce the incidence of chronic disease and injury in these countries.
Ideally, leadership for global health issues would be provided through a single organization, such as the World Health Organization, with a mandate for setting evidence-based norms for global health policy and technical matters. However, this is not possible without significant support from countries and organizations committed to global health.