October 9th 2014 is marked as World Sight Day, a day to focus international attention on blindness and vision impairment. On the occasion of World Sight Day, I’d like to share my story about sight. I will connect it to the eye-care situation in Pakistan and hope that it will inspire more interest and efforts […]
The public health challenge of this century
A forty-five year old man at the prime of his life in Pakistan struggles with heart disease. He has been told that three of his major coronary arteries are critically blocked. His wife, at age 43 suffers from type 2 diabetes and has recently developed complications in both eyes, which could make her loose her […]
The World Health Organization Is Fighting Childhood Obesity
Earlier last week, the Director General of WHO announced the establishment of the WHO Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity to strengthen the scientific evidence base for action, to engage all stakeholders and to create awareness and build momentum for action to address this issue. The Director General of WHO has asked that I co-Chair the […]
What’s the Role of a Hospital?
In low- and middle-income countries, a hospital is often the first stop for citizens that experience illness, or the last stop when their health needs aren’t met by primary care. And as countries grow economically, the demand for quality health services at all levels will grow. So when a government decides that it needs to […]
Only systems thinking can improve family planning program in Pakistan
At present, Pakistan ranks sixth among most populous countries; in spite of a long history of family planning programs since 1953. Yet it is difficult to claim any considerable reduction in the population growth rate. Total fertility rate is still high, contraceptive prevalence rate increasing slowly, and moreover there is a high unmet need, not […]
Story of Sakina Bibi
Sakina Bibi, an elderly woman aged 78, lived in extreme poverty. She had no source of income and lived an impoverished life with her two disabled adult children – a son and a daughter-in-law, both deaf and dumb – and two grandchildren. She was destitute and lived off the charity of her neighbours and the […]
Faiza – Victim of violence
Faiza, a recent divorcée aged 28 years, was born to a poor family. Face down, she lay motionless on the hospital bed, with both her legs fractured. One leg was plastered while the other, which had sustained multiple fractures, awaited surgery. The surgery was possible only if the financial costs were met. She had no […]
Medical Tourism: Crossing Borders for Healthcare
Medical Tourism Why Would 8 million people cross borders for healthcare? Including 1/300 in the U.S.? 20% of Americans struggle to pay medical bills 3 out of 5 bankruptcies are due to medical bills. That’s 1.7 million Americans Or 248,002 in California 113,524 in Illinois and 99,780 in Florida alone. Who could save… India: 65-90% […]
Spatial Relationships: Does Global Health Aid Go Where It’s Needed?
This is a joint post with Yuna Sakuma. Funding for health in any country doesn’t always go where it’s needed most. But this is particularly true where donors and national governments have to decide how to distribute scarce resources within a country and coordinate their efforts. Often, governments don’t know where donors are spending their health funds, and […]
Five Reasons Why ‘Food’ Is A Massive Global Health Issue
Last week in Stockholm, Sweden, I was asked to present an insight into the links between food and global health to the Swedish Medical Society Conference; a brief outline on the parallels and overlap between what we eat, the systems that produce and support that consumption, and the health of our populations. Now this is no […]
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