RSS Feeds and Podcasts
28 August 2008
TBD
WHO report finds national wealth does not guarantee access to health care
28/08/2008
A new study commissioned by the World Health Organization (WHO) finds that although economic growth is rising in many countries, this alone does not lead to equitable access to health care.
The report says the social, economic and political inequalities that exist in both developed and developing countries affect the provision of, and access to, affordable and reliable health care for all. Patrick Maigua reports from Geneva:
"MAIGUA: The report says millions of people were dying globally from preventable diseases as health care systems fall victim to poor social policies, unfair economic arrangements and politics. It further says health inequalities were preventable as they arise from the circumstances in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. Professor Sir Michael Marmot, who led the study, said much of the work to redress health care imbalances lies beyond the health sector.
SIR MICHAEL: In country after country after country, we find that girls participate in education less than boys. That's quite wrong. We know that education is a key driver of the health of those girls when they become women, and it's a key determinant of the health of their children when they become mothers: that infant and child deaths could be reduced to a high degree by investing in the education of women.
MAIGUA: The report has been compiled by the Commission on Social Determinants of Health which was set up by the WHO in 2005. Patrick Maigua, UN Radio Geneva."
(duration: 1'31")
The report says the social, economic and political inequalities that exist in both developed and developing countries affect the provision of, and access to, affordable and reliable health care for all. Patrick Maigua reports from Geneva:
"MAIGUA: The report says millions of people were dying globally from preventable diseases as health care systems fall victim to poor social policies, unfair economic arrangements and politics. It further says health inequalities were preventable as they arise from the circumstances in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. Professor Sir Michael Marmot, who led the study, said much of the work to redress health care imbalances lies beyond the health sector.
SIR MICHAEL: In country after country after country, we find that girls participate in education less than boys. That's quite wrong. We know that education is a key driver of the health of those girls when they become women, and it's a key determinant of the health of their children when they become mothers: that infant and child deaths could be reduced to a high degree by investing in the education of women.
MAIGUA: The report has been compiled by the Commission on Social Determinants of Health which was set up by the WHO in 2005. Patrick Maigua, UN Radio Geneva."
(duration: 1'31")