Access

Advancements in health need to be available for societies as a whole. To explore how to do this, we’ll look at issues such as universal health coverage, health systems strengthening, supply chains and more.

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How to improve access to affordable health care

Access to care: It’s one of the great enablers of — or impediments to — health; improving it means focusing on both the availability and the affordability of care. Here's how we can do it.

New R&D models needed to tackle drug-resistant TB

Why has research and development failed to deliver desperately needed tuberculosis treatments for so long, and what can be done about it? Global health experts weigh in.

#HealthyMeans access to quality medicines

The significant global health gains we've made in recent years are seriously threatened by a growing problem: counterfeit and substandard drugs. By Dr. Ronald T. Piervincenzi, CEO of the U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention.

Ebola — an opportunity to improve primary health care

A strong primary health care system can help countries detect and contain the outbreak of Ebola and other diseases, Ethiopian Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says. Watch the video interview to find out why.

Working together to combat multidrug-resistant tuberculosis

Tuberculosis kills two to three people every minute, and continues to be a threat to global health. But we can change that, argues Dr. Chrispin Kambili, global medical affairs leader at Janssen Global Public Health.

Where there’s a will, there are many ways: Healthy systems and disease-tailored interventions

Working toward universal health coverage and strengthening health systems is sometimes simply about pushing the rolling wagon and helping people to jump on it. But which road should we take? Global health officials and experts share their views.

Former WHO chief highlights the importance of health systems

To advance global health, the international community must help countries build their own health systems — not do it for them. A video interview with Gro Harlem Brundtland, deputy chair of The Elders and a former director-general of the World Health Organization.

How commercial models solve global health problems

How can health institutions ensure the sustainability of their programs and maximize impact in the communities they serve? Check out Concern Worldwide President and CEO Michael Schreiber's suggestion.

Want UHC? Tackle discrimination first

For health care to be truly universal, countries need to address discrimination that keeps some people from receiving medical attention. An interview with Diarmaid McDonald, advocacy manager at Stop AIDS.

Pay for performance to get drugs to the poor

Millions of people in developing countries can’t afford lifesaving medicines. Here's a way to improve access for low-income patients and ensure return on investment for pharmaceutical companies.

How communities can fight mental health stigma

How can communities fight the stigma associated with mental illness? A video interview with Anette Høegh Goelet, president of Clubhouse International.

Building capacity — and leadership — for the next decade of progress on nutrition

Looking ahead to a follow-up framework for the MDGs, it is critical that we sustain our momentum on nutrition — a task that requires greater investment in cultivating a cadre of leaders to take us there, argues Klaus Kraemer, director at Sight and Life, in this exclusive commentary.

Follow the money: How to increase the transparency, efficiency and accountability of health care spending

In many low-income countries less than 20 percent of health spending actually reaches health care providers at the point of care due to "leakages." But how can governments stem the flow? Deloitte Consulting LLP's Kimberly Switlick-Prose and Rubama Ahmed put forward one innovative approach.

What Ebola has taught us about global health financing

The Ebola crisis has turned the world’s attention to the critical question of how to finance important, life-saving work. In this exclusive commentary, Dr. René Karsenti, chair of the International Finance Facility for Immunisation, argues that impact investments and socially-responsible investments hold the key.

Moving beyond access to development — immunization reframed

Access to vaccines isn't everything — in fact, the global health community's overriding focus on access may complicate efforts to eradicate disease around the world, argues Robert Steinglass, director of the Immunization Center at JSI Research & Training Institute Inc.

Mental health and women’s health: Eyeing the 'treatment gap'

One in four people suffers from a mental illness. And yet, most of them go undiagnosed and untreated, especially in the developing countries. By Farah Mohammed from Girl's Globe.

The future of the fight against malaria

Malaria has not made the headlines lately — does that mean we’re winning the fight against the disease? Leopoldo Villegas, one of the most seasoned malaria experts in the world, discusses lingering challenges and how to offset funding gaps to eradicate the mosquito-borne disease.

Ebola: Why we must play the long game

Containing Ebola is just the first step in ensuring a healthy West Africa. Now is the time for the international community to craft long-term development plans for Ebola-affected countries still recovering from decades of conflict, writes Michael Schreiber, president and COO of Concern Worldwide U.S.

Strong health systems: The offense to defend against future epidemics?

They're not only crucial to bring the current Ebola epidemic under control but help to end poverty and build resilient societies, writes Dr. Ariel Pablos-Mendez, USAID assistant administrator for global health, about strong health systems.

3 ways the public sector can work with business to fight chronic diseases

The world’s most deadly and debilitating diseases affect us all, so we all need to be involved in the battle against them. Here are three ways the public and private sectors can collaborate, courtesy of Jacob Gayle, vice president of philanthropy at Medtronic, the leading medical technology company.

Want to fight dengue effectively? Get access to communities with local volunteers

Volunteers with local knowledge are best positioned to raise awareness about actual and perceived health risks associated with dengue — and their contribution to global health must be recognized. A commentary by Walter Cotte, under-secretary general of program services at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

HIV in children — we need to do more

Despite quantum leaps in progress over the last decade to help scale up access to therapy for children and pregnant women, mothers and children in developing countries are still profoundly affected by HIV/AIDS. ViiV Healthcare's Dr. Manuel Goncalves spells out four key areas for intervention in this exclusive commentary.

How to end a neocolonialist approach to global health training

We stand at a critical juncture for global health, writes Dr. Michelle Morse, deputy chief medical officer for Partners in Health. Here's how to avoid the medical missions of colonial days, from Haiti to West Africa and beyond.

5 lessons for funding innovation for social change

The structures and practices of philanthropy are threatening and inhibiting social change. Why? Three types of fear, asserts Global Fund for Women President and CEO Musimbi Kanyoro in this exclusive commentary.

Healthy means hospitals, too

Hospital care is essential to healthy societies, yet it's largely missing from the global health agenda. Why, and what can we do to correct it? A joint commentary by Amanda Glassman and Rachel Silverman from the Center for Global Development.

Universal health coverage: An empty promise without focusing on chronic diseases

The growing chronic disease burden around the world poses both challenges and opportunities for governments eager to advance universal health coverage schemes. NCD Alliance Executive Director Katie Dain suggests ways to address them.

Women’s access to health care during humanitarian crises

We need to ensure women’s access to health care during humanitarian crises and the EU should be doing more to help, argues Baroness Jenny Tonge, president of the European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development, in this exclusive commentary.

Health is a human right, not a commodity

Healthy populations make for prosperous nations. But until everyone, everywhere has access to even the most basic of health care, we are at risk of further health crises like Ebola, warns Action for Global Health Coordinator Tim Roosen in this exclusive commentary.

Why mental health hasn't gone mainstream

Mental illness affects one in four people in their lifetime, yet the issue is often missing from discussions on how to improve health care. Why — and what could change the situation? A commentary by the Overseas Development Institute’s Jessica MacKenzie.

Let’s speed up procurement to save time, costs and lives

Innovative financing mechanisms can help to accelerate the delivery of life-saving drugs to mitigate outbreaks of cholera in Haiti or of Ebola in West Africa. A commentary by Kevin Starace, founding director of the Pledge Guarantee for Health.

Time to end AIDS and (finally) leave no one behind post-2015

The MDGs have failed marginalized people, but the post-2015 framework gives us an opportunity to do it right. Let’s leave no one behind this time and — in doing so — achieve the end of AIDS, writes Marielle Hart from the International HIV/AIDS Alliance.

The next frontier of inclusion for the 'working poor' — and how insurers can profit

With the right risk pool, insurance for the “working poor” could develop into a profitable and truly inclusive business — even in sub-Saharan Africa, writes Carlijn Nouwen, a partner in Dalberg's Johannesburg office.

Social marketing poised to make major contribution to 2020 family planning goal

Family Planning 2020 is making steady progress toward its goal of enabling an additional 120 million women and girls in the world’s 69 poorest countries with access to voluntary family planning information, services and supplies.

Ebola puts humanitarian supply chains to the test

Humanitarian supply chains are designed to respond to the unknown and adjust to the unpredictable. But in the face of the ongoing Ebola crisis in Western Africa, even the most robust relief supply chains are being put to the test.

How can we strengthen health systems? Let’s learn from what works

Despite the recognition that building effective health systems is a fundamental task, the strategies to achieving this are not always clear. In this exclusive commentary, the Overseas Development Institute's Dr. Fiona Samuels identifies several key areas for concerted action.

Universal health coverage: Good for communities, good for business

What business opportunities may the adoption of universal coverage schemes bring for the global development and health communities? Michael Myers, managing director of the Rockefeller Foundation, explains in this video interview.

Must Reads

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Access to health care and volunteers

Community health volunteers’ connections to the community and understanding of the context makes them key resources in developing locally appropriate responses to health issues, encouraging community engagement and promoting sustainability towards reaching universal health coverage.

Article

Should we use Ebola to campaign for UHC?

Ebola has devastated West Africa, highlighting the importance of robust and accessible health care systems. But policymakers and development professionals worry that such a lesson won't make an impact in the long term.