Global Health Diplomacy

Abstract

A variety of shifts emergent with globalization, which are reflected in part by nascent programs in “Global Public Health,” “Global Health Sciences,” and “Global Health,” are redefining international public health. We explore three of these shifts as a critical discourse and intervention in global health diplomacy: the expansion in non-governmental organization participation in international health programs, the globalization of science and pharmaceutical research, and the use of militarized languages of biosecurity to recast public health programs. Using contemporary anthropological and international health literature, we offer a critical yet hopeful exploration of the implications of these shifts for critical inquiry, health, and the health professions.

Key Words:

• biosecurity
• global health diplomacy
• NGO expansionism
• pharmaceutical globalization

Notes

Examples are found in early missionary work, colonial and post-colonial health development aid, faith-based and other non-governmental efforts, and now the new global health philanthropies.

Note that the new names may be more old wine in new bottles than we suggest here.

The University of California, San Francisco's Global Health Sciences, in collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation ([IGCC] based at UC San Diego) have developed an academic initiative in Global Health Diplomacy.

Benjamin Hickler (UCSF, DAHSM) has been conducting research on this with support from IGCC.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Vincanne Adams

VINCANNE ADAMS, PHD, is a professor of Medical Anthropology in the Department of Anthropology, History and Social Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. She is the author of three books and numerous articles on international health, traditional medical systems, and critical insights about modernity. She is co-author of the initiative in Global Health Diplomacy at UCSF. She may be reached at the Department of Anthropology, History and Social Medicine, UCSF, San Francisco, CA, 94143. E-mail: [email protected]

Thomas E. Novotny

THOMAS NOVOTNY, MD, MPH, is a Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco. His research focuses on global health, particularly non-communicable diseases, and he co-directs executive training programs in health diplomacy with the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva. He may be reached at: [email protected]

Hannah Leslie

HANNAH LESLIE is an MPH student in Health and Social Behavior at UC Berkeley and a Program Analyst with Global Health Sciences at UC San Francisco. In addition to supporting the UC Initiative on Global Health Diplomacy, she focuses on the development and evaluation of global health education programs in California and East Africa. Her previous research focused on the impact of gender on health risks and perceptions in Havana, Cuba. She may be reached at: [email protected]