Europe Health Report 2005 (1).

Noncommunicable diseases are the main cause of the burden of disease

on the European Region,

and communicable diseases are an additional burden

on other countries, caused by poverty and underfunded health services.

Europe Health Report (2)

Action should be taken to implement well-known, comprehensive interventions to tackle the seven leading risk factors:

tobaccoalcohol high blood pressurehigh cholesteroloverweightlow fruit and vegetable intakeand physical inactivity.

Europe Health Report (3)

Reducing the seven risk factors would largely prevent the seven leading conditions:

ischaemic heart diseasedepressive disorders cerebrovascular disease alcohol-use disorderschronic pulmonary disease lung cancerroad traffic injuries.

Europe Health Report (4)

The European health report 2005 has a special focus on children's health, because health in childhood determines health throughout life and into the next generation.

Differences exist between the patterns of ill health in children and in adults, and wide differences in the causes and rates of

illness and death in children exist between countries.

European Health Report (5)

This shows the need for complementary health and social policies on adults and children.

The report identifies poverty and socioeconomic

inequality as the greatest threats to children's health. The report calls for renewed effort in protection

and promotion of child health.

Investing in children's health is investing in the future.

Why a People’s Health Movement ?

• Health for all by 2000 ?• The end of Primary Health Care ? • A large number of the world pop´n is still lacking

access to water, sanitation, basic health care, education and shelter.

• Public health services are inadequate• Health budgets are too small• Social justice or market ?

The first People´s Health Assembly

• 1500 health activists from 57 countries met in Savar, Bangladesh, for the first People´s Health Assembly

• The People´s Health Charter:– An expression of common concern– A vision for a healthier and just world– A call for action

• Country PHM chapters

People´s Health Movement

• WHO advocacy• Women and health• War, disaster and aid• Poverty and AIDS• Private-Public Partnerships• Trade and health• Environmental degradation and health• Disability• Social, cultural and religious dimensions of

health

Globalisation and health

• Big business promoting unhealthy consumption

• Worldbank limits public sector health expenditure

• Nature and biological properties are patented by multinationals

• TRIPS turns medicines into commodities instead of tools for health interventions

The root causes of ill health are:

• Poverty

• Inequity, and also gender imbalance

• Social disintegration and violence

• Lack of human rights and respect for human dignity

• Environmental degradation

• Lack of good governance

The health sector crisis

The health crisis in developing countries

• Ministries of Health with too little capacity

• Health expenditure too low

• Health worker crisis

• Infra-structure lacking

• AIDS

• What happened to Primary Health Care ? Health for all ?

Health worker crisis

Health care systems and approaches to health care

• Value driven (quality or coverage )

• Biomedical priorities

• Primary health care

• District health model system

• New Public Management

• Global Public Private Initiatives (GPPIs)

PHC is since undermined by:

• Macro-economic factors

• Health system reforms and privitization/commercialization of health care services

• Selective health care and verticalization of programmes

• Selective and efficiency-driven Cost-Effectiveness Analysis

An estimated 30,000 children

still die

every day

mainly from preventable and

easily treatable causes.

Health care systems are collapsing

in many African countries and in war-ravaged countries as Afghanistan and Iraq.

Life expectancy is falling

in most african countries

and in former sovjet union countries.

Global Public Private Initiatives

• Global Fund for HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria• PEPFAR• Stop TB Initiative• GAVI• Polio Eradication• Roll back malaria• A total of 80 GPPIs challenging expertise,

capacity and resources from Ministries of Health in developing countries

GPPIs

• Accountable to whom ?

• Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

• Pharmaceutical companies

• The poor ?

Are churches concerned ? Should churches be concerned ?Do the churches have a voice ?

What is the message of the churches ?

Where is the CMC ?

Did the People´s Health Movement take the place of the former CMC ?

• Christian

• Medical

• Commission

• People´s

• Health

• Movement

CMC has a different role than PHM

• Different dimensions in health

• Not only justice, but also compassion

• Values are not rigid

• Institutional responsibility

Vision

Health is central to development and reflects the norms and values of the society in which we partake. - Development implies improvement in living conditions and quality of life for all members of society- The health of people is an indicator of the soundness of developmental policies

The past and future role of a CMC:

• Affirming the special role of churches and christian health agencies in health&development

• Applying and transferring public health logic, systems and expertise to CBOs

• Advocacy, participating in networks • Linking religious and humanitarian values such

as equity, human rights, justice, sustainability, inclusion to health & development policies and practices

Future themes ?

• Sexual and reproductive health• HIV/AIDS• Essential drug policies• Health, healing and wholeness• Christian health agencies and networks• Disability, mental health and home care• Health care financing• Health care management and PME

Agenda for a CMC

• Churches and health• Missiology, health and healing• Health for all , now !

advocacy for health rightsadvocacy for social policies for health

• AIDS: access to prevention and treatment for all!• Valuing,revitalising, expanding the health worker force • Theological training in conflict mediation, counselling and

healing. • ...... Etc.

Basic needs, basic rights

Towards a healthy future for all.

Thank you.

• Prepared for the Ecumencial Study Consultation on ´The Global Health Situation and the Mission of the Churches in the 21st Century´, Breklum.

September 2005

Christina de Vries.