Which are the most important family planning research findings that should be put into practice? Authors for an upcoming Population Reports issue on the topic invite you to vote for the top three findings from a list of seven. For example, WHO recommends that family planning clients receive up to a year’s supply of pills, or as many pill packs as feasible, at the first visit. Research finds that women who get a full year’s supply of pills are more likely to use the method effectively, without interruption. This practice is rare in many countries, however. Have a more urgent finding that should become a practice? Vote and then write a comment on INFO’s Blog.
Author: Eckhard
I have enjoyed working as a public health physician and epidemiologist on global health issues throughout my career. Starting in a tiny village in Burkina Faso where malaria was common, I treated leprosy and tuberculosis in Sierra Leone, and helped to bring Primary Health Care to hundreds of thousands villagers in Cameroon. I like the challenges of exploring ways to improve human health at the same time as conserving our environment. Caring for both seems to make perfect sense, because our health depends so much on clean water and air, and on a diverse plant and animal life. Beside all this, I have a passion for working with numbers, especially to find out whether the programs we implement in the developing world really improve the lives of families, how they work and why.
Are Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Unfair to Africa?
“At the midway point between their adoption in 2000 and the 2015 target date for achieving the Millennium Development Goals, sub-Saharan Africa is not on track to achieve any of the Goals”. http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/docs/MDGafrica07.pdf
Yes, according to William Easterly, author of “The White Man’s Burden”, at a February 6 event, Africa was set up to fail by the way MDG targets were set and indicators defined (http://www.brookings.edu/events/2008/0206_africa.aspx). With wit and by taking occasional cheap shots at those who developed the MDG goals and targets, Easterly held the attention of a large audience. Using data and trends, he made a compelling case why MDGs did not give sub-Saharan Africa credit for its considerable progress, thus contributing to the stereotype of “Africa’s failure”. In his response, Danny Leipziger of the World Bank took issue with many of Easterly’s claims pointing out, for example, that Tanzania was treated no different from Nepal for most MDG goals. Here is the question: Do you believe that MDGs are fair or unfair to Africa? Continue reading “Are Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Unfair to Africa?”
Who decides what to evaluate, how and when?
A systematic review of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) estimated that 15 percent of all its reports included impact assessments, but noted that “many evaluations were unable to properly assess impact because of methodological shortcomings” (Victora 1995). A review of 127 studies of 258 community health financing programs found that only two studies were able to derive robust conclusions about the impact on access to health services (ILO 2002).
International consensus is growing that more and better impact evaluations are needed. Only by applying scientific rigor can development programs show that they produce results and offer a good return on the investment. The World Bank has made considerable investments in evaluating the impact of many of its development programs. Other donors like the UK and the Netherlands are joining forces. However, impact evaluations are expensive and not all programs need them. Here is the question: How to decide which programs should have an impact evaluation, who should decide and when? Let us know what you think! Continue reading “Who decides what to evaluate, how and when?”
Hello APHA International Health Section Members and Friends!
It is a New Year and a new beginning for communicating among members of the International Health Section of the American Public Health Association. What is new?
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Our website has a new look. Please check it out at http://www.apha.org/membergroups/sections/aphasections/intlhealth/
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This “IH Blog”. It is a new tool (for us) to hear members about their concerns and issues related to global health.
I would like to invite you to write for the IH Blog. If you have any suggestions concerning topics that you would like to discuss, feel free to comment. Continue reading “Hello APHA International Health Section Members and Friends!”
IH CONNECT 