On January 22, DGHI director Michael Merson traveled to the Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) to discuss emerging issues and challenges that the global health field faces as the Millennium Development Goals (MGDs) reach their deadline this year. Merson delivered the distinguished lecture to faculty and students from Baylor, MD Anderson Cancer Center, University of Texas-Houston and Rice University who attended the Global Health Symposium, which was organized under the auspices of the Baylor Global Initiatives (BGI).
This annual symposium highlights BCM’s international work by giving faculty an opportunity to present their international pilot projects funded by BGI. BCM medical students, residents and fellows also displayed posters describing their research.
“It was an honor to be selected to deliver this lecture,” said Merson. “I enjoyed interacting with colleagues in Houston and learning about the important global health work being done by BCM, Rice and other academic institutions.”
Global Health: Emerging Issues and Challenges Ahead
In his Baylor presentation, Merson outlined key challenges at the forefront of global health. He commended the remarkable global progress in reducing the mortality rate of women and children, but he emphasized that much work remains before the world will reach the MDG targets. Converging with the post-MDG agenda, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were developed in part to incorporate these remaining challenges into an approach that shifts the targets to impact a combination of economic development, environmental sustainability and social inclusion.
He noted predictions that by 2030, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) will increase by 50 percent in low- and middle-income countries. This increase will shift the majority of disability-adjusted life years from infectious diseases to NCDs, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, cancer and mental illness.
Merson also focused on the importance of universal health coverage (UHC) in all countries. He emphasized that UHC is comprised of prevention and treatment services as well as financial protection coverage, including protection against impoverishing and catastrophic expenditures.
He stressed that in considering the post-MDG agenda, while it is vital that the global health field does not leave unfinished work behind, the field will continue to face new emerging threats such as the recent Ebola outbreak.
Merson reflected on the parallels between the early days of HIV and the Ebola outbreak: stigma, limited knowledge of the disease, lack of effective treatment and inadequate global response. He underscored the importance of learning from the consequences of the slow initial response to HIV. Ebola should also be considered a global security threat that requires a prompt and proactive response. It is these global health security threats that continue to drive much of the funding for global health.
As the global health field moves forward, Merson identifies what he refers to as the “new world health order,” which includes:
- The increasing role of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) countries as donors in global health
- The increased impact of Asian countries on the global economy
- The rise of innovation and global health technology
- Global governance challenges
- Unprecedented growth in global health academic programs in the United States and elsewhere