Advancing Health Equity: A Paradigm Shift in Health Research?
The first wave of contemporary health research focused on medicine and the life sciences, with clinical solutions as a primary endpoint. Although such research remains foundational, understanding the social origins of disease—the ‘‘upstream’’ influences on (ill) health and its distribu- tion [6]—generally and almost unavoid- ably falls outside the biomedical frame of
reference. The past few decades have seen
the emergence of a second wave of health research, providing the evidence base for a variety of interventions directed at im- proving the health of populations rather than individuals, with a large component addressing non-communicable diseases.
The work of CSDH underscores the need for more research on how social, political, and economic processes influence health inequities. We consider this grow- ing field of enquiry [7,8] as a paradigm shift and a third, complementary, wave of health research. The new paradigm makes explicit that health systems and the people who use them exist within a social context that can powerfully determine peoples’ chances to be healthy not only through access to health services, but also through access to a range of other resources, opportunities, and rights: the social deter- minants of health. Doing research from this perspective involves re-emphasis of older public health traditions and a push for innovative thinking that incorporates a number of distinct strategies and method- ologies (Box 1).
Research Priorities
Using this frame, we recommend an agenda for research on health equity organized around four distinct yet inter- related areas:
(1) Global Factors and Processes
That Affect Health Equity
‘‘Global health has come to occupy a new and different kind of political space that demands the study of population health in the context of power relations in a world system’’ [9]. Numerous globa processes affect social determinants of
health [10]. Global re-organization of production has involved the emergence of an increasingly feminized and informa- lized global labour market with adverse effects on women’s health and their social protection and increases in child labor. Trade liberalization has led to losses of livelihood, sometimes large revenue short- falls for low- and middle-income countries, increasing privatization of public services such as water, and reduced access to essential medicines. The hyper-mobility of capital has also constrained social policy, as jurisdictions compete for invest- ment, and exposed national economies to the destabilizing effects of disinvestment and financial crises.
It is necessary to improve the evidence base about globalization, not only negative effects, but also positive impacts: for example, expanded social and economic opportunities for women despite harsh working conditions [11]. Comparative cross-national research should be comple- mented by detailed national case studies that connect household-level impacts with national policies and global forces. Simi- larly, research on how to redesign institu- tions for global decision-making—often referred to as ‘‘global governance’’—is needed so that these institutions address not only trade and economic crises, but other global issues, such as climate change, that have important social and health consequences. The financial crisis of
2008 only underscored this urgency [12]. Globalization is implicated, as well, in many health risks associated with environ- mental hazards [13]. Potential natural limitations of support for the human species have been widely discussed in
recent environmental health fora: our current global trajectories of unsustainable development are important areas for future research.
Rapid urbanization in the developing world is closely connected to globalization: a turning point was reached early in this century, when for the first time a majority of the world’s population lived in cities. It is estimated that 1.4 billion people will live in slums in 2020 in the absence of rapid and effective policy interventions [14], creating formidable challenges for reduc- ing health inequities in low- and middle- income countries [15]. Pertinent questions include how global-scale processes lead to social changes that are beyond the reach of local or metropolitan government policies and interventions. Conversely, the emergence of metropolitan areas as global-scale economic actors in their own right potentially offers a new frame of
Advancing Health Equity: A Paradigm Shift in Health Research?
The first wave of contemporary health research focused on medicine and the life sciences, with clinical solutions as a primary endpoint. Although such research remains foundational, understanding the social origins of disease—the ‘‘upstream’’ influences on (ill) health and its distribu- tion [6]—generally and almost unavoid- ably falls outside the biomedical frame of
reference. The past few decades have seen
the emergence of a second wave of health research, providing the evidence base for a variety of interventions directed at im- proving the health of populations rather than individuals, with a large component addressing non-communicable diseases.
The work of CSDH underscores the need for more research on how social, political, and economic processes influence health inequities. We consider this grow- ing field of enquiry [7,8] as a paradigm shift and a third, complementary, wave of health research. The new paradigm makes explicit that health systems and the people who use them exist within a social context that can powerfully determine peoples’ chances to be healthy not only through access to health services, but also through access to a range of other resources, opportunities, and rights: the social deter- minants of health. Doing research from this perspective involves re-emphasis of older public health traditions and a push for innovative thinking that incorporates a number of distinct strategies and method- ologies (Box 1).
Research Priorities
Using this frame, we recommend an agenda for research on health equity organized around four distinct yet inter- related areas:
(1) Global Factors and Processes
That Affect Health Equity
‘‘Global health has come to occupy a new and different kind of political space that demands the study of population health in the context of power relations in a world system’’ [9]. Numerous globa processes affect social determinants of
health [10]. Global re-organization of production has involved the emergence of an increasingly feminized and informa- lized global labour market with adverse effects on women’s health and their social protection and increases in child labor. Trade liberalization has led to losses of livelihood, sometimes large revenue short- falls for low- and middle-income countries, increasing privatization of public services such as water, and reduced access to essential medicines. The hyper-mobility of capital has also constrained social policy, as jurisdictions compete for invest- ment, and exposed national economies to the destabilizing effects of disinvestment and financial crises.
It is necessary to improve the evidence base about globalization, not only negative effects, but also positive impacts: for example, expanded social and economic opportunities for women despite harsh working conditions [11]. Comparative cross-national research should be comple- mented by detailed national case studies that connect household-level impacts with national policies and global forces. Simi- larly, research on how to redesign institu- tions for global decision-making—often referred to as ‘‘global governance’’—is needed so that these institutions address not only trade and economic crises, but other global issues, such as climate change, that have important social and health consequences. The financial crisis of
2008 only underscored this urgency [12]. Globalization is implicated, as well, in many health risks associated with environ- mental hazards [13]. Potential natural limitations of support for the human species have been widely discussed in
recent environmental health fora: our current global trajectories of unsustainable development are important areas for future research.
Rapid urbanization in the developing world is closely connected to globalization: a turning point was reached early in this century, when for the first time a majority of the world’s population lived in cities. It is estimated that 1.4 billion people will live in slums in 2020 in the absence of rapid and effective policy interventions [14], creating formidable challenges for reduc- ing health inequities in low- and middle- income countries [15]. Pertinent questions include how global-scale processes lead to social changes that are beyond the reach of local or metropolitan government policies and interventions. Conversely, the emergence of metropolitan areas as global-scale economic actors in their own right potentially offers a new frame of
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