Mortality and Health
Five sessions focused on mortality and health. Topics covered included
inequalities in adult mortality, HIV/AIDS, emerging health threats, infant and child
mortality, and influences of development, urbanisation and environment on population
health. High mortality, especially high infant and child mortality, are indissolubly linked
with poverty - not just income poverty but also more qualitative dimensions such as
illiteracy, disease, and hunger. There is a high degree of synergy between various
components of poverty, resulting in a complex causal structure requiring study. Countries
with the fastest declines in child mortality seem to have the highest levels of economic
development and per capita GDP. Likewise, economically stable households tend to have
lower rates of child mortality. At the household (and even national) level, economic
success depends upon educational achievement, not surprisingly, the educational levels of
parents - and particularly of women - are highly correlated with living conditions and
health practices that determine infant and child survival.
Country-level analyses indicate that access to safe drinking water and health
services, especially in times of emergency, are also important determinants of infant and
child mortality, and regional analysis highlights the role of adequate caloric intake.
However, data indicate that some countries, such as Thailand and Sri Lanka, have
performed much better in reducing infant and child mortality than would be expected on
the basis of the various household and community indicators reviewed. This suggests that
policy commitment and an enabling socio-cultural environment can play important roles
in shaping health and mortality outcomes.
A number of sessions focused on HIV/AIDS and identified an alarming upward
trend in this disease. The epidemic in Southeast Asia is relatively in its early stage and
macro impacts are not felt in the short run. However, micro level impacts are now being
felt strongly. Despite increasing help available from government and NGOs, the ultimate
safety net for persons with AIDS in the region is their parents and non-infected siblings.