The EQUINET regional meeting on Human Resources for Health August 19-20 2005 in Johannesburg South Africa discussed and debated Human Resources for Health (HRH) research and policy with a view to improving the equitable distribution of HRH within southern Africa. By the end of the deliberations, the delegates from government, non government, health worker, national, regional and international level at the meeting highlighted key areas of shared perspective on HRH.
Latest Equinet Updates
Equity in the distribution of health personnel in southern Africa: Report of regional meeting, 18-20 August 2005, Johannesburg
Meeting report: Monitoring equity in ART provision in the context of health systems, Lilongwe, Malawi, 29-30 August 2005
A regional meeting (hosted by EQUINET/Oxfam working with SADC in February 2004) identified the need to monitor equity in access and health systems issues as critical to supporting visibility, policy dialogue and programme planning on these issues of equity and health system strengthening. EQUINET, through Training and Research Support Centre, carried out work to assess the existing monitoring taking place in relation to expanding ART coverage and contracted the Equi-TB Knowledge Programme – now REACH Trust - Malawi, to write a paper on the area of monitoring equity and health systems impacts of ART expansion at subnational and national level, with recommendations for regional level monitoring.
Resolutions of the Health Civil Society in Southern and East Africa meeting, 13 October 2005
Health civil society groups in Zimbabwe and east and southern Africa, met on 13 October 2005 to discuss struggles for health and agreed on the resolutions available through clicking on the web link provided, to be presented at the Southern African Social Forum on 14 October 2005.
A short course in Private Health and Social Health Insurance, 10 – 14 October 2005
The Health Economics Unit at the University of Cape Town is offering a 5-day short course addressing the changing role of health insurance in low- and middle-income countries. The course focuses on the financial management of risk pools in diverse settings covering a broad spectrum of insurance arrangements including community-based health insurance, private voluntary insurance for the formal sector and social or national health insurance.
EQUINET presentations to the Global Health Research Forum, Sep 2005
The Network for Equity in Health in east and southern Africa (Equinet) participated in a number of sessions at Forum 9 of the Global Health Research Forum in Mumbai, India, 12-16 September 2005. The theme of the meeting this year was Poverty, equity and health research. The Global Forum’s annual meeting provides the opportunity for presentations and exchange of views on key issues on the global health agenda. Participants from a broad range of constituencies were present: health and development ministries, multilateral and bilateral agencies, research-oriented bodies and universities, NGOs and civil society, the private sector, the media. EQUINET has a substantial programme of research work on equity in health and reported on some of this at the Forum. Papers were presented by Grace Bongololo and Lot Nyirenda on theme work on gender equity in Antiretroviral therapy access; by Di McIntyre and Lucy Gilson on equitable health care financing; Rene Loewenson, Itai Rusike and Memory Zulu on The Impact Of Health Centre Committees On Health outcomes in Zimbabwe and Lucy Gilson, Ermin Erasmus; Peter Kamuzora; TJ Ngulube; Verona Phillips and Vera Scott on applying policy analysis in tackling implementation gaps.
Further details: /newsletter/id/31105
Equinet Student Grant Awards - Final deadline October 7
EQUINET will award a number of small grants to post graduate students and undergraduate students in East and Southern Africa for research proposals in the areas of
1. Revitalising and building national peoples’ health systems
2. Organising people’s power for health
3. Ensuring fair financing of an equitable health system
4. Ensuring the human resources for health
5. Challenging trade liberalization and encroachment on health
The final date for applications is October 7 2005.
Promoting health in trade agreements: Brief on a research and training workshop, 15-17 August 2005
The training course aimed to enable participants to be able to carry out assessments nationally of the key trade and investment agreements that impact on health and identify options for promoting public sector equity oriented health systems within current trade and investment policies and agreements. The workshop aimed to cover
• An introduction to trade and health that outlines major issues affecting the region
• An outline of health systems, their major components of health systems and the challenges posed by commercialisation.
• An introduction to outline of the global major trade systems and the World Trade Organisation and how it agreements that impacts on health, and the options for protecting and promoting health within these trade agreements
• An outline of two major trade agreements - TRIPS and GATS - that impact on health, and the options for protecting and promoting health within these trade agreements
• A guideline for audit of the impact of trade agreements on health systems
• An introduction to analyzing and understanding the health systems context in which policy is developed, designed and implemented.
A short course in Private Health and Social Health Insurance
10 – 14 October 2005
The Health Economics Unit at the University of Cape Town is offering a 5-day short course addressing the changing role of health insurance in low- and middle-income countries. The course focuses on the financial management of risk pools in diverse settings covering a broad spectrum of insurance arrangements including community-based health insurance, private voluntary insurance for the formal sector and social or national health insurance.
Call for applicants for student research grants on equity in health
Call Closes On September 31 2005
This briefing describes the programme of student research grants in EQUINET and invites applicants for the third round of grants. The Regional Network for Equity in Health in Southern Africa (EQUINET) promotes policies for equity in health across a range of priority theme areas (See www.equinetafrica.org) EQUINET has over the years, organized its work in various theme areas, including: economic and trade policy and health; human rights, governance and participation, equity in health sector responses to HIV/AIDS, human resources for health; monitoring and surveillance and others. Within these areas of work EQUINET aims to identify, recruit and build capacity and analysis. After a successful pilot initiative in 2003 in co-operation with the Malawi Health Equity Network member in the EQUINET steering committee, EQUINET has now launched a programme of student research support that provides small research grants for students at college or university in various programmes in east and southern Africa.
Further details: /newsletter/id/31075
Equinet student research grants: Call for applicants
This briefing describes the programme of student research grants in EQUINET and invites applicants for the third round of grants. The Regional Network for Equity in Health in Southern Africa (EQUINET) promotes policies for equity in health across a range of priority theme areas (See www.equinetafrica.org) EQUINET has over the years, organized its work in various theme areas, including: economic and trade policy and health; human rights, governance and participation, equity in health sector responses to HIV/AIDS, human resources for health; monitoring and surveillance and others. Within these areas of work EQUINET aims to identify, recruit and build capacity and analysis.
Further details: /newsletter/id/31041