WHAT IS GLOBAL HEALTH?

Global health is collaborative trans-national research and action for promoting health for all.

The term global health is used rather than global public health to avoid the perception that our endeavours are focussed only on classical, and nationally based, public health actions. Global health builds on national public health efforts and institutions. In many countries public health is equated primarily with population-wide interventions; global health is concerned with all strategies for health improvement, whether population-wide or individually based health care actions, and across all sectors, not just the health sector.

Collaborative (or collective) emphasises the critical importance of collaboration in addressing all health issues and especially global issues which have a multiplicity of determinants and a complex array of institutions involved in finding solutions.

Trans-national (or cross-national) refers to the concern of global health with issues that transcend national boundaries even though the effects of global health issues are experienced within countries. Trans-national action requires the involvement of more than two countries, with at least one outside the traditional regional groupings, without which it would be considered a localised or regional issue. At the same time, trans-national work is usually based on strong national public health institutions.

Research implies the importance of developing the evidence-base for policy based on a full range of disciplines and especially research which highlights the effects of trans-national determinants of health.

Action emphasises the importance of using this evidence-based information constructively in all countries to improve health and health equity.

Promoting (or improving) implies the importance of using a full range of public heath and health promotion strategies to improve health, including those directed at the underlying social, economic, environmental and political determinants of health.

Health for all refers back to the Alma Ata Declaration and positions global health at the forefront of the resurgence of interest in multi-sectoral approaches to health improvement and the need to strengthen primary health care as the basis of all health systems.

Background

Interconnected and sistemic health problems lead to challenges on global health. High numbers of drugs resistance, challenge to overcome burden of the non-communicable diseases, HIV/AIDS and TBC outbreaks, clean water availability, and adequate sanitation closely relate to  poverty, starvation, qualified education, economic growth and proper works, energy, industry, and infrastructure problems. To face all of these issues, global health needs to move forward in an integrated, transparent, and holistic action to achieve a better global solution.

Universitas Indonesia as one of the biggest universities in Indonesia truly understands of the importance of global health. This awareness encourages UI to actively involve to seek global solutions by holding The 1st International Conference on Global Health. The conference is a collaboration of 5 faculties of Health Sciences Cluster within Universitas Indonesia: Faculty of Medicine, Faculty of Dentistry, Faculty of Public Health, Faculty of Nursing, and Faculty of Pharmacy.