"Although efficient spending on health has always been a desirable goal, it is particularly critical in the face of recent threats, such as HIV/AIDS and drug-resistant bacteria, as well as the problems presented by increasing prevalence of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease (CVD), that threaten to roll back the significant health gains achieved in the past two decades. This book is an opportunity to assess anew the costs associated with and the health gains attainable from specific interventions and thereby better inform the allocation of new health funding."
This report summarises responses gathered, in late March 2009, from respondents in 71 countries. It asked whether antiretroviral treatment had been affected, or might be affected in future, by the global economic crisis. It identifies regions that appear to be more vulnerable than others and highlights the causes and negative effects of disruption to antiretroviral treatment programmes or services. The report suggests ways to maintain and expand access to HIV treatment in a difficult economic climate
This report examines the epidemiological evidence on the burden and distribution of pneumonia and assesses current levels of treatment and prevention. The report aims to raise awareness of pneumonia and to serve as a call to action to reduce child deaths from pneumonia
This annotated bibliography has been prepared in an effort to provide policy makers, technical personnel and other stakeholders with comprehensive information on the costs of interventions and impact of HIV on health systems. The documents included in the bibliograpy focus on those aspects of the pandemic most related to economic impact, financing and resource allocation, costing, health system strengthening, scaling up antiretroviral therapy, surveillance systems, and programme monitoring and evaluation. The bibliography describes 101 publications describing work done from 1995 onwards as well as a directory of web resources. The bibliography is not a comprehensive reveiw, but is rather intended to highlight current information in the field of HIV and health systems strengthening
The publication provides an accessible source of information on the pharmaceutical situation at global and national levels. It assembles the available evidence regarding the production and consumption of medicines, and a range of issues in national medicines policies, including the level of people's access, patterns of use, the challenges of medicines regulation and promoting rational use. Numerous different sources of data are used. A 32-page annex of statistics is included. The target readers are researchers, academics and analysts concerned with medicines and public health
In this progress report for the 5th WTO Ministerial Conference at Cancún, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) assesses the progress and setbacks on the realisation of the Doha Declaration, and outlines the next steps Members should take to meet their obligations
This report reflects the current knowledge and understanding of the AIDS epidemic. It presents estimates and ranges around the estimates to indicate their level of precision. It includes a special section on stigma and discrimination
This detailed and thorough report considers whether and how intellectual property rights (IPRs) can play a role in achieving the Millenium Development Goals. It explores the potential benefits of IPRs in stimulating economic growth, and the associated benefits in terms of productivity and reduced poverty. It considers also the barriers that IPRs may present to developing economies, including discouraging invention, research, technology transfer, domestic production and driving up the costs of medicines and agricultural inputs. Key issues covered in successive chapters include: current evidence about the impact of IPRs in developing countries; development of and access to medicines; protection of plants and genetic resources; the Convention on Biological Diversity, traditional knowledge, cultural expressions and geographic indicators; copyright and patents; IPR legislation for developing countries; international and national institutional framework for IPRs