(Image credit: thisispublichealth.org)

This week saw a number of exciting advances in dealing with health worker shortages as well as building the capacity of developing health systems. Africa now has its own association for public health, schools of medicine are working to meet the need for professional health workers, new state of the art hospital facilities are built in northern Rwanda, young people ask for more information and more sexual education, and African countries still work to meet the need for their health systems to deal with infectious diseases as well as non-communicable diseases.

Africa Federation of Public Health Associations Launched

Public Health is a growing field across the African continent. The WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Luis Sambo said the launch of the African Federation of Public Health Associations provides a useful platform to harness complementary capabilities and resources for better public health outcomes in the region. He said it will facilitate exchange of information and experiences among national public health associations and promote inter country cooperation.

Partners in Health completes Butaro District Hospital

With extensive research and architectural design efforts, the Burera District in northern Rwanda now has a state of the art hospital. PIH expanded the existing health center to grow into this pinnacle of treatment since 2007.

Safe Sex – Out of Fashion?

In a study published on World Contraception Day with support from the International Planned Parenthood Foundation (IPPF), young people in 29 different countries said that they needed more sexual health education and information. ”Sexuality is often a politically loaded subject which governments don’t want to burn their fingers on,” says Henk Rolink of Dutch sexual health and rights organisation Rutgers WPF. ”What’s more, health care budgets are often very low. Family Planning gets a low priority. In many other countries sex education mainly concentrates on abstinence. This is often the case in Western countries too, but of course it doesn’t square with reality. Young people do have sex.”

Obesity is Contagious 

This article’s title comes from research that shows individuals with close friends who are obese are more likely to also be overweight. Nigeria’s health system works to address NCDs, particularly obesity, as growing health concerns. At the gathering of health experts during the International Conference Centre in Abuja for the 2nd International Conference of the Federation of African Nutrition Societies (FANUS), the focus was on series of health concerns particularly the growing global obesity epidemic.

Hospital Turns Back Doctors Amid Doctor Shortage

In one of the more developed countries of Africa, there are still significant shortages in health workers and doctors. In scenes that can be replicated in many burdened health systems, one of Ghana’s port cities’ hospitals has closed its doors because there aren’t enough medical doctors. Director of Health Services Dr. Irene Agyepong said that actions had been taken to return the hospital to normal operations.

354 Students Enrolled in Orota School of Medicine

It is no doubt that increasing programs for medical education will be key to meeting the shortage of health workers across Africa as well as building the capacity of health systems. With the increases in enrollment at the Orota School of Medicine, Eritrea has seen the patient burden on the health system decrease from 29,000 people per doctor to 20,000 people per doctor. The school has a goal of school of having a doctor for 6000 every people in the year 2020.

SCOUT BANANA, in conjunction with James Madison College and the MSU African Studies Center, invites you to submit a manuscript to

Volume III, Issue I of Articulate: Undergraduate Research Applied to Development in Africa.

Articulate is an undergraduate journal that publishes academic papers and writings on development in Africa and African issues. It is a forum for students to contribute to, as well as initiate, debates in international development, as undergraduates remain a vital, untapped force for new ideas and perspectives within the development dialogue.

Primary criteria for inclusion in the journal are quality of research, relevance, and originality. All manuscripts must have been written as an undergraduate student. For Scholarly Articulates, we ask for submissions of roughly 15-20 pages double-spaced with citations formatted according to the Chicago Manual of Style, and an abstract of 200 words. We also ask that the author’s name, major, college, and university appear on a separate cover sheet, with no reference to the author within the manuscript.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

• The effectiveness of foreign aid, microfinance, and social enterprise in Africa
• Intersections of gender, religion, ethnicity, and sexuality in African development
• Consequences of globalization, especially financial and trade integration
• Historical analyses and case studies of health care policies in Africa
• Politics of water and medicine in Africa
• The role of African youth in development programs and projects
• Effects of conflict and migration on health care and development

Articulate is also seeking brief reflective essays on your experiences in Africa, as well as reviews on literature relevant to Africa, development, and health care.

Reflective essays are 2-3 single-spaced pages and can take a variety of creative forms. They should explore development work from the perspective of a young person (under 30) from the Global North entering the Global South. Was it how you thought it would be? What did you like and/or dislike about it? What do you wish you had known when you were just “studying,” as opposed to working, in Africa on health-related issues? Other themes may be considered with consultation from the Editor-in-Chief.

Literature reviews are 2-3 single-spaced pages and are meant to keep Articulate’s readers abreast of current works and on-going debates pertinent to development, Africa, and health care. Reviews must provide a careful, thoughtful analysis and critique of a work’s main themes, objectives, arguments, and conclusions. They should include at least three titled sub-sections: an introduction that includes a synopsis of the work; an analysis that considers what, if any, assumptions underlie the author’s thinking and, if evidence is cited, how well it supports the work’s main objective; and a conclusion that summates your analysis and states the overall merits and/or shortcomings of the work.

Manuscripts will be accepted until Wednesday, September 15, 2010, with publication intended during November 2010. For submissions or inquiries, please contact the Editor-in-Chief at articulate@scoutbanana.org.

For more information, check out http://scoutbanana.org/articulate.

Army Takes Over, Access to HIV Treatment Halted by Strikes in South Africa

As South Africa’s health system is crippled by strikes the Government warns health workers of contributing to murder. HIV/AIDS treatment access has also been halted as the health system ceases to function. Strikers are demanding increased pay due to their insubstantial compensation. Should they be paid more?

Army Medical Teams Move into Strike-Bound Hospitals

Health Minister Warns of Murder as Staff Strike at Hospitals

Strike Jeopardizes HIV Treatment

Government Threatens Action Against Health, Security Strikers

National Public Sector Strike Hits HIV Treatment

Nation Becomes a Victim of its ARV Treatment Success

Public Health Strained by Nurses Strike

Botswana: Acquiring a Taste for Recycled Water

The Water Utilities Corporation in Botswana is breaking ground on a facility to treat waste water in order to supply a water source for the country. Many citizens have expressed disgust at the thought of drinking waste water, but the program holds great potential as water scarcity increases across the continent and around the world.

Hillary’s “new approach” to Global Health

David Rieff takes on the US Secretary of State’s approach to global health and development calling it naive, contradictory and muddled.

Donor Fatigue New Threat to HIV/AIDS Fight

Doctors Without Borders has raised the alarm that this is, “No time to quit! The HIV crisis is far from over.” As economic recession hits, many countries around the world  are decreasing their aid funding for HIV/AIDS treatments. The Obama Administration has come under fire for their cuts to HIV/ AIDS and PEPFAR funding.

• Is Obama Failing on AIDS?
• Optimism as U.S.  HIV Program Lifts Funding Caps

Mozambique: Maputo Central Hospital Bans Use of U.S. Dollars

Patients in Mozambique will no longer be forced to use U.S. Dollars to pay for treatments. This is an important move to increase access to health care in the country.

Cholera Outbreak Grips Nigeria

The need for clean water is demonstrated as cholera rapidly spreads across Nigeria and neighboring countries. As a common disease and treatable disease, the recent cholera outbreak calls for greater access to clean water sources for impoverished communities.

Cholera claims 352 lives

Cholera Outbreak Highlights Vulnerability of Children, Mothers

Cholera Outbreak – FG Moves Drugs, Officials to Bauchi, Borno

Cholera, Measles claim more lives

Cholera Outbreak hits 3,000 in Three Nations

This past weekend, as I was sitting in one of the “Breakout Sessions” at the Global Missions Health Conference in Louisville, Kentucky, it suddenly occurred to me.

Think of it this way: It was as if I had been spent hours and hours staring at an acclaimed piece of abstract art, wondering what made it so special, when, amazingly, in a stunning revelation, I realized what it was.

For a moment, I reveled in my mental accomplishment. I felt like I had figured out a piece of the public health puzzle. I wanted to sketch my message on a white board just like the famous 1992 Clinton campaign saying: “It’s the economy stupid.” But instead of that message, I would write my most recent revelation:

“It’s All About the Women”

Because it is. Public health (and, for the most part, health in general) is all about the women.

Let’s go over the basics:

(1)    In the majority of situations, who is the primary health care provider in the household? Women

(2)    In the majority of situations, who controls the cleanliness of the household? Women

(3)    In the majority of situations, who prepares the food and water for the household? Women

So, if we look at public health from this perspective, suddenly it seems that women have direct influence over three crucial factors in public health: (a) Primary Care, (b) Cleanliness/Sanitation, and (c) Food & Water.

It’s All About the Women

Public health programs need to target women in order to maximize their effectiveness. Educational initiatives ought to begin with women (the real “heads of the household”) in order to catch on and spread throughout the community. Similarly, micro-finance programs ought to be targeted towards women and their entrepreneurial goals.

Some might argue that women shouldn’t have to be responsible for the health of the household. To this point, I’d agree. Women should be given the opportunity to receive a high-quality education and should be promoted to positions of leadership (including political representation) in their communities. They should be provided with the power and opportunity to pursue whatever goals they desire.

Nonetheless, public health policy-makers would be remiss to overlook the current critical importance of women. It Really Is All About the Women… Stupid