2011Global Health Activities and Research
annual Report
Letter from the directors The Institute for Global Health engages and supports the USC community in a wide range of global health activities through educational programs, collaborative projects, global health grants, and volunteer experiences. With support from the Institute, students and faculty from schools across the University benefit health and create partnerships for research and training to promote healthier communities worldwide. The Institute for Global Health has harnessed partnerships and collaborations at USC and beyond to create innovative and integrative approaches to solving global health issues. This year, for example, the Institute for Global Health and the USC School for Cinematic Arts partnered with the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition to create a global health Facebook game featuring the importance of maternal and child nutrition through ABC’s “Be the Change, Save a Life” campaign. Additionally, the Institute will be working with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop an online Global Health Response Engine that will provide a platform for global health organizations to communicate their messages to the broader public and build greater support for their activities.
table of contents Letter from the Directors......................................................................................................1 Our Team.........................................................................................................................3 Student Fellows.......................................................................................................4 Projects & Partnerships...................................................................................5 2010/2011Global Health Lecture Series...................................................9 Student Grants & Placements............................................................11 Grants Opportunities...................................................................12 Student Programs..................................................................13 Global Health Awareness Week.......................................15 Publications and Awards............................................17 2011/2012 Global Health Lecture Series..............19 New at the Institute for Global Health.............21
This year’s Global Health Lecture Series: “Piecing Together Solutions” featured six thought-provoking global health leaders from around the world. The series explored a wide range of issues in global health that touch on the diverse disciplines here at USC. From topics like global health priorities, financing and governance, to addressing how technology can play a role in women’s health needs, the speakers engaged in discussions to increase awareness and generate research ideas among the USC community. We were pleased to welcome two new initiatives at the Institute this year. Neal Baer, physician and awardwinning T.V. producer, joined the Institute as the director of the Center for Storytelling, Activism and Health, focusing on promoting health through innovative participatory media projects. Sofia Gruskin, former director of the Program on International Health and Human Rights at the Harvard School of Public Health, has joined the Trojan family to head the Program on Global Health and Human Rights. These two new Institute initiatives offer additional opportunities for students and faculty to get involved through the Institute for Global Health and will strengthen our research portfolio. The USC Institute for Global Health looks forward to the coming year and the future collaborative efforts that will continue to engage the University and its partners to work together for a healthier future.
Fight on for global health! Jonathan Samet Heather Wipfli
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Neal Baer
Our TEAM Jonathan Samet
Director of the Center for Storytelling, Activism and Health
Sofia Gruskin
Director of the Program on Global Health and Human Rights
Jane Schmitz
Research and Curriculum Advisor
“
Working for the USC Institute for Global Health has exposed me to a wide range of experiences I never expected. From movie stars to refugees to students who are changing the world, the people I’ve encountered during IGH’s events have taught me what global health really means—and to what extent it affects our daily lives – Larissa, Journalism Student
The Institute for Global Health at USC brings “ awareness of global health issues to the under
Director
Heather Wipfli
graduate community through a variety of avenues
Associate Director Fieldwork sponsorship from “ USC’s Institute for Global Health
Ivette Flores Guintu Program Manager
Athena Foong
Research Associate
such as the lecture series with keynote speakers in the global health field, Global Health Awareness week with networking events, and educating students
elevates classroom learning to a great
throughout the year with community service
and rare opportunity to experience
activities. I am thankful for the amazing
global health in practice.”
opportunities, such as the immersion grant, that IGH has given to me.”
Luz Moncayo
Executive Assistant to Jonathan Samet
Chelsea Moore
Project Specialist for the Program on Global Health and Human Rights
Larissa Puro
Web and Media Coordinator
– Amanda, MPH Student - Abbie, Undergraduate Global Health Student
Kevin Vavasseur
Administrator
Student
Fellows
Alexandra Anderson Master of Public Health Practicum Student, Keck School of Medicine Ellie Afshar Master of Public Health Practicum Student, Keck School of Medicine Patricia Neri Student Intern, Master Student, School of Policy, Planning and Development
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Projects&
Partnerships
Fitness is fun: promoting exercise among Ugandan adolescent girls The proportion of adult females who are overweight or obese in Uganda has doubled in the past 15 years. There are many potential causes of this rise. Ugandan adolescent girls face many obstacles should they want to become more physically active. Many schools lack the space, equipment and training capacity to deliver physical education. Also, the girls may face cultural challenges such as perceptions of the ideal body type. The USC Institute for Global Health seeks to positively impact this issue by working closely with policymakers, schools, and the girls themselves to develop innovative interventions to promote physical activity. This project is not just about increasing physical activity among girls, it also aims to inspire girls to feel empowered, safe and comfortable while they exercise.
Operation Smile Operation Smile is an international NGO that works to provide safe, effective reconstructive surgery for children born with facial deformities, particularly cleft lip and cleft palate. The Institute for Global Health, the Department of Preventive Medicine, and Operation Smile are working together to identify causes of cleft palate and improve surgical capacity to tackle the vast and unmet need for reconstructive procedures in low-resource settings. We have teamed up with the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and Operation Smile in supporting the first fellow, Justin Gillenwater, in global health surgery. Additionally, Master of Public Health students enrolled in the Global Health Leadership and Management class participated in a case competition that helped Operation Smile develop plans for a permanent clinic to be constructed in Jimma, Ethiopia. The winners dined with the founders, Dr. Bill and Kathy Magee, and were invited to join a mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo to assist in a research study on the cause of cleft palate. MPH students Kelly Leech and Quynh Minh Tran also traveled to India with Operation Smile to examine the burden of cleft palate in the district of Guwahati.
A Healthier You - A Healthier Uganda: Promoting physical activity among Ugandan Parliamentarians It might seem surprising but Uganda is facing a growing burden of overweight and obesity. This trend is already resulting in a higher prevalence of chronic, non-communicable diseases such as diabetes. In addition to efforts targeted at improving individual behavior, effective public policy is critical to preventing chronic disease. That’s why the USC Institute for Global Health is partnering with the Ugandan Parliament to promote physical activity. In collaboration with Robert Ssebugwawo, a noted Ugandan fitness trainer based in Los Angeles, we have established a fitness gym for the members and staff of the Ugandan Parliament. On a personal level, MPs may become healthier and fitter, but the project aims to have a much broader impact. Through the gym, we will increase awareness among the MPs and may motivate them to develop new laws to protect the public from the threat of chronic disease and to improve access to treatment.
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APRU World Institute The Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU) World Institute (AWI) was established in 2006 as a platform where universities throughout the Pacific Rim could transcend national borders to address issues of regional and global concern. The USC Institute for Global Health now coordinates the annual AWI Public Health Workshop. The 2011 workshop was held during the annual APRU meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia and focused on communication and health policy and studied the demographics of students studying global health.
1,000 Days Facebook Game with ABC News & the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition: The Institute for Global Health and the USC School for Cinematic Arts partnered with the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) to create a global health Facebook game featuring the importance of maternal and child nutrition through ABC’s “Be the Change, Save a Life” campaign. Through exploring the complex interactions between global health stakeholders, the players interact with NGOs, government, industry, and the community to implement interventions that will improve the nutrition and livelihood of a family. The Facebook game aims to raise awareness of the importance of nutrition within the first 1,000 days of life and to support programs.
MOUs: Addis Ababa University, International Medical Corp, Public Health Foundation of India, Parliament of Uganda Our international partners are a key component to building our global network, impact, and reach. This year, collaborations were established with Addis Ababa University, International Medical Corp., Public Health Foundation of India, and the Parliament of Uganda. We are always looking to expand our network. Please contact us if you or your organization would like to discuss the possibility of formalizing a partnership with the Institute for Global Health. A complete list of partnerships is on our website.
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Global Health
Lecture Series
The Institute welcomes world-renowned global health leaders to USC to share their experience and to discuss the major issues of global health with faculty and students. Speakers are selected in collaboration with, and co-hosted by, schools throughout the university, reflecting USC’s multidisciplinary approach to global health. Each distinguished guest delivers a keynote lecture open to the entire Trojan Family and all lectures are recorded and posted on our website.
The Spring 2011 lecture series focused on the rapidly changing face of global health. It began in February with Kirk Smith, M.P.H., Ph.D., from the University of California at Berkeley, whose talk, “Combustion Particles and Global Health: Cooking, Smoking and Climate,” brought up the issue of climate change and how it is affecting disease. The acclaimed journalist Laurie Garrett followed with her talk, “Betrayal of Trust: Critical Issues in Global Healthcare,” which looked at the changes in global health financing as a result of the world financial crisis. David Fidler, J.D., professor of law at Maurer School of Law at Indiana University, closed the semester with “The Rise and Fall of Global Health as a Foreign Policy Issue,” which examined what must be done to ensure global health governance is developed, implemented, and maintained.
The Fall 2010 lecture series featured a broad range of speakers from around the world who examined different facets of health needs in low- and middle-income countries. Steffanie Strathdee, Ph.D., from the University of California at San Diego, kicked off the series with her talk, “Border Stories: Tackling HIV, TB and Sexually Transmitted Infections on the Mexico-US Border,” which focused on the ease of disease transmission and the political issues that facilitate the spread across national borders. Dr. Strathdee was followed by Rose Mapendo, a Congolese refugee, and filmmakers Beth Davenport and Elizabeth Mendel, who told her story with their movie, Pushing the Elephant. The next speaker, Jacqueline Sherris, Ph.D.—vice president of global programs at PATH—focused on how emerging health technologies can improve women’s health in low-income countries. Finally, Srinath Reddy, M.D., D.M., president of the Public Health Foundation of India, closed out the semester with two talks that examined the growing threat of chronic disease in low- and middle-income countries and offered compelling insights into this unfortunate consequence of globalization.
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Watch past lectures and browse photos at globalhealth.usc.edu
Speakers: Srinath Reddy Jaqueline Sherris Steffanie Strathdee Rose Mapendo Laurie Garrett Kirk Smith David Fidler
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2010 Student grants
Student Grants & placements Hardik Dasai, Computer Science Graduate Student Studying Obesity in School Children in India
Moussa Bocoume French Undergraduate Student
Kelly Leech & Quynh-Minh Tran M.P.H. Candidates Disease Burden & Treatment of Cleft Lip in Guwahati, India
Esther Bae M.P.H. Candidate
Kandis McClure M.P.H. Candidate
Nina Gertsvolf Global Health Undergraduate Student
Tobacco Control Policies in Lebanon
International Center for Migration and Health, Gestational Diabetes in Immigrants Research
Alex Chehrazi-Raffle Post-Baccalaureate Pre-Medical Student Diarrhea Disease & Sanitation in Guatemala Jenn Chiam Masters of Biostatistics Student
Nutrition and Obesity in South Korea
Augustine Hong M.S. Global Medicine Candidate Accident Prevention in Uganda among HIV/AIDS orphans Alice Kim Undergraduate Human Development
Amitha Ganti Global Health Undergraduate Student
& Aging Student Honduras Eye Disease Study
Amanda Vu Neuroscience & Global Health Undergraduate Student Psychological Factors Determining Academic Development in India
Saumil Mahashvari Neuroscience & Economics Undergraduate Student Uganda Epilepsy Research Parth Parikh Pharmacy Student Clinical Pharmacy and Diabetes Screening and Training in India
The Global Health Research Immersion Grants support hands-on research experiences in low- or middle-income countries or within international institutions engaged in global health research and practice. The program supports travel and field research for a minimum of one month. All USC undergraduate, graduate, and pre-doctoral students are eligible. Fall/Winter applications are due October 15 and awarded in November. Spring/Summer applications are due February 15 and are awarded in March.
Producing a film on forced marriage in Africa: Yellitaare
Alcohol & Smoking in Russia Effectiveness of Mime and Theater in Health Education in India
Global Health Research Immersion Grant
Master of Public Health Practicum Grants This program supports Master of Public Health students who wish to complete their practicum requirements through a project in low- or middle-income countries. The program supports travel and field research and intense faculty mentoring.
Stephanie Ly & Melody Serra M.P.H Candidates Malaria Prevention in Shirati, Tanzania Rachel Schwartz Medical Student Secondhand Smoke Exposure in Mumbai, India Brittney Stewart Global Health Undergraduate Student Working with the Cambodia Reproductive & Child Health Resource Center Visit uscglobalhealth.blogspot.com to read up on our students’ travel adventures.
Grants
opportunities
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Global Health Student Club
The Global Health Student Club established itself as a recognized student organization at USC in Spring 2011. The club engages students in conversation, plans events, attends presentations and organizes fundraisers for global health causes. In addition to travel opportunities, club members have priority access to speakers during our global health lecture series events. This is a multidisciplinary group and all USC students are welcome to join.
2011 Leadership Board
President: Luis Maldonado, sophomore studying global health Vice President: Tisa Thomas, junior studying health promotion and disease prevention Secretary: Meghan Smith, freshman studying global health and international relations. Treasurer: James Aluri, junior studying biological sciences and musical studies Global Projects Chair: Andrew Yu, graduate student studying global medicine PR Chair: Chelsea Messinger, sophomore studying global health Book Club Chair: Tito Thomas, freshman studying health promotion and disease prevention
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Emory Case Competition
This year, USC sent a team of undergraduate and graduate students to compete in the Global Health Case Competition hosted by Emory University in Atlanta. Along with 12 other universities, our USC team addressed a spectrum of health problems associated with refugee camps and the reality of budget cuts due to the financial crisis. Our multidisciplinary team worked together to find solutions to these complex issues and presented these solutions to a panel of expert judges.
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The USC Team: Molly Lancaster, Ph.D. student, Keck School of Medicine Allen Li, Undergraduate student, Marshall School of Business Katrina Pariera, Ph.D. student, Annenberg School of Communication Alana Pheffinger, M.P.H. student, Keck School of Medicine Dan Shaer, M.P.H. student, Keck School of Medicine
Institute Faculty-Led Courses undergraduate:
PM 270 – Introduction to Global Health This course introduces basic concepts of global health and disease control. The fast-paced and interactive course focuses on issues of globalization, global disease burden and trends, global health governance, and pressing challenges in global disease control and treatment. HP 470 – Global Health Case Studies This course is targeted to global health majors who seek a more in-depth examination of global health topics. This past spring, students engaged in projects as diverse as designing a digital game on global health to creating an advocacy message surrounding the fight against harmful air pollution.
graduate:
PM 564 – Public Health Leadership and Management This course examines future-focused leadership principles with applications to global health systems. Students analyze their personal leadership and management strengths, improve interpersonal and team working skills, and learn about organizational management and strategic change. PM 565 – Emerging Trends in Global Health: A Public Health Seminar This course focuses on 21st century global health challenges and threats. Students examine the latest developments in global health research, closely follow recent and unfolding policy initiatives, and analyze how emerging technologies and digital communications can be used to advance global health.
Student
Programs
(back row) James Aluri, Chelsea Messinger, Luis Maldonado (front row) Meghan Smith, Tisa Thomas, Andrew Yu
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Summer @ USC
Global Health and Disease: Global Disease Detectives For the first time in the summer of 2011, the Institute for Global Health led 19 high school students through two weeks of discoveries about global health and disease outbreaks. After an introduction to the fundamentals of global health and outbreak detection, the students developed their own team-based investigation of a mock disease outbreak on the USC campus.
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USC Global Health Awareness Week Our third annual Global Health Awareness Week was held April 4-9, 2011. Throughout the week we explored topics emerging in global health and the environment, including environmental sustainability and global health policy to improve environmental health. Events throughout the week included: - Global health student photo exhibit - Lunchtime speakers - Global health opportunity fair and career panel - Movie screenings - TOMS Shoes Japan earthquake relief fundraiser
World Health Day LA 2011:
Pollution Solutions
The University of Southern California teamed with the University of California, Los Angeles; Western University; the Clean Up Green Up Campaign; Coalition for a Safe Environment; Long Beach Health and Human Services; and various other community organizations to host the third annual World Health Day Los Angeles on April 9, 2011. This year’s theme, “Pollution Solutions”, aimed to raise awareness within the community on the compromised safety of their families and children due to pollution caused by port traffic and industrial areas. The event included a community health fair with screenings, educational booths, live entertainment, and learning activities for the youth.
watch a video about the event at vimeo.com/24235236
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Publications
Menthol Cigarettes and Public Health: Review of the Scientific Evidence and Recommendations
and
Awards
Jonathan Samet chairs the US FDA Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC). The committee is made up of seven leading scientists, three industry representatives, one community representative, and two tobacco agricultural representatives. The TPSAC report concluded that menthol cigarettes have an adverse impact on public health in the United States and that there are no public health benefits of menthol compared to non-menthol cigarettes.
Globe still in grip of addiction Jonathan Samet & Heather L. Wipfli Nature “After five years, the World Health Organization’s tobaccocontrol treaty is starting to have an effect, but we need to tackle the smoking epidemic in the developing world, say Jonathan M. Samet and Heather L. Wipfli.” http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v463/n7284/full/4631020a.html
The Psychological and Welfare Consequences of the Chernobyl Disaster: A Systematic Literature Review, Focus Group Findings, and Future Directions
Photo Credit: Mary F Calvert for The New York Times
Jonathan Samet MD, MS & Sonny S. Patel, MPH Twenty-five years after the Chernobyl disaster, the populations affected at the time, whether by being displaced or exposed to radiation, have sustained neuropsychological consequences and these consequences remain of public health and medical significance. Jonathan Samet chaired the Working Group on radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation for the WHO International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). As a result of a working group meeting in Lyon, France from May 24-31, 2011, IARC classified radiofrequency electromagnetic fields as possibly carcinogenic to humans, based on an increased risk for glioma, a malignant type of brain cancer, associated with wireless phone use. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/onlinefirst
World No Tobacco Day 2011: India’s progress in implementing the framework convention on tobacco control. Second-hand smoke’s worldwide disease toll Heather L. Wipfli, Jonathan Samet The Lancet “There are well acknowledged uncertainties in estimates of disease burden. However, there can be no question that the 1.2 billion smokers in the world are exposing billions of non-smokers to second-hand smoke, a disease-causing indoor air pollutant.” http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(10)61922-8/fulltext
Institute for Global Health Director, Jonathan Samet, appointed to President Barack Obama’s National Cancer Advisory Board. Samet was also awarded with The Robert S. Gordon, Jr. Lecture in Epidemiology, National Institutes of Health; and the Doll‐Wynder Award, Society for Nicotine and Tobacco Research. 17
Rachel Schwartz, Heather Wipfli, Jonathan Samet Indian Journal for Medical Research In an editorial for the Indian Journal of Medical Research published in conjunction with World No Tobacco Day 2011, the authors discussed the current progress on tobacco control in India. As a signatory to the WHO’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), the authors highlighted the country’s successes and challenges in meeting its FCTC obligations. http://icmr.nic.in/ijmr/2011/may/editorial1.pdf
Global Tobacco Control Policy Heather Wipfli, Jonathan Samet In: Routledge Handbook of Global Public Health (Parker R and Sommer M, eds) In this handbook chapter of global public health, the authors presented a chapter on global tobacco control policy and strategies, detailing the various approaches used in the context of the WHO’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415778480/
Power of the process: evaluating the impact of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control negotiations. Heather Wipfli, Grace Huang Health Policy Using data from the 2006 Tobacco Atlas, the authors analyzed country characteristics and tobacco policy adoption records to determine their effects on the frequency, type and strength of tobacco control policies adopted among WHO Member States. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20851492
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Fall 2011 aug
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oct
18
Medicines360 is a second-generation nonprofit pharmaceuticals company that evolved from OneWorld Health. Medicines360 is advancing a business model to achieve blended social and financial objectives. Its target market is women’s health, for which opportunities abound. Founder and CEO Victoria Hale will discuss how Medicines360 was launched with private philanthropic funding to build a commercially viable social-hybrid business.
Ugandan Minister for Trade and Industry President, Twezimbe Foundation
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12:00-1:00pm The Forum at Ronald Tutor Student Center, USC University Park Campus Lecture co-hosted by: USC Marshall School of Business, Society and Business Lab and USC School of Pharmacy
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It’s a Very Big Deal: How the Tobacco Treaty is Transforming Public Health
Patricia Lambert
feb
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Design Thinking and Health Care Tim Brown CEO of IDEO, a global innovation and design firm
Tim Brown is a leading voice on the value of design thinking in business and society. His ideas and experience are widely sought in industry, academia, and the nonprofit community. He participates in the World Economic Forum at Davos and gave the plenary in 2006. Tim will discuss how design thinking can change the way we address global health care. 12:00-1:00pm The Forum at Ronald Tutor Campus Center, USC University Park Campus Lecture co-hosted by: USC Dana and David Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences; and USC Viterbi School of Engineering
Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids
A Visions and Voices Event: Medical Humanitarianism: Possibilities & pitfalls
The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (2003) is the world’s first and, so far, only public health treaty in the WHO’s more than 60-year history. It is considered by the international community as a “best buy” in the struggle against the rapid rise of noncommunicable diseases in low- and middleincome countries, and is currently in force in almost all of them. The treaty is galvanizing governments and civil society organizations to face the disease and death driven by a powerful multinational industry.
Paul Farmer Dr. Paul Farmer will present two talks at USC’s University Park Campus and Health Sciences Campus. Dr. Farmer is a medical anthropologist, physician and founding director of Partners in Health, an international nonprofit organization that provides direct healthcare services and has undertaken research and advocacy activities on behalf of those who are sick and living in poverty. Dr. Farmer is the Presley Professor of Social Medicine and chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School; chief of the Division of Global Health Equity at Brigham and Women’s Hospital; and the United Nations Deputy Special Envoy for Haiti. For further information on this event, email visionsandvoices@usc.edu 10:30am: Mayer Auditorium, USC Health Science Campus 4:00pm: Bovard Auditorium, USC University Park Campus Organized and sponsored by: Pamela Schaff (Pediatrics and Keck Educational Affairs), Erin Quinn (Family Medicine and Keck Admissions) and Lyn M. Boyd-Judson (Levan Institute for Humanities and Ethics)
Global Health
12:00-1:00pm The Forum at Ronald Tutor Student Center, USC University Park Campus Lecture co-hosted by: USC School of International Relations All events are held from 12:00-1:00pm. Lunch is provided; please arrive at 11:45am for a prompt start at noon. RSVP by emailing global.health@usc.edu or visit http://globalhealth.usc.edu Events at University Park Campus: The Forum at Tutor Campus Center (TCC) 3607 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles, CA 90089 Events at USC Health Sciences Campus: Mayer Auditorium (KAM) 1975 Zonal Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90089
Lecture Series
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Lecture Series
Founder and CEO, Medicines360
The Honorable Amelia Kyambadde
oct
Spring 2012 Global Health
Dr. Victoria Hale
Empowering Women: A Fundamental Tool for Primary Health
In the developing world, women play a pivotal role in social and economic sectors, but this usually goes unnoticed. In rural Africa, women are instrumental in contributing to household incomes through basic profitable activities like subsistence farming. Minister Amelia Kyambadde is a warrior for women’s rights in Uganda. She will address issues around Uganda’s emerging social and economic climate, arguing that women’s empowerment must be established as the core of a healthy country for continued developmental growth. 12:00-1:00pm The Forum at Ronald Tutor Campus Center, USC University Park Campus Lecture co-hosted by: Center for International Studies
Pharmaceuticals for Humanity
Bovard Auditorium (ADM) 3551 Trousdale Parkway Los Angeles, CA 90089
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Diseases we can stop but don’t
Peter Hotez
Professor of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine Founding Dean, National School of Tropical Medicine
More than one billion people suffer from one or more of the neglected tropical diseases, almost exclusively in rural areas of poverty in the developing world. At least six of the seven neglected tropical diseases coexist in some fashion in over 75 percent of countries in Africa. “In terms of both health impact and cost-effectiveness, few other interventions can rival mass drug administration for NTDs...” – Peter Hotez 12:00-1:00pm Soto Building, Room 117, USC Health Sciences Campus Lecture co-hosted by: Keck School of Medicine
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A Struggle for Relevance: The Future of WHO Kelley Lee Associate Dean of Research and Director of Global Health. London School of Tropical Medicine
Amid scholarly policy debates about the need to strengthen global health governance, the role of the World Health Organization (WHO) is invariably called into question. The UN specialized agency for health, WHO was created in 1948 to protect and promote health worldwide. The world, however, has changed immensely over the past six decades, shaped foremost by forces of globalization. Within the health field, the transnational nature of a growing range of health determinants, as well as their resultant health outcomes, presses the world to find new and effective means of collective action known as global health governance. This presentation will review how WHO fits within these efforts, which have resulted in a proliferation of global health institutions and initiatives, the key issues facing WHO’s struggle for continued relevance, and how the global health reform agenda might be taken forward. 12:00-1:00pm The Forum at Ronald Tutor Campus Center, USC University Park Campus Lecture co-hosted by: USC Dana and David Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences; and the Institute for Prevention Research Events at USC University Park Campus: The Forum at Tutor Campus Center (TCC) 3607 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles CA 90089 Events at USC Health Science Campus: Soto Building (SSB) 2001 N. Soto Street, Los Angeles CA 90033
All events are held from 12:00-1:30pm. Lunch is provided; please arrive at 11:45am for a prompt start at noon. RSVP by emailing global.health@usc.edu or visit http://globalhealth.usc.edu
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new at the institute for global health
The USC Institute for Global Health is pleased to announce the launch of two new initiatives this Fall Program on Global Health and Human Rights - Directed by Professor Sofia Gruskin
Center for Storytelling, Activism and Health - Directed by Dr. Neal Baer
The Keck School of Medicine and the USC Institute for Global Health are
Dr. Neal Baer, award-winning writer, producer and pediatrician, will join the USC
pleased to announce the appointment of Sofia Gruskin, J.D., M.I.A. as
Institute for Global Health to head its new Center for Storytelling, Activism and
Professor of Preventive Medicine with an appointment also at the USC Gould
Health. The Center will examine how traditional and new media can be used to
School of Law. A pioneer in global health, Professor Gruskin was previously
promote global health. Today, new media technologies such as mobile phones,
at the Harvard School of Public Health’s Department of Global Health and
Facebook and Twitter, are not only changing the ways individuals communicate
Population, where she was director of the Program on International Health
with each other—they’re fundamentally changing the way health promotion
and Human Rights and co-director of the Interdepartmental Program on
and health care are delivered. The Center seeks to understand how traditional
Women, Gender and Health.
media like film, television and music can be used with new media technologies to tell vibrant stories that can change the lives of people who traditionally
At USC, she will be leading the Program on Global Health and Human Rights
haven’t had access to health care. The Center will survey the modes of new
(GHHR) as a component of the Institute for Global Health. The Program will
and traditional media that are working to improve health care access and
promote practical and effective responses to global public health challenges
delivery; design, implement and evaluate research projects using media to teach
through the innovative application of human rights concepts, norms,
health promotion and disease prevention; and bring together experts across
standards and methods. She will develop new research initiatives and provide
health and media fields to understand the power of storytelling to promote
training opportunities for USC students in this critical area.
social change.
Professor Gruskin has long been at the forefront of expanding research in the
Dr. Baer graduated from Havard Medical School where he received the Jerry
field of health and human rights, with a focus on developing tools for analysis,
L. Pettis Memorial Scholarship from the American Medical Association as the
programmatic intervention, and monitoring and evaluation. As a public health
most outstanding medical student who has contributed to promoting a better
professional and lawyer, for the past 25 years, Professor Gruskin has been a
understanding of medicine in the media. Baer wrote for and produced two of
leading advocate for human rights, with particular attention to people living
the most-watched medical dramas: NBC’s “ER” and “Law and Order: SVU.”
with HIV/AIDS, women, children, and vulnerable populations. Her work has
Currently, he is the executive producer for the new CBS drama, “A Gifted Man.”
The New York Times KnowLedge Network Partners with the USC Institute for Global Health Directors Jonathan Samet and Heather Wipfli, of the USC Institute for Global Health, Partnered with The New York Times Knowledge Network to teach a global health class in September 2011, as part of a new online continuing education program. The class is called, “Tackling the Global Rise of Non-Communicable Diseases – The UN General Assembly Summit.”.
About the class Much of the world faces a rising epidemic of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as cancer, heart and lung disease, obesity, and diabetes. This course reviews why this epidemic is taking place and the steps being taken to control it. The course is timed to correspond to developments that unfold at the UN General Assembly Summit on NCDs to be held in New York, September 19-20. The course covers the factors driving the NCD epidemic, e.g., the tobacco industry and the food industry, the burden posed by these diseases, and the efforts to control them. The UN Summit will highlight the role of global “actors” and actions in addressing global health problems. Learn more at: http://www.nytimesknownow.com
been instrumental in the conceptual, methodological, policy and practice development of linking these areas of work, especially in relation to HIV/AIDS,
Dr. Baer serves on the boards of many health care organizations, including
sexual and reproductive health, child and adolescent health and gender-based
the Venice Family Clinic, RAND Health, Advocates for Youth, Children Now,
violence. Most recently, she has been spearheading efforts to conceptualize
the Huckleberry Fund of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and the National
and empirically test the added value of human rights for health systems and
Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (NOFAS). He is a trustee of the Writers
population health, especially in relation to gender and sexuality.
Guild of America Health and Pension Fund, and a member of the Board of Associates at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research.
Professor Sofia Gruskin Dr. Neal Baer
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The USC Institute for Global Health Health Science Campus Soto Street Building, Room 322C 2001 North Soto Street Los Angeles, CA 90033 global.health@usc.edu http://globalhealth.usc.edu Like us on Facebook.com/USCGlobalHealth Follow us on Twitter @USCGlobalHealth