Challenging Inequities in Health From Ethics to Action

by Evans, Timothy; Whitehead, Margaret; Diderichsen, Finn; Bhuiya, Abbas; Wirth, Meg

• ISBN13: 9780195137392
• ISBN10: 0195137396
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2001-06-21
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

There is a growing sense that the "health gap" between socioeconomic groups is getting worse in many countries. To address this gap, conceptual clarity and empirical evidence are needed along with a greater focus on equity in policy-making. This book is designed to present cutting-edgeresearch and policy analysis to a wide non-specialist readership of students, professionals and policy-makers. It brings together in one volume new perspectives on the conceptual foundations of health equity, empirical evidence on the scale and nature of he inequities in health in twelve countriesaround the world, and assessments of the associated policy developments and their implications for the future. It aims to help build global capacity to measure, monitor and interpret developments in health equity at a national and international level. The in-depth country analyses draw onepidemiology, demography, economics and other fields to approach health inequalities from several different angles. The topics covered range from adolescent livelihoods in Tanzania to the health burden of indigenous peoples in Mexico, from health equity in Japan to the gender gap in life expectancyin Russia. The book is a unique demonstration of global cooperation in bringing together and giving equal weight to work on health equity carried out in the southern and northern hemispheres.

Table of Contents

Part I Establishing Values	1	(44)
Introduction	2	(10)
Timothy Evans
Margaret Whitehead
Finn Diderichsen
Abbas Bhuiya
Meg Wirth
The Social Basis of Disparities in Health	12	(12)
Finn Diderichsen
Timothy Evans
Margaret Whitehead
Ethical Dimensions of Health Equity	24	(10)
Fabienne Peter
Timothy Evans
Health Equity in a Globalizing World	34	(11)
Lincoln C. Chen
Giovanni Berlinguer
Part II Assessing and Analyzing the Health Divide	45	(126)
Introduction to Part II	46	(2)
Measuring Disparities in Health: Methods and Indicators	48	(20)
Sudhir Anand
Finn Diderichsen
Timothy Evans
Vladimir M. Shkolnikov
Meg Wirth
Health Equity: Perspectives, Measurability, and Criteria	68	(8)
Amartya Sen
China: Increasing Health Gaps in a Transitional Economy	76	(14)
Yuanli Liu
Keqin Rao
Timothy Evans
Yude Chen
William C. Hsiao
Japan: Historical and Current Dimensions of Health and Health Equity	90	(14)
Toshihiko Hasegawa
United States: Social Inequality and the Burden of Poor Health	104	(18)
Laura D. Kubzansky
Nancy Krieger
Ichiro Kawachi
Beverly Rockhill
Gillian K. Steel
Lisa F. Berkman
Chile: Socioeconomic Differentials and Mortality in a Middle-Income Nation	122	(16)
Jeanette Vega
Rolf Dieter Hollstein
Iris Delgado
Juan C. Perez
Sebastian Carrasco
Guillermo Marshall
Derek Yach
Russia: Socioeconomic Dimensions of the Gender Gap in Mortality	138	(18)
Vladimir M. Shkolnikov
Mark G. Field
Evgueniy M. Andreev
Tanzania: Gaining Insights into Adolescent Lives and Livelihoods	156	(15)
Vinand M. Nantulya
Ave Maria Semakafu
Florence Muli-Musiime
Augustine Massawe
Lawrence Munyetti
Part III Tackling Root Causes	171	(86)
Introduction to Part III	172	(2)
Gender, Health, and Equity: The Intersections	174	(16)
Piroska Ostlin
Asha George
Gita Sen
South Africa: Addressing the Legacy of Apartheid	190	(20)
Lucy Gilson
Di Mclntyre
Kenya: Uncovering the Social Determinants of Road Traffic Accidents	210	(16)
Vinand M. Nantulya
Florence Muli-Musiime
Bangladesh: An Intervention Study of Factors Underlying Increasing Equity in Child Survival	226	(14)
Abbas Bhuiya
Mushtaque Chowdhury
Faruque Ahmed
Alayne M. Adams
Sweden and Britain: The Impact of Policy Context on Inequities in Health	240	(17)
Finn Diderichsen
Margaret Whitehead
Bo Burstrom
Monica Aberg
Piroska Ostlin
Part IV Building Efficient, Equitable Health Care Systems	257	(50)
Introduction to the Issues	258	(2)
Health Care Financing: Assessing Its Relationship to Health Equity	260	(16)
William C. Hsiao
Yuanli Liu
Mexico: Marginality, Need, and Resource Allocation at the County Level	276	(20)
Rafael Lozano
Beatriz Zurita
Francisco Franco
Teresita Ramirez
Patricia Hernandez
Jose Luis Torres
Vietnam: Efficient, Equity-Oriented Financial Strategies for Health	296	(11)
Pham Manh Hung
Truong Viet Dzung
Goran Dahlgren
Tran Tuan
Part V Conclusion	307	(18)
Developing the Policy Response to Inequities in Health: A Global Perspective	308	(17)
Margaret Whitehead
Goran Dahlgren
Lucy Gilson
Contributors	325	(8)
Panel of Referees	333	(4)
Glossary	337	(6)
Index	343