Anthropology and Global Public Health – Serie

This concise, accessible introduction to understanding agricultural chemicals and public health combines a broad synthesis on a global scale with rich ethnographic narratives on a human scale. Drawing on epidemiology, policy analysis, and social science research on the global commodity chain, the authors describe the system of global agrochemical dependence that constitutes a major threat to human health. Then they draw readers into the lush mountainsides of highland Guatemala, telling personal stories of farmers, their experiences with public health programs, their struggles against agrichemical dependence, and their innovations in sustainable agriculture. Finally, they show how this kind of qualitative, multi-level analysis holds practical lessons for public health. This engaging, brief text is an ideal supplement for courses in global health, introducing students to key concepts with broad coverage and engrossing ethnographic detail.

This concise, accessible introduction to understanding agricultural chemicals and public health combines a broad synthesis on a global scale with rich ethnographic narratives on a human scale. Drawing on epidemiology, policy analysis, and social science research on the global commodity chain, the authors describe the system of global agrochemical dependence that constitutes a major threat to human health. Then they draw readers into the lush mountainsides of highland Guatemala, telling personal stories of farmers, their experiences with public health programs, their struggles against agrichemical dependence, and their innovations in sustainable agriculture. Finally, they show how this kind of qualitative, multi-level analysis holds practical lessons for public health. This engaging, brief text is an ideal supplement for courses in global health, introducing students to key concepts with broad coverage and engrossing ethnographic detail.

In 2004 Malawi began to offer antiretroviral therapy to anyone who needed it. This undertaking would have been ambitious for any nation, but it was unprecedented coming from one of the poorest countries in the world.Health on Delivery examines this introduction of state-provided antiretroviral therapy from an ethnographic perspective. Moving from World Health Organization boardrooms in Geneva to clinics held under trees in rural Malawi, it studies the patients, healthcare providers, and policy-makers involved, considering how the rollout has impacted their lives and professions. In doing so, it examines both the challenges and successes of an ambitious attempt to provide universal HIV treatment with limited money, infrastructure, and human resources. As well as an important case study, the book also offers an analytic framework to address the processes by which global policy is made and implemented. Engagingly written, Health on Delivery will be interesting reading for students and scholars of both anthropology and public health, as well as related disciplines such as geography, international politics and world development. It will also appeal to the general reader interested in global health policies and world development.

In 2004 Malawi began to offer antiretroviral therapy to anyone who needed it. This undertaking would have been ambitious for any nation, but it was unprecedented coming from one of the poorest countries in the world.Health on Delivery examines this introduction of state-provided antiretroviral therapy from an ethnographic perspective. Moving from World Health Organization boardrooms in Geneva to clinics held under trees in rural Malawi, it studies the patients, healthcare providers, and policy-makers involved, considering how the rollout has impacted their lives and professions. In doing so, it examines both the challenges and successes of an ambitious attempt to provide universal HIV treatment with limited money, infrastructure, and human resources. As well as an important case study, the book also offers an analytic framework to address the processes by which global policy is made and implemented. Engagingly written, Health on Delivery will be interesting reading for students and scholars of both anthropology and public health, as well as related disciplines such as geography, international politics and world development. It will also appeal to the general reader interested in global health policies and world development.

The importance of community health workers is increasingly recognized within many of today’s most high-profile global health programs, including campaigns focused on specific diseases and broader efforts to strengthen health systems and achieve universal health care. Based on ethnographic work with Ethiopian women and men who provided home-based care in Addis Ababa during the early roll-out of antiretroviral therapies, this book explores what it actually means to become a community health worker in today’s global health industry.Drawing on the author’s interviews with community health workers, as well as observations of their daily interactions with patients and supervisors, this volume considers what motivates them to improve the quality of life and death of the most marginalized people. The Lives of Community Health Workers also illuminates how their contributions at a micro level are intricately linked to policymaking and practice at higher levels in the field of global health. It shows us that many of the challenges that community health workers face in their daily lives are embedded in larger social, economic, and political contexts, and it raises a resounding call for further research into their labour and health systems they inhabit.

The importance of community health workers is increasingly recognized within many of today’s most high-profile global health programs, including campaigns focused on specific diseases and broader efforts to strengthen health systems and achieve universal health care. Based on ethnographic work with Ethiopian women and men who provided home-based care in Addis Ababa during the early roll-out of antiretroviral therapies, this book explores what it actually means to become a community health worker in today’s global health industry.Drawing on the author’s interviews with community health workers, as well as observations of their daily interactions with patients and supervisors, this volume considers what motivates them to improve the quality of life and death of the most marginalized people. The Lives of Community Health Workers also illuminates how their contributions at a micro level are intricately linked to policymaking and practice at higher levels in the field of global health. It shows us that many of the challenges that community health workers face in their daily lives are embedded in larger social, economic, and political contexts, and it raises a resounding call for further research into their labour and health systems they inhabit.

While there is increasing political interest in research and policy-making for global mental health, there remain major gaps in the education of students in health fields for understanding the complexities of diverse mental health conditions. Drawing on the experience of many well-known experts in this area, this book uses engaging narratives to illustrate that mental illnesses are not only problems experienced by individuals but must also be understood and treated at the social and cultural levels. The book -includes discussion of traditional versus biomedical beliefs about mental illness, the role of culture in mental illness, intersections between religion and mental health, intersections of mind and body, and access to health care; -is ideal for courses on global mental health in psychology, public health, and anthropology departments and other health-related programs.