by KATE HAWKINS, STEPS Centre Member
Members of the Future Health Systems Research Programme Consortium are actively engaging in discussions at the Geneva Health Forum. The conference began in dramatic fashion with an assessment of the changing landscape within which health systems are being forged. The opening plenary session featured a range of speakers who aimed to situate health in a dynamic world. Changes in epidemiology, shifts in political and economic organisation, a strong and growing for profit and not for profit sector and a burgeoning role for information technology all featured.
Andy Haines of London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine highlighted changes in epidemiology and demographics which are likely to shape future investment and interventions. As the percentage of people over 65 years old grows in developing countries their health needs will take a growing proportion of health financing. Alongside this chronic disease and diseases of affluence will demand a larger slice of the pie.
Richard Samans from the World Economic Forum talked to the economic drivers of health and their political implications – what he called a ‘cocktail of stimulants’. Emerging economies such as
Information technology was an issue taken up by Kendall Ho (
With this in mind we will continue to use the STEPS blog to report on emerging debates at the conference.