Boston University
School of Public Health
Department of Global Health
The Global Health Lens
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Issue: 41
June 25th 2018
Past issues can be found
here
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In this GH Lens Issue:
- Events
- Opportunities
- Certificate Announcements
- DGH Notable Mentions
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External Events:
Prioritizing global health resources: using cost-effectiveness analysis
Thursday, July 19th 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. EDT
Cost-effectiveness analysis can help decision-makers gain a better understanding of the value of investments of global health interventions. Hosted by the
C
enter for the Evaluation of Value and Risk in Health (CEVR), this webinar will explore global health resource prioritization and how stakeholders can leverage global cost-per-DALY averted findings to make resource allocation decisions. We will also show researchers a tool for converting clinical outcomes to DALYs to use in economic models.
Featuring:
Peter J. Neumann, ScD
Director of the Center for the Evaluation of Value and Risk in Health at the Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies at Tufts Medical Center, and Professor of Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine.
Joshua T. Cohen, PhD
Deputy Director and Chief Science Officer of the Center for the Evaluation of Value and Risk in Health at the Tufts Medical Center Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies, and a Research Associate Professor of Medicine at Tufts School of Medicine.
September 23rd-28th 2018
The MQPH 2018 Conference will take place in Oxford, United Kingdom, from 23 – 28 September 2018. The international conference on Medicine Quality & Public Health will bring together people from sectors such as: public health, national regulatory authorities, pharmacy, biomedical, chemistry, law, ethics, cultural and social sciences, the pharmaceutical industry, international organisations, NGOs, national procurement centres, and internet and pharmaceutical forensics. Register as soon as possible for the limited number of early bird prices that are available!
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Johns Hopkins Online Course
Under the direction of the Program Quality Manager, the Analyst leads and coordinates supports the analysis and utilization of routine program monitoring, evaluation, research data to support data-driven decision making and adaptive management in the program’s quality management system
This is a unique opportunity for highly qualified and motivated fellows to engage in on the ground implementation science programming and research and tackle some of the most pressing operational and implementation science questions relevant to HIV in resource limited settings. Both the clinical and research fellows will spend three months at the Tingathe Lilongwe HQ before being deployed to their implementation districts. While at HQ, fellows will receive training and mentorship from Baylor core faculty and will have the opportunity for lectures, clinical rotations, as well as M&E practicum. Once deployed, fellows will continue to receive mentorship and guidance from core faculty as well as site level leadership.
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Certificate Announcements
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Spotlight on Courses!
SPH GH 885: Global Trade, Intellectual Property, and Public Health
GH801: How to License a New Vaccine
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SPH GH 885: Global Trade, Intellectual Property, and Public Health
Taught by: Warren Kaplan on Monday from 6:00pm-8:50pm
Spots are still open!!
Whether one works in a district hospital in Zambia or as a policy person in the US, a better understanding of the impact of global trade rules on the public's health should be a necessary part of the public health practitioner's knowledge and expertise. As one example, in 1993, the US, Canada and Mexico ratified the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), with the ostensible purpose of improving trade relations and economic prosperity for all countries. The pharmaceutical and biotech industries, plus a coalition of doctors and hospitals, lobbied for strong intellectual property rights, arguing that research and development (R&D) required for pharmaceutical innovation involved high risks and costs and that weak patent rights (weak by their standards) undermined job creation by the industry. Since then, increasing drug prices have led to medication non compliance on the part of a growing number of persons in all three countries, with significant impact on the public’s health. Big pharma has requested changes in national laws to eliminate a system of compulsory licensing where such licensing allows competitors to produce drugs still under patent without the consent of the patent holder, if public interest, such as a public health emergency, warrants it. This, in principle, challenges drug monopolies and leads to lower prices, whereas intellectual property rights have the opposite effect – they lengthen patent protections, thus shielding patent holders from competition and leading to higher prices.
What is the evidence for this? GH885 is designed to introduce the student (Pharm certificate or otherwise) to this ecosystem of trade, patents and public health but be prepared to question your assumptions about the role of patents in driving up prices. Be prepared to puzzle out the answers to these "big picture" questions: 1) Why is drug development treated as a market good rather than a public good or service? 2) Do provisions within global trade agreements deal with the tension between private corporate interests and public needs?
GH801: How to License a New Vaccine (4 credits)
Taught by: Dr. Chris Gill on Fridays from 10:00am-1:00pm
Spots are still open!!
Course Description:
Alongside modern sanitation and the alleviation of poverty, vaccines have saved more lives than any other public health intervention. And yet the story behind how vaccines are developed is one that few people fully understand. It is a story that includes elements of basic science (immunology, microbiology), chemistry, epidemiology, and clinical research. And because vaccines are used in otherwise healthy populations and have side effects and sometimes real risks, their development is scrutinized by regulatory bodies like the FDA in ways that few other health products experience. The story of vaccines is complex, difficult and fascinating, and the best way to learn about it is to experience it. That’s what this class is all about.
GH801 is a living simulation that puts the students in command of the process of the testing and exploration of a new candidate vaccine. In this course you will design studies, and your studies will yield results that you must interpret in the process of learning about the performance and safety of your vaccine. Through this course you will learn about the regulatory process that oversees new vaccine licensure and use, clinical trial design, elements of vaccinology, immunology, and microbiology while honing your presentations skills and learning how to work effectively in a competitive group setting.
**Update to Certificate Requirements:
Students can now cross apply the credits from GH801 with the Epidemiology/Biostatistics certificate or indirectly with the Pharmaceutical certificate. Questions? Contact
Rachel Pieciak
or
Chris Gill
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Department of Global Health Notable Mentions:
Publications, Poster Sessions, Media, and Awards in our GH Community
Faculty, Staff Students & Alumni
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"It is winter in Botswana, the dry season, but it was raining on a recent morning in the country’s capital, Gaborone, when a group of activists and MPH student
Thomas Lee
arrived at the High Court. LeGaBiBo (Lesbians, Gays, and Bisexuals of Botswana) is the country’s first and leading advocacy group for sexual and gender minorities..."
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"¡Buenos días a todos! 👋🏽 We’re Madeline, Mary, Jannet & Andrea - 2nd year MPH students taking over [BUSPH] Instagram this week. We’re in Cuernavaca, Morelos this summer at the Instituto Nacional de Salud Publica (INSP). We’ve spent the last 6 weeks conducting a community health assessment and intervention alongside INSP MPH students & completing a practicum across a multitude of disciplines - microbiology, adolescent suicide, maternal & indigenous peoples health.
Stick with us this week as we take you through our adventures in México
🇲🇽 "⠀
⠀
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SPH News
Mentions
Jacob Bor
Click
here
for more media mentions relating to this publication
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Brennan AT,
Bor J,
Davies MA, Wandeler G, Prozesky H, Fatti G, Wood R, Stinson K, Tanser F, Bärnighausen T, Boulle A, Sikazwe I, Zanolini A,
Fox MP.
Drug Side Effects and Retention on HIV Treatment: a Regression Discontinuity Study of Tenofovir Implementation in South Africa and Zambia.
Am J Epidemiol. 2018 May 15. PMID: 29767681.
Haber N, Smith ER, Moscoe E, Andrews K, Audy R, Bell W,
Brennan AT,
Breskin A, Kane JC, Karra M, McClure ES, Suarez EA.
Causal language and strength of inference in academic and media articles shared in social media (CLAIMS):
A systematic review. PLoS One. 2018; 13(5):e0196346. PMID: 29847549.
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What to Do If You Get Sick on Vacation in Another Country
The Cut
Quotes
David Hamer
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Short VL, Geller SE, Moore JL, McClure EM, Goudar SS, Dhaded SM, Kodkany BS, Saleem S, Naqvi F, Pasha O, Goldenberg RL, Patel AB,
Hibberd PL,
Garces AL, Koso-Thomas M, Miodovnik M, Wallace DD, Derman RJ.
The Relationship between Body Mass Index in Pregnancy and Adverse Maternal, Perinatal, and Neonatal Outcomes in Rural India and Pakistan.
Am J Perinatol. 2018 Jan 24. PMID: 29365329.
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Banack HR,
Stokes A, Fox MP,
Hovey KM, Cespedes-Feliciano EM, LeBlanc E, Bird C, Caan BJ, Kroenke CH, Allison MA, Going SB, Snetslaar L, Cheng TD, Chlebowski RT, Stefanick ML, LaMonte MJ, Wactawski-Wende J.
Stratified probabilistic bias analysis for BMI-related exposure misclassification in postmenopausal women.
Epidemiology. 2018 Jun 01. PMID: 29864084.
*GH Staff
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Co-PIs:
Richard Laing, Peter Rockers, Veronika Wirtz
"The Access Observatory is a
first-of-its-kind global reporting platform designed to track pharmaceutical companies’ contributions to non-communicable disease prevention and treatment.
The Access Observatory 2018 Report summarizes the important initial results of that work.
Access Accelerated asked a team at Boston University School of Public health to develop a new framework for measuring program achievements. “There is widespread skepticism about whether the programs of the pharma companies really make a difference. Some people believe that good intention must lead to good outcomes, while others argue that these programs do not respond to local need and may actually cause harm,” explains Richard Laing, professor of Global health and co-principle investigator (PI) of the project. “Throughout my professional career in global health I have always argued for transparent reporting of access programs but existing industry reporting relies largely on confidential data. With the Access Observatory we are breaking new grounds as all data is freely available to the public.”
Click
here
for full press release
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Whether you are an alum of SPH, a SPH faculty/staff member, a student in the Global Health Certificate, a Global Health interested student in another certificate, or just a friend of the Department of Global Health, we hope the weekly
GLOBAL HEALTH LENS
can be a one-stop-shop for our Global Health Community here at Boston University School of Public Health.
Have something to contribute? Send an email to my contact information below.
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