BACKGROUND Operations research (OR) is a discipline that uses advanced analytical methods (e.g. simulation, optimisation, decision analysis) to better understand complex systems and aid in decision-making. Herein, we present a scoping review of the use of OR to analyse issues in global health, with an emphasis on health equity and research impact. A systematic search of five databases was desig...

Across the world medicines are the ubiquitous technology in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disease. Pharmaceutical policy, as part of national health care policy, is concerned with the provision and use of medicines. Pharmacists are critical to the medicines management process, yet are often largely detached from policy development. Logically, they should inform Government policies ...

in this commentary, we endorse concerns about the health impact of the trans-pacific partnership (tpp), paying particular attention to its mechanisms for investor state dispute settlement. we then describe the different, judgeled approach being advocated by the european commission team negotiating the trans-atlantic trade and investment partnership, arguing that, while not perfect, it offers si...

This article aims to systematize and analyze social data that reveal the dimension of racial inequalities in Brazil. The point of departure is that racial inequalities affect the capacity for integration of Blacks into Brazilian society and jeopardize the proposal to build a democratic society with equal opportunities for all. Such inequalities are present at different moments in the individual...

among the many reasons that may limit the adoption of promising reform ideas, policy capacity is the least recognized. the concept itself is not widely understood. although policy capacity is concerned with the gathering of information and the formulation of options for public action in the initial phases of policy consultation and development, it also touches on all stages of the policy proces...

This perspective is an ethical brief overview and examination of “wellness” policies in the modern workplace using practical examples and a general application of utilitarianism. Many employers are implementing policies that provide incentives to employees who lead a “healthy” lifestyle. The authors address how these policies could adversely affect “non-healthy” employees. There are a wide vari...

brugha and bruen (2014) raise a number of compelling issues related to the interaction between politics and policy in the global health context. the first question that their views invite is whether this is, at heart, best characterized as a benign or malign influence. many commentators have suggested that this overlap should be discouraged (see, for example, marseille et al 2002; thomas & webe...

the obesity epidemic raises important and complex issues for clinicians and policy-makers, such as what clinical and public health measures will be most effective and most ethically-sound. while nir eyal’s analysis of these issues is very helpful and while he correctly concludes that “conditioning the very aid that patients need in order to become healthier on success in becoming healthier” is ...

Background: HIV/AIDS control are one of the most important goals of the health systems. The aim of this study was to determine how HIV/AIDS control was initiated among policy makers’ agenda setting in Iran.   Methods: A qualitative research (semi-structured interview) was conducted using Kingdon’s framework (problem, policy and politics streams, and policy windows and policy...