Intro
It is time for a checkup of human health around the globe. Many people are living longer, healthier lives than ever before, but many others still lack access to the most basic health care, and the gap between the health care haves and have-nots has actually widened for some fundamental services. As for infectious diseases, while the medical community is successfully controlling some of them—and has even eradicated one—new diseases are emerging, some of which are caused by mysterious viruses that cross species or mutate quickly. Other major components in the global disease burden arise from human behavior and the harmful choices that people make both individually and collectively.
Disease Control Priorities in Developing Countries, 2nd edition (DCP2) (Jamison and others 2006) is intended as a checkup both for health and for health care. What progress has the medical community made in identifying and reducing the global disease burden? How much have countries accomplished in developing and providing efficient, effective, and equitable health care? How should countries set and achieve priorities in health?
In 1993, the first edition of Disease Control Priorities in Developing Countries (Jamison and others 1993) presented knowledge about the distribution of the disease burden in developing countries, up-to-date information about many of these diseases, and data on the cost-effectiveness of interventions available to address them. The book helped to inform and galvanize health sector policies in countries around the world by demonstrating the benefits of redirecting efforts toward diseases with large burdens and doing so with cost-effective interventions. It provided a conceptual basis for discussing the allocation of resources in the health sector while illustrating the linkages between prevention and treatment, between public health care and personal health care services, and between the health sector and other sectors. The information and analysis provided in the 1993 publication helped many developing countries define basic packages of health care; guided their management decisions about training, supplies, and equipment; and aided the design of social insurance programs. The book also informed numerous other publications during the 1990s, including the World Development Report 1993: Investing in Health (World Bank 1993).
Now, 13 years later, DCP2 assesses subsequent accomplishments, remaining and emerging challenges, and new opportunities for improving health in the developing world. This new publication goes beyond its predecessor in several ways, namely:
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It includes discussion of a larger number of diseases and conditions, covering the full range of infectious diseases, reproductive issues, children's health issues, noncommunicable diseases, and injuries, as well as risk factors and consequences of disease.
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It provides cost-effectiveness analysis that is more thorough and more comparable across conditions and regions than was possible in the earlier edition.
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It devotes considerable attention to implementation, examining the delivery, management, and financing of health care.
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It addresses cross-cutting issues, such as gender differences in health status and the ethics of resource allocation.
Thus this new publication is a comprehensive, updated assessment of the medical, economic, and management knowledge that can now be harnessed to ease the global burden of disease and improve human health.
