The Health of Nations in a Global Context Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Health of Nations in a Global Context - Essay Example ceptualized by the three authors is they sought to portray the nations health (in this case, it is measured by its infant mortality rate or IMR) is influenced by its status in the global trading system using a statistical method called network analysis based on that countrys level of trade on capital- intensive commodities (four items were selected based on their high-load factors in the high-tech and heavy-manufacturing sectors). The authors had grouped the countries under study into six world-trade system blocks and made comparisons between the amount of trade that particular country has with regards to capital-intensive commodities (independent variables) and its infant mortality rate (dependent variable). Based on their statistical analysis of their selected trade data, the authors concluded that there is a strong correlation between a countrys overall population health (indicated by its infant mortality rate) and its position in the overall framework of the global trading system. In other words, the lower a countrys position in the world trade system, the higher is its IMR. This was the conclusion after eliminating factors like economic dependency, political stability, geographical location and access to seaports (Moore, Teixeira & Shiell, 2006, p. 171). In the brave new world of globalization, health care is seen as just another commodity that is subject to world trade. This means on a global scale, the health policies of most nations had shifted from their governments, in conjunction with the UN World Health Organization, to private enterprises. Global health care today is more a result of privatization of health care than the previous health models of nationally-comprehensive publicly-funded health strategies based on the provision of more valuable basic health care. This is a world view most authors agree that sees health care as just another aspect of global trade among commodities that is no different from agricultural or mining products. Todays global