Skip to main content
Key Specialties
Cardiology Diabetology Endocrinology Gastroenterology Geriatrics and Gerontology Gynecology and Obstetrics Hematology Infectious Disease Internal Medicine Nephrology Neurology Oncology Pediatrics Respiratory Medicine Rheumatology Surgery
Congress Coverage
2024 ACC Congress 2023 ESMO Congress 2023 EASD Congress 2023 ERS Congress 2023 ESC Congress 2023 EHA Congress 2023 ASCO Annual Meeting
Clinical Collections
Advances in Alzheimer’s

At a glance: The ONWARDS insulin icodec trials

A round-up of the ONWARDS phase 3 clinical trials evaluating the novel weekly insulin icodec in people with diabetes.
ADVANCED SEARCH
Log in
Top
International Journal for Equity in Health
Published in: International Journal for Equity in Health 1/2020

01-12-2020 | Research

Global health activists’ lessons on building social movements for Health for All

Authors: Connie Musolino, Fran Baum, Toby Freeman, Ronald Labonté, Chiara Bodini, David Sanders

Published in: International Journal for Equity in Health | Issue 1/2020

Login to get access

Abstract

Background

The People’s Health Movement (PHM) was formed in 2000 and drew inspiration from the Alma Ata Declaration on Primary Health Care’s ‘Health for All’ (1978). Since then PHM has been an active part of a global counter-hegemonic social movement. This study aimed to gain insights on social movement building, drawing on the successes and failures reported by activists over their experiences of working in the Health for All social movement to improve health, justice and equity.

Methods

Qualitative research methods were employed in this study to capture complex and historical narratives of individual activists, through semi-structured interviews and subsequent thematic analysis of transcripts. The research design and analysis were informed by social movement theory and literature on health activism as a pathway for social change. In this study we examine the semi-structured interviews of 15 health activists who are part of the PHM, with the aim of deriving lessons for strengthening movements for Health for All.

Results

This study locates the activists’ narratives within a socio-political analysis of the global trends of late modern individualism and capitalist neoliberalism. This highlights the challenges faced by civil society groups mobilising collective action and building social movements for Health for All. The study found that within the constraints of the neoliberal socio-political and economic conditions which have caused the rise in social and health inequities, this group of long-term health activists have been nurturing alternative approaches to structuring society and building collective agency to improve health.

Conclusion

The practical long-term experiences of the PHM activists examined in this study contribute to a better understanding of the processes and motivations that lead to and sustain health activism, and the dilemmas, strategies, impacts and achievements of such activism.
Footnotes
1
To delve further into the work of the PHM, the special issue of ‘Saúde em Debate’ (2020) showcases the vast activities of the country circles and members of the PHM. See http://​revista.​saudeemdebate.​org.​br/​sed/​issue/​view/​33
 
2
For more information about PHM’s International People’s Health University see https://​www.​iphu.​org/​.
 
Literature
1.
Loewenson R. Annotated Bibliography on Civil Society and Health: Overview of issues from the bibliography on Civil Society and health. World Health Organisation and Training and Research Support Centre Zimbabwe; 2003. Contract No.: CSI/2003/BI1.
2.
Minkler M, Wallerstein N, Wilson N. Improving health through community organisation and community building. In: Glanz K, Rimer BK, Viswanath K, editors. Health Behavior and Health Education: Theory, Research, and Practice. San Francisco: Wiley; 2008. p. 287–312.
3.
Paim J, Travassos C, Almeida C, Bahia L, Macinko J. The Brazilian health system: history, advances, and challenges. Lancet. 2011;377(9779):1778–97.PubMed
4.
Edwards M. The Oxford handbook of civil society. New York: Oxford University Press; 2011.
5.
6.
Giarelli G, Annandale E, Ruzza C. Introduction: the role of civil society in healthcare systems reforms. Soc Sci Med. 2014;123:160–7.PubMed
7.
Ollis T. A critical pedagogy of embodied education. US: Palgrave Macmillan; 2012.
8.
World Health Organization. Declaration of Alma-Ata. Alma-Ata, USSR: International Conference on Primary Health Care. Almaty: World Health Organization; 1978.
9.
Baum F, Freeman T, Sanders D, Labonté R, Lawless A, Javanparast S. Comprehensive primary health care under neo-liberalism in Australia. Soc Sci Med. 2016;168:43–52.PubMed
10.
Labonté R, Sanders D, Packer C, Schaay N. Revitalizing health for all: case studies of the struggle for comprehensive primary health care Centre IDR, editor. Toronto, Buffalo, London: University of Toronto Press; 2017.
11.
People’s Health Movement, Medact, Global Equity Gauge Alliance. Global Health Watch 2: An alternative world health report. London: Zed Books; 2008.
12.
People’s Health Movement, Medact, Global Equity Gauge Alliance. Global Health Watch 3: An alternative world health report. London: Zed Books; 2011.
13.
People’s Health Movement, Asociacion Latino-americana de Medicina Social, Health Action International, Medico International TWNT, Medact. Global Health Watch 4: An alternative world health report. London: Zed Books; 2014.
14.
People’s Health Movement, Medact, Global Equity Gauge Alliance. Global Health Watch 1 (2005-2006): An alternative world health report. London, UK: Zed Books; 2005.
15.
People’s Health Movement (PHM), Asociacion Latino-americana de Medicina Social, Health Action International, Medico International TWNT, Medact. Global Health Watch 5: An alternative world health report. London: Zed Books; 2017.
16.
Werner D, Sanders D. Questioning the solution: the politics of primary health care and child survival. Palo Alto, CA: Health Rights; 1997.
17.
Sanders D, Baum F, Benos A, Legge D. Revitalising primary health care requires an equitable global economic system – now more than ever. J ECH. 2011;65(8):661–5.
18.
Mahmood Q, Muntaner C. Politics, class actors, and health sector reform in Brazil and Venezuela. Glob Health Promot. 2013;20(1):59–67.PubMed
19.
Sengupta A, Bodini C, Franco S. The struggle for health: an emancipatory approach in the era of neoliberal globalisation. Brussels, Belgium: Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung; 2018.
20.
Cardona C, Bishai D. The slowing pace of life expectancy gains since 1950. BMC Public Health. 2018;18(151):1–7.
21.
22.
Corbin J, Strauss A. Grounded theory research: procedures, canons, and evaluative criteria. Qual Sociol. 1990;13(1):3–21.
23.
Ezzy D. Qualitative analysis: practice and innovation. Australia: Allen and Unwin; 2002.
24.
Carroll WK. Modes of cognitive praxis in transnational alternative policy groups. Globalizations. 2015;12(5):710–27.
25.
Ollis T. The pedagogy of activism: learning to change the world. Int J Learning. 2010;17(8):239–49.
26.
Zoller HM. Health activism: communication theory and action for social change. Commun Theor. 2005;15(4):341–64.
27.
Morse JN, Barrett M, Mayan M, Olson K, Spiers J. Verification strategies for establishing reliability and validity in qualitative research. Int J Qual Meth. 2002;1:13–22.
28.
Melucci A. The new social movements: a theoretical approach. Soc Sc Inform. 1980;19(2):199–266.
29.
Freire P. Pedagogy of the oppressed. Harmondsworth: Penguin; 1972.
30.
Halupka M. The legitimisation of clicktivism. Aust J Polit Sci. 2018;53(1):130–41.
31.
Keck ME, Sikkink K. Activists beyond borders: advocacy networks in international politics: Cambridge University press; 1998.
32.
Berry JM, Wilcox C. The interest group society. 6th ed. New York: Routledge; 2018.
33.
Oxfam. An economy for the 99%. Oxfam: Oxford Great Britain; 2017.
34.
Dawson M. Reviewing the critique of individualization: the disembedded and embedded theses. Acta Sociol. 2012;55(4):305–19.
35.
Rasborg K. From class society to the individualized society? A critical reassessment of individualization and class. Irish J Sociol. 2017;25(3):229–49.
36.
Bauman Z. Liquid modernity. Cambridge: Polity Press; 2000.
37.
Bauman Z. Intimations of postmodernity. Oxon: Routledge; 1992.
38.
Beggs M. Occupy abundance: the myth of Australian affluence. Overland. 2012;206:34–8.
39.
Kapilashrami A, McPake B. Transforming governance or reinforcing hierarchies and competition: examining the public and hidden transcripts of the Global Fund and HIV in India. Health Policy Plann. 2013;28(6):626–35.
40.
Labonte R. The art of medicine: health activism in a globalising era. Lancet. 2013;381.
41.
Kapilashrami A, O'Brien O. The Global Fund and the re-configuration and reemergence of ‘civil society’: widening or closing the democratic deficit? Glob Public Health. 2012;7(5):437–51.PubMed
42.
Legge D, Gleeson G, Wilson G, Wright M, McBride T, Butler P, et al. Micro macro integration: reframing primary health care practice and community development in health. Crit Public Health. 2007;16(2):171–82.
43.
Porta DD, Diani M. The study of social movements: recurring questions (partially) changing answers. In: Porta DD, Diani M, editors. Social movements: an introduction. 2nd ed. Malden and Carlton: Oxford and Blackwell Publishing; 2006. p. 1–32.
44.
Doyle C, Patel P. Civil society organisations and global health initiatives: problems of legitimacy. Soc Sci Med. 2008;66:1928–38.PubMed
45.
Loewenson R. Civil society influence on global health policy: an annotated bibliography. Zimbabwe: WHO Civil Society Initiative and Training and Research Support Centre; 2003.
46.
Yashar DB. Resistance and identity politics in an age of globalization. Ann Aapss. 2007;610:160–81.
47.
Lupton D. Risk and reflexive modernisation. London & New York: Routledge; 1999. p. 59–83.
48.
Willis E, Pearce M. Anthony Giddens: risk, globalisation and indigenous public health. In: Collyer F, editor. The Palgrave handbook of social theory in health, illness and medicine. UK: Palgrave Macmillan; 2015. p. 455–70.
49.
Shelley L, Craig L, McInroy L. You can form a part of yourself online: the influence of new media on identity development and coming out for LGBTQ youth. Gay Lesb Ment Health. 2014;18(1):95–109.
50.
51.
Giddens A. Modernity and self-identity. Cambridge: Polity Press; 1991.
52.
Beck U, Giddens A, Lash S. Reflexive modernisation: politics, tradition and aesthetics in the modern social order. Cambridge: Polity Press; 1994.
53.
Dawson M. Late modernity, individualization and socialism: an associational critique of neoliberalism. UK: Palgrave Macmillan; 2013.
54.
Giddens A. Risk society: the context of British politics. In: Franklin J, editor. The politics of risk society. Cambridge: Polity Press; 1998. p. 23–34.
55.
Maxey I. Beyond boundaries? Activism, academia, reflexivity and research. Area. 1999;31(3):199–208.
Metadata
Title
Global health activists’ lessons on building social movements for Health for All
Authors
Connie Musolino
Fran Baum
Toby Freeman
Ronald Labonté
Chiara Bodini
David Sanders
Publication date
01-12-2020
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
International Journal for Equity in Health / Issue 1/2020
Electronic ISSN: 1475-9276
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-020-01232-1

Other articles of this Issue 1/2020

International Journal for Equity in Health 1/2020 Go to the issue

Research

Disease experiences of female patients with Hansen’s disease residing in settlement in Korea

Research

Preventable admissions and emergency-department-visits in pediatric asylum-seeking and non-asylum-seeking patients

Research

Impact of maternal death reviews at a rural hospital in Zambia: a mixed methods study

Research

Erosion of universal health coverage and trend in the frequency of physician consultations in Spain

Research

Deaths of despair: cause-specific mortality and socioeconomic inequalities in cause-specific mortality among young men in Scotland

Research

Research priorities in healthcare of persons experiencing homelessness: outcomes of a national multi-disciplinary stakeholder discussion in the United Kingdom