Bridging the equity gap in maternal and child health

doi:10.1136/bmj.38603.526644.47

BMJ 2005;331:585-586 (17 September), doi:10.1136/bmj.38603.526644.47 (published 9 September 2005)

Editorial

Bridging the equity gap in maternal and child health

Will depend on health systems research as well as action

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

We cannot allow it to be said by history that the differencebetween those who lived and died...was nothing more than poverty,age, or skin colour.
John Lewis, Congressman from Georgia,on the devastation caused by hurricane Katrina.¹

That we live in a world with vastly unequal distribution ofwealth and resources was cruelly underscored by the recent disasterin New Orleans, proving that income inequality often translatesinto huge gaps in access to care and support during crises.In the wealthiest nation of the world, income inequality hasbeen climbing steadily, with more than 50% of income going tothe top 20% of households, 37 million people living below thepoverty line, and 45.8 million lacking health insurance.² Thesedisparities may be much wider in many developing and middleincome countries.

Differences in health status caused by such disparities in wealthare often avoidable and unjust, and inequities in . . . [Full text of this article]

Zulfiqar A Bhutta, Husein Lalji Dewraj professor

Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Aga Khan University, Karachi 74800, Pakistan (zulfiqar.bhutta@aku.edu)

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This article has been cited by other articles:

Haws, R. A, Thomas, A. L, Bhutta, Z. A, Darmstadt, G. L (2007). Impact of packaged interventions on neonatal health: a review of the evidence. Health Policy Plan 22: 193-215 [Abstract] [Full text]
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Rapid Responses:

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Re: Building the equity gap in maternal and child health: Tolulola Taiwo
bmj.com, 15 Sep 2005 [Full text]
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bmj.com, 16 Sep 2005 [Full text]
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It is a question of societal change and political will: Saad H. Bashir
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Communication vs information: Albert Figueras
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Towards achieving the "Millennium Development Goals": Dr. Rajesh Chauhan, et al.
bmj.com, 1 Oct 2005 [Full text]
Re: Towards achieving the "Millennium Development Goals": Dr. Rajesh Chauhan, et al.
bmj.com, 2 Dec 2006 [Full text]