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With great interest, we read the paper by Richards (1). The issue
discussed in this paper is of great importance. We agree that there is a
link between poverty and ill health. With the strategies mentioned in this
paper we agree further that the chances of achieving the target to tackle
health in the developing countries are at 50:50 at best. In awareness of
the link between governmental repression, poverty and ill health we would
suggest that steps should be taken, parallel to the efforts described in
this paper, to reduce governmental repression (and systematic torture) in
developing countries in order to reduce stress factors to the local
communities.
Relative political freedom would be followed by reduced
escape of national experts to abroad (i.e. health care professionals),
relatively better distribution of capital and better social education of
the people. With these efforts, additional to the ones described by
Richards, the chances to achieve better health standards in developing
countries would be far better than 50%.
Siroos Mirzaei *, Hubert Zajicek **, Peter Knoll*
*Institute of Nuclear Medicine, Wilhelminenspital, Vienna
**University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
1) Richards T. UK defines action to tackle health in developing
countries.
BMJ 2000 ;321(7274):1434.
The link between Human rights and health
With great interest, we read the paper by Richards (1). The issue
discussed in this paper is of great importance. We agree that there is a
link between poverty and ill health. With the strategies mentioned in this
paper we agree further that the chances of achieving the target to tackle
health in the developing countries are at 50:50 at best. In awareness of
the link between governmental repression, poverty and ill health we would
suggest that steps should be taken, parallel to the efforts described in
this paper, to reduce governmental repression (and systematic torture) in
developing countries in order to reduce stress factors to the local
communities.
Relative political freedom would be followed by reduced
escape of national experts to abroad (i.e. health care professionals),
relatively better distribution of capital and better social education of
the people. With these efforts, additional to the ones described by
Richards, the chances to achieve better health standards in developing
countries would be far better than 50%.
Siroos Mirzaei *, Hubert Zajicek **, Peter Knoll*
*Institute of Nuclear Medicine, Wilhelminenspital, Vienna
**University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
1) Richards T. UK defines action to tackle health in developing
countries.
BMJ 2000 ;321(7274):1434.
Competing interests: No competing interests