Global Health Matters

 The first episode of Global Health Matters takes us on a journey to Somalia, India and Benin to explore how researchers have adapted to one of the greatest challenges we have ever faced — the COVID-19 pandemic.

 Join Dr Garry Aslanyan and his expert panel of guests as they discuss the innovative approaches they have taken to continue their work amid the crisis.

Guests

• Suneeta Krishnan, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, India C...

In science, globally, women account for only about 30% of researchers, according to UNESCO, and evidence shows that their participation is even lower at leadership and decision-making levels. Why is that, and what is being done to better support women’s careers in science?

Join Dr Garry Aslanyan and his expert panel of guests as they share their inspiring journeys as women leaders in global health. They also discuss the root causes ...

Sharing experiences and perspectives on how Tanzania and South Africa’s research communities have tackled the pandemic

 Africa has not seen the same scale of devastation from COVID-19 seen in other regions. Join host Garry Aslanyan as he and his guests explore some of the reasons why African countries have been able to deal with the pandemic so effectively. These include a prior experience in dealing with epidemics such as Ebola, st...

Mamás del Río is a social innovation focused on improving maternal and newborn health in rural regions of the Amazon in Peru and Colombia. This episode explores how communities, citizen-led organizations and researchers are driving social innovations such as Mamás del Rio to improve health service delivery and strengthen health systems.

Host Garry Aslanyan is joined by the following guests:

Magaly Blas
Director, Mamás del Río (Mo...

From a global challenge to the Maasai steppe of Tanzania
Most climate change predictions show an upward trend in temperature for at least the next nine decades. Rural communities whose health and livelihoods depend on the environment are more vulnerable to climate change. In recent years, persistent droughts have made Maasai communities in northern Tanzania vulnerable to sleeping sickness, a disease spread by the tsetse fly. Pa...

Strong research ecosystems require strong research leaders. In this episode, we hear from Karlee Silver who speaks about how Grand Challenges Canada has supported the discovery and research of new solutions to health and other challenges. Tembeka Mpako-Ntusi of Cape Peninsula University of Technology in South Africa says research management at universities should address not only current challenges but also those lurking on the hor...

This episode features three renowned communicators of science who work to inform, educate and inspire the public about health issues. Microbiologist Natalia Pasternak has become one of the leading communicators of science in Brazil and internationally. As founder of Instituto Questão de Ciência, she offers advice on how others can set up science communication institutes in their countries.  Imogen Foulkes reflects upon how scientis...

The World Health Organization recently made the historic recommendation to widely use the first ever malaria vaccine, RTS,S. This recommendation was based on evidence generated from a pilot vaccine implementation programme in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi that has reached more than 800 000 children since 2019. This is an excellent example of how evidence based on implementation research tells us whether health interventions, such as vacc...

Increasingly, digital technologies are transforming the delivery of health services and the functioning of health systems. Many of these technologies have also presented new ways of doing research and informed rapid decision-making. In this episode, we hear how UNICEF worked with Jamaica to rapidly deploy an electronic registry solution for the COVID-19 vaccine. We also learn that the Philippine government created a huge opportunit...

What are the colonial legacies in global health? And what impact have they had on how some health and health research programmes are run in Africa? In this episode, we speak to two visionary women leaders who tell us what’s wrong in global health and give concrete steps toward more equitable and inclusive partnerships. 

Host Garry Aslanyan speaks with the following guests:

• Catherine Kyobutungi, Executive Director of the African P...

Throughout the first season of Global Health Matters, we’ve covered a range of topics including research during the COVID-19 pandemic, tackling racism within global health, science communication and implementation research. For this bonus episode, host Garry Aslanyan sat down with two of our listeners who shared their reflections on various episodes from Season 1:

•  Teresa Soop, Senior Research Advisor, Swedish International Deve...

Episode 12
Championing health equity in South Africa

As the world commits to equitable access to medicines and vaccines, is this just on paper or a reality?  In the case of COVID-19, as of early March 2022, 74% of those in high-income countries have been fully vaccinated, compared with just 11% of people in low-income countries. Can South Africa’s experience with tackling HIV/AIDS and COVID-19 point to future solutions for other...

What are the differences between the various paths to a disease-free world? Why are we pursuing eradication of some diseases while for others, control or elimination is the more realistic option?
 
In this episode, host Garry Aslanyan speaks with three experts who answer these questions and more. Uche Amazigo shares lessons she learned during her tenure as the Director of the WHO African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control...

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought a new global awareness of the accessibility of diagnostics: we need to test to protect with equal access for all. In this episode of Global Health Matters, we answer key questions such as “how available are essential diagnostics in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs)?”
 
Host Garry Aslanyan interviews our special guests who have a deep understanding of diagnostics and their applicati...

An important Global Health Matters podcast topic this month, discussing the need to build an awareness of the ways we interact with colleagues in the workplace to adapt our programmes to be more inclusive.  We need to talk about “the future of global health through diversity and dignity”.  Host Garry Aslanyan interviews our special guests who have a deep understanding of diversity and dignity and their application worldwide.
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Global Health Matters is the monthly podcast from TDR, please subscribe.  GHMs brings you topical subjects and insightful discussions with health experts from across the globe, including a focus on low-to middle-income countries.

Are you a professional looking to progress further or perhaps a global health student at the early stage of your career? There are so many routes to get into a career in global health, so this p...

 Global Health Matters is the monthly podcast from TDR, if you like our content then please subscribe. We embrace the fact that public health and global health are intertwined and through our podcast we hope to engage with broader topics bringing together experts from across the globe providing a platform for wider engagement.   
 
For this episode we bring you a topic that rarely reaches the top of the global health agend...

The seasonal influenza virus, or flu as it is widely known, infects over a billion people a year, resulting in up to 650,000 respiratory deaths annually.   

For this Global Health Matters podcast episode TDR have partnered with GISRS, the World Health Organization’s Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System. Podcast host Dr Garry Aslanyan brings together two professors to share their unique experiences from both the global a...

Corruption is one of the most important barriers to implementing universal health coverage around the world; imagine what that world would look like! The subject of corruption in global health is often muted and totally taboo for some to even think it. This podcast episode on corruption is opening up the discussion to a wider audience to understand the scale of the problem for health systems and to hold more people to account for t...