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Global Health
When it comes to global killers, malaria is one of our planet's deadliest perpetrators. In fact, half of the world's population -- 3.2 billion people -- is at risk. In 2016, one child died from malaria every two minutes.Like so many of our most pervasive diseases, malaria is even deadlier for women and children.
We are presented opportunities everyday to make a difference in the lives of those around us, near or far, through our actions, time, or money. Whether we embrace that opportunity is up to us and, evidently, even the smallest of gestures or actions can veritably snowball into lasting results.
Tuberculosis (TB), a formidable foe to global health for thousands of years, has joined forces with HIV, a relative new-kid on the block, and together the two have left a wake of destruction, destitution, and death in communities across the globe.
Global health transcends boundaries. But it also transcends domains and disciplines of practice. Canada is positioned to play a strategic role as a leader on the international development stage, and this means that integrating youth leaders into global discourses, particularly relating to health, is vital.
Sexual and reproductive health and rights are a cornerstone of adolescents' transition to adulthood, yet limited access to sexual and reproductive health services is preventing women and girls from leading safe, healthy, and dignified lives.
Over the last decade, the HIV community has very effectively used the cascade of care analysis to identify and plug gaps so that more patients receive effective treatment. UNAIDS recently endorsed an ambitious "90-90-90" global target based on the cascade. The TB community has lagged behind.
Every day approximately 830 mothers around the world die due to pregnancy and childbirth complications. Most of these are preventable deaths. That's why improving childbirth outcomes was a critical issue at the recent G7 Health Ministers meeting attended by Canada.
This time of year, parents are acutely aware of the complexities of raising a child. But imagine if another variable -- a potentially deadly disease -- could affect your child at any moment. For millions of people around the world, uncertainty is a daily reality.
This year, the World Health Organization is calling on the global community to "end malaria for good" by lowering the global malaria burden over the next 15 years, and reducing malaria death rates by at least 90%. We still have a long way to go, but the end of the malaria epidemic may finally be in sight, and could even be achieved within our lifetime.
