I’ve gathered up all the best books on epidemics so we’re clear on what’s going on here… All the work I do in public health is to create a stronger and more responsive health system. But I had no idea what a pandemic would look like. I had heard that the Ebola virus had convinced […]
We’re all learning to do things differently under lockdown. One key thing has been doing key informant interviews over zoom. I have always found working via phone and skype a bit challenging in India – because there is a premium (rightly) placed on face to face communication and relationship building. But lockdown has revealed […]
Corona virus means many people are now working from home. I already do that! As explained earlier, I have this consulting thing all sorted. But, it’s not easy and it took me a while to establish a good routine. Here are my top tips for making it work. Combatting loneliness and social media Working […]
For me, it’s always makes me feel really old when people look to me for guidance. Nevertheless, most enquiries I get from my website and LinkedIn (if not spam) are from college students or young professionals who want to consult, and are writing to me for advice. When I meet clients, often someone in the […]
Review of Winners Take All by Anand Giridharadas While public health is a discipline unto itself, more than that it convenes people from different disciplines to address public health problems. Embracing different sectors and approaches Is part of the logic of public health. “Winners Take All” reminds us that in some cases, we should […]
There is increasing credence given to “respectful care” in India right now, especially in the field of maternal health. Treating patients with respect, honoring privacy and confidentiality, are key components of effective care, but they’ve long being considered an exotic and optional “add-on”. The link that I see missing is respectful treatment of health […]
The Male Contraceptive Initiative Imagining a future where there is better partner dialogue about reproductive health A friend of mine has recently taken on the role of heading the Male Contraceptive Initiative. It took a while before the revolutionary potential of what she was doing sunk in… Managing fertility is so much […]
Although marked by recent controversy, the mid-day meal scheme is one of India’s big success stories. Maybe we forget this, because we don’t hear enough about how great it is – especially in Karnataka. Akshay Patra –one of the main vendors for the scheme in Karnataka – has come under fire for providing bland […]
Keeping Community-Based Care a Priority In the field of maternal health there has been a big shift towards increasing access to tertiary care. This was important as the majority of maternal deaths were due to causes that could only be dealt with by specialists. But, increasing access to hospital-based care can seem like a fraught […]
Taking India’s Health Care Successes to America: A Review of Reverse Innovation in Health Care by Vijay Govindarajan and Ravi Ramamurti The US has always marketed itself as the country that has all the answers, although these days that idea is harder to sell. The US health care system, however, has been in crisis for […]
