scholarly journals "Conflicted" Conceptions of Conflict of Interest: How the Commercial Sector Responses to the WHO Tool on Conflict of Interest in Nutrition Policy Are Part of Their Standard Playbook to Undermine Public Health Comment on "Towards Preventing and Managing Conflict of Interest in Nutrition Policy? An Analysis of Submissions to a Consultation on a Draft WHO Tool"

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Rob Moodie
Keyword(s):  
Conflict Of Interest ◽  
Nutrition Policy ◽  
World Health ◽  
Commercial Sector ◽  
Member States ◽  
The World ◽  
Food And Beverage ◽  
Stakeholder Partnerships ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Multi Stakeholder

Managing conflict of interest (CoI) among the interested stake-holders in nutrition policy is a vexed and controversial issue. This commentary builds on Ralston and colleagues’ highly informative analysis of the 44 submissions to the World Health Organization (WHO) draft tool on preventing and managing CoI in national nutrition programs. The commentary proposes that the commercial sector actors are, by definition, too conflicted to objectively respond to the draft tool. The responses of the commercial sectors are predictable, as they mimic their positions during the prior negotiation for the development of the Framework for Engagement of Non-State Actors (FENSA). Their overall approach, and specific responses, are typical of the now standard methods of the ultra-processed food and beverage industry’s ‘corporate playbook.’ In addition, Ralston et al’s analysis raises a number of other issues, such as: why these corporations are so keen to be included in the world of multi-stakeholder partnerships, why so few member states responded to the draft tool, and problems with the term ‘private sector.’ The commentary ends with a suggestion for WHO to seek broader involvement from the 160+ member states who have yet to participate in the consultations regarding the draft tool.

scholarly journals Towards Preventing and Managing Conflict of Interest in Nutrition Policy? An Analysis of Submissions to a Consultation on a Draft WHO Tool

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rob Ralston ◽  
Sarah E. Hil ◽  
Fabio da Silva Gomes ◽  
Jeff Collin
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Global Health ◽  
Conflict Of Interest ◽  
Nutrition Policy ◽  
Commercial Sector ◽  
Academic Institutions ◽  
Health Governance ◽  
Member States ◽  
Multi Stakeholder ◽  
Policy Engagement

Background: With multi-stakeholder approaches central to efforts to address global health challenges, debates around conflict of interest (COI) are increasingly prominent. The World Health Organization (WHO) recently developed a proposed tool to support member states in preventing and managing COI in nutrition policy. We analysed responses to an online consultation to explore how actors from across sectors understand COI and the ways in which they use this concept to frame the terms of commercial sector engagement in health governance. Methods: Submissions from 44 Member States, international organisations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), academic institutions and commercial sector actors were coded using a thematic framework informed by framing theory. Respondents’ orientation to the tool aligned with two broad frames, ie, a ‘collaboration and partnership’ frame that endorsed multi-stakeholder approaches and a ‘restricted engagement’ frame that highlighted core tensions between public health and food industry actors. Results: Responses to the WHO tool reflected contrasting conceptualisations of COI and implications for health governance. While most Member States, NGOs, and academic institutions strongly supported the tool, commercial sector organisations depicted it as inappropriate, unworkable and incompatible with the Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs). Commercial sector respondents advanced a narrow, individual-level understanding of COI, seen as adequately addressed by existing mechanisms for disclosure, and viewed the WHO tool as unduly restricting scope for private sector engagement in nutrition policy. In contrast, health-focused NGOs and several Member States drew on a more expansive understanding of COI that recognised scope for wider tensions between public health goals and commercial interests and associated governance challenges. These submissions mostly welcomed the tool as an innovative approach to preventing and managing such conflicts, although some NGOs sought broader exclusion of corporate actors from policy engagement. Conclusion: Submissions on the WHO tool illustrate how contrasting positions on COI are central to understanding broader debates in nutrition policy and across global health governance. Effective health governance requires greater understanding of how COI can be conceptualised and managed amid high levels of contestation on policy engagement with commercial sector actors. This requires both ongoing innovation in governance tools and more extensive conceptual and empirical research.

scholarly journals The World Health Organization, Corporate Power, and the Prevention and Management of Conflicts of Interest in Nutrition Policy Comment on "Towards Preventing and Managing Conflict of Interest in Nutrition Policy? An Analysis of Submissions to a Consultation on a Draft WHO Tool"

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary Jonas Fooks ◽  
Charlotte Godziewski
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Conflicts Of Interest ◽  
Nutrition Policy ◽  
World Health ◽  
Corporate Power ◽  
Government Relations ◽  
The World ◽  
Food And Beverage ◽  
Problems And Solutions ◽  
Health Organization

The World Health Organization’s (WHO’s) draft Decision-Making Process and Tool to assist governments in preventing and managing conflicts of interest in nutrition policy marks a step-change in WHO thinking on large corporations and nutrition policy. If followed closely it stands to revolutionise business-government relations in nutrition policy. Ralston and colleagues outline how the food and beverage industry have argued against the decision-making tool. This commentary expands on their study by setting industry framing within a broader analysis of corporate power and explores the challenges in managing industry influence in nutrition policy. The commentary examines how the food and beverage industry’s collaboration and partnership agenda seeks to shape how policy problems and solutions are interpreted and acted on and explores how this agenda and their efforts to define conflicts of interest effectively represent non-policy programmes. More generally, we point to the difficulties that member states will face in adopting the tool and highlight the importance of considering the central role of transnational food and beverage companies in contemporary economies to managing their influence in nutrition policy.

Should Public Health and Policy Communities Interact With the Food Industry? It Depends on Context Comment on "Towards Preventing and Managing Conflict of Interest in Nutrition Policy? An Analysis of Submissions to a Consultation on a Draft WHO Tool"

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Cullerton ◽  
Jean Adams ◽  
Martin White
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Conflict Of Interest ◽  
Policy Process ◽  
Food Industry ◽  
Nutrition Policy ◽  
World Health ◽  
Business Goals ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Intractable Problem ◽  
Policy Communities

The issue of public health and policy communities engaging with food sector companies has long caused tension and debate. Ralston and colleagues’ article ‘Towards Preventing and Managing Conflict of Interest in Nutrition Policy? An Analysis of Submissions to a Consultation on a Draft WHO Tool’ further examines this issue. They found widespread food industry opposition, not just to the details of the World Health Organization (WHO) tool, but to the very idea of it. In this commentary we reflect on this finding and the arguments for and against interacting with the food industry during different stages of the policy process. While involving the food industry in certain aspects of the policy process without favouring their business goals may seem like an intractable problem, we believe there are opportunities for progress that do not compromise our values as public health professionals. We suggest three key steps to making progress.

Preventing and Managing Conflict of Interest in Nutrition Policy: Lessons for Alcohol Control Comment on "Towards Preventing and Managing Conflict of Interest in Nutrition Policy? An Analysis of Submissions to a Consultation on a Draft WHO Tool"

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Severi
Keyword(s):  
Conflict Of Interest ◽  
Conflicts Of Interest ◽  
Nutrition Policy ◽  
Alcohol Policy ◽  
World Health ◽  
Alcohol Control ◽  
Policy Debates ◽  
Food And Nutrition ◽  
Industry Engagement ◽  
Health Organization

Ralston et al present an analysis of policy actor responses to a draft World Health Organization (WHO) tool to prevent and manage conflicts of interest (COI) in nutrition policy. While the Ralston et al study is focussed explicitly on food and nutrition, the issues and concepts addressed are relevant also to alcohol policy debates and present an important opportunity for shared learning across unhealthy commodity industries in order to protect and improve population health. This commentary addresses the importance of understanding how alcohol policy actors – especially decision-makers – perceive COI in relation to alcohol industry engagement in policy. A better understanding of such perceptions may help to inform the development of guidelines to identify, manage and protect against risks associated with COI in alcohol policy.

scholarly journals World Health Organization to meet again on influenza virus-sharing

2007 ◽  
Vol 12 (42) ◽  
Author(s):  
Collective Editorial team
Keyword(s):  
Influenza Virus ◽  
World Health Organization ◽  
World Health ◽  
Member States ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization

An intergovernmental meeting sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO), to which all 193 WHO member states are invited, will take place in Geneva from November 20 to 23 to discuss the issues around the sharing of influenza virus samples.

scholarly journals Tackling NCDs: The Need to Address Alcohol Industry Interference and Policy Incoherence Across Sectors Comment on "Towards Preventing and Managing Conflict of Interest in Nutrition Policy? An Analysis of Submissions to a Consultation on a Draft WHO Tool"

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Belinda Townsend ◽  
Mia Miller ◽  
Deborah Gleeson
Keyword(s):  
Global Health ◽  
Conflict Of Interest ◽  
Health Sector ◽  
Nutrition Policy ◽  
Alcohol Policy ◽  
World Health ◽  
Alcohol Industry ◽  
Health Goals ◽  
Market Liberalisation ◽  
Health Organization

Ralston et al highlight the ways that different actors in global nutrition governance conceptualise and frame the role of non-state actors in governance arrangements, including the potential for conflict of interest (COI) to undermine global health efforts. The authors argue that the World Health Organization (WHO) draft tool on managing COI in nutrition policy is an important innovation in global health, but that further research and refinement is needed for operationalising the management of COI with diverse actors in diverse contexts. In this commentary, reflecting on strategic framing and industry interference in policy-making, we argue for the urgent need for states and intergovernmental organisations to prevent alcohol industry interference in the development of national and global alcohol policy. We argue that policy incoherence remains a key barrier, where governments pursue health goals in the health sector while pursuing exports and market liberalisation of health harmful commodities in the trade sector.

scholarly journals Global neurosurgery: current and potential impact of neurosurgeons at the World Health Organization and the World Health Assembly. Executive summary of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies–World Health Organization Liaison Committee at the 71st World Health Assembly

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. E18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gail Rosseau ◽  
Walter D. Johnson ◽  
Kee B. Park ◽  
Miguel Arráez Sánchez ◽  
Franco Servadei ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Global Health ◽  
World Health Organization ◽  
Surgical Care ◽  
Global Surgery ◽  
World Health ◽  
World Federation ◽  
Member States ◽  
World Health Assembly ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization

Since the creation of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1948, the annual World Health Assembly (WHA) has been the major forum for discussion, debate, and approval of the global health agenda. As such, it informs the framework for the policies and budgets of many of its Member States. For most of its history, a significant portion of the attention of health ministers and Member States has been given to issues of clean water, vaccination, and communicable diseases. For neurosurgeons, the adoption of WHA Resolution 68.15 changed the global health landscape because the importance of surgical care for universal health coverage was highlighted in the document. This resolution was adopted in 2015, shortly after the publication of The Lancet Commission on Global Surgery Report titled “Global Surgery 2030: evidence and solutions for achieving health, welfare and economic development.” Mandating global strengthening of emergency and essential surgical care and anesthesia, this resolution has led to the formation of surgical and anesthesia collaborations that center on WHO and can be facilitated via the WHA. Participation by neurosurgeons has grown dramatically, in part due to the official relations between WHO and the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies, with the result that global neurosurgery is gaining momentum.

Panel 2.17: Private Commercial Sector Partnerships for Health Action in Crises

2005 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 459-463 ◽  
Author(s):  
Knut Ole Sundnes ◽  
Milan Sannerkvist ◽  
Philip Hedger ◽  
Brent Woodworth ◽  
Anne Hyre ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Private Sector ◽  
World Health Organization ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
World Health ◽  
Commercial Sector ◽  
Tsunami Disaster ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Action ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Key Questions

AbstractThis is a summary of the presentations and discussion of Panel 2.17, Private Commercial Sector Partnerships for Health Action in Crises of the Conference, Health Aspects of the Tsunami Disaster in Asia, convened by the World Health Organization (WHO) in Phuket, Thailand, 04–06 May 2005. The topics discussed included issues related to private sector partnerships for health action in crises as pertain to the responses to the damage created by the Tsunami. It is presented in the following sections: (1) key questions; (2) issues and challenges; (3) lessons learned; (4) what was done well?; (5) what could have been done better?; and (6) conclusions and recommendations.

scholarly journals Recent World Health Organization initiatives for antimicrobial resistance control

2007 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 154
Author(s):  
John Tapsall
Keyword(s):  
Antimicrobial Resistance ◽  
World Health Organization ◽  
Global Strategy ◽  
World Health ◽  
Member States ◽  
Security Issues ◽  
Country Level ◽  
The World ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Health Organization

The World Health Organization (WHO) overseeing of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) containment issues in the last decade has varied in intensity. From 1999 onwards, concerted focus from the WHO led to the development of a multi-disciplinary framework for AMR containment at a country level. However, implementation of the WHO Global Strategy for the Containment of Antimicrobial Resistance (the Global Strategy) was overtaken first by events in the USA in 2001 and later by related and other bio-security issues. By 2003, loss of funding and a restructured WHO saw AMR initiatives curtailed. Interest in AMR at the WHO has been recently rekindled and it is hoped that renewed attention will again be focused on this issue by the WHO and its member states.

The global institutional architecture

2019 ◽  
pp. 320-342
Author(s):  
Ronald Labonté ◽  
Arne Ruckert
Keyword(s):  
Global Health ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
World Health ◽  
Global Health Governance ◽  
Health Governance ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Multi Stakeholder

There is no global government, but a growing myriad of global governance platforms. Some are intergovernmental (United Nations and affiliated agencies, differing ‘clubs’ of nations such as the G-7 or G-20); others are multi-stakeholder, drawing together governments, private sector interests, civil society organizations, philanthropists, and academics or other prominent individuals. The plurality and questionable democratic legitimacy of many of these governance platforms is problematic in terms of who has authority or influence over global norms and rules affecting the social determinants of health. Four intergovernmental organizations are profiled for the distinct roles they play in global health governance: the World Health Organization (WHO) (nominally the lead global health governance body), the World Bank (whose financial resources eclipse those of the WHO), United Nations Children’s Fund (with a particular remit to improve children’s health), and the International Labour Organization (a unique tripartite body advocating for global social protection floors).

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