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Facilitators of, barriers to and strategies for health-system guidance implementation: a critical interpretive synthesis
npj Health Systems - Facilitators of, barriers to and strategies for health-system guidance implementation: a critical interpretive synthesis
Why strong health systems are essential to global growth
Breakthrough health innovations can only deliver on their promise when people can reach them. Read about why investing in health is crucial.
HCA, VCU Health seek dismissal of Bon Secours legal challenges to Chesterfield hospital projects
"Bon Secours, alone amongst the three health systems, has refused to take yes for an answer,” HCA argued in its response to Bon Secours' calls for its competitors' projects to be denied by the state.
Big money is pouring into South Florida health systems. What it means for patients
Big-money donors are pouring millions into South Florida hospitals, reshaping cancer care, research, and treatment options across the region.
WHO urges targeted action to strengthen emergency workforce capacities for shared health risks across the Asia-Pacific region
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 11 June 2026 – At a time when the world is more interconnected than ever, the World Health Organization (WHO) is disseminating a comprehensive regional analysis of shared health risks across Asia and the Pacific, urging Member States to invest in enhancing workforce capacities regionwide to mitigate these risks and ensure health systems are better prepared to anticipate, tackle and withstand a range of crises and shocks. Over 100 delegates from 49 countries and areas in the Asia-Pacific region reviewed results from the regional risk analysis during the WHO-led Asia Pacific Health Security Action Framework (APSHAF) Stakeholders Meeting in Malaysia. Synthesizing insights from 21 strategic risk assessments and more than 800 multisectoral experts, the regional analysis highlighted an urgent imperative: countries must proactively invest in emergency workforce preparedness to navigate a landscape where climate hazards, disease outbreaks and geophysical events increasingly overlap. These complex converging crises create devastating, compounding impacts on health systems and communities - reiterating the need for investing in a fit-for-purpose regional health workforce and multisectoral action. Key findings: an evolving risk landscape More than half of the participating countries ranked flooding, cyclones, dengue and pandemic-potential respiratory pathogens as being of high or very high risk, while antimicrobial resistance, landslides and gastroenteritis remain widespread concerns as well. “Given that 51% - over half - of these assessed hazards are deeply interconnected, isolated health interventions are no longer sufficient,” said Dr Saia Ma’u Piukala, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific. “Extreme weather events like cyclones and floods directly trigger subsequent disease outbreaks, while environmental degradation - driven by sea-level rise, coastal erosion and saltwater intrusion - fuels health risks across the Pacific. Mitigating these cascading risks requires unified, cross-sectoral action linking environmental, agricultural and public health policies to build true regional resilience.” Priority recommendations for action To address critical vulnerabilities, WHO calls on Member States in the Asia-Pacific region to urgently prioritize the following strategic actions: Bridge workforce capacity gaps. Embed and standardize emergency preparedness within academia to promote regional workforce interoperability. Foster multisectoral coordination. Address ad-hoc taskforce responses and fragmented surge support through formalized contingency plans and standard operating procedures that are frequently updated and tested. Secure sustainable financing for emergencies. Overcome systemic barriers to access dedicated funding for both immediate anticipatory actions and long-term emergency preparedness initiatives. Enable emergency-ready primary health care. Embed emergency management into public health workforce readiness planning. Ensure that emergency planning is inclusive. Establish clear pathways for inclusive emergency planning that actively involves communities most at risk and other vulnerable groups. Optimize communication. Update risk communication and community engagement strategies, aligning them with seasonal risk calendars. Elevating workforce readiness to meet regional health risks While the gaps identified are significant, the Asia-Pacific region possesses solid foundational pillars, including dedicated clinicians, laboratory staff, rapid response teams, emergency medical teams and extensive community networks. However, to adequately address the compounding nature of modern crises, the various components of the emergency workforce must collaborate cohesively. True resilience depends entirely on transforming this currently fragmented workforce into a highly trained, interconnected and rapidly deployable asset. To achieve this, WHO is actively advancing regional workforce capacities through the Global Health Emergency Corps initiative. This initiative - supported by the Gates Foundation and Institute of Philanthropy - seeks to build a seamless network of emergency workforce across borders and sectors, ensuring that when a crisis strikes, a standardized, well-coordinated and trained workforce is immediately ready to respond. “Scaling up emergency workforce readiness is no longer optional,” said Dr Gina Samaan, Regional Emergency Director for WHO in the Western Pacific. “It is the definitive factor that will determine how effectively the Asia-Pacific region safeguards health and protects lives in an increasingly unpredictable future.” For more information, or to arrange media interviews, contact: Ara Johannes, WHO Western Pacific Health Emergencies Division: johannesa@who.int WHO Western Pacific Communications: wprocom@who.int
Do New Leadership Hires Clarify WELL Health Technologies' (TSX:WELL) Public-Sector Digital Health Strategy?
WELL Health Technologies has appointed Dr. Andrew Bond as Chief Health Officer and Head of Public Sector, and Derek Clark as Chief Operating Officer, adding experienced leadership to clinical governance, government engagement, and platform-wide operations. These hires deepen WELL’s bench in both health system policy and complex multi-entity execution, reinforcing its push to work more closely with public health systems while scaling its national digital and clinic network. Next, we’ll...
One Health in a Fractured World: Why Global Health Governance Must Adapt to Geopolitical Fragmentation - Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Introduction In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic revealed the weaknesses of global health systems to infectious diseases. However, less recognized was how the emergence of this novel virus highlighted the global changes converging to heighten outbreak risks: increased human-animal contact and agricultural intensification, accelerated population growth and urbanization, and changing weather and climatic patterns. These […]
Policy Considerations for Defining Essential Health Systems
This policy brief outlines how an essential health system designation relates to existing designations and discusses policy considerations for developing measures to identify essential health systems.
Morning Preview: A Jobs Report Surprise, Immigration Showdown and Rising Heat Risks
Today, economists and consumers are reacting to a better-than-expected job report and regulators are rethinking how schools spend billions on internet access and classroom technology. At the same time, the first major heat waves of the season are putting pressure on public health systems as summer ...
How climate services for health protects lives and economies
Climate-smart investments and smart tools will become increasingly vital to keep health systems running as extreme weather events become more frequent.
Hospitals Are Leading Efforts to Make Health Care More Affordable
Affordability is front and center in conversations across the country, as Americans feel pressure from the rising cost of living and policymakers search for solutions. Hospitals and health systems share their concerns because we see the impact of high costs every day on the patients and families we serve. Hospitals are not waiting to do their part. Across the nation, they are already implementing efforts to make healthcare more affordable and accessible, as well as providing solutions that could lower costs across the entire health care system.
RFK Jr. Seeks To Peek at Americans’ Medical Records for Clues on Autism and Vaccines
To collect and scrutinize millions of Americans’ health data, U.S. health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. aims to work with state organizations that help health systems share medical records. In Nebraska, millions in federal dollars has flowed into one nonprofit cooperating with Kennedy’s project.
Countries unite at WHA79 to advance refugee and migrant health through stronger national systems
At a high-level event held on the margins of the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly (WHA79), countries and partners reaffirmed the urgent need to strengthen refugee and migrant health through inclusive national health systems and shared practical experiences for turning global commitments into action.
AHA to celebrate Community Health Improvement Week, June 8-12
The AHA and health care organizations across the country will celebrate Community Health Improvement Week, June 8-12. CHI Week honors those working in partnership to improve the health and well-being of individuals and communities throughout the country. Hospitals and health systems are encouraged to plan in-person or virtual events to highlight and increase awareness of their work. LEARN MORE
STAR Seminar
This Stress, Trauma, and Resilience (STAR) Seminar is about transitional age youth — young people between the ages of 16 and 25 navigating child welfare, mental health systems, and schools in a world that has already formed opinions about them before they walk through the door — and specifically about Black and brown youth, who are overrepresented in every one of these systems.
Joint Commission intros new voluntary AI responsibility certification
The program is designed to recognize hospitals and health systems for adopting and implementing artificial intelligence tools with sufficient governance, monitoring processes and education programs in place.
National index tracks AI health care regulations as policy patchwork grows
As artificial intelligence rapidly enters health care, policymakers and health systems are struggling to keep pace with the implications for how the technology should be governed to ensure patient safety, ...
Brooks senior develops national index tracking AI healthcare policy
As artificial intelligence reshapes health care, new questions are emerging about oversight, accountability, and patient safety. Brooks senior Will Moss ’26 developed the Health and AI Policy Index (HAPI), a public database designed to help policymakers, researchers, and health systems track emerging health care AI governance efforts.
Ministry of Public Health, WHO Thailand and the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Kingdom of Thailand launch initiative to strengthen Thailand’s public health workforce
28 May 2026 | Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in ThailandA skilled and coordinated public health workforce is essential for protecting population health and responding to public health emergencies. Strengthening these capacities was the focus of a meeting held on 28 May 2026 at the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Thailand.Dr Ailan Li, WHO Representative to Thailand, together with Dr Watcharanan Tinnaitorn, Deputy Director of the Division of Public Health Emergency Management, Ministry of Public Health, and officials from WHO and the Ministry of Public Health, met with Counselor Zhang Xiaoxiao from the Economic & Commercial Counsellor's Office, Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Kingdom of Thailand to mark the launch of collaboration under the WHO Roadmap to strengthen the public health workforce.The initiative supports Thailand in strengthening its public health workforce across both health and non-health sectors. Public health emergencies require coordinated action across a wide range of professions and institutions, including health workers, border control officers, water safety specialists, communication professionals and local government authorities. Through the project, partners will work together to assess workforce capacities, strengthen competencies and promote coordination across sectors to support preparedness and response efforts.The discussion highlighted opportunities to enhance cross-country collaboration through knowledge exchange, communication activities and engagement at key project milestones, supporting workforce development and emergency preparedness efforts.Beyond its immediate objectives, the initiative also reflects Thailand’s contributions to public health at regional and global levels. The exchange highlighted the importance of sharing experiences, lessons learned and good practices through international cooperation to strengthen public health capacity and preparedness.WHO expressed appreciation to the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Thailand for supporting the project and recognizing the importance of investing in public health workforce development, preparedness and health security through partnership and multilateral cooperation. WHO also commended Thailand’s continued leadership and commitment to strengthening public health systems and emergency preparedness, including through cross-sector collaboration and workforce development.WHO remains committed to supporting Thailand and partners in advancing resilient and people-centred public health systems and strengthening preparedness for future health challengesAbout the EPHF Roadmap ProjectThailand is one of four countries selected in 2026 to initiate implementation of the Essential Public Health Functions (EPHF) Roadmap, alongside Maldives, Papua New Guinea and Timor-Leste. The initiative is funded by the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA). The project is led by Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health, with WHO Thailand serving as a co-implementing partner. Other partners include the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC), the International Association of National Public Health Institutes (IANPHI), the Global Network for Academic Public Health/Public Health Interprofessional Leadership Alliance (GNAPH/PHILA) and the World Federation of Public Health Associations (WFPHA).
WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel amended
WHO Member States adopted a resolution to amend the ‘WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel’ (the Code) and strengthen its implementation, following Member State-led consultations in the lead up to the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly. The resolution marks an important step towards the vision that everyone, everywhere can access competent and motivated health and care workers, as a foundation for both universal health coverage and global health security. Key additions to the Code focus on: inclusion of provisions on health personnel recruited internationally for employment as care workers; applicability of the Code recommendations during emergencies; and encouraging co-investment in health systems and health workforce to ensure international recruitment results in proportional benefits for source and destination countries.Since its adoption by the Sixty-third World Health Assembly in 2010, the Code has undergone three rounds of review of its relevance and effectiveness. “We welcome the resolution’s focus on sustainable and ethical mobility of health personnel,” explained Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General, Health Systems, Access and Data. “The Code’s adoption in 2010 was a landmark achievement. Following this update, we encourage all countries to enhance implementation, including by viewing co-investment as a win-win.” The additions were recommended by an Expert Advisory Group appointed by the WHO Director-General. The Expert Advisory Group’s final report noted the progress in health workforce data availability, provision of migrant health worker rights and the embedding of ethical recruitment principles in national policies. It also highlighted areas of possible improvement in the Code implementation, including support for the strengthening of health systems in source countries.The adoption of the resolution follows extensive consultations led by Member States, underscoring the continued relevance of the Code in a context of increasing international mobility of health workers and growing pressure on health systems resulting from global health emergencies and funding constraints.WHO is already taking forward actions called for in the resolution. An updated version of the ‘WHO health workforce support and safeguards list’, that guides ethical recruitment practices by identifying countries facing the most pressing health workforce challenges, will be published later in 2026. As recommended by the Expert Advisory Group, this will include additional flexibility enabling countries to indicate their willingness to allow active international recruitment, or for Member States not on the list to request tailored support and safeguards. This approach reflects a more nuanced, country-led framework that balances workforce mobility with the need to protect and strengthen health systems in vulnerable settings.“I thank the members of the Expert Advisory Group, the group of Member States who led the resolution, and all Member States for their constructive engagement,” added Dr Nakatani. “Let’s bring this spirit of collaboration to our collective efforts to implement the resolution, strengthen the health workforce and build resilient and equitable health systems.”
Closing the diagnostics gap key to improving women's health
We must redesign women's health systems around early detection and integrated care, and recognize diagnostics as being foundational to effective care.
CHAI releases AI governance guidance for health systems
The resources aim to offer a standard but flexible framework for health systems, regardless of their size or available resources, the industry group said.
Beyond the EHR: Why one CIO believes AI will dwarf every prior health IT shift
Dave Lundal of Children's Minnesota says health systems must move quickly to build governance, vision and flexibility as artificial intelligence rapidly evolves.
High-Level Climate, Clean Air, and Health Roundtable
Reducing air pollution and climate pollutants represents one of the most immediate opportunities to protect human health while advancing climate goals and driving economic growth. Actions to reduce super pollutants such as methane and black carbon can rapidly slow warming while significantly reducing the global burden of disease linked to air pollution. These health benefits reduce pressures on health systems and improve labour productivity, supporting economic growth.
5 more things to know about 3 hospitals’ $250M case against CVS
Last week hospitals owned by three big health systems filed suit against CVS Health. The trio filed separately, but all accuse the corporation of robbing them of funds they’re owed through the federal 340B drug pricing program.
Monday Health Minutes with Valley Health Systems
You can get health tips from Valley Health Systems every week on First Look at Four.
Precision Medicine’s Next Hurdle Isn’t Science
A new UPMC report found that while most health systems now offer precision medicine programs, many still face challenges scaling them due to reimbursement, data integration and patient engagement issues. Health system leaders say the field’s future depends on embedding genomics into routine care, as well as proving its clinical and financial value.
How integrating tradition and self-care has strengthened public health in the Americas
On 13 May 2026, a regional dialogue for the Americas titled, Innovative Experiences to Strengthen Health and Self-Care through Traditional, Complementary, and Integrative Medicine, was hosted by EsSalud, the government agency responsible for social security and health care in Peru.The event brought together representatives from the World Health Organization (WHO), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), WHO collaborating centres, the health sector and academia. It presented regional perspectives from BrBolivia, Brazil, Mexico and Peru to explore how self-care and traditional medicine can strengthen public health, empower communities and support more inclusive models of care. Across all four countries, a clear message emerged: traditional medicine is not being positioned as an alternative to formal systems, but as a way to strengthen them. In the Americas region, the challenge is to consolidate intercultural and holistic care, with the aim of strengthening the healthcare system – making care more preventive, culturally relevant and community-based.Peru: institutionalizing complementary care over 28 years Dr Martha Villar López from EsSalud Peru demonstrated how integration can be institutionalized over time. With nearly three decades of investment, including a research programme dating back to 1998, traditional medicine is now embedded within public health infrastructure. EsSalud’s flagship programme, Reforma de Vida, operating as Prevenir, takes multidisciplinary teams into workplaces to reduce and detect risk factors for chronic noncommunicable diseases. Education cycles are structured around three pillars: celestial nourishment, focused on life purpose and movement; terrestrial nourishment, centred on regional food and healthy diets; and human nourishment, addressing identity, relationships, stress and spirituality. Grounded in Andean cosmovision and the principle of the ayllu, the programme aligns with local cultural values. Since 2007, it has trained over 6600 health leaders, certified more than 3100 health-friendly organizations and built alliances with nearly 11 000 employers.Bolivia: legal recognition and medical pluralism Adelino Pau Carpacheco, an 82-year-old Callawaya healer, described working with more than 220 medicinal plants, supported by deep generational knowledge. Traditional healers and plant medicine are highly respected in the country. Bolivia’s contribution also highlighted the role of policy in enabling integration. Through Law 459, traditional medicine has been formally recognized within a legal framework and led the country to medical pluralism where traditional medicine coexists with biomedicine, and both are now offered free of charge through the public health system. Mexico: preserving Indigenous knowledge and reinventing food culture Mexico presented two complementary approaches focused on knowledge preservation and food systems. In Veracruz, communities partnered with a university to safeguard Totonac traditional medicine through a diploma programme launched in 2019. This collaboration has already produced practical outputs, including manuals and a dictionary, helping to sustain knowledge at risk due to migration and generational change. Alongside this, Dr Hernán García, Directorate of Traditional Medicine and Intercultural Development – Mexico, explained how the Dieta de la Milpa programme addresses Mexico’s dual burden of malnutrition and rising noncommunicable diseases. Rooted in traditional Mayan cultivation systems and ingredients, it promotes healthier diets through community-led, intercultural approaches involving local authorities, Indigenous leaders and cooks. By reconnecting food, culture and health, it offers a practical pathway to prevention. Brazil: community therapy as a public health tool Brazil’s experience centred on Integrative Community Therapy, a methodology developed over 40 years ago by Dr Adalberto Barreto and now used in more than 47 countries. Therapy circles create spaces where participants share experiences and coping strategies, building social support networks at very low cost. Within Brazil’s Unified Health System, the approach has expanded rapidly since its inclusion in national policy in 2017. By 2025, more than five million integrative practice procedures were delivered annually in primary care, with registrations for this therapy increasing by over 500% in eight years. The main challenge now is equity, with access still concentrated in urban areas such as São Paulo. A shared regional direction against a global backdrop Drawing these experiences together, Dr Natalia Aldana of the TCIM Network of the Americas highlighted the shared outcomes of the interventions discussed. Such approaches strengthen healthy behaviours, social networks and community resilience; they are low-cost, adaptable and enable active participation in care, while showing potential to reduce the burden of noncommunicable diseases.The regional momentum mirrors a broader global shift. Dr João Paulo Souz, Director of BIREME (Latin American and Caribbean Center on Health Sciences Information), the specialized center of PAHO/WHO, emphasized that the Global Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025–2034 promotes a vision centred on people, evidence and integrated use. He noted that health should be understood through the relationships between people, community, nature and spirituality. Self-care interventions as a critical pathway towards universal health coverage Dr Manjulaa Narasimhan, Unit Head for Sexual Health and Well-being across the Life-course at WHO, delivered a presentation titled Advancing Self-Care in Traditional Medicine: Aligning the WHO Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025–2034 with the WHO Self-Care Framework, co-authored by Dr Geetha Krishnan Gopalakrishna Pillai, Unit Head for Research, Data and Innovation at the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre. WHO recommends self-care interventions for every country and economic setting as a critical path to reach universal health coverage – and traditional medicine acts as a bridge for self-care. Dr Narasimhan explained that traditional medicine contributes most effectively to self-care when embedded directly into primary health care, not operating in parallel, siloed systems. This, she stated, “is possibly the only sustainable way to deliver continuity of care that meets the needs, rights and priorities of communities and individuals”. The Global Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025–2034 is a move towards a more people-centred approach to health care that champions holistic approaches to health equity and patient autonomy.The integration of traditional medicine and self-care requires collaboration across disciplines, clear referral pathways, trained health and care workers, and strong leadership that supports integration. The WHO self-care competency framework defines 10 key competencies for health and care workers to support self-care in their clinical practice, supported by the WHO guideline on self-care interventions for health and well-being. These documents help health-care workers safeguard their own well-being and ensure that care is consistent, safe and grounded in shared standards and values.Together, the discussion through this dialogue points to a fundamental shift in how health systems are designed in the region, and globally, towards models that are more inclusive, culturally-grounded and responsive to the needs of the communities they serve. It is a move towards a system where traditional medicine is respected and responsibly integrated, where self-care provides empowerment and evidence-based care, and where health systems are supportive rather than being distant from these systems.Traditional medicine perspectives from Bolivia, Mexico and Peru - WHO's "Restoring Balance" seriesInnovative Experiences to Strengthen Health and Self-Care through Traditional, Complementary, and Integrative Medicine was streamed in Spanish, with Spanish and Portuguese subtitles. Recordings are available through the CABSIN YouTube channel with Portuguese subtitles and on the BVS MTCI Americas YouTube channel with Spanish subtitles. Dr Narasimhan’s session can be watched in English on both channels.
A scoping review of studies on secure messaging through patient portals: persistent challenges and potential solutions
npj Health Systems - A scoping review of studies on secure messaging through patient portals: persistent challenges and potential solutions
World Health Assembly endorses resolution on precision medicine
At the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly, Member States endorsed a new resolution on Precision medicine: a path towards targeted, personalized and equitable care, taking an important step towards advancing precision medicine as part of efforts to strengthen equitable, effective and sustainable health systems. Precision medicine refers to the use of clinical, molecular, genomic and other health data to inform prevention, diagnosis and treatment, taking into account variability while applying appropriate ethical and legal safeguards. When integrated responsibly into health systems, precision approaches can improve outcomes across different disease areas and across the life course – from cancer and rare diseases to infectious diseases, maternal, newborn and child health, mental health and noncommunicable diseases. The resolution reflects rapid advances in genomics, diagnostics, data science and digital health, alongside widening global inequities in access to these innovations. Many populations – particularly in low- and middle-income countries – remain underrepresented in data and research, limiting the public health impact of precision medicine and risking the widening of health disparities if action is not taken now. "Precision medicine is not an aspirational idea for health delivery in the future – it is already transforming lives across the world. But its benefits remain out of reach for too many and the research driving progress is concentrated in high income countries. This WHA resolution gives global health leaders, ministries of health, and WHO a clear mandate: to act. From infant screening to setting up genomic databases WHO will work with countries to bring about the power of these innovations." Dr Meg Doherty, Director Science for HealthThrough the resolution, Member States commit to developing and strengthening national policies, infrastructure, workforce capacity and governance frameworks to support the safe, ethical and equitable integration of precision medicine into health systems, aligned with universal health coverage. This includes promoting affordability, ensuring inclusive research and data systems, strengthening regulation and data governance, and fostering collaboration across sectors and regions.WHO is requested to provide technical and normative support, review and coordinate existing guidance, facilitate global and regional collaboration, and develop a Global Strategy on Precision Medicine to guide equitable and context‑appropriate implementation. WHO stands ready to support Member States through tools such as a country maturity model for countries to self-assess capacity in implementing precision medicine depending on their context. In the immediate term WHO will map all existing guidance and frameworks and host extensive consultations with interest holders globally.By placing equity, inclusion and public value at the centre of precision medicine, the resolution reinforces WHO’s commitment to ensuring that scientific advances benefit all people, everywhere, and that no one is left behind in the next era of health innovation."By uniting people-centered healthcare with innovation, precision medicine has the potential to transform lives. This resolution helps ensure those advances serve the shared goal of health for all." Dr Sylvie Briand, Chief Scientist For further information please visit the Health Topic: Genomics
Epic gains ground as acute care EHR purchasing slows
The recent KLAS U.S. Acute Care EHR Market Share report showed Epic adding hospitals among smaller health systems, and researchers said Oracle's new AI-enabled EHR would be a "pivotal proofpoint."
First Round Of Rural Health Transformation Funds Now Available - West Virginia Public Broadcasting
The state’s nearly $200 million award from the federal government for 2026 aims to strengthen rural health systems statewide.
How one rural health system is designing targeted AI pilots to ease care delivery pressures
Berkshire Health Systems CIO William Young says artificial intelligence must do more than impress people with new features. It has to save time, cut waste, and help a rural health system survive mounting financial and operational strain.
Hospitals are silencing doctors online, and it’s fueling the health misinformation crisis
Hospitals and health systems need to loosen the reins and let physicians combat social media misinformation, writes Adam Goodcoff.
Nurses Are Not A Cost To Health Systems. They Are The Power Holding Them Together.
Recently, I met with African nursing leaders who told me stories of nurses in countries such as Ghana and Nigeria earning the equivalent of only a few hundred
Alcohol is wreaking havoc on U.S. public health. American society looks the other way
The Deadliest Drug, a new investigative series, shows that the alcohol epidemic is a generational failure of the medical and public health systems, of industry, and of government.
PAHO urges countries to expand the role of nursing to strengthen health systems in the Americas
Washington, D.C., May 11, 2026 (PAHO) — For International Nurses Day (May 12), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is calling on countries in the Americas to take decisive action to strengthen and expand the area of advanced practice nursing, which is a key strategy to improve access to health services and build stronger, more people-centered health systems.
Learner spotlight: Vivian’s path to rights based mental health advocacy
For Vivian Anyango Aola, mental health is deeply personal. Growing up she witnessed people around her struggling with emotional distress without access to support, understanding or solutions. Those early experiences laid the foundations for her work today as a mental health advocate at St. Daniel Comboni mission in Nairobi, Kenya.“Mental health is about feelings – something we all experience every day,” Vivian explains. “Ensuring people are supported in those feelings is what drives my work.” Creating safe spaces and challenging stigmaIn her role, Vivian works closely with people living with mental health conditions and psychosocial, intellectual and cognitive disabilities. Through dialogue, listening and shared learning, she helps create safe spaces where people feel seen, heard and respected. However, stigma and discrimination remain significant barriers.“Witnessing stigma only strengthens my resolve to fight for inclusion, acceptance and equal treatment for all,” she says. Vivian enrolled in the WHO ‘QualityRights in Mental Health’ online, self-paced course available on the WHO Academy learning platform to strengthen her knowledge and advocacy skills. The six-module course provides the foundation for challenging stigma and discrimination and for promoting person-centred, rights-based approaches in mental health.“The course gave me a new perspective,” she says. “It showed me how to support people in ways that respect autonomy and promote recovery, rather than focusing only on treatment.”The importance of language and cultureSince its launch, more than 141 000 people have enrolled in the course globally, and it is now available in 17 languages on the learning platform – the highest number of languages of any WHO course. For Vivian, accessibility is key to transforming mental health systems. “Language is a bridge between professionals and communities,” she explains. “When mental health resources are available in local languages, they reduce misunderstanding, build trust and encourage people to seek help. It also empowers health workers to deliver care in ways that are culturally sensitive and relevant.”In a global evaluation of the course, which analysed data from over 3000 learners, attitudes toward people with mental health conditions improved by 22.78% overall after completing the course, with even greater shifts in low- and middle-income countries (29.18%) compared to high-income countries (20.58%)[1].“The course equips participants with the essential knowledge and skills to transform mental health into a more rights-based, inclusive and recovery-oriented system,” explains Vivian. “It reinforces that change is possible. When people understand rights, dignity and recovery, the entire system can begin to shift.”Mental Health, Brain Health and Substance Use[1] Breaking stigma, discrimination and promoting rights: global evaluation of the World Health Organization QualityRights e-training on mental health, recovery and community inclusion
North Memorial plans merger with South Dakota-based Sanford Health
The health systems plan a $600 million investment in Robbinsdale and Maple Grove hospitals.
Sanford Health, North Memorial Health agree to combine
North Memorial Health and Sanford Health have signed an agreement to combine their nonprofit health systems.
World Patient Safety Day 2025 Webinar on Goal 4: Prevent health care-associated infections
Webinar Series on the World Patient Safety Day GoalsSafe care for every newborn and every childPatient safety for newborns and children remains a critical global health priority. Children are particularly vulnerable to preventable harm due to developmental factors, dependency on caregivers, complex medication dosing requirements, diagnostic uncertainty, and increased susceptibility to health care-associated infections.Ensuring safe care for every newborn and every child is therefore essential to improving health outcomes and strengthening quality of care across health systems.The World Patient Safety Day 2025 campaign, under the theme:“Safe care for every newborn and every child: Patient safety from the start!”emphasizes the importance of embedding patient safety principles early in life and across the continuum of maternal, newborn and child health services.The campaign identifies five priority goals, calling for coordinated action by governments, health professionals, professional associations, civil society, and families globally.Webinar 4: “Prevent health care-associated infections”Thursday 7 May 2026, 14.00–15.30 CESTJoin this five-part webinar series on the Patient Safety Goals for safe care for every newborn and every child, featuring global experts and practitioners discussing real-world implementation, challenges, and solutions to reduce avoidable harm.The webinar will address the following topics:• Why infection prevention and control is essential for safe newborn and childcare• How Goal 4 can be implemented in practice at the point of care• What health care workers, leaders, managers, and policymakers can do to Prevent healthcare-associated infections.Registration linkDownload the flyer
Baltic health ministers convene in Vilnius for 20th Baltic Policy Dialogue
Milestone anniversary edition focuses on long-term care investment as ageing populations place growing pressure on health and social systems across the region Vilnius, 6 May 2026 — Health ministers from Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania are meeting in Vilnius today (5-6 May 2026) for the 20th edition of the Baltic Policy Dialogue (BPD), a milestone that marks two decades of structured, evidence-based health policy cooperation across the three Baltic States. Jointly organised by the governments of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies and the WHO Regional Office for Europe, the BPD has since 2004 served as a unique sub-regional platform where senior health decision-makers can candidly exchange experiences, examine comparative evidence, and explore policy options. Founded in the wake of the Baltic EU accession, the BPD series was born from a shared ambition: to open a wider window into health systems across Europe and to build lasting cooperation among countries with common aspirations and shared challenges.
SPONSORED How health systems navigate patient data with Claude
Health systems are sitting on massive amounts of clinical data, but turning that data into timely patient care isn't always easy.
KC's health care gap, by the numbers
A new Commonwealth Fund report finds Kansas dead last and Missouri second to last out of 39 states in how their health systems serve Black residents, with Black babies in Missouri dying before their first birthday at more than twice the rate of white babies.
Mistrust, stigma shape health in Milwaukee's Black community
Health systems have a responsibility to look inward and rebuild trust.
Global webinar – From evidence to essential services: embedding harm reduction in national health systems
Harm reduction services remain underfunded, fragmented, and often outside mainstream health systems, despite being an evidence-based, rights-based, and cost-effective approach, essential for achieving global HIV, hepatitis, and universal health coverage goals. This webinar will present WHO guidance and effective harm reduction approaches and respond to growing demand for practical dialogue on how to translate evidence into scalable national service models.
Global Health & WASH: May 2026 Funding Opportunities (14 new opportunities!)
The May update for Global Health & WASH brings new calls that cluster around three distinct shifts: LMIC research leadership moving from funder encouragement into a hard eligibility constraint, pharmaceutical and corporate-linked funders running structurally independent education and use-inspired research portfolios at substantial scale, and AI adoption shifting decisively from speculative tool to operational capability across health and WASH systems alike. In LMIC Research Leadership as Eligibility, Not Encouragement, Wellcome anchors the dominant signal of the month with three separate major calls that all require or strongly center LMIC leadership in their basic eligibility architecture. Wellcome’s ESIC Hubs (£1.5-£1.9M per hub over 3-5 years) explicitly requires an LMIC-based lead applicant, treating Global South leadership as a design constraint rather than a participation goal. Wellcome’s Infectious Disease Clinical Trial Development Award funds transdisciplinary teams whose lead must be a mid-career or established researcher based at an organization in Africa, South Asia, or Southeast Asia. Wellcome’s larger Infectious Disease Clinical Trial Award (£1M-£8M for optimizing licensed interventions) requires the administering organization to be in eligible LMIC regions and at least 50% of applicants based there. Around Wellcome, the same pattern shows up at smaller scale and across funders: CHINNOVA channels $1M into West and Central African research institutions for climate-health work; IBRO’s Neuroscience Training Grants explicitly tier ceilings by region of residence with Africa receiving the highest amount ($5,000); IHME’s GBD Emerging Researcher Award reserves at least one of its two annual awards for an LMIC researcher; Sidaction’s HIV Cure call funds research teams across France, the Netherlands, and eligible African countries with a minimum two-country collaboration requirement. Taken together, these calls signal a meaningful shift in how research equity is being operationalized — not as encouragement language at the bottom of a call, but as a structural feature of who can lead, where the work must be administered, and what proportion of the team must be regionally rooted. In Pharma-Funded Independent Medical Education and Use-Inspired Research, the lineup this month is unusually deep. Pfizer alone runs four parallel calls under independent education and quality improvement frameworks: a Migraine and Women’s Health RFP (200K x 2-year, $500K pool), Migraine IME ($200K, $1M pool), JAK Inhibitor evidence-based education ($100K), and Maternal Vaccination HCP Education in Saudi Arabia ($75K), plus a separate Pediatric Pneumococcal Surveillance research call in Saudi Arabia ($400K per project). Novo Nordisk Foundation runs four parallel calls of its own at substantial scale: Infectious Diseases Catalyst Grants (DKK 60M pool, up to DKK 7M collaborative), Non-Diabetic Endocrinology Collaborative Grants (DKK 53M pool, DKK 5-10M per project), Pioneer Innovator Grant Health (DKK 1.1M), and Distinguished Innovator Grant Health (DKK 6.8M). LEO Foundation deploys DKK 2-4M per project for dermatology research excellence. Pfizer’s framing across calls deliberately separates the funding from product promotion, emphasizing measurable practice-relevant change and structural distance between scientific outputs and commercial activity. Novo Nordisk’s “use-inspired” hard filter pushes researchers toward a credible translation pathway from mechanism to deployable tool. The pattern: industry-aligned funders are running structurally independent portfolios at meaningful $ that fund implementation evidence, not promotion. In AI as Operational Capability, Not Speculation, several calls this month explicitly treat AI adoption as a near-term operational question with real evidence and governance requirements, rather than a speculative trend to be watched. Wellcome’s ESIC Hubs frames AI as “the accelerator” for evidence synthesis, asking hubs to translate technical innovation into adoption-ready workflows that can match real-world policy timelines. UNICEF Venture Fund’s new Climate Tech for Children’s Health call funds for-profit startups deploying AI, machine learning, and blockchain in low-resource environments, with a strict requirement that solutions must already have a working prototype with promising pilot results. The Water Research Foundation has launched two simultaneous AI calls treating reproducibility, cybersecurity guardrails, and human-in-the-loop deployments as core design constraints rather than nice-to-haves: one on GenAI and Agentic AI in water utilities ($200K), one on alternatives to water shutoffs that explicitly screens for implementation economics evidence. Nordic Innovation’s quantum technology call (NOK 4.5M) extends the same logic into life science and healthcare, demanding consortium-stage projects mature enough to test with real users. TEF-Health offers €300K in subsidized testing infrastructure for European healthcare AI and robotics SMEs. The pattern: funders are converting AI pilots into playbooks, requiring transfer evidence and risk controls before AI can move from experimentation to sector-wide operational practice. For LMIC-based researchers in infectious disease or evidence synthesis, the three Wellcome calls together represent the deepest concentration of LMIC-led research capital in recent memory — pair the Infectious Disease Clinical Trial Development Award (£200K, deadline May 19) as a strategic pipeline feeder into the larger Infectious Disease Clinical Trial Award (£1-£8M, deadline June 2), since the development award functions explicitly as a track into the larger trial scheme. For Nordic researchers, the four Novo Nordisk Foundation calls plus LEO Foundation and Nordic Innovation Quantum represent ~$30M in regional research capital this cycle, all with deadlines clustered in May-August. For WASH practitioners, the three Water Research Foundation calls together (each up to $200K) are a cluster worth reading across — one on AI deployment, one on shutoff alternatives, one rewarding applied innovation — and the strongest applicants will articulate how their work bridges utility operations to policy-relevant evidence. For US-based clinical researchers and educators, the four Pfizer calls plus the APF Portfolio’s 80+ programs form an unusually accessible recurring pipeline; APF’s prohibition on indirect costs is a meaningful structural feature for early-career applicants whose institutions might otherwise absorb significant overhead. Snapshot of New Opportunities Total Estimated Funding Pool: $100 Million+ USD The grants are organized into three categories: Open Calls: Current grant and opportunities with a deadline. Grants are listed by closing date. 39 open opportunities- 14 new! Rolling Applications: current grant and opportunities with rolling applications (but it’s still best to submit as early as possible). 14 rolling opportunities- 1 new opportunity! Long term planning: Grants that have closed their current rounds, but are expected to open new windows. 4 long term opportunities! A quick tip for returning readers: if you want to jump straight to the newest additions, use CTRL F to search for “New!” and navigate quickly to the latest funding opportunities This post is for paid subscribers. This helps support the time and effort it takes to curate and organize these opportunities. Subscribe To keep this accessible to everyone who needs it, we’re happy to offer pay what you can rates. You can find more details here. Open Calls: Migraine Competitive Grant Program: Migraine and Women’s Health (Quality Improvement and/or Research RFP), Pfizer.*Closing soon!* Pfizer, in collaboration with the American Headache Society, is seeking independent quality improvement and research projects that close persistent gaps in migraine care for women across the United States. The funding logic centers on measurable, practice-relevant change: proposals should generate actionable evidence, tools, or system improvements that can be shared and used widely, not just within a single site. Priority areas span menstrual migraine and screening in women’s health settings, the role of hormonal fluctuations across the lifespan, sex-specific risk factors, comorbidities and quality-of-life burden, and disparities in outcomes by race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. The call is structured as a two-step competitive process with an initial Letter of Intent, with the strongest concepts expected to translate scientific insight into implementable improvements in diagnosis, management, and equity. Geographies: United States. Who can apply: U.S.-based organizations (not individuals), including professional schools, healthcare institutions, professional organizations, and other entities focused on healthcare improvement. Funding amount: Up to USD $200,000 total over 2 years; total pool USD $500,000. Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Focus areas: migraine, women’s health, quality improvement, clinical research, menstrual migraine, health disparities. Deadline: LOI: May 5, 2026; Full proposal (by invitation): August 28, 2026. Learn more and apply here. This RFP rewards “shareable impact”: the most competitive submissions will pair rigorous methods with a clear plan for system uptake and dissemination beyond the originating institution. ReSSARC: Strengthening the Health Sector and Food Security in the Central African Republic (AID 013381/01/0) Call for Proposals, Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS). *Closing soon!* AICS is seeking a limited set of high-capacity humanitarian partners to deliver an integrated package that stabilizes essential health services while reducing acute malnutrition and strengthening food security resilience in priority areas of the Central African Republic. The funder’s logic is explicitly nexus-based: proposals should meet urgent, life-saving needs while reinforcing local systems, coordination mechanisms, and community-level capacity so results persist beyond the emergency window. AICS emphasizes inclusion and protection outcomes, expecting gender-sensitive design and explicit measures for groups facing compounded vulnerability, including women, children under five, internally displaced people, and people with disabilities. The call also signals a localization pathway, encouraging stronger collaboration with national NGOs and balanced partnerships, alongside clear coordination with existing cluster and humanitarian actors to minimize duplication and improve coverage. Geographies: Central African Republic (Bangui, Ombella-Mpoko, Ouham, Ouham-Pende, Lim-Pende, Lobaye). Who can apply: Non-profit organizations registered with AICS, plus eligible non-profits without an office in Italy that have a pre-existing collaboration agreement with an AICS-listed organization. Funding amount: Total pool EUR €1,800,000; max EUR €800,000 (single applicant) or EUR €1,000,000 (ATS). Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Focus areas: malnutrition prevention and treatment, maternal and child health, community health services, food security and resilience, localization partnerships Deadline: May 5, 2026. Learn more and apply here. This call is structured to reward partners who can link frontline service delivery to system durability and localization, not just short-term coverage gains. Contracts for Innovation in drug and alcohol addiction healthcare, Innovate UK. *Closing soon!* Innovate UK, on behalf of the Office for Life Sciences Addiction Healthcare Goals program, is procuring R&D to accelerate innovations that can improve treatment outcomes, strengthen recovery, and reduce harm and deaths linked to drug and alcohol addiction. The competition is positioned as a market-facing readiness push: selected projects are expected to advance solutions toward later-stage validation, generate evidence of user acceptability and UK market fit, and map credible routes through regulatory and certification requirements. Innovate UK signals a preference for innovations that can be field-tested in relevant UK settings and progressed to TRL 6 or 7, with practical plans for commercialization after contract completion. This structure favors applicants that can execute most work in-house, co-develop with service providers and people with lived experience, and translate technical progress into deployable tools for addiction healthcare delivery. Geographies: United Kingdom. Who can apply: Single organizations of any size (including EU, EEA, or international) leading delivery, with most work and key deliverables carried out in the UK; subcontractors for specialist skills only. Funding amount: GBP £200,000–1.5 million per project (inclusive of VAT); Total pool: GBP £20 million (across two strands). Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Focus areas: Mental Health, Health Systems Strengthening, Research & Development, Technology Access. Deadline: May 6, 2026 (11:00am). Learn more and apply here. This call uses procurement to pull near-market addiction innovations toward operational proof and adoption pathways in UK services.
Atrium Health looking to scoop up smaller nonprofit health system in $2B deal
WakeMed, a three-hospital system in the North Carolina capital region of Raleigh, would become part of Advocate Health, Atrium’s parent company, if the deal goes through. Advocate is one of the largest not-for-profit health systems in the U.S.
Nine Key Moments: Hearing with Health System CEOs
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Governor Reeves Announces Investment in Mississippi’s Youth Mental Health Services
Governor Tate Reeves today announced the state of Mississippi is deploying $13,464,444 to support mental health systems for Mississippi children, youth and students.
AHA and West Health launch national accelerator to scale technology-enabled patient care solutions
The AHA and the West Health Institute April 29 announced a new three-year initiative to help hospitals and health systems operationalize and scale proven technologies across care environments to improve patient outcomes and support care teams.
Adoption medicine clinics give children a healthy start
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Minnesota among top health systems, yet racial gaps remain stark
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Australia becomes the 30th country to eliminate trachoma as a public health problem
The World Health Organization (WHO) has validated Australia for eliminating trachoma as a public health problem, marking a significant milestone in the health of indigenous peoples and in global efforts to combat neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). Trachoma, the world’s leading infectious cause of blindness, no longer represents a public health problem in the country.Australia is among a growing number of countries that have successfully eliminated trachoma, contributing to global progress towards the targets set out in the WHO road map for NTDs 2021–2030.Trachoma is caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis and spreads through close contact with infected individuals, contaminated surfaces, and flies that carry eye and nose discharge. Repeated infections can lead to scarring of the eyelids, turning eyelashes inward, and ultimately causing blindness if untreated.“WHO congratulates Australia on this important achievement,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “This success reflects sustained commitment, strong partnerships, and a focus on reaching populations most affected by health inequities. It brings us closer to a world free from the suffering caused by trachoma.”Australia’s journey to eliminationAustralia’s achievement reflects decades of targeted public health action, particularly in remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, where trachoma persisted despite its earlier disappearance from the rest of the country.National efforts intensified with the establishment of the National Trachoma Management Programme in 2006, which implemented the WHO-recommended SAFE strategy: surgery for trichiasis, antibiotics to treat infection, promotion of facial cleanliness, and environmental improvement. Regular screening of all communities classified as at-risk of trachoma by teams of qualified health workers formed an important part of the Programme. Interventions were delivered through coordinated partnerships between federal and state governments, Aboriginal community-controlled health services, and local communities.Over time, sustained screening, treatment, and prevention activities, including improvements in housing, water, sanitation and hygiene, led to a steady decline in trachoma prevalence. Australia’s approach included adaptations to reflect its context, such as targeted treatment based on community-level data rather than mass drug administration, and strong integration with environmental health programmes.“Elimination of trachoma is a win for the eye health of communities across Australia, particularly those whose lives have been impacted by a disease that is entirely preventable,” said Mark Butler, Minister for Health and Ageing, Australia. “This major milestone is thanks to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership, community commitment and sustained investment over many decades.“The lessons from this work will inform how we approach other preventable health conditions in remote and regional Australia. Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations and local health workers have been central to this success, delivering culturally safe care and community-led solutions.”“This recognition from the World Health Organization reflects decades of work led by Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations, alongside local health workers in remote First Nations communities,” said Malarndirri McCarthy, Minister for Indigenous Australians. “Their work has been critical to eliminating trachoma as a public health problem in Australia.”Advancing global efforts against neglected tropical diseases (NTDs)Trachoma is one of 21 diseases and disease groups that are regarded by WHO as NTDs. Together, NTDs affect more than 1 billion people worldwide, primarily in underserved populations with limited access to essential services such as clean water, sanitation, and health care.Australia’s elimination of trachoma as a public health problem highlights the importance of sustained political commitment and cross-sectoral collaboration in addressing the underlying determinants of health. It also underscores the feasibility of eliminating trachoma even in geographically challenging settings.In addition to trachoma, Australia has several endemic NTDs, including Buruli ulcer, leprosy and scabies. Validation of elimination of trachoma as a public health problem marks the first time that WHO has confirmed the elimination of an NTD in Australia, which becomes the 63rd country globally and 16th in the Western Pacific Region to have eliminated at least one NTD.“Tackling neglected tropical diseases in the Western Pacific Region has long been a challenge for countries across the socioeconomic spectrum, given the complexities in reaching the most vulnerable communities, including in remote areas,” said Dr Saia Ma’u Piukala, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific. “As a doctor from Tonga, I’ve experienced these challenges for myself. But I also know that with strategic commitment underpinned by optimal resources and partnerships in health, success is possible as other countries in our region have also demonstrated. I commend Australia on eliminating trachoma as a public health problem and urge all involved to remain vigilant to ensure this status is maintained.”WHO continues to support countries working to eliminate trachoma and other NTDs, ensuring that progress reaches those most in need and that gains are sustained through strong surveillance, appropriately integrated into national health systems, and mainstreamed within the wider health sector and beyond.Editor’s notesNeglected tropical diseases and trachoma elimination effortsNeglected tropical diseases are associated with devastating health, social and economic consequences. Their burden is mainly felt among impoverished communities in tropical areas.Public health targets for the control, elimination and eradication of these conditions were set in the road map for neglected tropical diseases 2021–2030 (https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240010352).In 1996, WHO launched the WHO Alliance for the Global Elimination of Trachoma by 2020 (GET2020), creating a network of governments, non-governmental organizations and academic institutions dedicated to the fight against trachoma. WHO continues to support endemic countries to accelerate progress towards the global target of eliminating trachoma as a public health problem worldwide; 2030 is the new target date.Elimination of trachoma as a public health problem is defined as: (i) a prevalence of trachomatous trichiasis (TT) “unknown to the health system” of < 0.2% in ≥15-year-olds; and (ii) a prevalence of trachomatous inflammation—follicular (TF) in children aged 1–9 years of < 5%, in each formerly endemic district, plus (iii) the existence of a system to identify and manage incident cases of TT.Other countries validated by WHO as having eliminated trachoma as a public health problem are: Algeria, Benin, Burundi, Cambodia, China, Egypt, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, India, Iraq, Islamic Republic of Iran, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Libya, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mexico, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Togo, Vanuatu and Viet Nam.
Global health PhD grad gains perspective through real-world health care experience
Instead of relying solely on the classroom to learn about global health systems, Adrienne Madhavpeddi took a different route during her time in graduate school, working with multiple organizations to gain real-world experience in the health care field.Originally from Red Deer, Alberta, Canada, Madhavpeddi will be graduating from Arizona State University’s School of Human Evolution and Social Change with her PhD in global health this May.
Turn ambulatory care into a health system growth engine
Learn how health systems can use ambulatory governance, transparency and accountability to protect margin and drive sustainable growth.
Healing Divides in the Eastern Mediterranean: How Health Systems Can Become Bridges to Peace in Conflict Zones
Health systems, if deliberately designed, can help rebuild trust in societies fractured by war in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Health insurance and end-of-life healthcare expenditures: evidence from Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey
npj Health Systems - Health insurance and end-of-life healthcare expenditures: evidence from Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey
Michigan Health System Reports Reduced Caregiver Strain Through Toolkit Pilot - MHA | Michigan Health & Hospital Association
The MHA Keystone Center, in partnership with the Michigan Health Endowment Fund, released findings from a two-year pilot implementing the Michigan Caregiver Navigation Toolkit in acute care settings. Results show reductions in caregiver strain and stronger caregiver support infrastructure across two Michigan health systems. Both organizations implemented the toolkit and…
U.S. Forging a Healthier Oceania Through Trump Administration's America First Global Health Strategy Through Bilateral Health Memorandum of Understanding with Papua New Guinea - U.S. Embassy & Consulates in China
United States Forging a Healthier Oceania Through Trump Administration’s America First Global Health Strategy Through Bilateral Health Memorandum of Understanding with Papua New Guinea Press Statement Thomas “Tommy” Pigott, Principal Deputy Spokesperson April 23, 2026 Yesterday the United States and Papua New Guinea signed a five-year bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) through the Trump Administration’s America First Global Health Strategy. The landmark health MOU focuses on effectively addressing emerging infectious diseases and ongoing outbreaks, building and maintaining surge-response capacities, and enabling Papua New Guinea’s government to independently manage new health threats before they spread internationally. Working with Congress, the United States intends to provide $15 million through December 2030 through the jointly decided health MOU, building on decades of progress in reducing HIV infections and transmissions in Papua New Guinea. The government of Papua New Guinea intends to allocate up to $3 million to disease control programs and strengthen health systems at the national and provincial levels. Up to $5 million under the health MOU will directly support global health security funding, advancing our shared commitment to health security in the region. Through the signing of this $18 million MOU, we are bolstering infectious disease prevention and response by leveraging cost-effective, nationally-driven approaches, with the goal of increasing Papua New Guinea’s health system self-sufficiency. America First Global Health Strategy Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) signed so far represent more than $20.6 billion in new health funding, including more than $12.8 billion in U.S. assistance alongside $7.8 billion in co-investment from recipient countries, building on decades of progress fighting HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases around the world. As of April 22, the State Department has signed 32 bilateral global health MOUs with Angola, Bolivia, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Panama, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tajikistan, and Uganda.
Innovators apply AI solutions to health systems problems at global hackathon | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
More than 12,000 people across the globe recently participated in the Health Systems Innovation Lab's Hackathon.
Are Health Insurance Companies the Reason for Our Health System’s Ills?
In this JAMA Health Forum column, KFF's Larry Levitt examines the criticism that health insurance companies are facing from political leaders, and explores the industry's role in both causing and addressing some of the health systems' biggest problems, including rising costs and prior authorization review.
AJPH Supplement Spotlighting Special Olympics Health Programming Demonstrates How Inclusive Public Health Spaces Improve the Health of People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
Implementing strategies to improve health outcomes in all communities requires public health spaces to include people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) at the table when it comes to policy, funding and research decisions. As one of the largest organizations providing inclusive health programs for, and collecting health data on, people with IDD, Special Olympics provides a roadmap, in a new AJPH supplement, for public health practitioners to follow to address the profound health needs of people with IDD. The supplement, titled “Achieving Health Equity for People with Intellectual Developmental Disabilities: Making an Elusive Goal A Reality,” outlines the urgent need for inclusive health systems and equipping health care workers.
Revitalizing Primary Care: Health Plan of San Mateo’s Investment Strategy
Abstract Health systems that invest in primary care have better and more equitable health outcomes. Yet primary care faces a crisis (characterized by
From Clemson to global impact: Transforming military health systems
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Rep. Blake Moore discusses health care affordability
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A ‘burgeoning black market’, inflated dosing and the over-judicialization of health care: reporters around the world tell stories about Keytruda
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Leveraging medical device reprocessing to reduce healthcare’s carbon footprint
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U.S. Delivers Maternal Health Equipment Across Madagascar - U.S. Embassy in Madagascar
U.S. Delivers Maternal Health Equipment Across Madagascar U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Stephanie Arnold today provided critical maternal and newborn health equipment that will reach healthcare facilities across Madagascar, demonstrating how U.S. foreign assistance builds a safer, healthier world by helping recipient countries build self-reliant health systems in line with the America First Global Health Strategy. Under President Trump’s America First foreign assistance policy and the America First Global Health Policy, U.S. support serves as a tool of strategic engagement – not global charity. Every U.S. taxpayer dollar is subject to rigorous oversight to ensure measurable results, maximum efficiency, and accountability, with zero tolerance for fraud, waste, or abuse. Through the bilateral Global Health Memorandum of Understanding with Madagascar’s Ministry of Public Health, both governments agreed on shared priorities and responsibilities, including a strong focus on maternal and newborn health and Madagascar’s increasing co-investment in its own health system. Madagascar continues to face major challenges in maternal and newborn health, including high maternal mortality rates and significant gaps in access to quality delivery care. In rural regions, many women still give birth at home or in facilities without adequate infection-prevention supplies. Through the U.S.-funded Momentum Country and Global Leadership Project, the United States is providing essential equipment to healthcare facilities nationwide: calibrated reusable drapes for infection prevention in approximately 1,000 community health centers (CSBs), single-use calibrated drapes for 35 hospitals, and management tools for health workers to improve data collection and care coordination. “U.S. foreign assistance makes America safer by preventing instability and strengthening health systems that can detect and contain infectious diseases before they cross borders,” said Chargé d’Affaires Arnold during the handover ceremony. “Our support is temporary and targeted, designed to help Madagascar build greater self-reliance and reduce long-term dependence on U.S. taxpayer resources.” This U.S. support will help standardize safe delivery practices, strengthen infection prevention, and improve data management systems. Used effectively, these materials will contribute directly to reducing maternal and newborn deaths, especially in rural and hard-to-reach areas where access to quality delivery care remains limited. From major hospitals to remote health centers, U.S.-funded equipment is already delivering results. The nationwide scope of this support ensures that women and newborns across Madagascar benefit from improved infection prevention and safer delivery practices. This targeted assistance helps save lives today while supporting Madagascar’s transition toward a self-sufficient health system, ensuring that today’s U.S. support leads to Madagascar’s future independence from foreign assistance.
Pa. receives $193 million from Rural Health Transformation Program, but rural health leaders remain wary of shortfalls
Pennsylvania received $193 million this year from the Rural Health Transformation Program, which will inject $50 billion over five years to the states. But the state’s rural health leaders worry that the money won’t be enough to fill the financial gaps rural health systems already face and the ones to come with Medicaid changes slated to start in 2027.
State Policies Can Help Address the Mental Health Care Workforce Shortages
Hospitals and health systems are a critical point of intervention for individuals experiencing suicidal thoughts and behaviors. In just five years, the share of emergency department visits because of suicide attempts or intentional self-harm more than tripled—climbing from 0.6% in 2015 to over 2% in 2020.
United States and Madagascar Discuss Five-Year Health MOU Implementation Plan - U.S. Embassy in Madagascar
United States and Madagascar Discuss Five-Year Health MOU Implementation Plan The United States and Madagascar’s Ministry of Public Health are in the process of developing a plan for implementing the U.S.-Madagascar five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on health cooperation, signed under the Trump Administration’s America First Global Health Strategy. The two-day workshop, at the U.S. Embassy in Antananarivo, brought together technical experts and senior leadership from the Malagasy and U.S. governments to discuss a shared vision through a preliminary draft MOU Implementation Plan and to establish the joint governance structures that will guide U.S. foreign assistance in health over the next five years. The jointly decided bilateral health MOU, signed on December 22, 2025, builds on decades of U.S. global health assistance to Madagascar. The health MOU involves the U.S.’s plans, working with Congress, to provide approximately $134 million (over 554 billion Ariary) and a Malagasy commitment of $41 million (over 169 billion Ariary). It aims to strengthen Madagascar’s health system, improve disease prevention and response, and support services that address health security concerns for both countries, including malaria, maternal and child health, polio, and global health security issues that could reach U.S. shores if not contained at their source. During the recent workshop, technical staff from the Ministry of Public Health and the U.S. Government health team worked in thematic groups to draft detailed implementation plans for the five-year MOU period. On the second day, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Stephanie Arnold and Ministry of Public Health and Economic and Finance Ministry leadership joined the technical teams to discuss plans and proposed terms of reference for two committees: a Joint Steering Committee and an Operational Committee. These structures will ensure clear roles and responsibilities, regular dialogue between the two governments, consistent monitoring of progress, and accountability for results. The framework includes performance benchmarks that will guide continued U.S. support and track Madagascar’s progress toward self-reliance. “We see this not as a U.S. project, but as a joint framework under Malagasy leadership, with U.S. support,” said U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Stephanie Arnold during the workshop’s opening session. The approach reflects U.S. foreign assistance principles that emphasize strategic, results-driven support that advances American interests while helping recipient countries build sustainable health systems. The framework is designed to build systems that Madagascar will increasingly finance and lead itself, reducing long-term dependence on foreign assistance.
Health Systems Supporting Local Healthy Housing Goals
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Sanford Health leaders to discuss AI, digital innovation
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A decade in, the Baton Rouge Health District plans its next 10 years
For the past decade, Baton Rouge’s largest health systems, hospitals and research institutions have been engaged in an exercise that may seem counterintuitive on its face. In an industry defined by competition—for patients, for employees and for research dollars—the city’s health care leaders are attempting to prove that collaboration can be just as powerful. The […]
Working at the Grassroots Level: A Qualitative Exploration of Frontline Health Workers’ Experiences in Tribal Maternal and Reproductive Health Services
Background Frontline health workers play a crucial role in bridging gaps between health systems and marginalized communities. However, there is limited evidence of their experiences within tr...
Why Cleveland Clinic Chose This AI Startup To Rewire Key Healthcare Operations
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Former Geisinger CEO: U.S. health systems must replace huge numbers of people with AI
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Pittsburgh health systems plan for increased care needs during NFL Draft
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Qualified Health Raises $125M Series B to Meet Growing Demand for Enterprise AI Transformation Across Health Systems
Leading health systems including Mercy, Emory Healthcare, University of Rochester Medicine, Jefferson Health, and the University of Texas System are partnering with Qualified Health to deploy and scale AI safely across the enterprise. Palo Alto, California – March 25, 2026 — Qualified Health, a public benefit corporation providing a secure enterprise AI platform built for health […]
How Are Health Systems Assessing ROI for AI Tools?
Michael Meucci, CEO of health data platform Arcadia, thinks health systems are changing their thinking about ROI when it comes to AI projects. As providers face tighter budgets, he said they’re broadening how they measure AI’s ROI, including benefits like reducing clinician burnout.
Becker's Hospital Review lists 22 strong health systems, St. Elizabeth is only Kentucky hospital included
Staff report Becker’s Hospital Review has listed 22 health systems with strong operational metrics and solid financial positions, according to reports from credit rating agencies, Fitch Ratings and Moody’s Investors Service released in 2026. Included in the list is St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Edgewood which has an “AA” rating and stable outlook with Fitch....
Article highlights role of hospitals in advancing women’s health
An article in the current edition of AHA Trustee Insights highlights how health care professionals across America’s hospitals and health systems — physicians, nurses and other caregivers, as well as administrators and trustees — are enhancing the way care is delivered to women, which can lead to a win-win scenario for patients, communities and hospitals.
One or Two Health Systems Controlled the Entire Market for Inpatient Hospital Care in Nearly Half of Metropolitan Areas in 2024
This analysis examines the competitiveness of markets for hospital care and finds that nearly half of metropolitan areas across the country had only one or two hospitals or health systems providing general inpatient hospital care in 2024.
Social workers accompanying Hemet police officers for mental health calls
Hemet police partnered with the Riverside University Health Systems to have licensed social workers and detectives respond to mental health calls.
Biotech Company Tivic Health Aims to Advance Immunotherapy Research Programs
Tivic Health Systems is developing immune‑modulating therapies for conditions, such as radiation exposure, while expanding biologics development and manufacturing capabilities.
Qualified Health locks in $125M in fresh funding to scale enterprise AI at health systems
Qualified Health, a startup that works with health systems to evaluate and adopt artificial intelligence technology, raised $125 million in fresh funding to scale up its business. | Qualified Health, a startup that works with health systems to evaluate and adopt artificial intelligence technology, raised $125 million in fresh funding to scale up its business.
Qualified Health raises $125 million, as it helps more health systems build and manage AI tools
Qualified Health, which helps health systems build and manage artificial intelligence tools, has raised $125 million.
Investigating how women living at the margins of formal health systems
Scholar-Elect Sara Jane Renfroe talks about her work on gender rights and access to healthcare for marginalised groups ahead of her PhD in Social Anthropology.
Segment: Financing Action on Extreme Heat and Maternal and Newborn Health: The Way Forward
The segment “Financing Action on Extreme Heat and Maternal and Newborn Health: The Way Forward” will examine how innovative and better-aligned financing approaches can respond to these growing risks. Discussions will highlight country experiences in mobilizing domestic resources, opportunities to unlock and scale climate finance, and the role of heat-smart innovations in building resilient health systems. Particular attention will be given to low- and middle-income countries, where exposure and vulnerability remain highest, and where integrated solutions can deliver the greatest impact.
Allina-Sutter deal will likely boost AI in Minnesota health care
Contractor who tests accuracy of AI tools used by both health systems said they are liked-minded in their ambitions to improve care through technology.
Prediabetes Detection: A Critical Lever for Health Systems
Dr Aman Chawla explains why prediabetes detection is a strategic lever for health systems aiming to improve quality and lower total cost of care.
Georgia's Union City will get a medical center affiliated with Grady Health Systems
Grady is partnering with the Fulton-DeKalb Hospital Authority to add a more than $1 billion hospital facility to Union City
Survey Findings: Integrating Sexual and Reproductive Health into UHC Requires Leadership, Financing, and Political Will
SRHR remains critically underfunded, leaving 164M women with unmet needs and driving preventable maternal deaths. Global survey findings show political commitment is the key driver of financing and integration into UHC. While fiscal constraints persist, leadership determines whether resources are prioritized, enabling equitable access and strengthening health systems.
Allina Health agrees to Sutter acquisition
Following the merger, they will be one of the largest health systems in the U.S.
Allina Health to be acquired by California-based Sutter Health
Allina Health, one of the largest health care providers in Minnesota, is being bought out by California-based Sutter Health, the health systems announced on Tuesday.
Allina Health to Join Sutter Health, Creating Bold Vision for Nonprofit Healthcare
United by a shared mission, trusted nonprofit health systems have a unique opportunity to advance innovations that strengthen quality and extend care to more patients NORTHERN CALIF. and MINNEAPOLIS — Sutter Health and Allina Health have signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) for Allina Health to join the California-based system, which would create a combined […]
Former state health commissioner appointed to role supporting Minnesota hospitals
Former Minnesota Department of Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm will collaborate with leaders from hospitals and health systems across the state to tackle financial challenges to support hospitals and ensure access to care statewide.
This unified approach helps put effective healthcare AI into practice
Health systems can transition from small-scale artificial intelligence pilots to high-speed, validated rollouts that meaningfully improve patient outcomes by maintaining three key guardrails, according to presenters at HIMSS26.
How Foreign-Trained Health Workers Saved the NHS £14 Billion
This blog is part of a series focused on the UK’s recruitment of foreign-trained health workers. This first blog details the amount of money the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) has saved by recruiting foreign-trained health workers. The second blog examines whether this saving is offset by foreign aid contributions to health systems strengthening (HSS) and human resources for health (HRH) in countries of origin.