The Politics of Global Health Data (with Sara Davis)

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought questions around global healthcare financing and equitable access to treatments to the fore. But this is not the first time a spotlight has been thrown on the thorny issue of fair resource allocation in efforts to tackle global health issues. In her book, “The Uncounted: Politics of Data in Global Health” (Cambridge University Press), Dr Sara Davis considers how human rights issues can affect the data which underlie global healthcare funding. She looks closely at the indicators which drive resource allocation, the metrics used to measure success in tackling health issues, and the people whose experiences healthcare data often fails to capture. Ultimately, in a world of finite resources, this data plays an important role in determining who is more likely to live or die. Interview with: Sara Davis (Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva) Host: Natasha Holcroft-Emmess Producer/Editor: Christy Callaway-Gale Executive Producer: Kira Allmann Music: Rosemary Allmann