Globalization: Challenges and Opportunities in the Field of Health and Public Health

The issue of Public Health, more than ever before, has acquired pan-global proportions - due to market force economics, rapid advances in technology and communications and growing trans-national migration. Consequently, the epidemiology of infectious diseases has considerably changed and the burden of non-communicable diseases is increasing and spreading globally. A clear shift in disease patterns is also seen. In addition, the rapid process of globalization has created glaring gaps between the rich and the poor, both within and between countries, affecting health care too. All these factors are altering health and the health care systems, which are undergoing rapid changes creating many health-related problems for both health providers as well as consumers. The increasing role of the Private Health Sector is also visible but resulting in fewer health promotion and preventive services.