Essentials of Global Health
- 2nd Edition - August 10, 2026
- Latest edition
- Editors: Babulal Sethia, Parveen Kumar, Anandita Pattnaik, Dominik Zenner
- Language: English
Essentials of Global Health offers medical students and doctors an insight into the Global Health world. Ahead of its time when first published, Essentials of Global Health an… Read more
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Description
Description
Essentials of Global Health offers medical students and doctors an insight into the Global Health world. Ahead of its time when first published, Essentials of Global Health anticipated a shift that has now become mainstream. The first edition was originally authored by medical students and junior doctors. It is now updated by leading experts in the field. With global health embedded in medical school curricula worldwide, this new edition offers a timely, accessible introduction to a field that is as wide‑ranging as it is essential.
This unique text covers the core concepts of global health— from epidemiology, disease burden, and global surgery to social determinants, health systems, and policy—breaking them into succinct, easy-to-understand chapters. This helps you build a clear framework for analysing health inequities, evaluating interventions, and translating evidence into compassionate care. Each chapter ends with references which elaborate further on the topic, making this title a great first introduction to Global Health.
This unique text covers the core concepts of global health— from epidemiology, disease burden, and global surgery to social determinants, health systems, and policy—breaking them into succinct, easy-to-understand chapters. This helps you build a clear framework for analysing health inequities, evaluating interventions, and translating evidence into compassionate care. Each chapter ends with references which elaborate further on the topic, making this title a great first introduction to Global Health.
Key features
Key features
- Features concise text, practical diagrams, and key points boxes that help you understand important issues and apply what you’ve learned
- Covers key topics such as must-know global health organisations; politics, economics, and education; law, ethics, and human rights; specific global health challenges such as neglected tropical diseases, ageing and dying, mental health, dental health, and violence and injury; planetary health issues such as natural disasters, urbanization, and pollution; and much more
- Includes new chapters on global surgery, artificial intelligence, pandemics, and planetary health
- Contains new content on climate change and biodiversity loss, as well as food, agriculture, and food systems transitions
- An eBook version is included with purchase. The eBook allows you to access all of the text, figures, and references, with the ability to search, make notes and highlights, and have content read aloud
Readership
Readership
Postgraduate medical students, medical students, nursing students
Table of contents
Table of contents
SECTION 1 What is Global Health?
1.1 A History of Global Health
1.2 Key Concepts in Global Health
1.3 The Global Burden of Disease
1.4 Determinants of Health
1.5 Evaluation of Health Care
SECTION 2 Health Care Provision
2.1 Health Systems
2.2 Health Sectors
2.3 Universal Health Coverage
2.4 Access to Medicines
2.5 The Health Workforce
SECTION 3 Global Health Actors
3.1 The United Nations and the World Health Organization
3.2 International Organisations
3.3 National Governments
3.4 Nongovernmental Organisations and Social Movements
3.5 Building Equitable Partnerships
SECTION 4 Politics, Economics and Education
4.1 Poverty, Social Inequality and Health
4.2 Trade and Health
4.3 Health and Industry
4.4 The Pharmaceutical Industry
4.5 Health Policy and Research
4.6 Education and Health
SECTION 5 Law, Ethics and Human Rights
5.1 Human Rights and Health
5.2 Law and Health
5.3 Access to Health Care for Vulnerable Groups
5.4 Ethics and Health
5.5 Social Theories and Health
5.6 Culture, Religion, Ethnicity and Health
5.7 Artificial Intelligence and Global Health
SECTION 6 Specific Global Health Challenges
6.1 Communicable Diseases
6.2 Neglected Tropical Diseases
6.3 Noncommunicable Diseases
6.4 Ageing and Dying
6.5 Mental Health
6.6 Global Surgery
6.7 Maternal Health
6.8 Child Health
6.9 Violence and Injury
6.10 Conflict and Health
SECTION 7 Planetary Health
7.1 Climate Change and Health
7.2 Disaster Response
7.3 Food Systems and Planetary Health Crisis
7.4 Built Environment
7.5 Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
7.6 Air Pollution and Global Health
7.7 Pandemics
1.1 A History of Global Health
1.2 Key Concepts in Global Health
1.3 The Global Burden of Disease
1.4 Determinants of Health
1.5 Evaluation of Health Care
SECTION 2 Health Care Provision
2.1 Health Systems
2.2 Health Sectors
2.3 Universal Health Coverage
2.4 Access to Medicines
2.5 The Health Workforce
SECTION 3 Global Health Actors
3.1 The United Nations and the World Health Organization
3.2 International Organisations
3.3 National Governments
3.4 Nongovernmental Organisations and Social Movements
3.5 Building Equitable Partnerships
SECTION 4 Politics, Economics and Education
4.1 Poverty, Social Inequality and Health
4.2 Trade and Health
4.3 Health and Industry
4.4 The Pharmaceutical Industry
4.5 Health Policy and Research
4.6 Education and Health
SECTION 5 Law, Ethics and Human Rights
5.1 Human Rights and Health
5.2 Law and Health
5.3 Access to Health Care for Vulnerable Groups
5.4 Ethics and Health
5.5 Social Theories and Health
5.6 Culture, Religion, Ethnicity and Health
5.7 Artificial Intelligence and Global Health
SECTION 6 Specific Global Health Challenges
6.1 Communicable Diseases
6.2 Neglected Tropical Diseases
6.3 Noncommunicable Diseases
6.4 Ageing and Dying
6.5 Mental Health
6.6 Global Surgery
6.7 Maternal Health
6.8 Child Health
6.9 Violence and Injury
6.10 Conflict and Health
SECTION 7 Planetary Health
7.1 Climate Change and Health
7.2 Disaster Response
7.3 Food Systems and Planetary Health Crisis
7.4 Built Environment
7.5 Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
7.6 Air Pollution and Global Health
7.7 Pandemics
Product details
Product details
- Edition: 2
- Latest edition
- Published: October 30, 2026
- Language: English
About the editors
About the editors
BS
Babulal Sethia
Affiliations and expertise
Consultant Cardiac Surgeon, Royal Brompton Hospital and Harefield NHS Trust; Past-President and Global Health Lead of The Royal Society of Medicine, London, UKPK
Parveen Kumar
Affiliations and expertise
Professor of Medicine and Education, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary, University of London, and Honorary Consultant Physician and Gastroenterologist, Barts Health NHS Trust and Homerton Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, UKAP
Anandita Pattnaik
Affiliations and expertise
The Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change, Institute of Global Health, UCL, UKDZ
Dominik Zenner
Affiliations and expertise
Clinical Reader in Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University London, UK