Reclaiming
comprehensive
public health

A CALL TO ACTION for equitable and effective covid-19 responses

JOIN THE CALL TO ACTION

The Call to Reclaim Comprehensive Public Health responds to concerns and missed opportunities in pandemic responses. It calls on heads of state and government, and others involved in shaping the response to COVID-19, to adopt a set of ten principles and approaches to provide inclusive, just, equitable and effective public health approaches in countering COVID-19 and future pandemics.

relcaiming comprehensive public health: a 10-point call to action

As the world has responded to the COVID-19, it has revealed long-standing tensions between biosecurity- and biomedical-focused approaches to public health and those that address social determinants, facilitate participation and protect human rights. This call responds to a concern that certain pandemic responses in countries and at global level have failed to prioritise knowledge, equity and rights, and to learning from the positive impacts of proactive, co-operative, participatory, rights-based and evidence-informed public health responses.

In response, some members of the Reclaiming Comprehensive Public Health Group published a commentary in the BMJ Global Health outlining these concerns and positive experiences and calling for ‘a comprehensive, social determinant, participatory and justice-driven public health, in different regions and countries and globally'. The Reclaiming Comprehensive Public Health Group subsequently convened people from a range of countries, sectors, constituencies and disciplines involved in public health to prepare a Call to Action on heads of state and government and others involved in shaping the response to COVID-19.

We invite all involved in health and pandemic responses to read the Call, and if you support the principles, to sign it (personally and/or institutionally) and engage others. For any questions, please email RCPHcall@gmail.com.

The Call sets out 10 essential principles for a comprehensive approach to countering current and future pandemics.  These key points are outlined below, or follow the link to access the full text of the relevant clause.  The Call can also be viewed in a variety of languages on this page.

Show your support by adding your name to the list of public signatories or signing on behalf of your organisation. Below is the list of signatures from the public since the publication of the call. For any questions, please email RCPHcall@gmail.com.

JOIN THE CALL TO ACTION
Individual signatories

Sara E Fischer

MPH, Georgetown University
USA

Prof Laurence Gruer OBE

Honorary Professor of Public Health, Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh
UK

Dr Renzo Guinto

Chief Planetary Doctor, PH Lab
Philippines

Ms Medhavi Gupta

PhD Candidate at The George Institute for Global Health
Australia

Prof Amy Hagopian

University of Washington School of Public Health, Seattle
USA

Dr Patrick Harris

UNSW Centre for Health Equity Training, Research & Evaluation (CHETRE)
Australia

Prof Hans Morten Haugen

Faculty of Theology, Diakonia and Leadership, VID Specialised University
Norway

Prof Sarah Hawkes

Professor of Global Public Health, Professor of Global Public Health, UCL
UK

Mario Esteban Hernández-Álvarez

Doctor en Historia, Departamento de Salud Pública, Universidad Nacional de Colombia.
Colombia

Dr Joseph Hicks

Nuffield Centre for International Health and Development, University of Leeds
UK

Mr Nick Hooton

Research Uptake Advisor (Independent)
UK

Muhammad Riaz Hossain

Assistant Project Coordinator, BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health, BRAC University
Bangladesh

Laurent Huber

Executive Director, Action on Smoking and Health
USA

Assc Professor Natasha Howard

NUS School of Public Health and LSHTM
Singapore

Dr Siobhan Hugh-Jones

Associate Professor in Mental Health Psychology, University of Leeds
UK

Dr Izzeldin Hussein, PhD

Iodine Global Network

Prof Adnan A. Hyder

Senior Associate Dean for Research; Director, Center on Commercial Determinants of Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, George Washington University
USA

Dr Jagnoor Jagnoor

The George Institute for Global Health
India

Mr Bhavesh Jain

Physician, Ongomiiswin Health Services
India

Anne-Emanuelle Birn

Professor of Critical Development Studies and Global Health, University of Toronto
Canada

Samer Jabbour

Professor of Practice, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut (AUB)

Dr Taufique Joarder

Executive Director, Public Health Foundation
Bangladesh

Prof Mohamed Jeebhay

Head of Occupational Medicine, University of Cape Town
South Africa

Dr Jemima Kamano

Moi University School of Medicine
Kenya

Prof Ashraf Kagee

Department of Psychology, Co-Director Alan Flisher Centre for Public Mental Health, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Stellenbosch University
South Africa

Ms Jyoti Karki

Kathmandu, Nepal

Dr Avinash Kanji

Physician, Ongomiiswin Health Services
Canada

Barbara Kaim

Training and Research Support Centre, Harare
Zimbabwe

Sophia Kaufman

James P. School of Public Health, BRAC University
Bangladesh

Dr Matthew M Kavanagh

O'Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law
USA

Daniel Kawaye

Ministry of Health, Zomba Central Hospital
Malawi

Dr Rebecca King

Nuffield Centre for International Health and Development, University of Leeds
UK

Prof Ilona Kickbusch

Independent Global Health consultant
Switzerland

Johanna Kistner

Executive Director, Sophiatown Community Psychological Services, Johannesburg
South Africa

Dr Mihály Kökény

Former Minister for Health, Hungary
Switzerland

Prof Allan Krasnik

University of Copenhagen, Department of Public Health, Center for Migration, Ethnicity and Health
Denmark

Ronald Labonté

Professor and Distinguished Research Chair in Globalization and Health Equity, School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa
Canada

Aline Labat

School of Public Health Université libre de Bruxelles institution
Belgium

Kate Lamb

Private citizen
Australia

Prof Uta Lehmann

Director, School of Public Health, University of the Western Cape
South Africa

Dr Rene Loewenson

Director, Training and Research Support Centre
Zimbabwe

Charles Clarke Lodda

Health Technical Advisor, Relief International, South Sudan, Health researcher, University of Bath
UK

Dr Julia Lohmann

London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
UK

Pr Pierre LOMBRAIL

LEPS Université Sorbonne Paris Nord
France

Prof Leslie London

The Learning Network for Health and Human Rights, School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town
South Africa

Miss Annie Lowden

Institute of Development Studies, Sussex
UK

Jason Lopez

USA

Dr Hayley MacGregor

Cluster leader, Institute of Development Studies
UK

Prof Sassy Molyneux

University of Oxford and KEMRI-Wellcome Trust

Mehr Manzoor

PhD Candidate, Health Policy and Management, Tulane University
USA

Prof Firoze Manji

Adjunct Professor, Institute of African Studies, Carleton University, Ottawa
Canada

Ana P. Martinez-Donate

Professor of Community Health & Prevention, Department of Community Health & Prevention, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia
USA

Linnah Lindiwe Matanya

Women for Fair Development (WOFAD), Executive Director
Malawi

Prof David McCoy

Professor of Global Public Health, Institute of Population Health Sciences, Barts and London Medical and Dental School, Queen Mary University London
UK

Professor Benjamin Meier

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
USA

Dr Kaaren Mathias

Emmanuel hospital association, Burans

Claudio A. Méndez

Associate professor of health policy. Instituto de Salud Pública, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Austral de Chile
Chile

Dr Mélissa Mialon

Universidade de Sao Paulo
Brazil / France

Dr Tolib Mirzoev

Associate Professor of International Health Policy and Systems, Nuffield Centre for International Health and Development, University of Leeds
UK

Manasee Mishra

Public Health academic
India

Dr Atiya Mosam

Public Health Medicine Specialist, Senior Researcher, PRICELESS SA - SAMRC/Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science, Common Purpose South Africa
South Africa

Tanvi Monga

Senior Technical Advisor, Community Engagement, Ipas – Health. Access. Rights.

Dennis Mseu

Executive Director, Malawi Network of Religious Leaders Living with or Personally Affected by HIV and AIDS (MANERELA+)
Malawi

Rev. Canon Evatt M.Mugarura

Executive Director, Africa Youth Leadership Development and Health ( AYLDH) Initiative

Moses Mulumba

Executive Director, Center for Health, Human Rights and Development (CEHURD)
Uganda

Kui Muraya

Kenya

Fred MWATHENGERE

Director, Nkhoma Synod Church and Society Program
Malawi

A.S.M. NADIM

Research Associate, BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health, BRAC University
Bangladesh

Dr Maisam Najafizada

Assisant Professor of Public Health, Memorial University of Newfoundland
Canada

Denise Namburete

Executive Director, N’weti
Mozambique

Dr Devaki Nambiar

The George Institute for Global Health
India

Kesavan Rajasekharan Nayar

Global Institute of Public Health, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
India

Dr Erica Nelson

Research Fellow, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
UK

Prof Richard Niederman

Professor and Chair, Department of Epidemiology & Health Promotion, College of Dentistry, New York University
USA

Dr Eva Njenga

Kenya NCD Alliance, Chair
Kenya

Faisal Noori

BRAC Afghanistan
Afghanistan

Dr Nonhlanhla Nxumalo

Centre for Health Policy, School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand
South Africa

Miria Nowamukama

Administrator for School of Public Health Higher Degrees Research and Ethics Committee, Makerere University, School of Public Health
Uganda

Rana F. Obeidat

Faculty of Nursing, Zarqa University
Jordan

Dr Tolullah Oni

MRC Epidemiology unit, University of Cambridge
UK

Prof Gorik Ooms

London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Department of Global Health and Development

Ms Phyllis Orner

South Africa

Marsha Orgill

University of Cape Town, Health Policy and Systems Division
South Africa

Nino Paichadze

Assistant Research Professor, Department of Global Health; Associate Director, Center on Commercial Determinants of Health; Milken Institute School of Public Health, George Washington University
USA

Dr Sarita Panday

Post-Doctoral researcher
Nepal

Dr Andreas Papamichail

Lecturer, School of Politics & International Relations, Queen Mary University of London
United Kingdom

David Patterson

Global Health Law Groningen Research Centre
Netherlands

Dr. Ateeb Ahmad Parray

Fellow, James P Grant School of Public Health, BRAC University
Bangladesh

Dr Elisabeth Paul

Associate Professor, Université libre de Bruxelles, School of Public Health
Belgium

Dr Katrina Perehudoff

University of Amsterdam, Netherlands & Ghent University
Belgium

Dr Stefan Swartling Peterson

Professor of Global Health, Uppsala University
Sweden

Prof Dr Paulo Pires

Lúrio University, Faculty of Health Sciences, Medical Residencies Commission Director
Mozambique

Ben Phillips

Author, How to Fight Inequality
Rome, Italy

Prof Zahidul Quayyum

Co-Director, Centre of Excellence for Urban Equity and Health (CUEH), James P Grant School of Public Health
Bangladesh

Prof. Ari Probandari

Professor of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine Universitas Sebelas Maret
Indonesia

Dr Joanna Raven

Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
UK

Salman Rawaf

Professor of Public Health, Director, WHO Collaborating Centre, Department of Primary Care and Public Health , School of Public Health, Imperial College London
UK

Dr Muhammad Rusyaidi bin Mohamad Rafik

Dhaka Medical College and Hospital
Bangladesh

Mrs Nivin Rawda

Dubai International Private School, Head of Health and Safety
Dubai

Valéry Ridde

IRD, CEPED, Dakar
Senegal
Institutional signatories

School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town

South Africa

School of Public Health, University of the Western Cape, Cape Town

South Africa

Sensoa

Belguim

Society for Conservation and Sustainability of Energy and Environment in Nigeria (SOCSEEN)

Nigeria

Sophiatown Community Psychological Services, Johannesburg

South Africa

SudaHealth Talks

Sudan

Swasti

India

Swedish Instiute for Global Health Transformation (SIGHT)

Sweden

The George Institute for Global Health

UK, Global

The Learning Network for Health and Human Rights, School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town

South Africa

The Newborn Foundation (and Research Collaborative)

USA

Todos Frente al Chagas /Chagas Disease Alliance

Argentina

UK Working Group on NCDs

UK

Ukana West 2 Community Based Health Initiative

Nigeria

Union des Amis Socio Culturels d Action en Developpement (UNASCAD)

Haiti

VIKASH-SAMUKHYA

India

VillageReach

Malawi

Viva Salud

Belguim

Wemos

The Netherlands

Women Protection Organisation (WOPO)

Nigeria

Women for Fair Development (WOFAD)

Malawi

Xubera institute

South Africa

YOUTH INITIATIVE FOR THE PROMOTION OF GOOD LEADERSHIP IN NIGERIA

Nigeria

Zimbabwe Young Academy of Sciences

Zimbabwe

hera (Right to health and development)

Belguim

medico international

Germany

Show your support for the Call and encourage others to sign on by sharing it on social media.
A tweet sheet with suggested posts and accompanying infographics can be found here.

Below can find the 10 key components of the call, which can be downloaded or shared directly to twitter.

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Reclaiming
comprehensive
public health

A CALL TO ACTION for equitable and effective covid-19 responses

JOIN THE CALL TO ACTION

THE Reclaiming comprehensive public health group

The Reclaiming Comprehensive Public Health Group involves people from diverse regions, areas of work and disciplines. It was initially drawn from discussions in the Health Systems Global SHAPES technical working group on promoting a comprehensive public health approach in responses to COVID-19. It has since expanded to include those involved in related health processes, such as the EQUINET-coordinated work on community engagement in responses to COVID-19. Different group members have contributed to various outputs, including the Call. The discussion in the Group on advancing a comprehensive public health response continues.

Thanks to those involved in producing the call to action, which includes:

Kirsten Accoe, MPH, Scientific Expert, Department of Public Health, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, Belgium

Wilson Damien Asibu, Executive Director, Country Minders for People's Development, Malawi

Sharon Attipoe-Dorcoo, Ph.D., MPH, Co-Principal, TERSHA LLC, USA

Dina Balabanova, Associate Professor in Health Systems/Policy, Department of Global Health & Development, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

Gerald Bloom, Research Fellow, Institute of Development Studies, Brighton, United Kingdom

Kent Buse, Director, Healthier Societies Program, The George Institute for Global Health, Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

Hawa Camara, MPH, CHES, Implementation Science Researcher, PhD candidate, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

Sayan Das, Research scholar, Centre of Social Medicine and Community Health, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India

Thilagawathi Abi Deivanayagam, Specialist Registrar in Public Health, University of Liverpool, UK

Nicholas A. Hooton, MA, MSc, VetMB, Research Uptake Advisor, Abergavenny, UK.

Natasha Howard, Associate Professor National University of Singapore Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health and London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Singapore.

André Janse van Rensburg, Senior Researcher, Centre for Rural Health, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa

Barbara Kaim, Programme Manager, Training and Research Support Centre, Zimbabwe

Rene Loewenson, Director, Training and Research Support Centre, Zimbabwe

Julia Lohmann, Assistant Professor, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UK

Leslie London, Professor of Public Health Medicine, School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

Hayley MacGregor, Research Fellow, Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.

Marsha Orgill, Senior Research Officer, Health Policy and Systems Division, University of Cape Town, South Africa

Nitin Bajpai, MPH,  Research Manager, Health Division, Sarvodaya Gram Udyog Seva Sansthan, India

Masuma Mamdani, Independent Public Health Consultant, London, UK

Kaaren Mathias, Director - Burans community mental health, Herbertpur Christian Hospital, India and Public Health Physician, Canterbury District Health Board, NZ

Claudio A. Méndez, MPH, director and associate professor of health policy, Instituto de Salud Pública, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, Chile

Tolib Mirzoev, Professor of International Health Policy and Systems, Health of Nuffield Centre for International Health and Development, University of Leeds, UK

Devaki Nambiar, Program Head, George Institute for Global Health, India

Erica Nelson, Research Fellow, Centre of History in Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, England; Institute of Development Studies, Brighton, England

Ateeb Ahmad Parray, MPH, Fellow, BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health, BRAC University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Elisabeth Paul, Associate Professor, School of Public Health, Université libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium

Stefan Swartling Peterson, Professor of Global Health, Uppsala University and Karolinska Institutet, Sweden and Makerere University, Uganda

Bridget Pratt, Senior Research Fellow, School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, Australia

Ari Probandari, Professor of Public Health, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Indonesia

Eric Sarriot, Sr Health Systems Strengthening Advisor, Save the Children, Washington DC. USA [formerly]

Prashanth N Srinivas, Faculty & DBT/Wellcome Trust India Alliance Fellow, Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru, India

Felipe Szabzon, Brazilian Centre for Analysis and Planning CEBRAP, Citizenship, Health and Development Team, São Paulo, Brazil

Stephanie Topp, Associate Professor of Global Health and Development, College of Public Health Medicine and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University.

Godelieve Van Heteren,  MB/MD, Sr. International health and health systems, governance and PBF Advisor, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Keshri Vikash R, Senior Research Fellow, The George Institute for Global Health, New Delhi, India

Sophie Witter, Professor of International Health Financing and Health Systems, Institute of Global Health and Development, Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, UK

Anthony Zwi, Professor of Global Health and Development, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

The hosting of the Call via Healthy Societies does not imply any direct relationship between the RCPH and Healthy Societies, or endorsement by or liability of the RCPH group for other content or functions on the Healthy Societies site.

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