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SUMMARY:The politics of health system metrics\, 1924-2000 - Martin Gorsky\
 , Professor in the History of Public Health\, London School of Hygiene and
  Tropical Medicine
DTSTART:20170321T140000Z
DTEND:20170321T153000Z
UID:TALK71296@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Lucy Lloyd
DESCRIPTION:This paper documents the development of health system metrics 
 by international organisations and explores their relationship to the chan
 ging politics of world health. Its period runs from the 1920s League of Na
 tions Health Organization Yearbooks\, which initiated health system statis
 tics\, and the World Health Report 2000\, in which comparative rankings re
 ached a controversial zenith.  Much existing historiography is limited\, e
 xplaining the growth of measurement as progressive illumination of world p
 opulation health and medical services. There is also a general critical li
 terature\, treating indicators as products of powerful nations which are d
 eployed as instruments of global governance.  The empirical discussion her
 e draws on statistical publications of the LNHO\, the WHO\, the ILO\, the 
 OECD and the World Bank.  It presents a time series showing change and con
 tinuity in the indicators collected and published\, which then provides a 
 basis for analysis and explanation.  Certain indicators\, principally demo
 graphic and epidemiologic\, appear consistently due to their utilitarian n
 ature and amenability to development thinking.  Others\, related to instit
 utional provision\, workforce\, financing and coverage\, appear more spora
 dically\, and this is related to changing trends and assumptions in intern
 ational health.  While partly affirming the critical literature\, the long
 -run history of these metrics reveals they were also used by peripheral or
  resistant actors to challenge or drive policy at the centre.
LOCATION:Large Seminar Room\, Institute of Public Health\, Forvie Site\, R
 obinson Way\, Cambridge CB2 0SR
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