The immediate past president of the World Medical Association (WMA), Dr. Osahon Enabulele, has called for ethical governance of health systems as part of his suggested strategies to promote global health.
Enabulele made this call when he made a guest presentation on ethical governance and global health as an invited international guest speaker on Saturday, February 17, 2024, at the 2024 Conference of the South African Medical Association (SAMA) held at the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa.
While defining what ethical governance entails, the WMA immediate past president cited numerous challenges with ethical questions facing health systems and global health (including new and emerging technologies and the widening health disparities in the face of constricting resources) as imperatives for effective and efficient deployment of ethical governance principles.
Applauding the World Medical Association for its leadership in the ethical governance of health systems, Dr. Enabulele called on leaders of health systems to leverage the ethical policy documents of the WMA, such as the WMA Declaration of Helsinki, the WMA Declaration of Taipei, the International Code of Medical Ethics, the WMA Declaration of Berlin on Racism in Medicine, and the WMA Declaration of Oslo on the Social Determinants of Health, amongst others.
Going further, Dr. Enabulele advanced the need for institutionalization of a culture of ethical governance in the governance of health systems and governance in general. He also called on leaders at all levels to move from mere declarations to expressing greater commitment to ethical governance and its processes.
In his words, “leaders of health systems at all levels must be ethically conscious and selected on the basis of merit, their knowledge of ethical governance principles, and their capacity for ethical governance of health systems.”
Enabulele also called for a more concrete address of the social determinants of health, the creation of more enabling and secure working conditions and workplace environments, better integration of citizens and civil society organisations in the governance of health systems, and the establishment of better regulatory frameworks and regulatory oversight.
The 2024 SAMA Conference was attended by several participants, including the South African Minister of Health, Dr. Mathume Joe Phaahla, other dignitaries and international guests, industry players, physicians, and other health professionals.
