PHAZ Recognizes Research in Advancing Public Health Outcomes
By Edward Makuzva
Public Health Practioners Association of Zimbabwe ( PHAZ) has recognizes the importance of research in advancing public health outcomes as this will work with researchers and other stakeholders in the healthcare sector.
Speaking at the launch Friday, PHAZ Secretary General, Tafadzwa Zhawari added that the research will help in developing -based policies that can improve public health outcomes for our population.
A product of a well-subscribed public health symposium held in Harare December 7-9 last year, PHAZ also strives to encourage research safety and effectiveness of traditional medicine to confront the country’s disease burden.
“As Public Health Practitioners Association we are beyond conviction that collaboration among stakeholders is essential in achieving our objectives. Therefore we will work with healthcare professionals, journalists, village health care workers, environmentalists, nutritionalits, statisticians, social scientists, engineers, health economists, religious and traditional leaders, organizations of people living with disabilities, policy makers, educationalists and community leaders to create a platform for sharing knowledge and best practices.
“This collaboration will help us identify areas where we can work together to improve public health as a whole.
“The establishment PHAZ is a significant step towards promoting public health and advocating for health care strengthening. We believe that, by working together, we can achieve our objectives of promoting disease disease prevention, advocating for policies that promote access to qualify health care services, advancing research in public health, and promoting collaboration among stakeholders “, Zhawari explained.
Zhawari highlighted that Public health associations play a vital role in advocating for policies that promote healthy living, disease prevention and access to qualify health services.
She added that they also provide a forum for sharing knowledge among healthcare professionals, policymakers and community leaders.
” The main thrust of Public Health Association of Zimbabwe is to create a platform that will bring together all stakeholders in the health care industry to work towards improving the health of our communities.
” We recognise that public is an essential component of any society and it requires collective efforts from all stakeholders. Health is a basic right for all”, she said.
PHAZ Secretary General revealed that one of the primary objectives of this association is to promote disease prevention and awareness campaigns.
Zhawari said the association will advocate for policies that promote access to quality health care services thereby promoting good health outcomes.
Speaking at the same occasion,Dr Evidence Gaka added that the environment, human health, and animal health are intertwined.
“You may not separate human health from animal health and the environment; those three are intertwined.
And when you talk of climate change, you start talking of floods and all sorts of things that do affect human health directly,” Dr. Gaka explained.
Meanwhile, World over, public health is a multi-disciplinary field which involves various stakeholders in the public health value chains beyond classical medical scientists.
