Research on public health in Latin America. Reflections from the global South

Identifier:  imarina:9294623

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/imarina9294623

Authors:  Ramírez-Hita S

Abstract:
This paper is a reflexive essay on public health research in Latin America, which is a result of the market's intervention in the manner in which research is conducted. In this regard, global conflicts of interest -caused by pharmaceutical, agroindustrial and extraction companies- influence the homogenization of the research conducted in the field of health. This is how medical education, scientific papers and marketing are useful for inserting and standardizing research formats. Likewise, free trade agreements appear as one of the strategies of the global ideology influencing the object of research, the reasons behind it and how it is conducted. These strategies tend to nullify critical thinking, which is necessary for discussing aspects that are absent from most studies on public health. An example of this would be the influence of environmental pollution on human health, one of the most concerning issues for the Latin American population.