LONDON, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- International scholars called for increased collaboration to enhance global health governance and establish stronger global health systems at a forum held here on Friday.
The eighth Global China Dialogue, held at the British Academy under the theme of "Governance for Global Health," gathered scholars from China, the United Kingdom (UK) and France, among other countries.
According to Kabir Sheikh, professor of global health systems and policy at University College London, health governance is "an incredibly important subject."
"The way we need to approach it is to try and understand the needs of the local and national governance priorities and considerations better," Sheikh said.
Discussing the public health issues of the future, Sheikh told Xinhua that apart from "epidemics and pandemics, which we must safeguard ourselves against ... we know that digital technologies and their applications (in the health sector) are expanding. We need to understand both the benefits and the risks of digital technologies."
Gerry Bloom, research fellow at the Institute of Development Studies of the University of Sussex, said it was important "to discuss preparedness for future pandemics and establish mechanisms of exchanges of scientific knowledge, making sure that we agree to inform each other of any future outbreaks."
Commenting on the development of China's health system, Sheikh said that the country has probably done more than other countries to integrate traditional and complementary medicine into the mainstream of health systems.
"What we want to do together with our counterparts in China is to emphasize a research agenda that is focused on the application of technologies in real-world systems, because we believe that is the area where there's the most potential for change," he said.
"It is obviously a very important topic, and everybody is very sensitive to global health issues," Martin Albrow, British sociologist and founding honorary president of the Global China Academy (GCA), told Xinhua, noting that it was high time to discuss global health, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the event, the GCA, a Britain-based independent academic institution and one of the organizers of the forum, celebrated its 10th anniversary.
The Global China Dialogue series, focusing on issues related to global governance, were conceived in 2014. Its next event is scheduled in 2024 and will focus on global governance and artificial intelligence (AI). ■