ABSTRACT
D espite growing advances in medical technologies,health status inequalities continue to increase acrossthe globe.1 Developing countries have been faced with declining expenditures in health and social services, increasing burdens posed by both communicable and noncommunicable diseases, and economic systems poorly geared to fostering sustainable development for the poorest and most marginalized.2 Under such circumstances, the challenges facing health practitioners in countries in transition are complex and diverse, and require the balancing of many conflicting imperatives.3 This is particularly so in relation to the development of public health policy, where equity, redress of past inequalities, and the goal of social justice may seemingly be pitted against macroeconomic adjustments required for national economic development in an increasingly globalized economic order.4
