Emerging Global Health Issues: A Nurse’s Role

Global health issues (GHIs) require global cooperation in response, planning, prevention, preparedness, and care that reflects health equity issues among nations. These issues require complex interprofessional and interagency cooperation and solutions that involve governments, non-profits, and many times include private companies and foundations. More than ever, the response to GHIs requires a broader understanding of how connected we are in today’s world. This article considers response to issues of emerging infectious diseases, human trafficking, maternal-newborn health; preparedness for health inequities within a framework of social justice, equity; and mal-distribution of health workers globally. We define and describe emerging global health issues from a nursing perspective and offer a call to action for nurses to increase awareness as global leaders.