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When Health Diplomacy Serves Foreign Policy: Use of Soft Power to Quell Conflict and Crises

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 May 2016

Nasim Sadat Hosseini Divkolaye ,
Mohammad Hadi Radfar ,
Fariba Seighali  and
Frederick M. Burkle Jr
Nasim Sadat Hosseini Divkolaye*
Affiliation:
International Affairs Department, Iranian Blood Transfusion Organization, Tehran, Iran Global Health Policy Degree Candidate, Faculty of Public Health and Policy, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
Mohammad Hadi Radfar
Affiliation:
Shahid Labbafinejad Hospital, Urology and Nephrology Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Fariba Seighali
Affiliation:
Blood Transfusion Research Center, High Institute for Research & Education on Transfusion Medicine, Tehran, Iran
Frederick M. Burkle Jr
Affiliation:
Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Nasim Sadat Hosseini Divkolaye, LLM, Blood Transfusion Research Center, High Institute for Research and Education in Transfusion Medicine, Iranian Blood Transfusion Organization (IBTO) BLDG, Hemmat EXPY, Adjacent to Milad Tower, Tehran, Iran, (e-mail: na_hosseini@yahoo.com).
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Abstract

Objective

Health diplomacy has increasingly become a crucial element in forging political neutrality and conflict resolution and the World Health Organization has strongly encouraged its use. Global turmoil has heightened, especially in the Middle East, and with it, political, religious, and cultural differences have become major reasons to incite crises.

Methods

The authors cite the example of the human stampede and the deaths of over 2000 pilgrims during the 2015 annual Haj pilgrimage in Mecca.

Results

The resulting political conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia had the potential to escalate into a more severe political and military crisis had it not been for the ministers of health from both countries successfully exercising “soft power” options.

Conclusion

Global health security demands critical health diplomacy skills and training for all health providers. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2016;page 1 of 4)

Keywords

health diplomacyhumanitarian crisesHajconflictglobal health security
Type
Brief Reports
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 10 , Issue 5 , October 2016 , pp. 724 - 727
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2016 

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