Call for special issue papers: Global public health — contributions of traditional, complementary, and integrative medicine in primary care

Abstract

The 2018 Declaration of Astana* issued by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) represents a landmark step for all of primary health care, public health, and traditional complementary and integrative medicine. It brings together the priorities of the WHO’s 1978 Alma-Ata Declaration, the international importance of universal health coverage, and the ongoing efforts of the global community to reach UNICEF’s Sustainable Development Goals. It is the first global primary health care document to explicitly acknowledge the value and importance of traditional medicine systems in achieving successful primary health services; ‘success’ being underpinned by specific commitments and evaluated by key success measures**. The Declaration explicitly refers to the application of traditional knowledge and the appropriate inclusion of traditional medicines as factors that will drive the success of primary care. However, the Declaration also makes commitments and identifies other success drivers that, despite not being directly linked to traditional and integrative care, are equally relevant. These omissions represent potentially untapped and overlooked opportunities for meaningful engagement to improve primary care.