Equity and equality are often used interchangeably; however, these concepts differ significantly. While equality implies giving everyone the same things, equity calls on individuals receiving the resources needed to achieve their best health. In order for health interventions to be effective and to avoid duplication of resources, there is a need for healthcare and public health practitioners and researchers to understand the concept of equity. This would pave the way for contextualized interventions that consider the complex web of factors influencing the health of a community. Consequently, foundational knowledge in equity is needed to guide implementation and evaluation of equity-based interventions within communities that have otherwise been disadvantaged and marginalized.

Introductory note from the CEO

Hello all and welcome to the training and capacity building portal of the MERQ!

MERQ is a scientific inquiries and capacity building organization in Africa, which aspires to enhance the practice of knowledge driven decision making and program implementation in the continent where we have been operational for 10 years now. Through a rigorous iterative and review process we have fine-tuned some topics and we believe we are now able to start sharing the knowledge. The best way we have identified to build capacity is training using digital platforms.

All our trainings are driven by passion, competence, and contemporary knowledge. This training entitled “fundamentals of equity in health” is an online course brought to you by MERQ Consultancy. It is informed by the lessons we drew from evaluation we did to assess the effectiveness of programs targeting equity. The main lesson we learnt was the fact that there are gaps in the conceptualization and practice of equity.

This course therefore presents opportunities for public and global health practitioners like yourselves to develop knowledge, skills, and competencies to evaluate and implement equity-centered programs and interventions.

 This course is presented in 5 sessions and at the end of the course, you will be able to:

●      Understand health equity and social determinants of health

●      Use data and literature to analyze health disparities 

●      Recognize programs, interventions, and policies that address inequities

●      Describe frameworks to evaluate equity

●      Take equity into consideration when designing health programs and interventions

The courses will be presented by people who have hands on experience and knowledge on the concept of equity and its application on health.

We hope this course expands your knowledge on health equity concepts and improves your skill to address complex health challenges in the communities you work with.

Thank you for choosing to learn and grow with MERQ!

Alula M. Teklu, MD, MPH
CEO, MERQ Consultancy