International Voluntary Health Networks (IVHNs). A social-geographical framework

Area of Science:

• Global Health
• Medical Geography
• Sociology of Health

Background:

• Trans-national medicine is central to global health and development, amplified by crises and Sustainable Development Goals.
• International Voluntary Health Networks (IVHNs) are key contributors to international health development, bridging healthcare between nations.
• Current understanding of IVHNs is dominated by health professionals, lacking robust social and geographical perspectives.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a geographically and sociologically robust conceptual framework for understanding IVHNs.
• To recognize the potential impacts of IVHNs while allowing for constructive critique.
• To explore the intersection of health geography and health sociology in the context of IVHNs.

Main Methods:

• Examining the role of the social in health geography.
• Investigating geographical potentials in health sociology, including knowledge construction, inequality, capital, and power.
• Synthesizing insights from both fields to inform a socio-geographical approach to IVHNs.

Main Results:

• Identified mutual interests between health geography and health sociology concerning IVHNs.
• Proposed socio-geographical theories for IVHNs that address inequality, view health as capital, focus on power and ethics, and consider place's non-human aspects.
• Established an agenda for future theoretically-supported empirical research on IVHNs.

Conclusions:

• A socio-geographical lens is essential for a nuanced understanding of International Voluntary Health Networks.
• The proposed framework offers a more critical and comprehensive approach to evaluating IVHNs' contributions and challenges.
• Future research should empirically investigate IVHNs using these socio-geographical theories to advance global health equity.