Our research unit will focus on health services in slums. Many of the world’s poorest people live in slums, overcrowded neighbourhoods often made up of makeshift or derelict housing, without running water or sanitation. Slums house nearly a billion people and are growing, as more and more people are born and move to cities. People living in slums have many of the health issues seen in the rural poor (dangerous childbirth, malnutrition, infectious disease deaths) alongside increasing risk of diseases linked to cities (traffic accidents, violence, stroke, heart disease). Even if slum residents live close to health services, they can have difficulty getting needed care. There are many reasons for this. It can be because city authorities do not have the will or the resources to meet the needs of those living in the slums. It can also be because people living in slums can’t afford the cost of healthcare or the time off work to seek care. The result is that many people living in slums go to low quality or unqualified clinics, or to various places (such as clinics run by charities to tackle specific issues e.g. HIV) but without joined-up care. This has negative consequences for both individual and population health.

Improving health services in slums would have a large impact on health in low and middle-income countries. Because slums are overcrowded, better health services could benefit many people at once. Our unit will aim to make progress in this direction. Our goals are: