Vox: How McKinsey infiltrated the world of global public health
“…Global health, a field dedicated to improving the health and wellbeing of the poor and most vulnerable, has quietly developed a penchant for highly paid management consultants and their business world tools. According to an internal 2016 McKinsey PowerPoint presentation obtained by Vox, the firm has been involved in the response to the biggest international disease outbreaks of recent years, from MERS in Saudi Arabia to Zika in Brazil. … The 80-plus global health leaders and staff, current and former consultants at multiple firms, researchers, health care professionals, and NGO workers we spoke to for this story described the consultants as ‘pervasive’ and ‘ubiquitous.’ And many have become wary of consultants’ involvement in the sector. But how these secretive businesses, which mostly profit from serving corporate interests, are shaping global public health is an open question — and one that’s hard to answer. An additional mystery: How much money — designated by foundations and governments for improving the health of the poorest — is being spent on them?…” (Belluz/Buissonniere, 12/13).