Projects

The Public Health Diplomacy Lab at the University of Memphis School of Public Health conducts and supports interdisciplinary research to inform policy, education, and practice in the growing field of public health diplomacy.

Ongoing Projects

• The Role of Health Diplomacy in Global Health Crises, conflicts and peace-making: A Scoping Review

  • Authors: Niharika Jha¹, MPH, Shongkour Roy¹, MS, Michael Arthur Ofori¹, MPhil, Zebunnesa Zeba¹, MPH, Brian B McGoldrick², PhD, Nidhi Mital, MSHI², Stella Dockery², MPM, Nichole Saulsberry-Scarboro², PhD, Michelle Taylor³, DrPH, and Ashish Joshi¹, PhD
  • Abstract: Abstract: Health diplomacy, the intersection of global health and international relations, plays a crucial role in addressing transnational health challenges. It facilitates cooperation among governments, international organizations, and stakeholders to strengthen health security, equity, and crisis response. In the face of growing global health crises, diplomatic efforts are essential for resource mobilization, policy coordination, and capacity building. The goal of this study is to review the extant literature to examine the role of health diplomacy in global health crises, conflicts, and peace-making, focusing on key actors, strategies, and challenges to enhance future emergency preparedness and response. This scoping review followed the Arksey and O’Malley framework to systematically map the role of health diplomacy in global health crises and conflicts. A literature search was conducted across multiple databases, including PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science, to identify relevant peer-reviewed articles and gray literature. A total of 594 studies were screened based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data were extracted, charted, and thematically analyzed to identify patterns and lessons for future crises. The review adhered to PRISMA-ScR guidelines to ensure methodological rigor and transparency. Findings indicate that health diplomacy facilitates cross-border collaboration, enhances outbreak response efficiency, and strengthens health systems resilience. It also contributes to conflict resolution and peace-making efforts by fostering dialogue, building trust, and promoting equitable access to healthcare. However, challenges such as political conflicts, unequal resource distribution, and limited enforcement of international agreements hinder its effectiveness. Key actors in health diplomacy include governments, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, healthcare professionals, and local communities, each playing a vital role in shaping policies and facilitating collaboration during health crises. Strengthening multilateral cooperation, enhancing transparency, and reinforcing global governance mechanisms are critical for improving health diplomacy’s impact on future health emergencies. Health diplomacy plays a vital role in global health crisis response by fostering international collaboration, coordinating resources, advancing healthcare capacity and promoting conflict resolution and peace building.
• Health Diplomacy Advancing Public Private Partnerships in Health Equity: A Scoping Review

  • Authors: Shongkour Roy¹, MS, Brian B McGoldrick², PhD, Niharika Jha¹, MPH, Michael Arthur Ofori¹, MPhil, Zebunnesa Zeba¹, MPH, Nidhi Mital, MSHI², Stella Dockery², MPM, Nichole Saulsberry-Scarboro², PhD, Michelle Taylor³, DrPH, and Ashish Joshi¹, PhD
  • Abstract: Health diplomacy is now an important part of global health governance because it helps countries work together, shapes health policies, and builds partnerships across borders. Health diplomacy through public-private partnerships (PPPs) has become more important as globalization continues to link public health challenges. PPPs are particularly effective in enhancing disaster preparation and promoting health equity. Despite its increasing significance, there is an absence of thorough scholarly research that integrates the essential attributes of health diplomacy and its multidimensional influence on health equity. This paper aims to analyze the essential attribute of health diplomacy and investigate the role of PPPs in promoting health equity at local, global, and glocal levels. Following Arksey and O'Malley’s scoping review framework, we conducted a systematic search across PubMed, Scopus, and PsycINFO, yielding 494 articles. Our inclusion criteria focused on peer-reviewed publications that conceptualize or analyze health diplomacy, with an emphasis on its role in fostering PPPs and promoting health equity. We selected 47 articles that met the criteria and Dedoose was used for qualitative thematic analysis. Our analysis found many fundamental attributes of health diplomacy in promoting health equity via PPPs. These include fortifying collaborative governance, emergency readiness, and aligning with sustainable development goals. Our results indicate that at the local level, health diplomacy have strengthened community health systems by improving resource mobilization, cooperation, and capacity development for digital innovations using PPPs. Health diplomacy is critical at the global level for advancing equitable access to vital medications, improving pandemic preparation, and enabling coordinated responses to public health crises via multisectoral cooperation. At the glocal level, health diplomacy helps address PPPs to transnational health challenges, such as non-communicable diseases, while ensuring that global health policies are adapted to fit local contexts effectively. This scoping review illustrates the key role of health diplomacy in leveraging PPPs to address health inequities. By fostering collaborative governance, enhancing emergency preparedness, and ensuring equitable access to health resources, health diplomacy serves as a key driver in building resilient health systems. Strengthening health diplomacy efforts will be stepped up for building resilient health systems and promoting health equity worldwide.
• Digital Health Diplomacy in the Public Health Landscape: A Scoping Review of Concepts, Practices, and Impact

  • Authors: Michael Arthur Ofori¹, MPhil, Shongkour Roy¹, MS, PhD, Niharika Jha¹, MPH, Zebunnesa Zeba¹, MPH, Brian B McGoldrick², Nidhi Mital, MSHI², Stella Dockery², MPM, Nichole Saulsberry-Scarboro², PhD, Michelle Taylor³, DrPH, and Ashish Joshi¹, PhD
  • Abstract: Digital health diplomacy (DHD) has become a critical element in global health governance. It represents a diplomatic practice of science that uses digital technology within health diplomacy operations. DHD serves as an innovative framework that strengthens international partnerships for solving critical health problems while enhancing global health governance. There is the need to investigate how digital health diplomacy functions and shapes global health governance and international health collaboration. To assess digital health diplomacy and its contribution to health diplomacy and global health. A scoping review was conducted to summarize the available evidence related to digital health diplomacy. We searched key databases like PUBMED, Scopus, Google Scholar, WHO digital platform, and Google for published articles and grey literature from November 2024 to January 2025. The diplomatic use of digital tools enables global health interaction. DHD works through social media platforms and telehealth systems alongside electronic health records to exchange data in real time for diseases management. Digital initiatives create significant changes to global health governance by allowing international agreements like the pandemic treaty to improve health security. The digital health diplomacy framework faces data protection issues, yet it creates opportunities to foster capacity building and innovation. The central position of digital health diplomacy in global policy formation remains crucial because it leads to an equitable future based on community partnerships. This confirms its crucial role in ensuring universal health coverage through digital technologies.
• Health Diplomacy in Practice: A Scoping Review of Types, Interventions, and Applications in the Medical and Public Health Fields

  • Authors: Niharika Jha¹, MPH, Shongkour Roy¹, MS, Michael Arthur Ofori¹, MPhil, Zebunnesa Zeba¹, MPH, Brian B McGoldrick², PhD, Nidhi Mital, MSHI², Stella Dockery², MPM, and Ashish Joshi¹, PhD
  • Abstract: Health diplomacy is increasingly recognized as a critical mechanism for advancing global health goals, fostering international collaboration, and addressing complex cross-border health challenges. Despite growing interest, the scope and practical applications of health diplomacy across medical and public health fields remain fragmented and underexplored. This scoping review aims to map the existing literature on health diplomacy, categorizing its types, interventions, and practical applications within medical and public health contexts. Following the PRISMA-ScR guidelines, a systematic search was conducted across major databases including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. Peer-reviewed articles, policy briefs, and gray literature published between 2015 and 2025 were included. Studies were screened for relevance, and data were charted to identify themes, intervention strategies, and fields of application. A total of 532 studies were screened. Final screening is still going on.