Extending the paradigm: a policy framework for healthy and equitable eating (HE2).

OBJECTIVE: The current short communication aimed to provide a new conceptualisation of the policy drivers of inequities in healthy eating and to make a call to action to begin populating this framework with evidence of actions that can be taken to reduce the inequities in healthy eating. DESIGN: The Healthy and Equitable Eating (HE2) Framework derives from a systems-based analytical approach involving expert workshops. SETTING: Australia. SUBJECTS: Academics, government officials and non-government organisations in Australia. RESULTS: The HE2 Framework extends previous conceptualisations of policy responses to healthy eating to include the social determinants of healthy eating and its social distribution, encompassing policy areas including housing, social protection, employment, education, transport, urban planning, plus the food system and environment. CONCLUSIONS: As the burden of non-communicable diseases continues to grow globally, it is important that governments, practitioners and researchers focus attention on the development and implementation of policies beyond the food system and environment that can address the social determinants of inequities in healthy eating.

Atopic dermatitis complicated by severe impetigo in a Syrian refugee infant.

We present the case of a 3-month-old infant with atopic dermatitis who developed severe impetigo. The child was born to Syrian refugees shortly after they arrived in Canada. The case demonstrates the rapid and nearly complete resolution of dramatic skin findings after a course of hydrocortisone ointment and oral antibiotics with adjuvant measures. For resettled refugees, access to family physicians and local language proficiency are common barriers that negatively impact their health and healthcare. We discuss some aspects of how the healthcare model in one Canadian city addresses these issues in the context of this case. The case also raises questions about the burden of dermatological conditions in refugees while in transit and in countries of resettlement. The few reports that exist suggest that some conditions may be relatively common and that the epidemiology warrants additional investigation.