Health inequalities are a global concern. Poverty, social exclusion, poor housing and poor health systems are among the main causes of ill-health
(Source: WHO Social Determinants of Health Factfile).

The UN’s Millenium Development Goals are recognised as the world's vision to tackle the causes and effects of poverty by 2015. Three of these goals relate specifically to health outcomes, notably the reduction of childhood mortality, the improvement of maternal health and the eradication of HIV/AIDS and malaria. An update on progress with the Millenium Development Goals and a consideration of the obstacles to success can be downloaded from the World Health Organization website.

The World Health Organization 's Commission on the Social Determinants of Health supports countries and global health partners to address the social factors leading to ill-health and to focus on health inequities.  The Commission has published the reports of  the Knowledge Networks – these reports set out the state of current knowledge and recommendations for action in terms of early child development, health systems, urban settings, employment, women and gender equity and measurement and evaluation.

The Commission produced its final report in Closing the gap in a generation: health equity through action on the social determinants of health in 2008 . The Institute of Public Health in Ireland (IPH) developed a complementary report with Combat Poverty Agency Tackling Health Inequalities: An All-Ireland approach to Social Determinants which provides an all-Ireland perspective to current thinking on the approach.