World Medical & Health Policy www.psocommons.org/wmhp Vol. 2: Iss. 4, Article 7 (2010) The Soft Power of Solid Medicine Donald A. Donahue Jr, DHEd, MBA, FACHE, Potomac Institute for Policy Studies and University of Maryland University College Stephen O. Cunnion, MD, PhD, MPH, Potomac Institute for Policy Studies Fred L. Brocker, MPH, RS, Brocker Staffing & Consulting, Inc. Richard H. Carmona, MD, MPH, FACS, 17th Surgeon General of the United States & University of Arizona Abstract Medical assistance undertakings have a long history of engendering positive international relations and fostering domestic stability. Interactions ranging from military medical civic action program (MEDCAP) missions to nongovernmental organization (NGO) efforts have demonstrated effectiveness, yet this capability is not routinely available in a meaningful way to the Secretary of State or the extended diplomatic community. MEDCAP and other global military presences can generate positive reactions, but can also be tainted by host nation suspicions of ulterior motives. In this paper, the authors posit that an organized, global public health presence would support international diplomacy while also establishing a worldwide surveillance capability for emerging communicable diseases. Keywords: global health, health surveillance, medical intelligence, public health Author Notes: No funding was involved in the development of this manuscript. This work has not been previously published or presented. There are no conflicts of interest, real or potential, in this work. Copyright issue: the figures are acquired from publicly available data. Corresponding author: Donald A. Donahue, Jr., Program Director, Health Policy and Preparedness, Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, 911 Massachusetts Avenue NE, Washington, DC 20002, USA. Tel.: +1 202-607-4718. Fax: +1 202-543-7113. E-mail: donald.donahuejr@verizon.net. - 83 - © 2010 Policy Studies Organization Published by Berkeley Electronic Press