Book excerpt: One of the greatest human accomplishments has been the spectacular improvement in health since 1950, particularly in developing countries. With death rates falling steadily, more progress was made in the health of populations in the past half-century than in many earlier millennia. A careful look at that success can yield important lessons about how to tackle the challenges of HIV/AIDS, child health, and global health inequities in the future. This series of twenty case studies illustrates real-life proven, large-scale success stories in global public health. Drawing from a rich evidence base, the accessible case write-ups highlight experiences in scale-up of health technologies, strengthening of health systems, and the use of health education and policy change to achieve impressive reductions in disease and disability, even in the poorest countries. An overview chapter draws attention to factors that contributed to the successes. Discussion questions help to bring out the main points and provide a point of departure for independent student research.