WORLD HEALTH DAY
General Background
In the year 1948, the World Health Organization (WHO) held the First World Health Assembly and decided to celebrate 7th April as the World Health Day (WHD). The main aim of celebrating the WHD is to create “awareness of a specific health theme to highlight a priority area of concern for the World Health Organization”. WHO decide it’s priority area and brings it out to the public as a theme and slogan. Some of the previous years priority area as a theme were “Working together for health” (2006), “Make every mother and child count” (2005), “Road safety” (2004), “Shape the Future of Life: Healthy Environments for Children” (2003), “Move for Health” (2002), “Mental Health: Stop Exclusion, Dare to Care” (2001).
The theme for WHD-2007 is “international health security” and the slogan is "Invest in health, build a safer future". This slogan addresses one of the most vital concerns of present situation. Globalization, rapid travel and trade make it much easier for new and existing diseases to leap over national borders and threaten our collective security. Avian Influenza in 2006 and SARS in 2003 spread from one country and region to the next. HIV/AIDS is also racing across nations, adversely impacting their economies and threatening their stability. New diseases have appeared and old ones have re-emerged as epidemic/pandemic prone diseases to present an acute threat to life. Climate change, natural disasters, chemical and nuclear accidents and bioterrorism also hold the potential to threaten international public health security. How we can say we are safe and secure in this world as we have been threatened each and every second by Pandemics, natural disasters, chemical and nuclear accidents, climate change and its consequences, and bioterrorism.
Investment, if we look to the economic point of view, is adding to capital. Capital can be understood anything that produced by human and use again to produce other things that is very much useful for future. Investment for health is also adding to capital, as healthy qualified individual can lead for healthy family, healthy community, healthy nation and healthy world as well increase the productivity. Investment is always for future. When health emergencies give rise to global concerns, an effective response requires international coordination as has been seen post tsunami and the SARS outbreak. The WHD slogan highlights the crucial need to invest in human resources and strengthened health systems to enable the international community to effectively meet the public health risks and challenges.
According to WHO, there are different determinants of health like income and social status, social support network, education and literacy, employment working condition, social environment, physical environment, personal health practice and coping skills, healthy child development, biology and genetic endowment, health science, gender and culture. Health is Multi dimensional, multi cultural, multi-sector issue. Therefore holistic approach is necessary to achieve the optimum level of positive health and investment is also necessary in all aspects of determinants. Indeed the slogan is very much ideal but in practical invest in health for future is very challenging among least develop country.
Aim and Objectives
Aim:
The main aim of WHD-2007 is to create awareness and urge governments, organizations and businesses to "Invest in health, build a safer future".
Objectives:
: To raise awareness on key global health issues.
: To make aware on all key messages.
: To establish international health security.
Discussion
Health security is defined as guaranteeing minimum protection from disease and unhealthy lifestyles, along with food, environmental, economic, community and political security. Globalization has brought the benefits of efficient transport and trade to many people across the world. It has also allowed the rapid spread of diseases that otherwise may have been contained by geographical boundaries, or that in another era may have traveled slowly enough to be brought quickly under control.
Some messages that are the keys to make people aware and stimulate to invest in health. (for more information pls visit, http://www.who.int/world-health-ay/2007/toolkit/key_messages/en/print.html). Those are given below:
· Threats to health know no borders: In a globalize world, emerging epidemics cross national borders and threaten our collective security. Threats to health and security are multiplying and moving faster than ever before.
· Invest in health, build a safer future: Every country must invest in health and build its capacity to prevent new and existing threats by strengthening public health systems. Only then can we build a safer future. Implementation of the International Health Regulations (IHR) from June 2007 will help to build and strengthen effective mechanisms for outbreak alert and response at national and international levels.
· Health leads to security; insecurity leads to poor health: HIV/AIDS is a powerful example of how interdependent health and securities have become. HIV/AIDS threatens the stability of entire nations and regions. Unlike many other diseases, AIDS affects the most productive members of society. Protecting the health of people and the security of all those affected requires political commitment at the highest level and close collaboration between governments, international organizations, civil society and the private sector.
· Preparedness and quick response improve international health security: Threats to health security are many and varied: they include sudden shocks to health and economies from emerging diseases, like SARS and avian influenza, humanitarian emergencies, bioterrorism and other acute health risks. Tackling the health effects of these threats involves working collectively to improve preparedness and to respond effectively when they occur. The shortage of safe drinking water and its impact on health and security after hurricane Katrina, and the tsunami in Asia, clearly demonstrate the importance of advance preparation and the ability to respond quickly.
· The World Health Organization is making the world more secure: the securities of all countries depend on the capacity of each to act effectively against health threats. WHO's response to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and avian flu clearly demonstrated the power of coordination and the importance of international health security. International collaboration among developed and developing countries, and increased focus on information-sharing and the strengthening of public health systems and surveillance, are key to containing outbreaks of infectious diseases. The threats remain; we must continue to invest and build.
The issued, that have been threatening in international health security and we must address them in order to make safer future by investing in health, are given below. (for more information pls refer, Issuespaper_final_lowres__en.pdf).
· Emerging/ Reemerging diseases: The lessons learned from SARS and other disease outbreaks should be used to strengthen national and global preparedness for the next emergency caused by emerging and reemerging diseases. Capacity building in developing countries must be practical, based on the needs of the country and collaborative. The strength of multiple stakeholders/governments, international organizations, the corporate sectors, civil society- must be leveraged to improve global response capacity.
· Economic Stability: Public health is a global public good. Political will and financial commitment are significant determinants of health across the world. Public hearth must secure greater priority and investment from governments and donors. WHO, The World Trade Organization, Governments and the private sector must work as partners to ensure that drugs and services are delivered during times of acute threat and need.
· International Crisis and Humanitarian emergency: Humanitarian emergencies arise from the effects of crises such as natural disasters, food and water shortages, and armed conflict. Indirect effects of such crises include the threat of infectious disease, malnutrition, population displacement, mental illness and the exacerbation of chronic disease, all of which require strong health systems. Infrastructure, land management and development policies that take public health into consideration are a powerful tool in preventing dramatic humanitarian emergencies caused by natural disaster. The need to respond to the immediate health and welfare needs of people should not undermine investment in preparedness and risk management for potential future crisis and vice-versa. In times of humanitarian response to natural disaster and conflict, Donor aid must be coordinated and managed in a way that meets urgent humanitarian needs, as well as long term rehabilitation.
· Chemical, Radioactive and biological terror threats: Twenty first century life has become greatly dependent on chemical processing and nuclear power. Public health security in turn relies on the safety of these facilities and the appropriate use of their products. The threat of chemical spills, leaks and dumping, nuclear meltdowns, and chemical weaponry invokes the notion of surprise attack or accidents, innocent victims and malicious or negligent perpetrators and causes fears that may be disproportionate to the real risk. Global surveillance system must be sensitive to information detecting chemical and radioactive leaks. Global partnership is required to minimize the threat of deliberate attacks. Techniques used to respond to disease outbreaks and natural disasters can also be used to deal with the health impacts of such incidents.
· Environmental Change: The earth’s climate is changing. Temperatures are rising; tropical storms are increasing in frequency and intensity; polar ice caps and permafrost regions are melting. People are dying – upwards of 60 000 in recent years in climate-related natural disasters, mainly in developing countries. The most dramatic health threats resulting from climate change are occurring in developing countries that have limited culpability or resources to deal with the health and infrastructure consequences. WHO, Minister of health and the health sector as a whole have distinct roles to play in encouraging countries to adopt environmental conservation policies, such as those in the Kyoto Protocol. Environmental and climate changes have a growing impact on health, but health policies alone can not prevent these changes.
· AIDS provoking the health and security debate: HIV/AIDS continues to pose personal health security threats in many developing countries. Striving to provide access to anti-retroviral drugs, even though it has becomes a manageable, chronic epidemic in many other parts of the world. Efforts detected at the treatment and prevention of HIV need to be coordinated and streamlined to maximize impact. Professionals and policy makers in the fields of public health, foreign policy and national security should maintain open dialogue on AIDS and other diseases and practices that potentially threaten national and international health security.
· Building Health Security: In the globalize world in which we live, there is a common interest in preventing the international spread of disease. In recent decades, diseases have spread faster than ever before, aided by high-speed travel and the trade in goods and services between countries and continents. The rapid spread of disease can only be prevented if there is immediate alert and response to disease outbreaks and other incidents that could spark epidemics or spread globally. National compliance with the IHR will maximize international health security. Disease outbreak must be reported promptly and without delay, collaboration between countries and through networks should build technical capacity.
· Strengthening Health System: Strong health system promotes international health security. The current state of health system worldwide is inadequate. Emerging diseases put great stress on any health system. The response to SARS, including in resource-poor settings, demonstrated how effective public health measures can be in responding to new threats. However, not every country has the resources or the public health system required mounting such an effective response. Governments, WHO, International organizations, private industry and civil society are the stakeholders in and have responsibilities for strengthening health system.
Conclusion
The WHD is an occasion specially those who have been involved in Public Health Sector to raise awareness on key global health issues. World Health Day 2007 will serve as an ideal occasion for the international community to consider the growing interdependence of health and security and the need to Invest in health, build a safer future.
Only through strong collaboration among developed and developing countries, together with an increased focus on information sharing and the strengthening of public health systems and surveillance, can prevent threaten to international security. No single institution or country has all the capacities needed to respond to international public health emergencies caused by epidemics, natural disasters or environmental emergencies, or by new and emerging infectious diseases. Only by detecting and reporting problems in their earliest hours can the most appropriate experts and resources be deployed to prevent or halt the international spread of disease.
If we, Public health professional including international organizations, national organization, civil society and the private sector work together and address global public health challenges effectively then world can become a safer and healthier place.
(Note: The article awarded from 3rd prize on the article competition organized by Northern University Bangladesh on the occasion of World Health Day 2007)
