Tuesday is World Health Day, the birthday of the World Health Organization. WHO acts as the branch of the United Nations responsible for global public health.
It may seem ironic to celebrate “world health” as the coronavirus pandemic ravages the world. WHO has worked tirelessly to inform the public and fight the virus, so perhaps it is even more fitting that we celebrate its significant anniversary.
»COMPLETE COVERAGE: CORONAVIRUS
On April 7, 1948, the United Nations established WHO by constitution, putting it in charge of classifying diseases.
As a part of its foundation, WHO created a definition of health that hasn't needed to be altered since:
"Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity."
The organization’s team, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, has worked to advance health through the last 70-plus years. More than 7,000 work for the World Health Organization across 150 countries.
Seventy-two years ago, public health looked vastly different than it does today. Modern antibiotics were about to become widely accepted. Polio and measles vaccines were not on the horizon. AIDS was not in our vocabulary, and the idea of sexual health was a nascent movement.
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Some highlights of WHO's long list of impacts on the world include:
- Smallpox was eradicated in 1979 after WHO's 12-year vaccination campaign.
- WHO developed a treatment plan for tuberculosis in 1995 that has saved more than 37 million lives.
- The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control was adopted in 2005, which prompted countries to establish smoke-free public spaces and print pictorial warnings on cigarette packages.
- In 2014, WHO sponsored thousands of health care workers to research and treat the Ebola virus. West Africa was officially Ebola free by 2016.
- The WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic on March 11, 2020.
»MORE: What the WHO pandemic declaration means
By issuing prompt action with COVID-19, WHO spurred nations to develop intense action plans to help contain the novel coronavirus.
"Three months ago, we knew almost nothing about this virus. Collectively, we have learned an enormous amount. And every day, we learn more. WHO is committed to serving all people everywhere with the best evidence to protect their health," said Director-General Tedros Adhanom at the beginning of April.
The World Health Organization website has many resources and updates to inform the public about the virus' spread and to handle misinformation.
Additionally, WHO created a response team to fast-track potential vaccines, diagnostics and therapeutics.
You can stay up to date by watching daily situation reports from Tedros, who has led the World Health Organization since 2017.
On April 1, WHO announced that dozens of nations were banding together in the World Health Organization Solidarity trial to provide participants that will test one of four potential drug combinations to treat the virus.
"So far, 74 countries have either joined the trial or are in the process of joining. As of this morning, more than 200 patients had been randomly assigned to one of the study arms. Each new patient who joins the trial gets us one step closer to knowing which drugs work." — Tedros
Tedros ended his remarks with reminding the world that the pandemic is evolving. Though not much is known, the organization is dedicated to using scientific practices to protect public health.
We hope the health care workers and WHO researchers around the world feel recognized and celebrated on World Health Day, whether from 6 feet apart to all the way around the globe.
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