Paper Example on Global Health Issues: A Look Back to Mid-19th Century

Introduction

Over the years, there have been issues with the management of health problems on a global scale. The answers to addressing the issues of world health problems are rooted in the mid-nineteenth century, which led to the development of the World Health Organization (WHO) as a systematic framework of regulation and action. The development of international health was in response to the pandemic threats which were thought to emanate from outside Western Europe. The WHO was established in 1948 with the objective of attainment of the highest level of health for all people in the world (Clift, 2013). Its constitution addresses a wide range of functions, such as the direction and coordination of global health operations. The current global environment is affected by the Covid-19 disease, and the WHO has been at the forefront in helping address the global pandemic. It has been through the provision of global governance on the best community practices to prevent the spread of the disease (Ruger & Yach, 2009). It also works in coordination efforts to fund and develop vaccines to prevent infections. It is, therefore, important to examine World Health Organizations and its functions in the global health landscape.

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Reason for Examining of World Health Organization

The rationale behind the examination of the World Health Organization is the role it plays in the promotion of high-quality health globally. The 21st has seen a complex global health landscape and necessitates effective global actions. The new international era is multiplex and has many keys stakeholders. It, therefore, necessitates more coordination, and WHO plays a critical role in the global coordination of health and diseases (Ruger & Yach, 2009). It is important to evaluate WHO since it was a wider international scope in its operations. It is key roles include establishment, monitoring, and enforcement of international standards. It also coordinates the different stakeholders to promote the achievement of a shared goal. Its leadership and effective adoption of critical global functions promote equitable and high-quality health for all the stakeholders.

It is imperative to examine the global health organization due to its extent of involvement in the betterment of global health. It can be witnessed in its constitutions, which divides its core roles into three categories. First, there are normative functions that entail in international conventions and agreements, regulations, and the respective recommendations. Second, there is direction and coordination of operations such as health, poverty reduction, vital medicine operations, and the various disease programs (Qian et al 2020). Third, there are functions concerning research and cooperation, which involves the eradication of diseases and global emergencies. Its operations are evident in the fight against Covid-19. For instance, WHO Director-General underscored the need for the international community to collaborate in preparation for containment of Covid-19 infection, transmission, and spread into the different parts of the world (Qian et al 2020). It has been involved in preparedness in the developing nations, interventions, and coordination internationally, and resource mobilization. It, therefore, means the examination of WHO underscores its roles and function in the global arena.

Causes Addressed by the World Health Organization

The World Health Organization has emerged as one of the most important and efficient organizations in the international health arena. It has been due to its phenomenal scientific and medical expertise. For instance, it is renowned for its victory over smallpox. It is also known to be headed by leaders with appropriate qualities and how adequately deals with major political conflicts. It is has been cited as one of the best-managed agencies in the United Nation's umbrella of agencies. The WHO addresses different issues that relate to health and wellbeing around the world. It tries to deal with problems that threaten global health. These include the prevalence of drug-resistant pathogens, outbreaks of vaccine-preventable ailments, increment of cases of obesity, climate change, environmental pollution, and the various humanitarian crises. It is there important to examine the causes that the WHO is addressing. These include:

Air Pollution and Climate Change

The WHO has underlined air pollution as one of the greatest environmental risks to health. It reports that nine in every ten people breathe polluted air daily, which potentially affects the lungs, heart and brain. The result is many deaths from cancer, heart and lung ailments and stroke. It is also important to note that approximately 90% of these deaths are experienced in low and middle-income nations characterized by increased emissions from agriculture, transport and industries ("Ten health issues WHO will tackle this year", 2019). The fundamental cause of air pollution is the combustion of fossil fuels which also results in climate change.

Non-communicable Diseases

The WHO has reported that non-communicable, which include cancer, heart ailments and diabetes are the leading cause of deaths internationally accounting for approximately 70% of global deaths. It contains 15 million premature deaths of individuals between the age of 30 and 69 years ("Ten health issues WHO will tackle this year", 2019). The increase in these deaths is contributed by tobacco use, excessive consumption of alcohol, air pollution and unhealthy eating habits.

Global Influenza Pandemic

Over the years, the world has experienced influenza pandemics that have had serious implications. Global defences towards influenza pandemics are affected by the preparedness and response of the weakest nations. The global health organization continually monitors influenza virus to establish potential pandemic strains.

Fragile and Vulnerable Communities

The WHO understands that 22% of the global populate is located in areas with protracted crises. The global health organization tries to establish and grow sustainable development goals in these fragile and vulnerable settings ("Ten health issues WHO will tackle this year", 2019). It continues to detect and respond to outbreaks all over the world in the promotion of high-quality health services.

High-threat Pathogens

The world has been affected by high-threat pathogens such as the Ebola outbreak experienced in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2018 ("Ten health issues WHO will tackle this year", 2019). The WHO tries to help in preparedness for Public Health Emergencies around the world. The current pandemic which underscores the WHO role is Covid-19 which is yet to be contained.

Vaccine Hesitancy

The WHO has also noted the issue of vaccine hesitancy which entails the reluctance or refusal to vaccinate in different parts of the world regardless of the availability of vaccines. It is a problem that threatens the progress already made in handling vaccine-preventable ailments. It is reported that vaccines prevent approximately 2-3 million deaths a year ("Ten health issues WHO will tackle this year", 2019). The WHO has the responsibility of promoting vaccination around the world.

World Health Organization at the Local, National, and Global Level

The WHO has been working to address the highlighted issues among others around the globe. It is important to understand that the WHO operates in a complex and dynamic landscape. It has developed agendas to two satisfy strategic and operational needs to address different issues. It had more than 8000 personnel working in more than 150 nations in its 147 countries offices. The WHO has operations national, regional and global level. The 147 country offices help in coordinating operations at the national and local levels (Kocur, 2017). For instance, through its national coordination, it has identified various top-risk countries affected by Covid-19, which include Algeria, Ethiopia, Kenya and Nigeria, among others (Qian et al. 2020). The result is the ability to coordinate efforts and reduce spread in the high-risk areas.

The WHO also has regional offices in different parts of the world. These regional offices include regional office for Africa, Europe, and South-East Asia, the Americas, Eastern Mediterranean and Western Pacific regions (Kocur, 2017). These help in regional coordination to promote good regional health. Globally, the WHO is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, which helps in global coordination (Ruger & Yach, 2009). It has the global function of the establishment, monitoring and implementation of international standards. It is also essential in the worldwide coordination of different actors towards the achievement of shared goals.

Positive Predicted Outcomes of the Organization

The WHO operations seek to have positive outcomes in the context of global health. These include the promotion of development, fostering health security, strengthening health systems around the world, promotion of partnerships, and conducting research and collecting information and evidence ("WHO: World Health Organization", 2013). The WHO has been critical in driving socioeconomic progress and investment in health. It promotes defences against epidemics and pandemics, therefore, fostering global health security. Another outcome is research and collection of evidence that is the foundation of strategy development and implementation in addition to the measurement of results. It also promotes partnerships among different actors such as UN agencies, donors, private organizations, civil society and other international agencies.

References

Clift, C. (2013, February 1). The Role of the World Health Organization in the International System. Retrieved June 5, 2020, from https://www.chathamhouse.org/sites/default/files/publications/research/2013-02-01-role-world-health-organization-international-system-clift.pdf

Kocur, I. (2017, August 1). World Health Organisation. Retrieved June 5, 2020, from https://www.iapb.org/partnerships/world-health-organisation/

Qian, X., Ren, R., Wang, Y., Guo, Y., Fang, J., Wu, Z.-D., … Han, T.-R. (2020). Fighting against the common enemy of COVID-19: a practice of building a community with a shared future for mankind. Infectious Diseases of Poverty, 9(1). doi: 10.1186/s40249-020-00650-1

Ruger, J. P., & Yach, D. (2009). The Global Role of the World Health Organization. Glob Health Gov, 2(2), 1–11. Retrieved from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24729827/

Ten health issues WHO will tackle this year. (2019). Retrieved June 5, 2020, from https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/ten-threats-to-global-health-in-2019

WHO: World Health Organisation - Office of the Secretary-General's Envoy on Youth. (2013, September). Retrieved June 5, 2020, from https://www.un.org/youthenvoy/2013/09/who-world-health-organisation/