Global Intitutions: World Health Organization - Research Paper Example

 Global Institution- World Health Organization Table of Contents Section Page Number Overview/history 3 About the WHO 3 Focus areas 4 Governing body and other key players 5 Budget and audit 5 Reform processes 6 Conclusion 7 Summary of a current event 7 Bibliography 9 Overview/history About the WHO The World Health Organization (WHO) came into existence after its constitution was approved and signed by 61 state representatives who were part of the International Health Conference held in New York in the year 1946. The constitution later came into force in the year 1948. The Constitution defines health as a “state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of a disease.” It further adds that attaining such a health status is a fundamental right of every human being irrespective of their race, religion, social and economic levels. Health is also vital for achieving peace and security and hence both individuals and states should fully co-operate towards achieving this means. When there is a lack of health promotion activities and adequate steps taken for disease control then the state becomes more vulnerable to communicable diseases. Promotion of child health and welfare and creating awareness among all the individuals of a state about medical well-being could help in achieving complete health attainment. In order to meet this end it is vital for people to fully extend their cooperation and work together in improving the health of the entire community. In order to meet this end the constitution also calls for the co-operation from the governments of all states to undertake social and medical measures which will ensure a healthy society. The WHO is headquartered at Geneva, Switzerland and has offices in more than 150 countries with more than 7000 people working in them. The organization has 6 regional offices in the African region, America, South-East Asia, Europe, Eastern Mediterranean, Western Pacific and a Global Service Center in Malaysia. Its staff includes medical doctors, specialists working in public health, scientists, epidemiologists, and staff who have been trained for the purpose of managing administration, finance, and information systems in the various offices. In addition, the centers also include members who have specialized in the field of health statistics, economics and who have experience in carrying out emergency relief operations. Within the framework of the United Nations, the WHO directs and coordinates with other world countries on issues pertaining to international health. The WHO offers leadership positions and entering into partnerships wherever required on critical health issues. They also play an active role in encouraging research studies and thereby stimulate the creation and transfer of knowledge regarding various health issues. The WHO is also responsible for setting up various norms and standards and formulating ethical policies supported by evidences. They also offer technical assistance wherever required in order to bring about sustainable changes in institutions catering to the health needs of the community. In addition to the above the WHO is also involved in constant monitoring of the health situations in various world countries and does a detailed assessment of health trends that are in existence. Focus areas The WHO plays a major role in formulating health plans for various countries in collaboration with the policymakers of the country, health partners, civilians, researchers and the private supporters. Together they ensure that integrated health services are available to all the people within the country at affordable rates and that there is easy access to safe and effective health plans. In order to keep up with the changing trends, the organization also focuses on updating information systems relating to health and making evidence-based policy reforms. Another important focus area of the WHO is in the field of non-communicable diseases. Research studies have shown that nearly 70% of deaths worldwide are caused by heart diseases, stroke, cancer, diabetes, lung diseases, mental health problems, injuries due to violence and accidents. And a majority of such diseases and conditions occur in low and middle income nations. The WHO seeks to address such problems and help find suitable solutions. In addition the WHO also works to promote awareness related to the environment and the various risks posed by man-made and natural calamities. The social determinants of health are also considered including those pertaining to gender, equality and human rights. In fact the main agenda of the Millennium Development Goals is to reduce any bias or disparity pertaining to health both within and between the world countries. It also has within its focus the need to prevent as well as afford maximum care and treatment for some of the major communicable diseases across the world such as HIV, malaria, tuberculosis and other diseases which are being neglected. There is also active promotion of vaccination which could help prevent the occurrence of many diseases that can be controlled through vaccines. In case of any emergencies, the WHO operates by providing the required support and coordination to the affected country in carrying out effective assessment of the condition, designing strategies, providing technical guidance, medical and financial supplies and aiding in the monitoring process. In order to equip the countries to be prepared to face any such emergencies the WHO also provides the necessary guidance and support to strengthen the national core capacity which will help the country be more prepared and quickly respond during such emergencies. All the above core functions of the WHO is made possible through their efficient cooperate service team which include the governing bodies involved in policy making, legal personal which offer assistance during framing of international treaties, staff involved in the communication department who play an active role in promoting health awareness, the human resource team which helps in hiring the best resource personal and the building services which provides the working space for its more than 7000 people workforce across the world. Governing body and other key players The WHO is governed in all its functions and activities by the World Health Assembly which is the decision-making authority of the organization. Its main function is to determine the organization policies, appoint the Director-General, oversee the financial policies, review the program budget which is proposed and its approval. This assembly is attended by delegates from all the member states. Any country which is a member of the United Nations can become a member state by accepting the WHO constitution. In addition countries which are non-member of the United Nations can gain acceptance to the WHO through majority voting in the World Health Assembly. In total as of now there are 194 member states in the WHO. The representative of the member states which convene during the World Health Assembly partake in discussions pertaining to a specific health agenda which is prepared by the Executive board of the WHO. The Executive board is constituted by 34 members who are technically qualified for a period of three years. The agenda and resolutions to be considered for the World Health Assembly is decided during the Annual meeting of the board which is held during the month of January every year. The present Director-General appointed by the World Health Assembly is Dr. Margaret Chan who has been appointed for a second five year term that will end in 2017. In its effort to meet the global health challenges the WHO collaborates and partners with several health bodies through which it directs and promotes work related to healthcare. Through its close association with the United Nations, WHO helps the member states to attain their health goals. It also seeks to engage the non-state actors as a means to satisfy its constitutional mandate. In addition, WHO also partners with several organizations and enters into collaboration with various institutions and universities which are chosen by the Director-General in order to carry out the program activities of the organization. Budget and audit The program budget of the WHO is financed through assessed and voluntary funds given to the organization. Funds contributed by the assesse are the dues paid by countries which are members of the organization and the amount collected from every country is calculated based on its resources and population data. In addition, member states and other partners can also make voluntary contributions to the organization and in the past years more than 3 quarters of the organization’s finance have been made through such contributions. A financing dialogue conducted the member states and major financial contributors from the non-state members will help the organization to meet newer challenges in the field of healthcare in the emerging years. Auditing of the accounts is conducted by internal and external audits. The internal audit of the financial accounts is conducted by the Office of Internal Audit and Oversight which also inspects monitors and evaluates all the internal processes, functions, activities, fiancés and proper use of assests. Any irregular activities are also investigated. The Operations and financial risks of the WHO are overseen by the external audit system, which also conducts an overview of the internal control system of the organization. The World Health Assembly appoints the external auditor for a term of 4 years and who will be directly reporting to the assembly. In addition to the above the Executive board also forms an Independent Expert Advisory Oversight Committee which offers advice on the programs, budget and administration operations and could also be called to offer advice to the Director-General regarding issues which are under its mandate. In order to further improve the transparency and accountability of the organization, the WHO has established the Office of Compliance, Risk Management and Ethics. This office ensures compliance and management of corporate risks and also lays strong emphasis on ethical values and principles which are required to be adhered. Reform processes The WHO also establishes reform processes through which it seeks to organize its priorities, adopt improved governance and management practices. Through its reforms the WHO hope to achieve better health outcomes at a global level, enable a higher degree of integrity among the various actors and to work towards becoming an effective, efficient and transparent organization. The various reforms undertaken to meet this end include: Program reforms by which the priorities are defined in detail and addressed in a systematic and focused manner. In order to ensure efficient delivery of these priorities technical and financial resources are also organized. Through the Governing reforms the organization seeks to improve the internal governing practices and active engagement with the non-state actors such as NGOs, civilians, philanthropic and trade organizations, and other corporations. The Managerial reforms focus on hiring and retaining the best talents and utilizing the manpower in an effective and efficient manner. In order to achieve this end the reforms are constantly undertaken in the areas of human resources, communications, finance, performance evaluations, accountability and information systems management. The reform on Emergency Response Capacities was initiated following the outbreak of Ebola in West Africa. Through this reform the WHO set up a plan for establishing a global health emergency workforce and allocation of contingency funds for such emergencies in order to meet any such emergency outbreaks in future. Conclusion In conclusion, the WHO is continuously striving to fulfill its primary mission of promoting good health and mental and social well-being among all people across the world without any bias. Summary of a current event of the WHO Health officials from the WHO, national officials, local sector people and an expert WHO team from the polio eradication group from India have succeeded in bringing down the Ebola epidemic in Liberia. The country’s most populated county, Montserrado, witnessed an exponential increase in the number of Ebola cases since last September. One of the striking measures adopted by the government was to breakdown the Ebola management system into 4 smaller units in the hope of achieving better case surveillance, tracing contacts and managing the overall response activities in bringing down the epidemic. To meet this end the National Incident Management system decentralized the Ebola management team into four sectors with the help of local community staff who were thus empowered with greater engagement in the activities. In each of these sectors a performance-based management system was introduced by which every member involved was made accountable for their work. Through this system health offficials along with the local communities were able to track down the Ebola cases in their region and were able to track down cases more effectively owing to increased identity within their communities. Through this sector approach the county was able to bring down the number of Ebola cases within 2 months by employing approaches such as ‘good neighbor’ and ‘door-to-door engagement.’ Leaders in each sectors were given the freedom to design their own solutions customized to meet the needs of their communities in the processes of case detection, epidemiological surveillance, management of the cases, psycho-social activities and other community welfare activities. In addition the leaders were also able to alleviate any political or financial hindrances that would essentially bring a halt to the operations. Active coordination between the sectors contributed to improvements and catered to areas which lagged in performance. The technical support for building such strong sector teams was provided by a team of WHO experts from India who were involved in similar localized programs for the eradication of polio in that country. Thus such a decentralized system helped to provide immediate diagnosis and care to people within the community. As the management was eventually based on performance of the teams, every team member had specific goals and targets to achieve. These targets were constantly reviewed and every team member was required to submit reports on whether the target was met. The Key Performance Indicators (KPI) were discussed during every daily meeting between the coordinators, supervisors and other representatives in order to assess the targets set for every day. The areas that required improvement were identified and the concerned personal were informed about the same. Correction measures were then suggested by the leaders and they were constantly monitored until the issue was resolved. Management review meetings took place two times each week where the national managers openly discussed the sector operations and these meetings also helped them reach out to each other in case they required any support. In addition such interactive meetings also included discussion on technical and non-technical areas between the common man and health authorities and customer feedback was also sought during such meetings and areas that needed improvement were identified. The help of local people within the community was sought most often in order to achieve the target performance within the sector. All the data collected from the field was then fed to a county platform where the data was assessed, consolidated and merged with those from other sectors. The data reports obtained were shared between the different groups and they were also used for creating data models. Thought this public driven management system suffered some initial resistance, the positive effects changed the people’s perception about such a transparent, client-based approach. The inclusion of local communities in the program proved to be an effective strategy as it contributed to increased trust between the partners and better community involvement for the program. Thus this sector approach in Liberia has proved to be a major factor that has contributed in greatly containing the disease in Liberia. Bibliography Cordier-Lassalle, T. (n.d). A quality management system that led to Liberia’s success in fighting Ebola. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/features/2015/ebola-sector-approach/en/ World health Organization. (n.d). Retrieved from http://www.who.int/about/en/ Read More