World Health Day 2021 - For a Fairer and Healthier World
World Health Day is celebrated annually on 7 April. The date was chosen by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1948, when the first WHO assembly was organized. Since 1950, on 7 April, World Health Day is celebrated. Each year the organization chooses a central theme to be discussed on World Health Day, which becomes a priority on the WHO international agenda. On this World Health Day in 2021, WHO asks everyone to participate in building a fairer and healthier world.
The COVID-19 pandemic, which still plagues us in a brutal way, has highlighted the inequalities between countries and, often, within the country itself. As an example, and in a context of a shortage of essential supplies, African countries were placed at the end of the line in terms of access to test kits for COVID-19, personal protective equipment and now vaccines. There are also inequalities within countries. Every day we see examples of discrimination based on gender, place of residence, income, educational level, age, ethnicity and disability, thus harming the most vulnerable populations.
Therefore, there is much to be done and several international organizations have sought to contribute to reducing inequality, with WHO being a fundamental pillar in this process. It is also clear that in order to reverse this trend, it is necessary to act regarding the social and economic determinants of health, carrying out multisectoral work to improve living and working conditions, and to guarantee the population’s access to education, especially the most marginalized groups. Communities should be involved in this initiative as partners, using in particular their networks and associations to define and implement health and development interventions.
One of the main challenges encountered in the fight against inequalities is the fact that there is limited data to identify the populations that are not being covered by the initiatives and the reasons behind this failure. To fill these gaps, national health information systems need to collect data stratified by age, sex and equity. This information can then be used to guide decision-making and policymaking. The WHO is collaborating with countries to strengthen capacities for data collection, management and exploitation, and to improve monitoring and actions taken to fight preventable inequalities.
Investment is also needed to accelerate the progress made in implementing universal health coverage, to protect people from financial difficulties that hamper access to the care they need, and to improve service coverage.
Leaders must, in a spirit of international solidarity, work together in the future to fight inequalities within and outside their borders. More specifically, with regard to vaccines against COVID-19, it is essential that pharmaceutical companies strengthen their production capacities to overcome the current shortage in terms of supply. The active participation of rich countries is also critical, namely in sharing their doses in order to protect populations most at risk, save lives and quickly overcome this global crisis. Thus, on this World Health Day, in a year of great suffering in the World, it is even more urgent that everyone focus on WHO so that it is possible to achieve universal health coverage, a very clear objective of the current Director-General. This requires strong investment in an approach focused on the social and economic determinants of health, in order to combat inequalities and build a fairer and healthier world.
On this day, I leave a special word for all health professionals who have played a fundamental role in ensuring health and well-being for the populations they serve. This year, their extreme dedication, sacrifice and commitment was well demonstrated not only to overcome the Covid-19 pandemic, but also to ensure continuity of care for all. The participants of the 73rd World Health Assembly, which took place in Geneva, have recognised this and declared 2021 as the International Year of Health Workers and Caregivers.
As a Faculty of Medicine, we have an obligation and a duty to train the doctors of the future in an environment that allows them to be prepared to win the battles they will face. In a particularly difficult year, we were able to find solutions that made it possible to minimize the impact of the terrible pandemic that the world still faces. I am immensely proud of the attitude of our students during this period, and I am sure that they will contribute to the fight to build a world that is fairer and healthier. HAPPY WORLD HEALTH DAY 2021.
Fausto J. Pinto
Director of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Lisbon
