World Health Day

Context:

World Health Day is celebrated every year on April 7 to spread awareness around maintaining good health and a balanced lifestyle.

About:

• April 7 of each year marks the celebration of World Health Day.
• From its inception at the First Health Assembly in 1948 and since taking effect in 1950, the celebration has aimed to create awareness of a specific health theme to highlight a priority area of concern for the World Health Organization.
• Over 1 million people have been infected by the deadly contagion while more than 60,000 have lost their lives to Covid-19 infection.

World Health Organization:

• On April 7, 1948, the United Nations established WHO by the constitution, putting it in charge of classifying diseases.
• WHO acts as the branch of the United Nations responsible for global public health.
• The organization’s team, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland
• 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.