World Health Day takes place on April 7 each year, marking the anniversary of the date that the World Health Organisation (WHO) was founded.
World Health Day is the universal campaign of WHO, focussing on ensuring that everyone can access the care they need, when and wherever they need it; their goal is to ensure that healthcare is provided to each and every family as a basic human right.
Even over the last 50 years, we have seen a surge in the enhancement of medical materials. Doctors and engineers have constructed the technology required to keep a heart pumping outside of the human body while it’s transported to a new recipient, HIV treatment has developed so much that it is no longer a death sentence, and scientists have developed the understanding to a patient’s genetic make-up – allowing doctors to predict the development of a disease and intervene at an early stage.
This is all happening in the UK and across many parts of the world, and it is allowing us to thrive in our societies and live the lives we’re dreaming of every day.
However, there are still millions of people with zero access to any basic healthcare; and this is the reason behind World Health Day. Millions of people are forced to choose between healthcare for themselves or their families and other daily expenses such as food, clothing and even a home.
In 2019, although progress is being made in the bigger parts of the world, there is still a long way to go before the World Health Organisation achieve their number one goal: accessible and affordable healthcare for all.
Who can make a difference on World Health Day?
There are many key influencers and contributors in the quest for universal healthcare, but the biggest participants include the Government, the media, healthcare professionals, and fundamentally; you.
World Health Day provides an opportunity for government officials to commit to rectifying healthcare shortages in their countries as well as highlighting the progress that has already been made, but there are more figures in the community that can help influence the campaign for universal healthcare.
The media is arguably one of the most influential platforms for dialogue between communities, their representatives and policy-makers i.e. through radio talk shows, television interviews and newspaper articles. The World Health Organisation provides visual materials to show those with access to decent healthcare what life is like when people cannot obtain the services they need, which the media can project to encourage discussion in the community.
Alongside the media, healthcare professionals can play a key role in revolutionising the accessibility of healthcare across the world. By recognising the fundamental requirements of healthcare, particularly at a primary care level, healthcare workers can guide the key decision-makers in acknowledging the basic healthcare necessities and establishing how they can be made available worldwide.
What can you do to help on World Health Day?
Universal healthcare is not going to happen overnight, but there are steps that we can all take to ensure that, each day, we are getting closer to enabling access to basic healthcare to families across the world.
Together, we can stimulate conversations to communicate our expectations to local decision-makers. We can invite civil society organisations to help us impart the message on our peers and within our community. We can share stories and organise activities such as marches, discussions and music events to spread the word, enabling the opportunity to interact with our local policy-makers to filter the message through the chain of authority.
With social media – the world’s most powerful communication tool – within easy reach of so many of us, we can contribute and participate with the World Health Organisation to encourage the discussion and social influence that is needed in order to promote the necessity of universal healthcare.
With millions of families all over the world still living in ‘healthcare poverty’, we have an opportunity to be part of the bigger conversation and to really start to make our common voice heard. No family should be living in poverty, especially not healthcare poverty, and together we can achieve a fairer, healthier world in which no one is left behind.
What now?
The World Health Organisation will be communicating their campaign through their Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Instagram channels, using the hashtags #HealthForAll and #WorldHealthDay.
Here, you can share the posts within your own networks, join conversations on issues relating to the campaign and even share your own materials.
From government officials to the media to local community members; we all have a part to play in the fulfilment of universal healthcare. By working together to create awareness and stimulate discussion, we can be responsible for achieving it that little bit faster.
We’re offering a Helping Hand this World Health Day
Here at Helping Hands, we’re incredibly passionate about each and every family having the opportunity to receive the healthcare that they need, when they need it.
Which is why – alongside providing a seamless care service to each of our customers day-in and day-out – we are offering our full support to the World Health Organisation in their endeavour for universal healthcare.
On this World Health Day and each day thereafter, we are a firm ally in the campaign for providing accessible healthcare across the world, and will be until, collectively, we have helped the World Health Organisation to achieve this goal.
You can follow our supporting campaign on our own Facebook and Twitter channels.
