World Health Day and Global Health Initiatives

World Health Day, April 7, 2011 – World Health Organization 
Theme: "Antimicrobial resistance: no action today, no cure tomorrow."
We live in an era of medical breakthroughs with new wonder drugs available to treat conditions that a few decades ago, or even a few years ago in the case of HIV/AIDS, would have proved fatal. For World Health Day 2011, WHO will launch a worldwide campaign to safeguard these medicines for future generations. Antimicrobial resistance and its global spread threaten the continued effectiveness of many medicines used today to treat the sick, while at the same time it risks jeopardizing important advances being made against major infectious killers.

World Health Organization 
WHO is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.

World Health Organization Data and Statistics 

National Health Information Center
The National Health Information Center (NHIC) is a health information referral service. NHIC puts health professionals and consumers who have health questions in touch with those organizations that are best able to provide answers. NHIC was established in 1979 by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP), Office of Public Health and Science, Office of the Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Global health.gov
Mission: “To promote the health of the world’s population by advancing the Secretary’s and the Department of Health and Human Services’ global strategies and partnerships, thus serving the health of the people of the United States.”

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Global Health Program 
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Global Health Program harnesses advances in science and technology to save lives in poor countries. It focuses on the health problems that have a major impact in developing countries but get too little attention and funding. Where proven tools exist, it supports sustainable ways to improve their delivery. Where they don’t, it invests in research and development of new interventions, such as vaccines, drugs and diagnostics.

Global Health from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)  
CDC’s Center for Global Health integrates and leverages the resources and strengths of the agency to address HIV/AIDS, TB, malaria and parasitic diseases, global outbreaks of infectious disease, emergency and refugee health, non-communicable diseases, injuries, and other health threats.

Duke Global Health Institute 
The Duke Global Health Institute (DGHI) works to reduce health disparities in our local community and worldwide. Recognizing that many global health problems stem from economic, social, environmental, political and health care inequalities, DGHI brings together interdisciplinary teams to solve complex health problems and to train the next generation of global health scholars.

The Wilson Center Global Health Initiative 
Life and health are the most basic human rights, yet disparities between and within countries continue to growthreatening political security and global stability. No single solution or institution can address the variety of health concerns the world faces. By leveraging, building on, and coordinating the Wilson Center’s strong regional and cross-cutting programming, the Global Health Initiative (GHI) promotes dialogue and understanding among practitioners, scholars Life and health are the most basic human rights, yet disparities between and within countries continue to grow, community leaders and policymakers.