WONCA at the 148th WHO Executive Board Session
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WONCA participated in the 148th session of the Executive Board of the World Health Organization, with three statements that addressed important items of the agenda such as
Global Action on Patient Safety,
Public Health Emergencies: Preparedness and Response,
Social Determinants of Health, and
Mental Health Preparedness and Response for the COVID-19 Pandemic.
As part of Pillar 1 of the agenda related to the benefits of Universal Health Coverage, WONCA in collaboration with the
Working Party on Quality & Safety, launched a statement to welcome the
Global Patient Safety Action Plan, and urged to invest in strong and safe primary care, in support of the health workforce and health information systems, as the best efficient initiatives to ensure patient safety, promote high standards of care and achieve safe universal health coverage. As part of Pillar 2: One billion more people better protected from health emergencies, WONCA also submitted the statement on the social determinants of health.
During the session of the Executive Board of the World Health Organization, WONCA was present through
Dr Viviana Martínez-Bianchi, Executive member and WHO liaison and
Dr Harris Lygidakis, WONCA CEO, who spoke on behalf of our organization,
Dr Martínez-Bianchi intervened with two statements in which she highlighted the central role of family doctors in the provision and coordination of primary health care activities, including the ones related to mental health. She also reaffirmed WONCA's commitment to the emergency response in collaboration with the WHO, through the work of WONCA regional organisations.
“Family doctors and their PHC teams are central to health emergency risk management, preparedness, and communication locally & nationally. We urge member states to involve Family doctors in each community’s planning of the pandemic response, and in the design of primary health care strategies to approach the present and future crisis and pandemics.”
After the fruitful participation of WONCA in the WHO Executive Board, we extend our strong appreciation to our
Working Party on Quality & Safety, the Special Interest Group on
Emergency Medicine, the
Special Interest Group on Health Equity and our
Working Party on Mental Health, for their crucial contribution to the drafts of statements made at the Executive Board, and to primary health care and family doctors.
Download WONCA statement on Patient Safety
Download WONCA statement on Mental Health Preparedness
Download WONCA statement on Public Health Emergencies
Download WONCA statement on Social Determinants of Health