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Biomedical subjects

F Godlee

Publications and source records attributed to F Godlee.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1995

The World Health Organisation. WHO in Europe: does it have a role?

WHO is under pressure from all sides to justify its existence. Donors want to know what they are getting for their money, and health professionals question the relevance of the organisation's work. The pressure to justify itself is perhaps strongest of all in Europe, where most member countries have fully fledged health infrastructures and high overall levels of health. Now there is the additional threat of encroachment into the field of public health by the European Union. The disintegration of the Soviet bloc has given WHO's regional office in Europe a new sense of purpose and led to a major shift in resources towards the countries of central and eastern Europe. But WHO's critics are calling for a different shift in the way its European office works: from its current concentration on broad based policy issues to the nitty-gritty of health care management and delivery.

Europe↗
PubMed1995

WHO's special programmes: undermining from above.

Despite the World Health Organisation's spoken commitment to developing integrated primary health care, its most visible and successful activities are not integrated within countries; they are its disease specific intervention programmes, such as the Global Programme on AIDS and the programmes for the control of diarrhoeal and acute respiratory diseases. The 10 or so special programmes, all but one of which (the onchocerciasis control programme) are based in Geneva, have found increasing favour among donors, but critics say that they undermine WHO's attempts to integrate its activities at country level and discourage countries from developing their own capacity.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1995

WHO fellowships--what do they achieve?

Training health professionals is one of WHO's major strategies for improving health care in the developing world. The aim, to strengthen a country's own capacity rather than injecting expertise from outside, is in the best tradition of sustainable development. But how effective is this so called "capacity building in human resources"? Since it accounted for $43m of WHO's budget in 1992-3 and is considered by WHO to be a major contribution to health in individual countries, it deserves detailed examination.

Developing Countries↗
PubMed1994

WHO at country level--a little impact, no strategy.

The acid test of WHO's effect on the world's health is its impact at country level. Unless it has an impact there, all of its declarations, its debates at the World Health Assembly, its conferences, its pamphlets, its political manouvering in Geneva and the regions, all of these come to nothing. Working as it does through national governments, WHO insists that it has no role in directly managing or delivering health care. Judging WHO's impact in individual countries is therefore difficult--its approaches are largely indirect, and initiatives may take years to bear fruit. But from the meagre resources that WHO makes available at country level it is clear why its country operations are criticised as the weakest link in an already weak chain of influence from its headquarters in Geneva to the people in its member states. Poorly funded, undertrained, and with no clear strategy to follow, its staff at country level stand little chance of making an impact.

Global Health↗
PubMed1994

The World Health Organisation. The regions--too much power, too little effect.

WHO's regional offices make it structurally one of the most decentralised of all United Nations agencies. But at what cost and to what effect? This article argues that too often the regions give only the illusion of decentralisation while wresting power from WHO's governing body and prolonging the time taken for resources to reach the point of need.

Global Health↗
PubMed1994

WHO in retreat: is it losing its influence?

WHO says it has three main functions: to set normative standards; to provide technical advice and assistance on medical matters; and to advocate changes in health policy. During its 46 year history the first two functions have been a constant and uncontroversial backbone through which WHO has earned its reputation for scientific excellence. The third function, advocacy, came to the fore with the launch of Health for All in 1977, after which WHO took a key role in influencing international health policy. WHO's friends and critics alike now say that the organisation is losing its influence and retreating into its technical and biomedical shell. This article maps the changes in WHO's approach over the past 46 years and considers whether fears about its loss of influence are justified.

Global Health↗
PubMed1994

WHO in crisis.

Media attention has been focused on the leadership of the World Health Organisation, rather than on the real factors that limit WHO's effectiveness. These factors relate to the organisation's structure and also to its current priorities, methods, and management. This article examines the objectives and strategy of WHO in view of financial constraints and donor countries' demands; WHO's stated goal of integrated primary health care; staff morale; and the growing dislocation between the regions and headquarters.

Administrative Personnel↗