The World Health Organization (WHO) Health System Framework

Ensuring stable and highly-effective health infrastructure is vital to establishing universal health coverage, as well as solving some of the world’s most compelling public health issues. Published in 2007, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Health System Framework manifests the basic guidelines for an effective national health infrastructure. According to the document, it firstly requires leadership and governance. A country needs people with vision, knowledge and skills that are capable of developing and managing health infrastructure efforts. Furthermore, it needs a sizable, reliable and hardworking health workforce that is fairly distributed across the country. An exceptional infrastructure also provides much-needed, good quality services

First of all, national funds for health systems are practically non-existent in many underdeveloped and developing nations. According to the WHO Fact Sheet N°319, in 2012 thirty-four countries spent less than US$ 50 per person per year, the minimum estimate being US$ 44 for basic services. (WHO, 2007) It is also not uncommon that citizens in developing nations have to pay exaggerated fees to receive basic health, redirecting those means away from other essentials like education or food. In addition to lack of financing, the world is suffering from a serious shortage of healthcare workers. According to a WHO news release, “ the world will be short of 12.9 million health-care workers by 2035; today, that figure stands at 7.2 million”. It owes this deficit to the aging workforce, improper training and small amount of people entering the field. (WHO, 2013) Troubles within the medical products and technologies building block are that not everyone has access to health facilities or pharmaceuticals and the current cost of these lead to the expansion of the black market. Moreover, many underdeveloped nations do not see the importance of a health information and research system or do not have the elements needed to establish one. With no population data, the country can not plan and coordinate efforts effectively. It is WHO’s duty to help build these infrastructure and overcome all of its obstacles. (WHO,