I Refuse to Stop Helping: US Global Health Implications
I have received an overwhelming number of student and international partner questions about what it means to have the US step away from the World Health Organization (WHO). Normally, I would refrain from commentary on political decisions on both sides, but this decision deeply impacts my work, research, and the most vulnerable populations around the world. I have worked in Global Health for nearly 20 years and spent 12 years in college studying this as my area of expertise. I share my concerns as someone working in the field, not as someone with a political agenda or just wanting a platform to share opinions on something I haven’t been trained in.
What is the World Health Organization?
The World Health Organization was started on April 7, 1948, under the umbrella of the United Nations. One of the main reasons the WHO assembled was to help unify quarantine requirements to stop the spread of diseases such as cholera, plague, and Yellow Fever outbreaks in Europe. These diseases, along with others, were found to be preventable, so unifying efforts among countries was a way to prevent unnecessary suffering and increase access to education and resources.
Today, the WHO still functions in that capacity and beyond. I follow their guidance whenever I work in other countries on HIV/AIDS, malaria, access to care, and more. I personally feel deeply grateful for their efforts to bring access to health, regardless of where a person is born.
The WHO is comprised of 194 member states committed to promoting health and preventing disease around the world. Each member state brings a unique perspective and opportunity to learn as they work together to fight global diseases. Recently, the US removed itself from being a member state and part of the WHO.
What are the implications of the US not being involved with the WHO?
Each of the member states come to the table with different needs and different resources. The US is not in a place of lack for health resources, so day to day our population may not notice a difference. The impact will be felt by countries experiencing drastic health needs and suffering. The US was one of the largest contributors for the WHO. Stepping away means that we are not assisting with the thousands of programs that help bring life and end suffering to some of the most impoverished areas in the world. Not only do physical resources get depleted for other countries in need, but it means that our scientists, researchers, and technical assistance will not be used to help train others and build better health systems.
A few years ago, I was preparing to take a public health team to a more remote part of Uganda. The day before we left (at our last training meeting), one of my boys did a backflip off a tall swivel chair, fell, and broke his arm. I quickly called campus safety, and in less than one minute the room was flooded with help! I sat in a chair holding him as they wrapped his arm and prepared to transport to our closest children’s hospital (it was severe enough that they were concerned about him going into shock). In the midst of that traumatizing event, I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude for campus safety, the EMT workers, ambulance drivers, and hospital staff that took care of my baby. I also sat there pondering our trip and whether or not we should go. Then I felt a deep sense of empathy for the moms we were going to serve in Uganda as I reflected and thought about the same situation happening there. They did not have an EMT service, ambulance, or even a clinic to go to! I thought of the moms that had children who broke bones or had severe diseases that needed treatment. I knew the trip would be a harder journey, but I knew that we needed to go help bring access to care for those who didn’t have it.
We should not live in a world where moms have to watch their children suffer and die because people or political systems are not willing to help. Did you know that 76% of malaria deaths happen in children under the age of 5 years old?! That number equates to a child dying every minute of every day. Even as you are reading this article, if one minute has passed, then a mother has lost a child due to malaria. Did you also know that malaria is preventable and treatable, so no one should have to die from that disease?! This is the type of assistance that our country is stepping away from, and it will get worse. Do not be swayed by political narratives, but please hear this from someone working in the field.
It grieves my heart to watch our global partners and friends already feel a lack from this change, along with other implications from PEPFAR (which is the only health program in history where Democrats and Republicans have come together to create in a unified way), USAID (which houses a lot of our global health data), and CDC not being able to provide assistance.
What is happening now?
My honest first thought when I heard the news of not being part of the WHO was to pray that we don’t have a serious outbreak, especially while CDC can’t report or communicate anything publicly. And then on January 30, Uganda declared an outbreak of Ebola (the strain that does not have a vaccine). This strain of the virus has a case fatality range from 40-70% in previous outbreaks, meaning that between 4-7 people will die for every 10 that get infected! It has been a challenge to get data and follow what is happening because of the communication that has been forced to pause. We have the tools to assist and to contain this disease outbreak so that more people don’t die, but we are no longer with WHO and CDC has not been deployed to help. Disease does not see borders, so if this outbreak is not contained, we could see it expand to other places. I will post a video on this as I rally students to create public health materials, since our country is missing an opportunity to step in and help those in need.
My heart believes that every human should have a chance to live a healthy life. It shouldn’t matter which zip code or country we are born in, but sadly, it does. Moms shouldn’t have to watch their children suffer and die. I also believe that if a country has a high socioeconomic status (G7), such as the US, we should not be selfish and should care for the orphaned, widowed, vulnerable, and outcasts around the world. I am still committed to helping our global partners and friends stop the spread of HIV, reduce deaths from malaria, improve health education, and help children and the vulnerable access the care they need to survive. Public Health friends, colleagues, and students, we need to fight for our friends and communities around the world who still lack access to clean water, healthcare, food, education, and basic needs. Even if our systems step away, remove our data, and silence our reports, we must encourage each other and help those in greatest need from the ground up. Sending love to you all.