Consortium for International Earth Science Information Network

World Health Organization

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

WHO Summary

The objective of WHO is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health, as defined in the WHO Constitution, is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. In support of its main objective, the Organization has a wide range of functions.

to act as the directing and co-ordinating authority on international health work;
to promote technical co-operation;
to assist Governments, upon request, in strengthening health services;
to furnish appropriate technical assistance and, in emergencies, necessary aid, upon the request or acceptance of Governments;
to stimulate and advance work on the prevention and control of epidemic, endemic and other diseases;
to promote, in co-operation with other specialized agencies where necessary, the improvement of nutrition, housing, sanitation, recreation, economic or working conditions and other aspects of environmental hygiene;
to promote and co-ordinate biomedical and health services research;
to promote improved standards of teaching and training in the health, medical and related professions;
to establish and stimulate the establishment of international standards for biological, pharmaceutical and similar products, and to standardize diagnostic procedures;
to foster activities in the field of mental health, especially those activities affecting the harmony of human relations.

WHO also proposes conventions, agreements, regulations and makes recommendations about international nomenclature of diseases, causes of death and public health practices. It develops, establishes and promotes international standards concerning foods and biological, pharmaceutical and similar substances.

The World Health Organization has many established Programmes in support of its objective: from the Division on Food and Nutrition (FNU) to the Global Programme on AIDs (GPA).

Along with its headquarters, six regional organizations have been established as integral parts of WHO, each consisting of a regional committee and a regional office.

Additional information may be obtained through WHO's Gopher or the WHO World Wide Web Home Page.

WHO Locations

World Health Organization (WHO)
CH-1211 Geneva
SWITZERLAND

Tel: 41-22-791-2111
Fax: 41-22-791-0746
e-mail: postmaster@who.ch
X.400: C=CH/A=ARCOM/P=WHO/O=WHOHQ/S=POSTMASTER

Regional Offices include: Regional Office for Africa (AFRO); Regional Office for the Americas (AMRO); Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean (EMRO); Regional Office for Europe (EURO); Regional Office for South-East Asia (SEARO); and, the Regional Office for the Western Pacific (WPRO).

WHO Datasets/Resources

The Mortality Database held by the World Health Organization (WHO) is a centrally managed database containing data on cause of death statistics for human populations by country, year, sex, and age. The database is used for the assessment of trends in mortality patterns between countries.

A selection of other WHO Databases is also available.

Datasets from other organizations containing environmental, earth science, and global change information can be located through CIESIN's Gateway.

Related Organizations

Being one of many UN Organizations, WHO related information may be available through The United Nations Development Programme UNDP Gopher, The United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF Gopher, or The World Bank and World Bank Gopher.

Information about other Information Cooperative partner organizations may be located through CIESIN's Organizational Guides.

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Last modified 27 February 1995.