OFFICIAL RECORDS OF THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION No. 38 THE WORK OF WHO 1951 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR -GENERAL TO THE WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY AND TO THE UNITED NATIONS WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION PALAIS DES NATIONS GENEVA March 1952 ABBREVIATIONS The following abbreviations are used in the Official Records of the World Health Organization: ACC - Administrative Committee on Co- ordination CCICMS - Council for the Co- ordination of International Congresses of Medical Sciences CCTA - Commission for Technical Co- operation in Africa South of the Sahara ECA - Economic Co- operation Administration ECAFE - Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East ECE - Economic Commission for Europe ECLA - Economic Commission for Latin America FAO - Food and Agriculture Organization ICAO - International Civil Aviation Organization ICITO - Interim Commission of the International Trade Organization ILO - International Labour Organisation (Office) IMCO - Inter -Governmental Maritime Consultative Organisation IRO - International Refugee Organization ITU - International Telecommunication Union OIHP - Office International d'Hygiène Publique PASB - Pan American Sanitary Bureau PASO - Pan American Sanitary Organization TAB - Technical Assistance Board TAC - Technical Assistance Committee UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNICEF - United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund UNKRA --- United Nations Korean Reconstruction Agency UNRRA - United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration UNRWAPRNE - United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East WFUNA - World Federation of United Nations Associations TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Introduction 1 PART I - DIRECTION AND CO- ORDINATION OF INTERNATIONAL HEALTH WORK Chapter 1. Public -Health Services 12 Chapter2.Teaching and Training 23 Chapter3.Communicable Diseases 28 Chapter4.Co- ordination of Research 38 Chapter5. Epidemiological and Statistical Services 41 Chapter6.Drugs and other Therapeutic Substances 47 Chapter7.Procurement of Essential Drugs and Equipment 53 Chapter 8.Publications and Reference Services 55 Chapter9.Public Information 58 Chapter 10.General Administration 61 PART II - ASSISTANCE TO GOVERNMENTS IN THE REGIONS IN STRENGTHENING HEALTH SERVICES Chapter 11.African Region 70 Chapter 12.Region of the Americas 74 Chapter 13.South -East Asia Region 86 Chapter 14.European Region 101 Chapter 15.Eastern Mediterranean Region 121 Chapter 16.Western Pacific Region 133 PART III - COLLABORATION WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS Chapter 17.Co- ordination of Work with Other Organizations 142 Chapter 18.Health Services for Special Groups 150 MAPS 1. WHO Influenza Centres 34 2. WHO Brucellosis Centres 36 3. Network of Epidemiological Radio -Telegraphic Communications 44 4.Location of Centres for Biological Standards 48 5. WHO Salmonella Centres 49 6. WHO Depository Libraries 57 - III - Page 7. Regions and Offices of the World Health Organization 68 8.African Region 71 9. Region of the Americas 75 10. South -East Asia Region 87 11. European Region 102 12. Eastern Mediterranean Region 122 13. Western Pacific Region 135 ANNEXES 1. Membership of the World Health Organization 155 2. Membership of the Executive Board 156 3.Expert Advisory Panels and Expert Committees 157 4. Conferences and Meetings called by WHO in 1951 162 5. Symposia, Seminars and Training Courses 163 6. Conferences and Meetings called by the United Nations and Specialized Agencies in 1951 at which WHO was represented 164 7. Conferences and Meetings of Non -Governmental and Other Organizations in 1951 at which WHO was represented 167 8.Non -Governmental Organizations in Official Relationship with WHO 169 9.Budgetary Provision for 1951 170 10. Status of Contributions and Advances to the Working Capital Fund 171 11. Structure of the Secretariat 178 12. Senior Officials of World Health Organization 179 13. Composition of Staff by Nationality 181 14.Distribution of Fellowships 183 15.Technical Assistance 190 SUPPLEMENT Summary Analysis of Reports from Member States 193 CORRIGENDUM Page 24 :Fellowships First paragraph, line 11: for655 fellowships read 665 fellowships - Iv - INTRODUCTION Developments in World Health 1951 has been the third full year of activity for the World Health Organization.It has, on the whole, been an encouraging year for the health of the world : there have been no very spectacular advances towards the goals of WHO, but neither have there been any disquieting setbacks. The year has been characterized by the gradual but unmistakable development of a " world health consciousness " and by a broadening of the general concept of the right to health.Although the universality of this right has long been recognized as an ideal in many religions and philosophies, the people of the world have been all too willing to accept it only as a general theme and to leave to a hopelessly small number of missionaries and other humanitarians the gigantic task of applying it in practice. Today in the eyes of humanity it has become the duty of those countries more richly endowed with resources and more skilled in their use and conservation to help those less developed to provide the scientific and medical means of improving the health of their peoples.It is not enough, for example, for a few nations to produce adequate supplies of essential antibiotics or insecticides for their own use and leave other nations to their own resources ; nations which can manufacture products which the whole world needs must either produce enough to satisfy their own needs and a surplus for export to other countries or must help these countries to produce their own supplies.It has long been recognized that epidemics must be subject to international control ; now not only epidemics but disease in general, starvation, malnutrition, homelessness, indeed, poverty and needless death occurring anywhere in the world have rightly become of vital concern to all peoples.Assistance to under -developed countries has been given for a number of reasons ; nevertheless, perhaps more at this time than ever before in history, the more fortunate people have recognized their obligation to do something about these problems and have begun to do so. A brief consideration of the more important trends and developments in world health and the part which WHO has played in them makes it clear that countries are giving increasing attention to the promo- tion of health as essential to industrial, agricultural, and general social and economic advancement. One manifestation of this trend is the emphasis, in the training programmes of many countries, which has been placed on the social aspects of the prevention of disease and the protection of health.This was also reflected in the technical discussions on " The Education and Training of Medical and Public- Health Personnel ", which took place in Geneva during the Fourth World Health Assembly. The establishment, during 1951, of the health demonstration areas requested by governments, in which health work is shown to be an integral part of the social and economic development of the community, and the inclusion of health experts in the survey missions sent out to countries by the International Bank for Economic Development and Recon- struction are further examples. The most striking evidence of this trend, however, is the direction taken by the United Nations expanded programme for technical assistance, in which a substantial part of the available funds has been allocated to WHO for health work. Not only has the year produced much evidence that the improvement of health is more clearly conceived as a vital element in economic and social development ; countries are also adopting much more frequently than hitherto what may be termed the " co- ordinated approach " to health matters themselves.This approach, enlisting as it does the co- operation of all concerned with the various aspects and implications of particular problems, brings to their solution a team spirit and a common understanding which ensure more thorough and valuable results than would otherwise be possible.Such an approach enables professional and auxiliary workers in such fields as environmental sanitation, health administration, nursing, health education, maternal and child health, mental health and nutrition to combine their efforts in substantial contributions towards the achievement of total health.Wherever it is called for in WHO projects, this approach is encouraged : a notable instance of its application has been the establishment of health units and health demonstration areas with the co- operation of the United Nations and of other specialized agencies. In planning health programmes, more governments have also become aware that, before they can extend their services in public health and medical care, they must provide for the training of health workers. Some have recognized the need for revising their existing systems of technical education in order to produce per- -1- 2 THE WORK OF WHO, 1951 sonnel with the qualifications needed for coping effectively with the physical, mental and social aspects of health work. The important role played by medical and health auxiliary personnel was clearly brought out in the conclusions of the technical discussions at the Fourth World Health Assembly, and WHO has helped to promote the training of professional and technical personnel by organizing training courses, awarding an increasing number of fellowships and giving financial and technical support to scientific and educational