And A Happy World Health Day to You Too

If it’s April 7, it’s world health day.  A statement from United Nations Foundation’s Vice President for Global Health Dr. Daniel Carucci: 

“On World Health Day we celebrate the achievements in global health and recommit as a world community to save lives worldwide. Over the past 20 years, the United Nations and its partners have helped to reduce child mortality by more than 50 percent in developing countries, bring us to the brink of polio eradication, and cut measles deaths by 78 percent worldwide. One-third of the 108 malaria-ravaged countries reduced malaria cases by more than half in 2008 compared to 2000, and the malaria rate continues to fall. These are important milestones to help us achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).  

However, the work is far from finished.  Each year, more than 23 million children do not get the vaccines they need, 8 million children die needlessly, over 500,000 women die due to complications from pregnancy, and close to 1 million people die from malaria. These sobering facts point to how much work remains to be done.  

In September world leaders will meet in New York for the UN MDG Summit to review progress, identify gaps, and commit to a concrete action plan toward achieving the MDGs by 2015. There’s no better time to make these goals a priority and to work together to improve the health of people around the world.”