The role of the World Health Organization on pharmaceuticals in Europe.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is the specialized agency of the UN on public health. It gives worldwide guidance in the field of health, sets global standards for health, cooperates with governments to strengthen national health care programs, and develops and transfers appropriate health technology, information, and standards. Within the WHO European region, health status and health expenditures vary greatly. In this paper, disparities between health status, health services, and health care expenditures between countries of the WHO European region are presented. The objectives, performance, and dilemmas facing health care systems are discussed, including the recent performance ranking published by the WHO. The paper focuses particularly on access to medicines, their appropriate use, and rising drug expenditures. Strategies used by European countries to improve drug use and contain health care expenditures are outlined. Finally, the future of pharmaceuticals and public health is explored.
de Joncheere
K
K
World Health Organization, Regional Office for Europe, Scherfigsvej 8, DK-2100, Copenhagen, Denmark. cjo@who.dk
D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration; D018954:Drugs, Essential / Q000600:supply & distribution; D017850:Economics, Pharmaceutical / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D005102:Health Expenditures / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006292:Health Priorities; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006302:Health Services Research; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D016134:Organizational Policy; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care; D014944:World Health Organization / Q000458:organization & administration*
D018954:Drugs, Essential