Essential public health functions as a strategy for improving overall health systems performance: Trends and challenges since the public health in the Americas Initiative, 2000-2007
Caroline Ramagem and José Ruales, Area of Health Systems Strengthening, Washington, D.C. February 2008
Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO)
“…..The Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) defines the Essential Public Health Functions (EPHF) as the indispensable set of actions, under the primary responsibility of the state, that are fundamental for achieving the goal of public health which is to improve, promote, protect, and restore the health of the population through collective action.
Through the Public Health in the Americas Initiative, PAHO/WHO defined the 11 Essential Public Health Functions and developed a methodology that allows countries to evaluate in a comprehensive manner their public health systems. As part of the Initiative, 41 countries and territories of the Region of the Americas applied the assessment tool…” Essential Public Health Function
- EPHF 1 - Monitoring, evaluation, and analysis of health status
- EPHF 2 - Surveillance, research, and control of the risks and threats to public health
- EPHF 3 - Health promotion
- EPHF 4 - Social participation in health
- EPHF 5 - Development of policies and institutional capacity for public health planning and management
- EPHF 6 - Strengthening of public health regulation and enforcement capacity
- EPHF 7 - Evaluation and promotion of equitable access to necessary health services
- EPHF 8 - Human resources development and training in public health
- EPHF 9 - Quality assurance in personal and population-based health services
- EPHF 10 - Research in public health
- EPHF 11 - Reduction of the impact of emergencies and disasters on health