AUSTRALIA - In line with developments in Japan and the Republic of Korea inspired by the Regional Fora of WHO Collaborating Centres in 2014 and 2016, Australia's WHO collaborating centres are strengthening coordination at the national level to contribute to WHO's programme of work.
Australia's WHO collaborating centres used the opportunity of the 2017 World Congress on Public Health to hold their first meeting in April 2017. VicHealth, host of the WHO Collaborating Centre in Leadership in Health, was the Congress "Public Health Champion" sponsor. The Congress is held every two to four years by the World Federation of Public Health Associations and attracts around 2000 delegates.
During the Congress, VicHealth convened “Thinking Globally, Acting Locally” – bringing together 24 Australian WHO collaborating centres with delegates from WHO, the Department of Health of Victoria, the Commonwealth Department of Health’s International Strategies Branch and the American College of Preventative Medicine.
The meeting's guest of honour, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific, Dr Shin Young-Soo, acknowledged the contributions of Australia's WHO collaborating centres.
The meeting considered how WHO collaborating centres could work together to build strategic collaborative networks. The need for a greater appreciation among governments and other stakeholders, of the often important and voluntary work of WHO collaborating centres was also recognized. Participants discussed how to strengthen local capacity and networks and bring in other expert groups to respond to new health challenges in the Western Pacific Region associated with urbanization, climate change, social inequalities and demographic transition. Five themes emerged from discussions about the role and potential of WHO collaborating centres:
- Collaborating centres perform an important function in filling gaps in areas of expertise.
- The functionalities and interests between collaborating centres are different across and within regions.
- Coordination and collaboration are essential to the success and impact of collaborating centres, particularly in relation to avoiding inefficiencies, overlap, duplication and building capacity.
- Relationships with government should be improved and opportunities to work with government maximized.
- Data collection and funding is required to maximize impact.
The recommendations have formed the basis of the work plan of VicHealth's WHO Collaborating Centre in Leadership in Health.
Building on this progress, Australia's WHO collaborating centres are recognized for their contribution to global health in the recently launched Australia–WHO Country Cooperation Strategy 2018–2022.
Learn more:
Australia–WHO Country Cooperation Strategy 2018–2022
Read the media release on the Australia–WHO Country Cooperation Strategy