World Health Day: building a fairer and healthier world cannot be a utopia

Although it is one of the most classic conversational topics, it is true that never before has society as a whole taken the vital importance of health to such high levels of prominence.

On World Health Day, celebrated this April 7, 2021, the World Health Organization is committed to trying to ensure that everyone, everywhere, can exercise their right to good health. And at Fraternidad-Muprespa we support the initiative for a fairer and healthier world since the one we live in must improve a lot in this regard.

COVID-19 has shown that access to a healthier life and having access to better health services depends, to a large extent, on the place in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. On the opposite side, the millions of inhabitants of the planet who survive on tiny incomes, have worse housing and education conditions, fewer employment opportunities, suffer gender inequality and have little or no access to safe environments, clean water and air, food security and health services, which causes unnecessary suffering, preventable diseases and premature deaths and, in turn, harms us all as a society.

Given that this situation is not only unfair, but also avoidable, the WHO calls on world leaders to guarantee living and working conditions that promote good health, and to analyze inequalities in this area with the aim of guaranteeing that all people have access to quality health services when and where they need them.

The global impact of COVID-19 has been even harsher in countries that were already vulnerable, in the social groups most exposed to the disease and for those who see their ability to access quality health and healthcare services diminished. The consequences of these imbalances are well known: worse prevention tools due to lack of access to information, greater capacity for infection, serious illness and also mortality.