WORLD HEALTH ORGANI ZATION
ORGANISATION MONDIALE DE LA SANTII
"IGIONAL OFFICE FO" THE WESTUN I'ACIFIC BU~EAU UGIONAL DU I'ACIFIQUE OCCIDENTAL
REGIONAL COMMITTEE Twenty-second Session Manila
WPR/RC22/6 1 July 1971 ORIGINAL: ENGLISH
21-29 September 1971 Provisional agenda item 13
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HEALTH ASPECTS OF POPULATION DYNAMICS Progress report 1 INTRODUCTION
The Regional Committee at its twenty-first session considered a report submitted by the Regional Director on the progress which had been made in the field of health aspects of population dynamics. The Committee in its resolution WPR/RC2l.R8 adopted on 7 September 1970 requested the Regional Director "to report to the twenty-second session
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of the Regional Committee on the progress made in this field" • ACTION TAKEN BY WHO
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An increasing number of countries and territories have requested assistance in the health aspects of family planning. The availability of extra-budgetary funds, in particular those from the United Nations Fund for Population Activities, has enabled WHO to expand its assistance in this field rather rapidly. /WHO's infrastructure •••
WPR/RC22/6 page 2 WHO's infrastructure in the Region is being strengthened commensurate with its increasing responsibilities in the field of family planning. The Regional Adviser on Maternal and Child Health (Family Planning) has been appointed and several family planning consultants have assisted the Regional Office during the course of the year. The public health nurse of the inter-country family The te~,
planning field advisory team has also started her assignment. other two members of the are under recruitment. All field staff who are or may, in the
(statistician and health educator)
future, be concerned with the health aspects of family planning are attending courses organized by the Regional Office. such courses have been held. Programme. Assistance is being provided on a country, as well as an inter-country and inter-regional basis, and is aimed at the development and strengthening of family planning or family welfare services in the context of the health services, particularly maternal and child health. me~ting
Until now, three
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These were also attended by observers
from UNICEF, UNESCO, ECAFE, ILO ana the United Nations Development
The projects which have been completed since the last
of the Regional Committee, are in progress, dr in the firm
planning stage, are concerned with the strengthening of manpower resources, the education and training of staff, the administrative structure of the services, evaluation of programmes, education and information of the public, and field studies. 2.1 Country projects A grant has been made to the Institute of Public Health, University of the Philippines, for faculty development and strengthening of the teaching of the health aspects of population dynamics, family planning and human reproduction. University, Seoul. Similar grants will be given Univer~ity.
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to the School of Public Health, Seoul National
and Yonsei
Funds have been provided for the introduction of
family planning services in two health centres utilized for training by the Institute in the Philippines.
lIn an increasing •••
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WPR/RC22/6 page 3 In an increasing number of countries. assistance is being given to comprehensive projects for the development and strengthening of maternal and child health and family planning or family welfare services in the framework of the health services. This includes advisory and consultant services. fellowships. stipends. honoraria. supplies. equipment. transport and other supportive services as required. Projects of this nature have been started in the Gilbert
and .Ellice Islands and Western Samoa. and are in planning for Tonga
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and the Republic of Viet-Nam • The maternity-centred approach to family planning. initially based on hospital maternity services, is being successively expanded to maternity homes and rural maternal and child health services. This is a particularly effective approach because it focuses on women before they become pregnant again. and administrative structure can be used. The existing resources Health care during the
ante-natal. natal, post-natal periods and for the young child will make family planning more meaningful and acceptable to the parents and follow-up for family planning can be combined with child health measures. Increasing the coverage of the population with maternity care either by the government or in the private sector will not only
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improve the health of mothers and children but also provide more opportunities for reaching families with family planning care. A project of this type will start in the Philippines in July and will cover successively twenty-five designated training and teaching hospitals. In China (Taiwan). a consultant has made recommendations designed to strengthen co-ordination between the maternal and child health and family planning services. /2.2 Inter-country projects •••
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• WPR/RC22/6 page 4 2.2 Inter-country projects An inter-country seminar on "Teaching the health aspects of human reproduction. population dynamics and family planning in medical schools" will be held in October/November in Kuala Lumpur. ment of Malaysia will act as host. The Govern-
A workshop on "Statistical methods
in national family planning programmes" will be held also in October/ November in Taichung. host. The Government of China (Taiwan) will act as
An inter-country project for the development of educational
materials for family health (family planning, maternal and child health, nutrition, health education) will be started in the first quarter of 1972. Regional seminars on the role of health education
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and on maternity-centred family planning are also under firm planning for 1972. 2.3 Field studies Research grants were provided for studies on the relationship between family size and family health in China (Taiwan) and the Philippines. A request for a research grant is being negotiated in This will support a study of the role of traditional
another country. health.
birth attendants and their potentialities for the improvement of family
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CONCLUSIONS
• ultimate aim of the
Family planning is being given a high priority in an increasing number of countries and territories and the health services have a major role to play in the implementation of country-wide family planning programmes. It becomes all the more important, therefore, to ensure
the most effective use of available resources so as to improve the quality of life of the people as this is the health services as well as of family planning.
/An overall increase
WPR/RC22/6 page 5
An overall increase in national staff will be necessary and extensive use will have to be made of appropriately trained and carefully supervised auxiliary health personnel if the health services are to be able to deal with the increasing family planning workload without weakening other activities. Further studies are necessary
to determine which duties and technical procedures in the field of family planning can be undertaken by the different categories of health personnel.
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Concerted and sustained efforts by all bodies concerned with family planning in both the government and private sector are required if the family planning programme is to be successful. All available channels for education and information should be utilized. involving all relevant ministries, departments and agencies (such as Ministries or Departments of Education, Agriculture, Social Welfare, Labor, Information, Voluntary Agencies) in addition to the health services. The health aspects of family planning activities
can successfully be coupled and integrated with various components of the general health services such as nursing programmes, nutrition programmes, industrial health programmes or any other specialized
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health programmes as well as with maternal and child health work • Obtaining the participation of the private health sector - involving both medical and paramedical personnel - is particularly important in the expansion of family planning care and is sometimes the mainstay of a programme.