The World Bank and The Pan American Health Organization Inaugurate Health Partnership For Knowledge Sharing and Learning in The Americas

Washington DC, October 15, 2003 – The World Bank and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) today inaugurated the “Health Partnership for Knowledge Sharing and Learning in the Americas”, an initiative that uses videoconferencing and internet technologies to share expertise in order to improve health services in the Americas.  It supports the efforts of all countries in the region to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), including reducing child and maternal mortality by two-thirds and three-quarters respectively, and halting the spread of HIV/AIDS by 2015.

As David de Ferranti, Vice President for the World Bank’s Latin America and Caribbean Region stated, “Through our shared efforts on the same agenda, we can help countries of the Americas meet their own health objectives and the MDGs by promoting communication between public health leaders and professionals, and developing appropriate skills and competencies.” 

The Partnership will use a combination of learning methodologies and complementing technologies that will allow programs to reach all stakeholders and health professionals.  Through the use of PAHO’s Virtual Campus of Public Health and the World Bank’s Global Development Learning Network (GDLN), videoconference-based dialogues and knowledge-sharing activities, seminars, on-line courses and workshops, as well as broadcasts will reach those working at the grassroots level. 

“By bringing together our programs such as the Virtual Campus of Public Health with the World Bank’s GDLN, we can contribute to the development of leadership and managerial capacities at all levels of health systems through networking and sharing of innovations and best practices,” stated Dr. Mirta Roses, Director of the Pan American Health Organization.

The diversity and high caliber of participants in the Partnership enable it to respond a wide range of capacity-building needs in the health sector.  The Consortium for Workers’ Education (CWE) provides content targeting professionals, while Medical Missions for Children (MMC) provides access to telemedicine for patient diagnoses.  Meanwhile, the Inter-American Distance Education Consortium (CREAD) focuses on providing methodological design input.  In addition, corporate social responsibility is stressed in the Partnership through the collaborative efforts with the private sector such as those with The Bayer International Bioethics Advisory Council (BIBAC).

The Health Partnership for Knowledge Sharing and Learning in the Americas will offer programs and activities to all in the health sector, including practitioners, policy decision-makers at local and national levels, elected officials and hospital personnel.   Program content is designed to help health policy makers, practitioners, and decision-makers conduct discussions on policy and national strategies, develop implementation plans, and apply and implement programs on a full range of health-related issues.  Organizations that play a role in building local health capacity in the Americas are welcome to become involved in the Partnership as we work collectively towards helping the region meet its health-related MDGs.

For more information on PAHO's Virtual Campus of Public Health, please visit:

http://www.campusvirtualsp.org/eng/index.jsp

For more information on the World Bank’s Global Development Learning Network (GDLN), please
visit:http://www.gdln.org