World Health Day is celebrated on April 7 and this year the World Health Organization (WHO) has chosen the theme “Universal Health, for everyone, everywhere”.
According to the WHO, health is defined as the complete state of physical, mental and social well-being of the person, not only the absence of biological disease, as it was understood in the past. Health is a fundamental human right and we must commit ourselves to work to guarantee it and give it priority in the sustainable development agenda.
The Professional Association of Physiotherapists takes advantage of the event to remember, as the deontological code of the General Council of Physiotherapist Colleges says in its preamble, the need for universal physiotherapy, whose main objective is to promote, maintain, restore and increase the level of health of all citizens in order to improve the quality of life of the person and facilitate their full social reintegration.
Need for physiotherapy
Physiotherapy is inherent in respect for human rights, including cultural rights, the right to life and free choice, to dignity and to be treated with respect.
In physiotherapy there is respect and there are no restrictions regarding considerations of age, color, creed, culture, disability or illness, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, political opinions, race or social status.
Physiotherapists, as health professionals, and as compiled by WHO, can and should discuss intersect oral policies to ensure the availability, accessibility, relevance and competence of human resources for universal health, and can also discuss the needs of inter professional work teams , prepared and motivated, which are essential to respond to the health needs of people, wherever they live.
This is only a small part of the work that the different actors have to carry out (health advocates, managers, and organizations) to demand stronger and more equitable health systems that tend to cover the entire population and maintain universal health as a priority issue in the global consciousness.
Universal health means that all people have access, without any discrimination, to quality comprehensive health services, when and where they need them, without facing financial difficulties.
It requires the definition and implementation of policies and actions with a multispectral approach to address the social determinants of health and promote the commitment of the whole society to promote health and well-being.
This World Health Day is an intermediate act between the “World Conference on Primary Health Care” that was held last year and the “High Level Meeting of the General Assembly of the United Nations on Universal Health Coverage”
Both events represent a great opportunity to reiterate our commitment to health for all people, focusing on the fundamental role of primary health care on the road to universal health. It is a strategic approach to create equitable, sustainable and focused health systems for individuals, families and communities.
It is necessary to work and fight for universal health, that all people and communities receive the essential health services they need without having to spend financial hardship to pay for them.
A world where no one is left behind, where everyone everywhere has the opportunity to achieve the health and well-being necessary to lead a dignified and productive life.
