The World Health Professions Alliance stresses the importance of health workforce voice and safety
The World Health Professions Alliance (WHPA), consisting of five founding members – FDI, the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP), the International Council of Nurses (ICN), World Physiotherapy, and the World Medical Association (WMA) – recently took part in two significant World Health Organization (WHO) meetings, emphasizing a critical issue: the importance of the health workforce.
Health professionals must be included in the fight against air pollution
As a precursor to the WHO Second Global Conference on Air Pollution and Health, which was held from March 25-27, 2025, in Cartagena, Colombia, WHPA signed an important Call to Action. The Call was initiated by a consortium of global health actors at the request of WHO, and it is supported by nearly 50 million health professionals, patients, advocates, civil society representatives and members of the public worldwide.
During the conference, WHPA stressed the unique perspective that health professionals bring to the fight against air pollution, drawing from their frontline experiences with its health impacts. Participants can expect a series of concrete commitments from countries represented, particularly from their Ministers of Health, Environment, and Energy.
Potential measures may include the implementation of stricter air quality standards consistent with the WHO Global Air Quality Guidelines.
Support WHPA and sign the call here
Health workforce safety is patient safety
At the forefront of the discussion at the WHO’s 7th Global Ministerial Summit on Patient Safety, held in Manila on April 3-4, WHPA emphasized a key point: the safety of health professionals is inherently linked to patient safety.
At the event, WHPA highlighted that the progress in reducing global health workforce shortages is slow and uneven across different regions. This shortfall poses a significant threat to the safety and quality of healthcare, necessitating immediate attention.
These discussions are part of WHPA's broader efforts leading up to the upcoming UN High-Level Meeting on noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), reinforcing the critical need to protect health professionals and ensure high-quality care for all patients.
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About WHPA
WHPA brings together the global organizations representing the world’s dentists, nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists and physicians and speaks for more than 41 million health care professionals in more than 130 countries. WHPA works to improve global health and the quality of patient care and facilitates collaboration among the health professions and major stakeholders. https://whpa.org/