The World Health Organisation is globally renowned for its work in disease prevention. WHO also works to develop strategies to prevent unintentional injury, including drowning. Could a collaboration of efforts of ILS and WHO aimed at improved water safety benefit global health? A recent meeting in Geneva, Switzerland explored that topic.

The World Health Organisation is globally renowned for its work in disease prevention. WHO also works to develop strategies to prevent unintentional injury, including drowning. Could a collaboration of efforts of ILS and WHO aimed at improved water safety benefit global health? A recent meeting in Geneva, Switzerland explored that topic.

ILS Development Committee Secretary John Long, Vice-President Klaus Wilkens, and Vice-President B. Chris Brewster met in November 2004 with WHO’s Dr. Margie Peden, PhD. Dr. Peden is Coordinator of Unintentional Injuries Prevention at WHO. She was joined by Ian Scott of her staff.

WHO has declared drowning to be the second leading cause of accidental death worldwide, after motor vehicle accidents. Therefore it seems that any meaningful effort to improve world health would necessarily involve effective drowning prevention. This, of course, is an area where ILS has great expertise.

During the meeting, a variety of collaborative strategies were discussed that might help reduce drowning worldwide. ILS has already been working with WHO on several individual projects, which has created inroads, but discussion centered on a more formal alliance between ILS and WHO. Representatives of both organisations agreed to work toward this goal.

The path to realizing a formal alliance may be long, but the benefits to each organisation and the health of world’s peoples should be the ultimate beneficiaries.