National public health institutes (NPHIs) are science-based governmental organizations that serve as a focal point for a country's
public health
Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...
efforts, as well as a critical component of
global disease prevention and response systems. Among the better known NPHIs are the United States
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georg ...
, and the
Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention
The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CCDC; ) is an institution directly under the National Health Commission, based in Changping District, Beijing, China.
Established in 1983, it works to protect public health and safety ...
.
Typical core functions of NPHIs include surveillance for diseases and injuries, as well as risk factors; epidemiologic investigations of health problems; public health research; and response to public health emergencies. Recent public health challenges, such as the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, may have significant impacts on the missions and structures of NPHIs. Although these functions are in many countries dispersed among several agencies, in recent years some countries have reorganized their public health systems to consolidate functions. For example, following the outbreak of
severe acute respiratory syndrome
Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a viral respiratory disease of zoonotic origin caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV or SARS-CoV-1), the first identified strain of the SARS coronavirus species, ''sev ...
(SARS) in 2003, the Canadian government created the
Public Health Agency of Canada
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC; french: Agence de la santé publique du Canada, ASPC) is an agency of the Government of Canada that is responsible for public health, emergency preparedness and response, and infectious and chronic dis ...
in order to ensure a more efficient and effective response in future outbreaks.
International Association
The International Association of National Public Health Institutes (IANPHI) is a member organization of NPHIs that in the end of 2019 had members from 99 countries, benefitting more than 5 billion people.
IANPHI helps link the NPHIs of the world, so that they can share knowledge and experiences, in addition to providing support for NPHI development in low-resources countries. The majority of funding for IANPHI comes from the
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), a merging of the William H. Gates Foundation and the Gates Learning Foundation, is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was l ...
.
See also
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List of national public health agencies
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Burnet Institute
The Burnet Institute is an Australian medical institute that combines medical research in the laboratory and the field, with public health action to address major health issues affecting disadvantaged communities in Australia, and internationall ...
(Australia)
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Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors
The Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors (CIPHI) is the national professional association that represents environmental public health professionals (EPHPs) in Canada. CIPHI has a national executive council and eight regional branche ...
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Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (Brazil)
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Institute of Public Health (Bangladesh)
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Peruvian National Institute of Health
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National Institute of Public Health of Japan
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National Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the lat ...
(United States)
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National Public Health Institute of Finland
The National Public Health Institute of Finland (KTL, fi, Kansanterveyslaitos, sv, Folkhälsoinstitutet) was a research and expert institute under the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health charged with the task of protecting and promoting health ...
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National Public Health Organization of Greece
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Norwegian Institute of Public HealthPalestinian National Institute of Public Health*
People's Republic of China#Public health and environment
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Indian Institutes of Public Health
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Public Health Agency of Sweden
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Robert Koch Institute
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) is a German federal government agency and research institute responsible for disease control and prevention. It is located in Berlin and Wernigerode. As an upper federal agency, it is subordinate to the Federa ...
(Germany)
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UK Health Security Agency
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is a government agency in the United Kingdom, responsible since April 2021 for England-wide public health protection and infectious disease capability, and replacing Public Health England. It is an execut ...
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Sciensano (Belgium)
Notes
References
# Koplan, J.P., Bond, T.C., Merson, M.H., Reddy, K.S., Rodriguez, M.H., Sewankambo, N.K, & Wasserheit, J.N., for the Consortium of Universities for Global Health Executive Board. (2009). Towards a common definition of global health.'' Lancet, 373'', 1993–1995.
# Frenk, J., & González-Block, M.Á. (2008). Institutional development for public health: learning the lessons, renewing the commitment, ''Journal of Public Health Policy, 29'', 449–458.
# Adigun, L., Dusenbury, C., & Schoub, B.D. (2007, November). Public health in Africa – the role of national public health institutes. ''South African Medical Journal, 97'', 1036–1039.
# Koplan, J.P., Dusenbury, C., Jousilahti, P., & Puska, P. (2007). The role of national public health institutes in health infrastructure development. ''British Medical Journal, 335'', 834–835.
# Koplan, J.P., Puska, P., Jousilahti, P., Cahill, K., & Huttunen, J. (2005). National Public Health Institute partners. Improving the world's health through national public health institutes. ''Bulletin of the World Health Organization'', 83, 154–157.
External links
IANPHI's websiteSouth Africa National Institute for Communicable Diseases{{refend
Government health agencies
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