The WHO collaborating centres in occupational health constitute a network of institutions put in place by the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

to extend availability of

occupational health Occupational safety and health (OSH), also commonly referred to as occupational health and safety (OHS), occupational health, or occupational safety, is a multidisciplinary field concerned with the safety, health, and welfare of people at wor ...

coverage in both developed and undeveloped countries. The effort includes 64 collaborating centres that have been designated as such by the WHO director-general.Activities: NIOSH Collaborations with Global Partners
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. November 4, 2008. Accessed September 15, 2009. The centres in the network meet triennially to develop work plans for advancing occupational health in key areas. The 2009-2012 work plan includes 220 projects, which relate to 5 objectives and 14 priorities as outlined by a global plan of action for workers' health.Nickels, Leslie. "WHO Network of Collaborating Centers – A Partnership for Protecting Workers' Health and Safety Globally.
Collaborating Centre Connection newsletter, volume 1, number 9, July 2009

Leadership structure

As director of the U.S.

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH, ) is the United States federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness. NIOSH is part of the C ...

John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the s ...

is the chairman of the WHO Global Network of Collaborating Centres in Occupational Health. Within the network, activity area managers plan day-to-day activities within projects adopted by the network. Deputy managers monitor activities and evaluate progress of the involved centres.

2009-2012 Work Plan

The global plan of action sets forth five major objectives: * to devise and implement policy instruments on workers' health * to protect and promote health at the workplace * to improve the performance of and access to occupational health services * to provide and communicate evidence for action and practice * to incorporate workers' health into non-health policies and projects Using these key goals, the activity area managers have set priorities for specific areas of occupational health.

Participating centres

Centres in the network are designated by the WHO director-general. Seven organizations constitute the network's advisory committee:
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH), USA * National Institute for Working Life (NIWL), Sweden
Finnish Institute for Occupational Health
(FIOH), Finland * Institute for Pesticide Safety and Health Risk Prevention, Italy *

National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in the c ...

FUNDACENTRO
Brazil
National Institute for Occupational Health
(NIOH), South Africa Other participants working with the centres include the

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...

(ILO), the

International Commission on Occupational Health The International Commission on Occupational Health (ICOH), is an international non-governmental professional society, founded in Milan during the Expo 1906 as the Permanent Commission on Occupational Health. ICOH aims at fostering the scientific ...

(ICOH), the

International Occupational Hygiene Association International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

(IOHA), and the

International Ergonomics Association The International Ergonomics Association (IEA) is a federation of fifty-two individual ergonomics organizations from around the world. IEA was formed in 1959. The mission of the IEA is to elaborate and advance ergonomics science and practice, and ...

(IEA).

Key projects and activities

The collaborating centres have participated in a number of conferences, provided research on occupational safety and health topics, and engaged in varied campaigns and activities such as an inititiative promoting

global road safety for workers Worker road safety refers to the economic, societal, and legal ramifications of protecting workers from automobile-related injury, disability, and death. Road traffic crashes are a leading cause of occupational fatalities throughout the world, espe ...

.Global Collaborations in Transportation, Warehousing and Utilities
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

References

{{reflist World Health Organization Occupational safety and health organizations