WHO Considered Compassion as an Essential Component of Primary Health Care, Satyarthi Welcomed

New Delhi: In the latest report of the World Health Organization, compassion has been considered an essential component of primary health care, which is expected to bring revolutionary changes in health services. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Kailash Satyarthi has welcomed this change of WHO and thanked the head of the organization, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Satyarthi believes that only good medicines, advanced machines and skilled doctors are not enough for excellent health care. Compassion is as important as technology and science. His demand of years has now got global recognition.

For the last several years, Kailash Satyarthi has been demanding from the forums of the United Nations to recognize and adopt compassion not just as a moral ideal, but to recognize its transformative potential. At the 74th World Health Conference of WHO, where health ministers from all over the world were present, he strongly advocated making it an integral part of health policies.

Satyarthi had said from that platform, “If compassion is not the key to the medical system, it will remain just a mechanical process. We have to recognize the transformative powers of compassion and make it the backbone of health services.” Now WHO has officially accepted his views.

Satyarthi believes that the effect of compassion in health services will be seen at two levels. This will not only benefit the patients more, but it will also have a deep positive effect on the mental health of health workers. Many studies around the world also show that compassion-based health services speed up the recovery of patients and also reduce stress among doctors.

Satyarthi, while reacting to the latest WHO report, said, “I welcome this historic step towards a sensitive and effective health system. When sensitivity finds a place in policy, it affects everyone from patients to doctors.” Satyarthi has also been demanding priority for the special needs of children in health policies. On his initiative, the United Nations also organized a special global event to understand the impact of compassion.