Pan American Health Organization

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is an international health agencies that attempts to improve the health and living standards of people living throughout the Americas. Founded in 1902, it is now part of the UN, and included 35 member nations. Working in collaboration with each nation's Ministry of Health, the PAHO promotes both universal health coverage and the fighting of infectious diseases, such as malaria, cholera, and HIV.

One of the primary missions of the Pan American Health Organization is the cutting of infant mortality. As a result, the PAHO works with mothers and children, the poor, refugees and displaced persons. By focusing on those who lack access to health care, the PAHO seeks to get nations to work together to solve health problems.

Historically, the PAHO committed major effort to the eradication of polio in the Americas, a goal set in 1985 and reached in 1994. This followed the eradication of smallpox in the Americas in 1973, followed by global eradication five years later. The Pan American Health Organization works with various UN and international organizations, such as the World Bank, in order to disseminate health information. Currently, the PAHO is working towards the eradication of measles in the Americas, and is introducing new vaccines to underdeveloped regions to fight other deadly diseases.