WHO » World Dental Federation faults WHO plans on noncommunicable diseases

The FDI World Dental Federation has issued concerns about a number of action documents recently made public by the World Health Organization with regard to noncommunicable disea - ses (NCDs). In a statement released on its website, the dentists’ organi - sation criticised the documents for not paying sufficient attention to oral diseases, which it says should be classified as a key NCD by the WHO, along with cancer, diabetes, as well as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. In a circular note, the FDI also called upon its members to con - tact their respective national health officials immediately to ensure that the issue of oral health will be in - cluded in the upcoming WHO con - sultations on the plan, as well as the organi sation’s next executive board meeting in January. According to the WHO sources, the draft is to be discussed during an informal consul - tation in Geneva in early November, which will involve member states and several UN agencies. Published on 12 October, the pa - per “Global action plan for the pre - vention and control of noncommuni - cable diseases 2013–2020” identifies the threat of NCDs to achieving health- related development goals in low- and middle-income countries and provides recommendations on addressing the situation over the next seven years. NCDs currently account for 36 million deaths worldwide each year with the majority to be occurring in less developed countries, according to Geneva-based organisation. While admitting to current con - straints of the WHO, the FDI said in its statement that the leadership role of the WHO is essential to keeping oral health a priority in the fight against NCDs. It stated that it had addressed a formal request to the organisation for the inclusion of oral health in its next general programme of work, which will determine the WHO’s expenditu - re and goals over the next five to six years. “WHO recognition of oral disease is essential to support and consolida - te the significant role the dental pro - fession plays in the prevention and control of NCDs,” FDI President Or - lando Monteiro da Silva told Dental Tribune. “WHO is a governmental organization so, while FDI can mo - nitor and advise, governments alone are in a position to change WHO strategy and policy. That is why we are calling upon our member dental associations to contact their natio - nal government and ensure the oral health message is communicated within W HO.” The FDI has been lobbying hea - vily for the inclusion of oral diseases in the WHO’s list of NCDs for ye - ars. In February 2011, for example, Executive Director Jean-Luc Eiselé spearheaded a submission by the World Health Professions Alliance (WHPA) during a civil so ciety hea - ring at the UN headquarters in New York, stating that oral diseases share common risk factors with existing NCDs and have a major impact on society. The federation is also offering an NCD toolkit for both patients and health professionals, which features a health improvement card, among other things, as part of the larger NCD campaign conducted in partnership with t he W H PA