Click to view scenes from our 30th Anniversary Celebration

Through fall 2010, IntraHealth celebrates its 30th anniversary with a commemorative campaign focusing on health workers worldwide.

Saving and improving lives day in and day out, health workers are at the center of any functioning health system. Yet shortages and poor distribution of doctors, nurses, midwives, skilled birth attendants, and community volunteers pose serious problems in dozens of developing countries. Globally, there’s a shortfall of four million health workers needed to increase access to basic health services.

Founded as a program at the University of North Carolina’s School of Medicine, IntraHealth has worked in 90 countries to help local institutions better plan for, train, and support health workers—to mobilize local talent—for sustainable, accessible care. Our efforts have reached hundreds of thousands of people with vital services for maternal and child health, family planning, HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis. And for 30 years, one premise has driven our work:

Delivering essential care to the most vulnerable populations—and responding to rising endemics and emerging public health threats—requires a strong and well-supported health workforce.

At our 30th Anniversary celebration we presented a video highlighting five health champions making a difference in their communities. Click on the image to the right to see the video.

We invite old friends, new supporters, former and future partners to help document, record and commemorate our 30th anniversary. Help us better communicate diverse perspectives on the biggest challenges in global health today, and advocate for critical health needs in the communities we serve. Here are 30 everyday ways to get involved:

Subscribe to the eNewsletter · forward it · send suggestions · read the Global Health Blog · write an opinion · Become a Fan on Facebook  · tag your friends · Follow Us on Twitter · retweet · comment · come to an event · Donate · connect with peers on the Global Health Commons · share your stories · watch our videos · Search for Resources · bookmark a page · Find Photos on Flickr · Dine for Health · host a banner · Spread the Word · nominate your Health Champion · Get RSS updates · Explore our 30 year history in an interactive timeline  · read Voices from the Field · Work for IntraHealth · learn about our leadership · Give a Gadget · reconnect with IntraHealth alumni · Get Involved in Our Mission

Health Champions

To kick off the 30th Anniversary Campaign, IntraHealth recently launched the inaugural Health Worker Leadership Award honoring Pauline Muhuhu, a Kenyan midwife and longtime senior leader at IntraHealth. The annual award will recognize health workers who dedicate their careers to improving health care in underserved regions of the world. IntraHealth will create a formal review panel to receive nominations and select future recipients.

*Figures from WHO's World Health Statistics: 2010.