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Community Guide
What World Health Day Means and What You Can Do
On the April 7 World Health Day in 2004, WHO hopes that around the world hundreds of organizations will host events to help raise awareness about road traffic injuries, their serious consequences and huge costs to society.
The public health community, led by WHO, considers road traffic injuries to be a major but neglected public problem requiring concerted multi-sectoral prevention efforts.
The objectives for the 2004 World Health Day on road safety are:
- Raises awareness about the health impact, social and economic costs of road traffic injuries.
- Highlight the particular vulnerabilities of certain groups of road users.
- Issue a call for action to increase efforts to prevent road traffic injuries.
The World Health Organization suggests that activities by groups or organizations wishing to mark World Health Day 2004 could include:
- Discussion on WHO and other reports on road traffic injury prevention and how to implements their recommendations
- Conferences, seminars or round-table debates on road safety and how it affects national and local settings
- Start a new road safety strategy
- Release a national postage stamp on road safety
- Signing ceremony for petition calling for greater attention to and action on preventing road traffic injuries
- Open days in hospital emergency rooms
- Charity sports events for road safety
- Radio and/or television talk shows
- Open letters in the print press
- Street demonstrations and fairs
- Walks, marathons or similar events
- Art or photo exhibits
- Ceremonies in places of worship
The World Health Organization also suggests that as it relates to persons suffering from road traffic injuries, groups or organizations wishing to mark World Health Day 2004 might consider the following:
- Hosting a day of remembrance to such persons
- Launch of an Internet-based memorial
- Photo exhibit of road memorials
- One minute of silence in honor of those who suffer from road traffic injuries
- Candle light vigil
- National memorial to those who suffer from road traffic injuries
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