Key Global Health Actors: WHO, CDC, MSF, and Beyond
This paper surveys the principal actors shaping global health policy and practice, spanning international organizations, national governmental agencies, and nongovernmental organizations. It examines the founding missions and landmark achievements of the United Nations and the World Health Organization, including smallpox eradication and polio near-elimination. It then profiles two national agencies—the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Public Health England—before turning to nongovernmental actors such as Doctors Without Borders and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Throughout, the paper connects these organizations to the DNP Essentials, highlighting the role advanced practice nurses can play within complex, collaborative global health systems.
- Introduction to Global Health Actors: Overview of major global health actors and DNP Essentials
- The United Nations (UN): UN founding, mission, and key accomplishments
- The World Health Organization (WHO): WHO history, disease eradication, and pandemic response
- National Governmental Health Agencies: CDC and Public Health England profiles
- Nongovernmental Organizations: MSF and Gates Foundation roles and achievements
- Summary and Implications for Advanced Practice Nursing: Synthesis and nursing leadership in global health
✍️ How to write this paper — guide, tools & examples ▾
What makes this paper effective
- Provides a clear, organized taxonomy of global health actors—international, national governmental, and nongovernmental—giving readers a logical framework for understanding the landscape.
- Anchors the discussion in a professional nursing context by consistently referencing the DNP Essentials, connecting abstract organizational roles to clinical and leadership practice.
- Balances breadth and specificity: each organization receives its own founding context, mission statement, and at least one concrete accomplishment, making the survey both comparative and substantive.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates effective use of organizational profiling as an analytical structure. Rather than producing a general narrative, the author constructs parallel profiles—origin, mission, accomplishments—for each actor, enabling implicit comparison across the six organizations discussed. This technique helps readers evaluate similarities and differences without requiring the author to explicitly argue for a ranking or hierarchy.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a broad introductory section that maps the global health landscape and situates the discussion within the DNP Essentials framework. It then moves through three tiers of actors in sequence: international bodies (UN and WHO), national agencies (CDC and PHE), and nongovernmental organizations (MSF and the Gates Foundation). A brief concluding summary ties the organizational survey back to the role of advanced practice nurses. This funnel-then-widen structure—broad landscape, specific profiles, nursing implications—keeps the argument coherent across six distinct organizations.
Introduction to Global Health Actors
The global health landscape is characterized by a variety of prominent actors, each with distinct yet intertwined roles in promoting health, preventing disease, and managing health crises worldwide. The United Nations (UN) works toward international peace and security, fostering friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress, better living standards, and human rights—which inherently includes health. Its specialized agency, the World Health Organization (WHO), is explicitly committed to promoting health, keeping the world safe, and serving vulnerable populations. It has led significant strides in disease eradication and prevention, including the eradication of smallpox and the near-eradication of polio, and has been a major actor in global health crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
National governmental health agencies like the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the UK's Public Health England (PHE) work to safeguard their respective nations' health by preventing and managing disease outbreaks and health emergencies and promoting healthier lifestyles. Nongovernmental health organizations, such as Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières, MSF) and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, also play essential roles. These organizations can often fill gaps not covered by governmental bodies, offering vital healthcare services in crises, promoting healthcare research, and aiming to eliminate specific diseases globally.
The DNP Essentials illustrate the importance of understanding and working within the global health environment. Essential II, "Organizational and Systems Leadership for Quality Improvement and Systems Thinking," is especially pertinent, as these organizations must continually strive for better health outcomes and navigate complex health systems. Essential VI, "Interprofessional Collaboration for Improving Patient and Population Health Outcomes," is also highly relevant, as these actors must collaborate across disciplines and sectors to tackle global health challenges. Essential VIII, "Advanced Nursing Practice," emphasizes the role of advanced practice nurses in these contexts, using their skills to promote health and wellness at both individual and population levels.
Create your account
Always verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.