The World Health Organization (WHO) was established on April 7, 1948, as an agency-institution within the structure of the United Nations. It was developed through discussions that originated in the UN Conference on International Organizations held in San Francisco in April–June 1945 and the International Health Conference convened by the UN Economic and Social Council and held in New York in June–July 1946. Prior to the establishment of WHO, three key dates indicate the institutionalization of health on an international scale:

• 1851: The First International Sanitary Conference held in Paris
• 1907: The Agreement setting up the Office International d’Hygiène Publique signed in Rome
• 1919: Health Organization of the League of Nations that led to the creation of a body that developed into the World Health Organization

The WHO is ...