The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport ( nl, Ministerie van Volksgezondheid, Welzijn en Sport; VWS) is the
Dutch Ministry responsible for
public health,
health care
Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profe ...
,
quality of life,
social work
Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social work ...
and
sport. The Ministry was created in 1951 as the "Ministry of Social Affairs and Health" and had several name changes before it became the "Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport" in 1994. The Ministry is headed by the Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport, currently
Ernst Kuipers
Ernst Johan Kuipers (; born 14 December 1959) is a Dutch gastroenterologist, professor and politician who has served as List of Ministers of Health of the Netherlands, Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport in the fourth Rutte cabinet since 10 Ja ...
(
D66), assisted by one State secretary, currently
Maarten van Ooijen
Maarten (IPA: �maːrtə(n) is a Dutch language male given name. It is a cognate to and the standardized Dutch form of Martin (name), Martin, as in for example Sint Maarten (named after Martin of Tours).
People with the name
* Geert-Maarten ...
(
CU).
Organisation
The ministry is currently headed by two Cabinet Ministers and one
State secretary. The ministry's main office is located in the centre of
The Hague. The civil service is headed by a secretary general and a deputy secretary general, who head a system of three directorates general:
* Public Health, responsible for safety, prevention and sports
* Health Care, responsible for care, medicine and health insurance
* Youth and Welfare
The ministry is also responsible for several autonomous agencies, most prominently:
* Netherlands Institute for Social Research
*
Netherlands National Institute for Public Health and the Environment
History
There had been a ministry of Social Work since 1952. In 1965, it was also given responsibility for Culture and Recreation, and it was named Ministry of Culture, Recreation and Social Work. Between 1951 and 1973 there had been a Ministry of Social Affairs and Health Care. In 1973 a separate Ministry of Health and the Environment was formed. In 1982 these two ministries merged to form the Ministry for Health, Welfare and Sports. Responsibilities concerning the environment and nature management were given to the newly reorganized
Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment and
Agriculture, Nature and Fisheries.
The ministry built a new headquarters in 2003 designed by the architect and
Driehaus Prize
The Driehaus Architecture Prize, fully named The Richard H. Driehaus Prize at the University of Notre Dame, is a global award to honor a major contributor in the field of contemporary traditional and classical architecture. The Driehaus Prize was ...
winner
Michael Graves.
In 1996 the responsibility for culture was transferred to the newly reorganized
Ministry of Education, Science and Culture.
See also
*
List of Ministers of Health of the Netherlands
References
External links
*
Ministerie van Volksgezondheid, Welzijn en Sport(Rijksoverheid)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (Netherlands)
Medical and health organisations based in the Netherlands
Health, Welfare and Sport
Netherlands
Netherlands
Netherlands
Ministries established in 1951
Michael Graves buildings
1951 establishments in the Netherlands