The World Health Organization (WHO) originated from a proposal at the first United Nations (U.N.) conference held in San Francisco in 1945 that "a specialized agency be created to deal with all matters related to health." This proposal resulted in a draft WHO constitution signed by sixty-one governments at an international health conference held in New York City in 1946. The constitution was subsequently ratified by the twenty-six member states of the U.N. and came into force on April 7, 1948. The enormous proposed scope of WHO led to the early concept of "Expert Committees," and they have become an essential part of the machinery of the organization. Their function is to give technical advice to WHO. Members of these committees are "appointed by the Director-General, in accordance with regulations established by the Executive Board." The...