In this review, the editors will investigate the impact of eight WASH interventions in preventing (reducing the risk of) and controlling outbreaks ...in LMIC, with particular focus on three diseases of current concern to the response community – cholera, Ebola, and Hepatitis E. Additionally, we will explore economic outcomes related to WASH interventions within an outbreak
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Child friendly spaces (CFS) have become a widely
used approach to protect and provide psychosocial
support to children in emergencies. However,
little evidence documents their outcomes and
impacts. There is widespread commitment among
humanitar...ian agencies to strengthen the evidence
base of programming. Recognizing this, the Child
Protection Working Group (CPWG) of the Global
Protection Cluster and the Inter-Agency Standing
Committee (IASC) Reference Group on Mental
Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency
Settings have identified research in this area as a
high priority.
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Novel coronavirus will disproportionately impact world’s 70 million displaced people
Report recommends stopping asylum seeker deportations, prioritising hygiene and refugee camp decongestion, better communication
Displaced people must be... included in prevention, mitigation efforts - for sake of everyone’s health
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The health impact of radiological and nuclear emergencies can last for decades. Lessons learned from past radiological and nuclear accidents have d...emonstrated that the mental health and psychosocial consequences can outweigh the direct physical health impacts of radiation exposure. International radiation emergency preparedness and response standards outline provisions for mitigating these effects. Yet, practical guidance for addressing the mental health and psychosocial aspects of radiation emergencies remains scarce.
This framework aims to promote integration between the MHPSS and radiation protection fields. It is intended for officials and specialists involved in radiation emergency planning and risk management as well as MHPSS experts working in health emergencies.
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Education in emergencies is a young area; the evidence of its impact is often anecdotal, and although its status as a humanitarian concern has gai...ned legitimacy in recent years, it has yet to be accepted across the humanitarian community. Much more needs to be done to enhance our understanding of the links between education and child protection in emergency situations.
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The purpose of the toolkit is to bring together existing learning and guidance as a starting point for stakeholders to begin SRH preparedness work. Within the SRH sector the field of preparedness is... relatively new and growing. More collective effort is required to further evaluate the impact of preparedness efforts and push the field forward. This effort is a first attempt at a draft guidance for SRH preparedness, and is intended for field testing. The toolkit recognizes the longstanding work of the field of emergency and disaster risk management, and endeavors to bridge that work with the human rights-oriented and peoplecentered field of sexual and reproductive health.
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The Contingency Fund for Emergencies (CFE) provides WHO with rapid and flexible resources to respond to disease outbreaks and other health emergencies. The annual report provides an overview ...lass="attribute-to-highlight medbox">of the use and impact of the Fund over the previous year.
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The objectives of NAP are aligned with the global action plan based on national needs and priorities. The emphasis is on One Health approach with all sectors especially human health, animal health and environment contributing towards minimizing the ...emergence and impact of AMR in Jordan.
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The present book deals not only with emergency response, but also with measures designed to reduce the impact of disasters on environmental health infrastructure, such as water supply and sanitation... facilities. It also aims to strengthen the ability of people to withstand the disruption of their accustomed infrastructure and systems for environmental health (e.g. shelter, water supply, sanitation, vector control etc.) and to recover rapidly.
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A WHO Guideline for Emergency Risk Communication (ERC) policy and practice.
Recent public health emergencies, such as the Ebola virus disease outbreak in West Africa (2014–2015), the emergence <...span class="attribute-to-highlight medbox">of the Zika virus syndrome in 2015–2016 and multi-country yellow fever outbreaks in Africa in 2016, have highlighted major challenges and gaps in how risk is communicated during epidemics and other health emergencies. The challenges include the rapid transformation in communications technology, including the near-universal penetration of mobile telephones, the widespread use and increasingly powerful influence of digital media which has had an impact on ‘traditional’ media (newspapers, radio and television), and major changes in how people access and trust health information. Important gaps include considerations of context – the social, economic, political and cultural factors influencing people’s perception of risk and their risk-reduction behaviours.
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Atlas of African Health Statistics 2022: Health situation analysis of the WHO African Region
Since 2019, we have been implementing Phase 2 of the ...regional Transformation Agenda, which informs and aligns with the global WHO Transformation, to ensure WHO is accountable, driven by re- sults and providing value for money in the pursuit of better health. Our global priority in this period is to contribute to delivering on the triple billion targets of expanding universal health coverage, protecting people from emergencies, and promoting health and well-being for people across the Region.
This year’s Atlas of African Health Statistics is being produced in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic that we have been expe- riencing for over two years. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic, together with other health emergencies in the WHO African Re- gion, is yet again testing the strength and resilience of our health systems. Indeed, the impact of COVID-19 is visible in the disruption of services. The report also presents the latest data for more than 50 health-related indicators of the Sustainable Development Goals and WHO’s “triple billion” targets and provides comprehensive country-level statistics using the results chain of the AFRO frame- work of actions for strengthening health systems to achieve UHC and the health-related SDGs.
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HIV infection, due to the immunosuppressant that leads, nowadays constitutes an aggravating factor of endemic tuberculosis. Tuberculosis remains a huge burden to human health, even in the early 21st century. The situation is deteriorating in many co...untries, particularly because of the synergy with the HIV epidemic and the emergence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug resistant (XDR) tuberculosis. The urgent development of new tools that can improve the diagnosis, prevention and/or treatment of tuberculosis and other major mycobacterium diseases depends largely on the progress of basic and applied research. Faced with this situation, there is an urgent need for effective strategies and actions to permanently solve the problem of this endemic disease whose impact is too negative on people’s lives.
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These guidelines are based on the 3rd Edition of the WHO Guidelines (Published 2015) World Health Organization’s Guidelines for the treatment of malaria. Additional literature surveys have been un...dertaken. Factors that were considered in the choice of therapeutic options included effectiveness, safety, and impact on malaria transmission and on the emergence and spread of antimalarial drug resistance. On-going surveillance is critical given the spread of artemisinin resistance in Southeast Asia, although not yet confirmed anywhere in Africa. The guidelines on the treatment of malaria in South Africa aim to facilitate effective, appropriate and timeous treatment of malaria, thereby reducing the burden of this disease in our communities. This is essential to further reduce the malaria case fatality rates currently recorded in South Africa, to decrease malaria transmission and to limit resistance to antimalarial drugs.
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Zambia has recognised the Public Health threat of antimicrobial resistance and its impact on morbidity and mortality, as well as the subsequent economic consequences. The country has recorded microo...rganisms which have developed resistance to antimicrobial drugs. Notable among these are; Multidrug Resistant Mycobacterium Tuberculosis (MDR), Human Immunodeficiency virus resistant to antiretroviral drugs, Plasmodium resistance to antimalarial drugs, and fungal species showing indications of resistance to antifungal drugs. Emergence of “Superbugs” such as Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Extended Spectrum beta-lactam (ESBL) producing Klebsiella pneumoniae and Vancomycin Resistant Enterococci (VRE) have also been reported.
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Humanitarian crises exacerbate nutritional risks and often lead to an increase in acute malnutrition. Emergencies include both manmade (conflict) and natural disasters (floods, drought, cyclones, typhoons, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, etc.). Com...plex emergencies are combinations of both manmade and natural disasters, often of a protracted nature. Millions of people are affected by humanitarian crises every year. The increasing frequency and scale of emergencies requires nutrition to be addressed in all phases of a response.
Crisis situations, whether acute or protracted, impact on a range of factors that can increase the risk of undernutrition, morbidity, and mortality. They may involve: the large-scale destruction of property and infrastructure; the erosion of livelihood strategies and purchasing power; a breakdown of and reduced access to essential services, including health services, water supply, and sanitation; and the displacement of large numbers of people. Emergencies can also disrupt social systems and the quality of care/feeding practices. Household access to food may be negatively affected and people may find themselves in overcrowded settlements with their families divided. As a result, at the individual level, there is often an increased risk of deteriorating health and nutritional status, resulting in a greater likelihood of death.
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The COVID-19 Table-Top Exercise (TTX) is a simulation package which uses a progressive scenario together with series of scripted specific injects to enable participants to consider the potential impact...an> of an outbreak in terms of existing plans, procedures and capacities. The aim of the TTX is to strengthen national levels of readiness against the virus through a series of facilitated group discussions.
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Mental health problems are common and cause great suffering to individuals and communities around the world. They have a significant impact not only on the physical and mental health of those affect...ed but also on their families and the communities they live in. At the same time, all communities have their own traditional mechanisms for support and contain a range wide of resources that can be helpful in preventing mental health conditions from developing, promoting positive mental health and supporting the recovery of people that are struggling with a mental health condition.
In the wider context, people living with a mental health condition are often excluded from their communities and experience various violations to their basic human rights (discrimination, violence, exclusion from employment opportunities). The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the mean prevalence of global mental health disorders is 10.8% while the prevalence in emergency settings is 22.1% in any conflict-affected population.
During emergencies and crisis, the stigma, exclusion and discrimination towards people living with mental health conditions is often higher, which can cause isolation and protection issues. Communities can play a crucial role in promoting mental health as well as enhancing primary care and access. Their role is to help reduce mental health inequalities by providing community resources that connect people to community-based resources and by providing mental health education. This also helps to reduce the massive mental health treatment gap.
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The risk of emergence and re-emergence of arboviruses with pandemic potential has increased as a... global public health threat and will continue to do so in the years to come. The Global Arbovirus Initiative outlines an integrated approach across these viruses and disciplines that will enable optimal use of limited resources to achieve the greatest impact, particularly in areas with the heaviest arboviral burden and in areas that are at risk of emergence of arboviruses. Following a series of global consultations and review by the Technical Advisory Group on Arbovirus (TAG-Arbovirus), the Global Arbovirus Initiative and its 6 constituent pillars, each with strategic objectives and priority activities, are consolidated in this reference document.
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The global emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is posing a threat to human health. Putting resources into the containment of AMR – includ...ing surveillance – is one of the highest-yield investments a country can make to mitigate its impact. In 2015, WHO launched the Global Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (GLASS), the first global collaborative effort to foster AMR surveillance in bacteria causing acute infections. As of December 2018, 71 countries are enrolled in GLASS. The aim of this report is to document participation efforts and outcomes across these countries, and highlight differences and constraints identified to date. This report follows on from the first GLASS Report – Early implementation 2016-17, published in January 2018, and drawing on data from GLASS first data call in 2017.
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