From 2000 to 2010, Rwanda implemented comprehensive health sector reforms to strengthen the public health system, with the aim of reducing maternal and newborn deaths in line with Millennium Develop
...
ment Goal 5, among many other improvements in national health. Based on a systematic review of the literature, national policy documents and three Demographic & Health Surveys (2000, 2005 and 2010), this paper describes the reforms and the policies they were based on, and provides data on the extent of Rwanda’s progress in expanding the coverage of four key women’s health services. Progress took place in 2000–2005 and became more rapid after 2006, mostly in rural areas, when the national facility-based childbirth policy, performance-based financing, and community-based health insurance were scaled up. Between 2006 and 2010, the following increases in coverage took place as compared to 2000–2005, particularly in rural areas, where most poor women live: births with skilled attendance (77% increase vs. 26%), institutional delivery (146% increase vs. 8%), and contraceptive prevalence (351% increase vs. 150%). The primary factors in these improvements were increases in the health workforce and their skills, performance-based financing, community-based health insurance, and better leadership and governance. Further research is needed to determine the impact of these changes on health outcomes in women and children.
more
This guidance is targeted to primary health care policy-makers and only addresses issues relevant for primary health care providers. It has been prepared on the basis of a systematic review of the b
...
est available evidence and emergent country practices in response to the COVID-19 outbreak in the WHO European Region. It will be updated on a regular basis as new information becomes available.
more
The Knowledge Guide provides guidance on how health workers can apply the Standards to their own practice. For each of the nine competencies and their specific behaviours in the Standards, the Knowledge Guide examines in detail how a
...
health worker's knowledge, skills and attitudes can reach the stated benchmark for providing people-centred health services to refugees and migrants. The Knowledge Guide also details the learning outcomes that reflect the behaviours that a health worker will demonstrate once they have achieved the Competency Standards.
The Knowledge Guide is designed for educators and health workers to assist in designing or integrating learning content to enable attainment of the identified knowledge, skills and attitudes.
more
This document has been developed to support countries develop and strengthen individualized peer support services in mental health and related area
...
s. It addresses the provision of individualized peer support in the context of health services and the wider community.
more
Lunsar, Port Loko District, Sierra Leone
This document presents a brief overview of how UNHCR adapts its activities for mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) to the changing context of the pandemic. Staff of UNHCR and partners, in
...
country offices in all regions of the world, have developed innovative field practices to continue providing essential MHPSS services to refugees. The examples in this document are testimony to the commitment and creativity of our staff and can serve as inspiration and encouragement for others to continue integrating MHPSS in the humanitarian work during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
more
This document is for humanitarian health actors working at national and sub-national level in countries facing humanitarian emergencies. It applies to Health Cluster partners, including governmental
...
and non-governmental health service providers.
Based on the IASC Guidelines on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings (IASC, 2007), it gives an overview of essential knowledge that humanitarian health actors should have about mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) in humanitarian emergencies.
This document by the IASC Reference Group for Mental Health and Psychosocial Support was developed in consultation with the IASC Global Health Cluster.
more
The MHPSS MSP is an easy-to-follow intersectoral package, which spells out the activities and actions that all humanitarian actors should put in place in all emergencies for an effective MHPSS response. It speaks to different actors at the global, regional, national, and local levels to plan, coordi
...
nate and implement an effective MHPSS response.
more
Echoes from Syria Issue 5
According to WHO, around 22% of adults in conflict settings have mental health conditions.
This is almost triple to non-conflict settings. There is no generally accepted estimate for children but it is clear that children who are refugees, IDPs or
...
who live in conflict settings have high levels of mental health issues.
more
This guide is intended to support national governments developing their national deployment and vaccination plans (NDVPs) for COVID-19 vaccines by outlining the roles, needs and opportunities for community
...
health workers (CHWs) to contribute. This note builds on and is structured to align with the Guidance on developing a national deployment and vaccination plan for COVID-19 vaccines. By providing CHW-relevant considerations for the VIRAT Tool, this document aims to support national governments in developing robust NDVPs for introducing COVID-19 vaccine(s) that leverage all the community-based deployment, implementation and monitoring tools at their disposal.
more
Core Knowledge for Emergency Preparedness and Response