The 2014-2015 outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in Liberia resulted in over 10,000 cases and 5,000 deaths. Recognizing the importance of addressing children’s trauma, the Ebola recovery and restoration trust fund (EERTF) funded the implementation of a Comfort for kids (C4K) program which encou...rages psychological healing, and promotes resilience in children who have experienced a crisis or disaster. The C4K program in Liberia was implemented between January 2015 and December 2016 in fifteen townships in Montserrado County through a collaboration between Mercy Corps Liberia, the World Bank’s Liberian health task team, and the government of Liberia. C4K primarily centers on the My Story workbook and associated classroom activities, which provide children with the opportunity to express their emotions about their experiences through drawing, writing, and facilitated discussion. C4K also provides capacity building for parents, teachers, and other caretakers on how to identify and more effectively respond to children’s trauma responses and to support their recovery
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The emergence of multifrug-resistant malaria in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) has been identified as an emergency issue that may have catastrophic consequences on the future of malaria elimination in the GMS as well as globally. In recognition of the need for a cohesive regional response,... GMS countries have committed to a shared goal of eliminating malaria from the GMS by 2030 working within the framework of the Strategy for Malaria Elimination in the Greater Mekong Subregion 2015-2030. Population mobility has been identified as a key concern in the context of multidrug-resistant malaria; and in a region of highly porous borders where the majority of intra-Mekong migration occurs through informal channels, addressing the health needs of migrant populations has never been more critical.
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The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is an evidence-based treaty that reaffirms the right of all people to the highest standard of health and was developed in response to the globalization of the tobacco epidemic. Member States of the WHO South-East Asia Region have made... attempts to implement the demand and supply reduction strategies for tobacco control as recommended by the treaty. While recognizing the need to accelerate implementation of the WHO FCTC in the Region, this document has been developed to support the Member States in implementing the treaty using a ‘PRACTICAL’ Approach which pertains to identified demand and supply reduction strategies under the treaty.
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To understand the national situation, Ethiopia did a situation assessment, launched its first strategy in 2011, and took action to contain AMR, as detailed in the blue boxes found throughout this strategy. This updated version of the strategy was in response to the revised health and medicines polic...ies, health sector transformation plan, and the resolutions of the 68th World Health Assembly
of May 2015 and so that Ethiopia’s efforts could be coordinated with global initiatives in the prevention and containment of AMR.
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This companion document to Ending the neglect to attain the Sustainable Development Goals: a road map for neglected tropical diseases 2021-2030 ("the road map") aims to support a range of stakeholders - including countries in which neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are endemic, international organi...zations and non-State actors - to achieve the road map targets through a transdisciplinary, cross-cutting One Health approach. Specifically, it provides guidance on the One Health actions needed by major stakeholders and how to support a paradigm shift towards One Health in national NTD programmes. Examples of common One Health challenges and how they can be overcome as well as illustrative cases studies are provided throughout. The companion document was developed through a global consultative process involving stakeholder interviews, interactive workshops, and online public consultation.
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his first edition describes the standard operating procedures for health products for NTDs amenable to preventive chemotherapy and the medicines donated to treat them. These include albendazole for lymphatic filariasis and soil-transmitted helminthiases; azithromycin for trachoma and yaws; diethylca...rbamazine citrate for lymphatic filariasis; ivermectin for onchocerciasis and lymphatic filariasis; mebendazole for soil-transmitted helminthiases; praziquantel for schistosomiasis; and triclabendazole for foodborne trematodiases. Standard operating procedures for diseases amenable to case management will be covered in subsequent editions, including the application process for requesting medicines (Chapter 1). In the meantime, the procedures described in the rest of the document apply for both case management and preventive chemotherapy NTD health products.
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Given that the emergency has exceeded the worst-case scenario, this revised supplementary appeal for the Ukraine situation outlines UNHCR’s additional requirements of $1.246 billion for March to December 2022.
An interregional meeting on leishmaniasis among neighbouring endemic
countries in the Eastern Mediterranean, African and European regions was organized by the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for the Eastern
Mediterranean in Amman, Jordan, from 23 to 25 September 2018. The meeting w...as attended by representatives from the health ministries of Albania, Georgia, Greece, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic and Tunisia. Representatives from Afghanistan, Algeria and Libya were unable to attend. The Secretariat comprised staff from WHO headquarters, WHO regional offices in the Eastern Mediterranean, Africa and Europe, WHO country offices in Iraq, Pakistan, Syrian Arab Republic and Yemen, and WHO temporary advisors from Spain and Tunisia.
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Leptospirosis is a bacterial zoonotic disease of worldwide importance, though relatively neglected in many African countries including sub Saharan Africa that is among areas with high burden of this disease. The disease is often mistaken for other febrile illnesses such as dengue, malaria, rickettsi...oses and enteric fever. Leptospirosis is an occupational disease likely to affect people working in environments prone to infestation with rodents which are the primary reservoir hosts of this disease. Some of the populations at risk include: sugarcane plantation workers, wetland farmers, fishermen and abattoir workers. In this study we investigated the prevalence of antibodies against Leptospira among sugarcane plantation and factory workers, fishing communities as well as among rodents and shrews in domestic and peridomestic environments within the study areas.
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Snakebite is an acute life threatening time limiting medical emergency. It is a preventable public
health hazard often faced by rural population in tropical and subtropical countries with heavy
rainfall and humid climate.
Snakebite envenoming is a serious public health problem in Central America, where approximately 5,500 cases occur every year. Panama has the highest incidence and El Salvador the lowest. The majority, and most severe, cases are inflicted by the pit viper Bothrops asper (family Viperidae), locally kn...own as ‘terciopelo’, ‘barba amarilla’ or ‘equis’. About 1% of the bites are caused by coral snakes of the genus Micrurus (family Elapidae). Despite significant and successful efforts in Central America regarding snakebite envenomings in the areas of research, antivenom manufacture and quality control, training of health professionals in the diagnosis and clinical management of bites, and prevention of snakebites, much remains to be done in order to further reduce the impact of this medical condition. This essay presents seven challenges for improving the confrontation of snakebite envenoming in Central America. Overcoming these challenges demands a coordinated partnership of highly diverse stakeholders though inter-sectorial and inter-programmatic interventions.
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Rabies is entirely preventable, and vaccines, medicines, tools and technologies have long been available to prevent people from dying of dog-mediated rabies. Nevertheless, rabies still kills about 60 000 people a year, of whom over 40% are children under 15, mainly in rural areas of economically dis...advantaged countries in Africa and Asia. Of all human cases, up to 99% are acquired from the bite of an infected dog.
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Since the beginning of the Ukraine crisis on 24 February 2022, WHO has supported Government-led efforts and initiatives alongside key partners on the ground. Building on efforts to date, and working alongside Bulgaria’s health authorities to bring added value to existing mechanisms, the WHO Countr...y Office Bulgaria, the WHO Regional Office for Europe and the WHO Health and Migration Programme, in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health of Bulgaria and key partners, undertook a joint review mission to support Bulgaria, with a focus on addressing the health system needs of refugees, migrants, asylum seekers and vulnerable host populations in Bulgaria.
The assessment team developed this report on the key findings and a package of potential interventions based on the opportunities identified and the need for technical support and assistance. The report summarizes concrete areas of work for which collaborations can be further strengthened. The joint review team identified key recommendations for consideration across 8 priority areas. The report and the outcomes of the review mission serve as a basis for future technical collaboration in the area of refugee health, to address the health needs of refugees and third-country nationals fleeing from Ukraine.
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World Health Organization. (2021). Minimum technical standards and recommendations for reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health care for emergency medical teams. World Health Organization.
National Guidelines on Nutrition, Care, Support, and Treatment (NCST) for Adolescents and Adults
These guidelines are intended to:
• Establish a consistent set of nutrition interventions and recommendations aimed at managing and preventing undernutrition and overnutrition in adolescents and ad...ults, with a focus on people with HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB) patients.
• Provide simple and clear guidance to service providers and managers on how to implement the nutrition interventions and recommendations at the various health care delivery contact points.
• Provide a framework for policymakers and development partners to use when planning nutrition interventions for adolescent and adults.
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It is impossible to address the many complex needs of respiratory virus surveillance with a single surveillance system. Multiple systems, investigations and studies must each be fit-for-purpose to specific priority surveillance objectives, and only together can they provide essential information to ...policy-makers. In essence, each surveillance approach fit together as “tiles in a mosaic” that provides a complete picture of respiratory viruses and the impact of associated illnesses and interventions at the country level. This mosaic framework demonstrates how surveillance approaches may be implemented as coordinated and collaborative systems, well-matched to specific priority objectives.
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This report includes six case studies from 12 individuals with lived experience of diverse health conditions. These case studies explore the topics of power dynamics and power reorientation towards individuals with lived experience; informed decision-making and health literacy; community engagement ...across broader health networks and health systems; lived experience as evidence and expertise; exclusion and the importance of involving groups that are marginalized; and advocacy and human rights.
It is the first publication in the WHO Intention to action series, which aims to enhance the limited evidence base on the impact of meaningful engagement and address the lack of standardized approaches on how to operationalise meaningful engagement. The Intention to action series aims to do this by providing a platform from which individuals with lived experience, and organizational and institutional champions, can share solutions, challenges and promising practices related to this cross-cutting agenda. The Intention to action series also aims to provide powerful narratives,inspiration and evidence towards the Fourth United Nations High Level Meeting on NCDs in 2025 and achieving the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
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A lot has happened this year. While we continued to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, we were hit by disease outbreaks and
humanitarian crises. Yet, despite these challenges, we marched on, resolute in resolving critical health systems issues to increase
access to quality healthcare services. To furth...er our vision and bring concrete actions to reality, under
the leadership of the Government of South Sudan, we developed the Health Sector Strategic Plan to define the strategic
approaches, key interventions, mapping resource needs, and the implementation framework to strengthen the health system
to deliver essential quality health services equitably for 2023 to 2027. For WHO, this Plan will usher in a new reality -- access
to lifesaving or health-promoting interventions is doable and possible, making the health sector fairer, especially for those
unable to pay
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The Transformation Agenda (TA) ushered in an ambitious reform process intended to transform the World Health Organization (WHO) into an organization that is proactive, results-driven, accountable and which meets stakeholder expectations, towards transforming and improving public health services in t...he African Region. It aimed to achieve a WHO that is pro-results, which optimally and creatively targets technical work as well as make operations more responsive, with greater effectiveness in both communications and partnerships. The Africa Region has been the epicentre of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic and it’s one of the leading causes of disease and death on the continent. The WHO, with partners, has worked tirelessly for many years to control the threat and reduce the negative impact of the disease. Since the early 2000s, significant progress has been made in the global fight against the scourge of HIV. However, the WCA subregion was falling concerningly behind ESA on several key indicators of progress. In 2016, the WHO joined UNAIDS, UNICEF and other partners in a call for a strong and urgent response to support WCA countries to develop catch-up plans to triple and fast-track ART coverage, to enable the region to catch up with ESA by the end of 2020. Implementation of a widespread test-and-treat strategy, coupled with the scale-up of differentiated service delivery (DSD) and mobilization of requisite funding, accelerated WCA’s progress towards this goal. The HIV treatment catch-up and fast-track plan has achieved its target of seeing the West and Central African region (WCA) catch up with the Eastern and Southern African region’s (ESA) antiretroviral coverage rate of 78% in 2021, albeit later than the 2020 target time frame. A 33% improvement was achieved in WCA, against 21% in ESA, between 2015–2020. WCA achieved a significant 42% increase, compared to ESA’s 23%, between 2015 and 2021, to see WCA draw level with ESA at 78%. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) alone, progress of up to 47% was observed between 2015 and 2020, for example. In addition, 1.6 million more People Living with HIV (PLHIV) were enrolled on antiretroviral treatment (ART) between 2015 and 2020.
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The guidance in this publication consists of generic definitions and methodologies for the characterization of extreme weather and climate events. This publication contribute to ensuring consistent exchange of information that underpins the WMO State of the Climate Reports, Climate Watches, climate ...change studies and other emerging applications.
The purpose of the present guidelines is not to change the practice at the national level. Instead, it provides guidance for generic definitions, which are useful in contributing to WMO State of the Climate reports, climate watches, climate change studies and other emerging applications, including the recently adopted methodology for cataloguing hazardous events (WMO-CHE). These applications require regional and/or international exchange of information on extreme events.
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