The purpose of this document is to provide ministries (e.g. Ministry of Health (MOH), Ministry of Water (MOW)), sub-national public health authorities, and implementing partners with a practical framework of action to both prepare for and mitigate c...ommunity transmission of COVID-19. The document does not address how to implement the included actions. Parts of this document are relevant for all environments, but the focus is placed on lower-resource settings
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The WHO and UNICEF-led Hand Hygiene for All Initiative aims at ensuring implementation for WHO's global recommendations on hand hygiene to prevent and control COVID-19 pandemic, and hand hygiene improvement sustainability in countries as a mainstay of wider infection prevention and control (IPC) and... water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) efforts.
But how can hand hygiene implementation be successful? By implementing strategies and approaches proven through the successes of the WHO Save Lives: Clean Your Hands campaign and fostering integration between hand hygiene and WASH improvements. This brief draws on learning from legacy work and the current evidence based and summarizes how joint action and collaboration are essential for successful strategies, in the context of the COVID-19 response and beyond
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This report is the first of its kind. It brings together various data sets to present the current status of hand hygiene, highlight lagging progress, and call governments and supporting agencies to action, offering numerous inspiring examples of change.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, hand hygiene ...received unprecedented attention and became a central pillar in national COVID prevention strategies. However, concern with hand hygiene should not only be as temporary public health measure in times of crisis, but as a vital everyday behaviour that contributes to health and economic resilience. Hand hygiene is a highly cost-effective investment, providing outsized health benefits for relatively little cost.
Despite efforts to promote hand hygiene, the rates of access to hand hygiene facilities remain stubbornly low. If current rates of progress continue, by the end of the SDG era in 2030, 1.9 billion people will still lack facilities to wash their hands at home.
This report presents a compelling case for investment in five key ‘accelerators’ as a pathway towards achieving hand hygiene for all – governance, financing, capacity development, data and information, and innovation. These accelerators are identified under the UN-Water SDG 6 Global Acceleration Framework.
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Healthy communities rely on well-functioning ecosystems. They provide clean air, fresh water, medicines and food security. They also limit disease and stabilize the climate. But biodiversity loss is happening at unprecedented rates, impacting human ...health worldwide, according to a new state of knowledge review of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and WHO.
The report synthesizes the available information on the most important inter-linkages between biodiversity, ecosystem stability, and epidemic infectious diseases such as the Ebola virus; and the connection between biodiversity, nutritional diversity and health. It also covers the potential benefits of closer partnerships between conservation and health, from improved surveillance of infectious diseases in wildlife and human populations, to promoting access to green spaces to promote physical activity and mental health. It also highlights the many areas in which further research is needed.
The Joint report hopes to provide a useful reference for the Sustainable Development Goals and post-2015 development agenda, which represents an unique opportunity to promote integrated approaches to biodiversity and health by highlighting that biodiversity contributes to human well-being, and highlighting that biodiversity needs protection for development to be sustainable.
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Left unabated, climate change will have catastrophic effects on the health of present and future generations. Such effects are already seen in Europe, through more frequent and severe extreme weather events, alterations to water and food systems, an...d changes in the environmental suitability for infectious diseases. As one of the largest current and historical contributors to greenhouse gases and the largest provider of financing for climate change mitigation and adaptation, Europe’s response is crucial, for both human health and the planet. To ensure that health and
wellbeing are protected in this response it is essential to build the capacity to understand, monitor, and quantify health impacts of climate change and the health co-benefits of accelerated action.
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Consumables associated with oxygen delivery are generally intended as single use devices. They should be treated as infectious1 material and disposed of accordingly. Disposal of patient interface, tubing, water bag and ...light medbox">water chamber, for example, should be done as per facility standard operating procedures for infectious/biohazardous waste management.
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In 2015, 5.9 million children under age five died (1). The major causes of child deaths globally are pneumonia, prematurity, intrapartum-related complications, neonatal sepsis, congenital anomalies, diarrhoea, injuries and malaria (2). Most of these diseases and conditions are at least partially cau...sed by the environment. It was estimated in 2012 that 26% of childhood deaths and 25% of the total disease burden in children under five could be prevented through the reduction of environmental risks such as air pollution, unsafe water, sanitation and inadequate hygiene or chemicals.
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Climate change is a public health crisis – impacting our weather and environment, along with the quality of the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat. The most vulnerable members of our communities – children, people of color, ...the poor, people with disabilities or chronic diseases, and the elderly – are the ones who suffer the most.
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Current evidence that the climate is changing is overwhelming. Impacts of climate change and variability are being observed: more intense heat-waves, fires and floods; and increased prevalence of food- water- and vector-borne diseases. Climate chang...e will put pressure on environmental and health determinants, such as food safety, air pollution and water quantity and quality. A climate-resilient future depends fundamentally on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Limiting warming to below 2 °C requires transformational technological, institutional, political and behavioural changes: the foundations for this are laid out in the Paris Agreement of December 2015. The health sector can lead by example, shifting to environmentally friendly practices and minimizing its carbon emissions. A climate-resilient future will increasingly depend on managing and reducing climate change risks to protect health. In the near term, this can be enhanced by including climate change in national health programming and creating climate-resilient health systems.
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Biodiversity and healthy natural ecosystems, including protected areas in and around cities, provide ecosystem benefits and services that support human health, including reducing flood risk, filtering air pollutants, and providing a reliable supply of clean drinking ...ht medbox">water. These services help to reduce the incidence of infectious diseases and respiratory disorders, and assist with adaptation to climate change. Access to nature offers many other direct health benefits, including opportunities for physical activity, reduction of developmental disorders and improved mental health.
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This open access book not only describes the challenges of climate disruption, but also presents solutions. The challenges described include air pollution, climate change, extreme weather, and related health impacts that range from heat stress, vector-borne diseases, food and ...to-highlight medbox">water insecurity and chronic diseases to malnutrition and mental well-being.
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011 - Biogeochemical Cycles
In this video Paul Andersen explains how biogeochemical cycles move required nutrients through the abiotic and biotic spheres on our planet. Matter on the Earth is conserved so producers must receive required nutrients through the ...edbox">water cycle, carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle, phosphorus cycle, and sulfur cycle.
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The NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory (PSL) conducts research to improve observations, understanding, modeling and predictions of weather, water and climate extremes, and their related impacts.
27 April 2022 Chronic land degradation: UN offers stark warnings and practical remedies in Global Land Outlook 2. GLO2 offers hundreds of examples from around the world that demonstrate the potential of land restoration.
The way land resources – soil, ...>water and biodiversity – are currently mismanaged and misused threatens the health and continued survival of many species on Earth, including our own, warns a stark new report from the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).
It also points decision makers to hundreds of practical ways to effect local, national and regional land and ecosystem restoration.
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2nd edition. This Permagarden Technical Manual is a resource for agriculture project staff implementing home garden projects with farmers. The manual explains how the permagarden method addresses soil health, water management and crop protection to ...create a year-round productive home garden. It includes an explanation of the purpose and reasoning behind the method, as well as instructions on how to implement the different practices
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The Lancet Planetary Health Volume 6, ISSUE 5, e388-e390, May 01, 2022. As the Stockholm Declaration on the Human Environment turns 50, the role of the health stakeholder community in forward-looking environmental agendas is more important than ever. Breathing air, drinking ...o-highlight medbox">water, and eating food is a daily requirement for healthy human bodies. These basic needs inextricably link human health to the health of our environment. Hence, core elements of the global environmental movement were built on concern for the negative impact of pollution on human and ecosystem health.
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The WHO webpage on cholera provides an overview of the disease, its causes, and prevention strategies. Cholera is an acute diarrheal infection caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, typically spread through contaminated food or water. It remains a... significant global health issue, particularly in areas with poor water and sanitation infrastructure.
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The UNICEF Syria webpage titled "Cholera Resource Material" offers a collection of educational resources aimed at preventing cholera and safeguarding families. These materials, available in Arabic, include posters and flyers on topics such as handwashing, ...water purification, recognizing cholera symptoms, prevention strategies, and specific guidance for pregnant and lactating women. The initiative emphasizes the importance of disseminating accurate information to effectively combat cholera outbreaks in Syria. By providing these resources, UNICEF aims to empower communities with the knowledge needed to protect themselves and their loved ones from cholera.
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MEDBOX Issue Brief 26. Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal infection caused by eating or drinking food or water that is contaminated with the
bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Cholera remains a global threat to public health and is an indicator of inequity and... lack of
social development. Researchers have estimated that every year, there are 1.3 to 4.0 million cases of cholera, and 21
000 to 143 000 deaths worldwide due to the infection.
However, cholera remains a neglected and underreported disease. Many cases are not recorded due to limitations in
surveillance systems and fears of potential impact on trade or tourism.
Today cholera affects 47 countries across the globe. Almost every developing country faces cholera outbreaks or
the threat of cholera. Major ongoing outbreaks are being reported from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Democratic
Republic of Congo, Ethiopia and Nigeria. Major outbreaks are currently in Syria and Haiti.
Therefore, MEDBOX decided to produce issue briefs on cholera and available resources in Arabic, English and
French.
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After eight years of armed conflict in the east of the country, the Russian Federation started a military offensive in Ukraine on 24 February 2022. The impact of this war has been devastating. It has so far caused 16,200 civilian casualties and destroyed key infrastructure, such as hospitals, school...s, homes, and water installations.
Since the beginning of the conflict, nearly 14 million people - a third of all Ukrainians - have been forced to leave their homes, 90% of them women, children, and elderly people. An estimated 6.2 million people are displaced within Ukraine, while more than 7 million sought safety in Poland, Romania and Moldova or passed through to other destinations in Europe. Some have returned to Ukraine. Another 13 million people are estimated to be stranded in or unable to leave affected areas within the country.
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