The protection of children and educational facilities is particularly important. Precautions are necessary to prevent the potential spread of COVID-19 in school settings; however, care must also be taken to avoid stigmatizing students
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and staff who may have been exposed to the virus. It is important to remember that COVID-19 does not differentiate between borders, ethnicities, disability status, age or gender. Education settings should continue to be welcoming, respectful, inclusive, and supportive environments to all. Measures taken by schools can prevent the entry and spread of COVID-19 by students and staff who may have been exposed to the virus, while minimizing disruption and protecting students and staff from discrimination.
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This guide focuses on three main areas: how to support a person whose condition warrants home care because of non-severe symptoms and home care is recommended by local jurisdictions; how to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the home;
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and how to provide emotional support to family members. While this manual provides information on danger signs of COVID-19, it should not be used as a guide for when and how a person who has COVID-19 (or its symptoms) should seek medical care. All content adapted to different countries should reflect local policy guidelines and recommendations.
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The guidance provides critical considerations and practical checklists to keep schools safe. It also advises national and local authorities on how to adapt
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and implement emergency plans for educational facilities.
In the event of school closures, the guidance includes recommendations to mitigate against the possible negative impacts on children’s learning and wellbeing. This means having solid plans in place to ensure the continuity of learning, including remote learning options such as online education strategies and radio broadcasts of academic content, and access to essential services for all children. These plans should also include necessary steps for the eventual safe reopening of schools.
Where schools remain open, and to make sure that children and their families remain protected and informed.
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Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) is an essential component of your health emergency preparedness and response action plan. This tool is designed to support risk communication, comm
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unity engagement staff and responders working with national health authorities, and other partners to develop, implement and monitor an effective action plan for communicating effectively with the public, engaging with communities, local partners and other stakeholders to help prepare and protect individuals, families and the public’s health during early response to COVID-19.
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People-centered approaches that help communities maintain protective behaviours and follow guidelines set out by public health and government agencies are more important than ever. The evidence is c
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lear, communities play a role in preventing and controlling epidemics and they are best able to take action and slow or stop the spread of disease when properly engaged and empowered. This toolbox in 2 parts offers best practice approaches to community engagement with families. Promoting individual and joint responsibilities for the safety of the family, this toolbox aims to bring families and households together to manage shared risks and agree to safe behaviours critical for their safety and the safety of their community.
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This document will be continuously updated. Version as of April 27th, 2020
Migrant and displaced children are at heightened risk to the immediate and secondary impacts of COVID-19. They often li
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ve in cramped conditions with limited access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), may be in immigration detention or “left behind,” live with disabilities, unaccompanied or separated from their families, and can be hardest to reach with accurate information in a language they understand. Migrant workers and refugees can live in the most disadvantaged urban areas, where access to essential services is already limited. Refugee and migrant children may also be prevented from accessing essential services due to legal, documentation, linguistic or safety barriers. Further, the misinformation on the spread of COVID-19 exacerbates the xenophobia and discrimination that migrant and displaced children and their families already face.
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Inerim Guidance for health-care providers. This document describes guidance for a supportive response by healthcare providers (e.g. physicians, nurses), focusing primarily on women affected by Zika virus infection during pregnancy and their families
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, for their mental health and psychosocial needs.
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Women, the elderly, adolescents, youth, and children,
persons with disabilities, indigenous populations, refugees,
migrants, and minorities experience the highest degree
of socio-economic margina
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lization. Marginalized people
become even more vulnerable in emergencies.1 This is due
to factors such as their lack of access to effective surveillance
and early-warning systems, and health services. The
COVID-19 outbreak is predicted to have significant impacts
on various sectors.
The populations most at risk are those that:
• depend heavily on the informal economy;
• occupy areas prone to shocks;
• have inadequate access to social services or political
influence;
• have limited capacities and opportunities to cope and
adapt and;
• limited or no access to technologies.
By understanding these issues, we can support the capacity
of vulnerable populations in emergencies. We can give
them priority assistance, and engage them in decision-making
processes for response, recovery, preparedness, and
risk reduction.
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This interim guidance has been updated with advice on safe and appropriate home care for patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and on the public health measures related to the management
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of their contacts.
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This brief guidance note seeks to provide advice on protecting and supporting the mental health and psychosocial wellbeing of refugees, asylum-seekers and
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migrants in Europe. It describes key principles and appropriate interventions to guide all those who are designing and organizing emergency services and/or providing direct assistance to the affected people
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With Safety Tips for Conducting Community Meetings
Updated July 2020
This document includes key Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) considerations during shifting lockdown measures, safety measures for conducting in-person community
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meetings, and a template that brings both of these considerations together to help agencies adapt their RCCE approaches as these measures shift.
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This guidance note is for UNICEF Regional and Country Office WASH staff to help them in their preparedness and response to the current COVID-19 glo
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bal pandemic. It provides an overview of Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) and its intersection with water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and how UNICEF staff can help prevent infection and its spread in schools, through human to human and by touching surfaces contaminated with the virus. WASH services including waste management and environmental cleaning are all important for IPCs.
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This practical guidance is designed to assist programme specialists to implement COVID19 RCCE activities for and with refugees, IDPs, migrants and host communities vulnerable to the pandemic. The gu
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idance highlights key challenges and barriers faced by these people in accessing COVID19 health-related information and presents key considerations and recommendations for planning and implementing RCCE activities. The document can be adapted to countries’ specific context and aligned with national response plans for COVID-19 and national RCCE plans.
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Three billion people – 40 per cent of the world’s population – do not have a place in their homes to wash their hands with water and soap. Three quarters of those who lack access to water
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and soap live in the world’s poorest countries and are amongst the most vulnerable: children and families living in informal settlements, migrant and refugee camps, or in areas of active conflict. This puts an estimated 1 billion people at immediate risk of COVID-19 simply because they lack basic handwashing facilities.
The Hand Hygiene for All initiative aims to move the world towards this goal: supporting the most vulnerable communities with the means to protect their health and environment. It brings together international partners, national governments, public and private sectors, and civil society to ensure affordable products and services are available, especially in disadvantaged areas, and to enable a culture of hygiene.
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The aim of the Technical Brief is to offer guidance to education professionals on how to integrate Mental Health and Psychosocial Support into Education in Emergencies programming. An overview of Mental Health
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and Psychosocial Support activities that can be implemented in Education in Emergencies contexts is detailed, in line with the MHPSS Minimum Service Package. Country examples and case studies are featured.
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The purpose of this brief is to provide practical tips for UNICEF country offices, partners and young people themselves on engaging adolescents and
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youth as part of the COVID-19 preparedness and response. As a first step, we recommend engaging with adolescents and youth to understand what their needs are, and how they can take action. Consultations with adolescents and youth is your best ‘go-to’ resource to determine how UNICEF can engage, protect, and support adolescents and youth in the COVID-19 response.
Remember that the ‘do not harm’ principle must always be applied. All actions should be evaluated for potential risks for harm and, as necessary, plans developed to mitigate those risks.
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This guidance note developed by UNICEF is intended to help WASH staff in their preparedness and response to the current COVID-19 pandemic. It provides an overview of Infection Prevention
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and Control (IPC) and its intersection with water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), and how staff can help prevent infection and its spread in schools, whether through human-to-human or by touching surfaces contaminated with the virus. WASH services, including waste management and environmental cleaning, are all important for IPC. This brief is available in English, Spanish, and French here.
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People-centered approaches that help communities maintain protective behaviours and follow guidelines set out by public health and government agencies are more important than ever. The evidence is c
...
lear, communities play a role in preventing and controlling epidemics and they are best able to take action and slow or stop the spread of disease when properly engaged and empowered. This toolbox in 2 parts offers best practice approaches to community engagement with families. Promoting individual and joint responsibilities for the safety of the family, this toolbox aims to bring families and households together to manage shared risks and agree to safe behaviours critical for their safety and the safety of their community.
more