September – December 2021
The funds will be used by WHO to ensure:
continued coordination with other agencies and health actors in the response to the crisis situation
continuity of ...an class="attribute-to-highlight medbox">health services for the population of Afghanistan
provision of life-saving medical supplies
continued response to COVID-19
timely response to potential outbreaks
response to urgent trauma needs
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These guidance notes on stress, grief and loss have been compiled by IMC’s Mental Health Advisor, Dr. Lynne Jones, for organizations working with Hurricane Katrina-affected populations. They represent lessons learned regarding mental ...attribute-to-highlight medbox">health activities from IMC’s international experiences in disaster response, including the recent tsunami, as well as summarize best-practices identified by international agency consensus
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The Lancet Countdown is an international collaboration that independently monitors the health consequences of a changing climate. Publishing updated, new, and improved indicators each year, the Lancet Countdown represents the
consensus of leading ...researchers from 43 academic institutions and UN agencies. The 44 indicators of this report expose an unabated rise in the health impacts of
climate change and the current health consequences of the delayed and inconsistent response of countries around the globe—providing a clear imperative for accelerated action that puts the health of people and planet above all else.The 2021 report coincides with the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26), at which countries are facing pressure to realise the ambition of the Paris Agreement to keep the global average temperature rise to 1·5°C and to
mobilise the financial resources required for all countries to have an effective climate response. These negotiations unfold in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic—a global health crisis that has claimed millions of lives, affected livelihoods and communities around the globe, and exposed deep fissures and inequities in the world’s capacity to cope with, and respond to, health emergencies. Yet, in its response to both crises, the world is faced with an unprecedented opportunity to ensure a healthy future for all.
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The IFRC Psychosocial Centre has published a guidance note providing an overview of the psychosocial consequences of virus outbreaks, with a focus on mpox, and outlines key considerations for MHPSS programming.
The current mpox outbreaks present numerous challenges for responding National Societi...es. A key issue is addressing stigma as individuals infected, or suspected of having mpox may experience social ostracization, discrimination, and even violence. In many African communities, where cultural and social norms are vital to community health, considering the cultural and psychosocial implications of virus outbreaks is integral for effective disease management. In addition, Red Cross Red Crescent staff and volunteers may be personally exposed and working in complex environments with rumours and misinformation generating fear and anxiety. This guidance addresses the key mental health and psychosocial support implications of the ongoing mpox crisis.
Guleed Dualeh, MHPSS Advisor
This guidance note is intended for Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies and IFRC departments who may be responding to mpox in their country, or region. It includes guidance on:
Common reactions and behaviours in epidemics
Caring for staff and volunteers in health emergencies
Integration of MHPSS considerations for into health responses
Links to existing relevant materials
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This is the sixth of our 11-paper supplement entitled “Community Health Workers at the Dawn of New Era”. Expectations of community health workers (CHWs) have expanded in recent years to encompas...s a wider array
of services to numerous subpopulations, engage communities to collaborate with and to assist health systems in responding to complex and sometimes intensive threats. In this paper, we explore a set of key considerations for training of CHWs in response to their enhanced and changing roles and provide actionable recommendations based on
current evidence and case examples for health systems leaders and other stakeholders to utilize.
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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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An approach to emergency situations. Relief workers face rapidly changing and complex environments, new disease patterns, enormous humanitarian needs and relatively limited resources. The authors of this book use their experience in the area to produce an operational manual of the issues involved in... refugee health programs. This book is aimed at professionals involved in public health assistance to refugees and displaced persons. It deals with a variety of specific refugee health issues at the decisional level, and discusses the priorities of intervention during the different phases of a refugee crisis, from emergency to repatriation.
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These guidelines – an update to the World Health Organization’s 2015 publication Consolidated strategic information guidelines – present a set of essential aggregate indicators and guidance on choosing, collecting and systematically analysing ...strategic information to manage and monitor the national health sector response to HIV.
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A broad range of UNHCR’s key priorities overlap with MHPSS issues – for example, child protection and sexual and gender-based violence [SGBV] prevention and response.
Despite all these existent synergies, UNHCR’s current policies and guideli...nes do not sufficiently link with MHPSS principles. For example, the Community Services section, which is closely aligned to the principles of MHPSS and could be well-positioned to guide the implementation of related programs, has not adopted the MHPSS language or approach.
There are opportunities for UNHCR to engage more strongly and clearly in this field. However, this requires a vision for how the organisation as a whole, and particular sectors within the organisation, will engage within the field of MHPSS activities. For a start, UNHCR can work to improve its understanding and framing of mental health and psychosocial issues, and how these issues fit within its broader mandate.
While the majority of MHPSS activities are delivered by implementing partners, UNHCR staff require familiarity with core principles in the field, such as the Intervention Pyramid contained in the IASC Guidelines, in order to support and monitor quality MHPSS activities.
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The Global Reference List of 100 Core Health Indicators is a standard set of core indicators prioritized by the global community to provide concise information on the health situation and trends, in...cluding responses at national and global levels.
This second (2018) edition builds on the previous work of the inter-agency working group that was commissioned by global health leaders to reduce reporting burden. The 2018 list of indicators contains modifications and additions to indicators and metadata elements to reflect the recommended health and health-related indicators of the Sustainable Development Goals, including universal health coverage.
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The strategic plan reflects shared commitments to enhance collaboration between environmental, animal (wildlife and domestic) and human health, and building new One Health workforce capacity through... higher institutions of learning. The strategy also outlines interventions to be undertaken by government institutions and other partners to enhance existing structures and pool together additional resources to prevent and control zoonotic diseases and other events of public health importance. Successful implementation of the strategy will contribute to the realization of vision 2020 by improving public health, food safety and security, and hence significantly improve the socioeconomic status of the people of Rwanda. It is in this regard that we call upon implementing institutions, bilateral and multilateral partners, civil society and the private sector to join us in implementing the One Health strategy in Rwanda.
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The Human Resources for Health policy (HRH) will provide guidelines and the direction toward strengthening the planning, management, utilization and monitoring of health sector human resources; not ...forgetting responses to the contemporary challenges and developments in the sector including the mobility and motivation of human resources; and advancements in technology.
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In this report, potential reasons for this apparent
contradiction between cherished human values
and observed social actions are explored with a
view to better formulating concrete steps that
governments and other stakeholders can take to
reshape social attitudes and ...ighlight medbox">public policy.
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Overwhelming evidence shows that a range of health concerns—mental illness, substance dependence, HIV/AIDS, and noncommunicable diseases—affect prisoners disproportionately. But, while incarceration poses risks to ...ight medbox">health—including inadequate nutrition and exposure to violence—prisons also present important opportunities to promote health and risk reduction that need to be tapped.
Some recommended remedies:
Health ministries, not ministries of justice, should manage health care responsibilities
Ensure that testing is available, but not mandatory, for infectious diseases
Make prison health part of the broader public health agenda
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Interim Guidance
This document is to help Member States build on actions taken during the COVID-19 pandemic to improve national medium- to long-term preparedness for future threats. It maps COVID-19 preparedness and response actions to the building... of sustainable International Health Regulations (2005) core capacities; locates relevant supporting WHO resources that are not specific to the pandemic; and advocates for the conscious and effective allocation of COVID-19 funds to also meet countries’ longer-term need
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In India, in response to the above and guided by our counterparts in the government of India, the UN agencies have developed the Novel Coronavirus Disease Joint Health ...light medbox">Response Plan by UN Agencies and Partners, led by WHO-India, in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and with the support of other development partners. The UN in India is also preparing a COVID-19 Socio-economic Response and Recovery Plan, in partnership with the government.
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The COVID-19 pandemic is a multiplier of vulnerability, compounding threats to food insecurity, while exposing weaknesses in food and health systems. It is severely undermining the capacity of communities to cope in times of crisis and has become a ...stress test for political and economic stability.
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In most contexts, the social stigma surrounding mental health issues exists because of cultural norms and a lack of understanding of mental health’s complexities and realities, resulting in isolat...ion, increased vulnerability, and lack of support for people with mental health problems.
This stigma has been exacerbated during COVID-19, as more people may need mental health or psycho-social support but cannot access it due to the cessation of in-person services and limited remote care option
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Updated version – September 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting everyone. Globally, millions of people have been infected with the virus, while hundreds of thousands have lost their lives. In Moldova, the pandemic is placing an ever-increasing pressure on the ...ght medbox">health care and social protection systems, causing major disruptions to economic processes and limitations to social life, deepening inequalities and proving how vulnerable we are.
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This publication presents a comprehensive methodology to support the Member States of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) in preparing for and responding to heat-health risks in the Region o...f the Americas. It builds on World Health Organization and the World Meteorological Organization global documents, as well as on the disaster preparedness methodologies employed throughout the countries of the Region. This publication is part of an effort coordinated by PAHO to support Member States in multihazard preparedness, and includes: early warning system strengthening; threat characterization; activation and deactivation procedure definition; and institutional coordination. It engages different disciplines and recognizes the importance of intersectoral collaboration to respond to heat-health risks. It aims to bring awareness of the impacts of heat on the health of people of the Americas to public health decisionmakers, and thereby strengthen health service provision.
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