A Christian Call to Reflection and ActionDuring COVID-19 and Beyond
The World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID) released a joint document, “Serving a Wounded World in Interreligious Solidarity: A Christian Call to Reflection and Action During ...COVID-19.” Its purpose is to encourage churches and Christian organizations to reflect on the importance of interreligious solidarity in a world wounded by the COVID-19 pandemic. The document offers a Christian basis for interreligious solidarity that can inspire and confirm the impulse to serve a world wounded not only by COVID-19 but also by many other wounds.
Available in different languages: German, Spanish, English, Chinese, French. Portuguese, Arabic, Italian
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Un appel à la réflexion et à l’action des chrétiens et des chrétiennes pendant la pandémie de COVID-19 et au delà
The World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID) released a joint document, “Serving a Wounded World in Interreligious Solida...rity: A Christian Call to Reflection and Action During COVID-19.” Its purpose is to encourage churches and Christian organizations to reflect on the importance of interreligious solidarity in a world wounded by the COVID-19 pandemic. The document offers a Christian basis for interreligious solidarity that can inspire and confirm the impulse to serve a world wounded not only by COVID-19 but also by many other wounds.
Available in different languages: German, Spanish, English, Chinese, French. Portuguese, Arabic, Italian
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Saúde Soc. São Paulo, v.30, n.1, e200450, 2021
Desde março de 2020, quando a Organização Mundial de Saúde declarou que o mundo vivia uma pandemia de covid-19, acompanhamos um quadro sanitário sem precedentes nos últimos 100 anos. As medidas atuais contra a ...doença têm como objetivo o controle da transmissão e envolvem ações individuais e coletivas de higiene e distanciamento físico, enquanto a busca por uma vacina se apresenta como a esperança para vencer a pandemia. Considerando o contexto social de clamor por uma nova vacina, este ensaio crítico discute o paradoxo e as contradições da relação indivíduo-sociedade no contexto da covid-19 à luz da hesitação vacinal como fenômeno histórico e socialmente situado. Este ensaio aponta que as tomadas de decisão sobre (não) vacinar ou sobre (não) seguir as medidas preventivas e de controle da propagação da covid-19 são conformadas por pertencimentos sociais e atravessadas por desigualdades que tendem a se exacerbar. A infodemia que cerca a covid-19 e a hesitação vacinal refletem a tensão entre o risco cientificamente validado e o risco percebido subjetivamente, também influenciada pela crise de confiança na ciência. Percepções de risco e adesão a medidas de saúde extrapolam aspectos subjetivos e racionais e espelham valores e crenças conformados pelas dimensões política, econômica e sociocultural.
Also available in Englisch http://www.scielo.br/j/sausoc/a/rQFs3PMLgZprt3hkJMyS8mN/?format=pdf&lang=en
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Countries around the world are facing the challenge of increased demand for care of people with COVID-19, compounded by fear, misinformation and limitations on movement that disrupt the delivery of health care for all conditions. Maintaining essential health services: operational guidance for the CO...VID-19 context recommends practical actions that countries can take at national, subregional and local levels to reorganize and safely maintain access to high-quality, essential health services in the pandemic context. It also outlines sample indicators for monitoring essential health services, and describes considerations on when to stop and restart services as COVID-19 transmission recedes and surges.
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Workplaces outside of healthcare facilities can be also settings for transmission of COVID-19. Outbreaks of COVID-19 has been reported in various types of workplaces and job categories.
All workers should be protected from acquiring COVID-19 because of their work. The prevention of COVID-19 in ...work settings should be combined with measures for protecting physical and mental health, safety and wellbeing of workers from other occupational hazards in the operation, closures and reopening of workplaces.
This joint WHO/ILO policy brief provides a summary of the evidence for transmission of COVID-19 in general workplaces and an overview of WHO and ILO recommendations for prevention and mitigation of COVID-19 and for protecting health and safety at work in the context of the pandemic.
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This report is documenting the global incidence of attacks and threats against health workers, facilities, and transport around the world. The report cites 806 incidents of violence against or obstruction of health care in 43 countries and territories in ongoing wars and violent conflicts in 2020, r...anging from the bombing of hospitals in Yemen to the abduction of doctors in Nigeria. Attacks -- including killings, kidnappings, and sexual assaults, as well as destruction and damage of health facilities and transports -- compounded the threats to health in every country as health systems struggled to prepare for and respond to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The report presents the latest data on more than 50 health-related Sustainable Development Goal and "triple billion" target indicators. The 2021 edition includes preliminary estimates for global excess deaths attributable to COVID-19 for 2020 and the state of global and regional health trends from 2...000-2019. It also focuses on persistent health inequalities and data gaps that have been accentuated by the pandemic, with a call to urgently invest in health information systems to ensure the world is better prepared with better data.
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This case study takes a closer look at experiences in three countries and one sub-region, each with a unique profile, a specific set of challenges and opportunities, and differing levels of WASH competencies. Through the lens of the participating National Societies and the communities they serve, th...is study captures rich layers of learning from multi-country implementation between 2016 to 2020.
The unfolding of the COVID-19 pandemic gives a glimpse of the resulting global restrictions that are testing aspects of National Society capacity and preparedness on the ground. It is an opportunity to take stock of progress and the outlook ahead - to celebrate achievements and share experiences with National Societies and partners contemplating capacity development in emergency WASH in the Asia Pacific region.
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14 July 2021 This article is part of a series of explainers on vaccine development and distribution. Learn more about vaccines – from how they work and how they’re made to ensuring safety and equitable access – in WHO’s Vaccines Explained series.
COVID-19 vaccines have proven to be safe, ...effective and life-saving. Like all vaccines, they do not fully protect everyone who is vaccinated, and we do not yet know how well they can prevent people from transmitting the virus to others. So as well as getting vaccinated, we must also continue with other measures to fight the pandemic.
Available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Russian
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Policy makers and public health professionals may be forced to weigh and prioritize potentially competing ethical values in the face of severe time and resource constraints. This video from the World Health Organisation explains that ethical concerns associated with the planning, preparedness and re...sponse to disease outbreaks are important to consider, ensuring that response efforts are not hindered in the event of a pandemic.
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Almost two years after the signing of the Political Accord for Peace and Reconciliation (APPR), the Central African population is still hostage to an unstable and unpredictable security environment. Continuing conflicts in several areas of the country, structural weaknesses combined with the socio-e...conomic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the devastating effects of natural disasters have plunged 2.6 million people into dire needs. Of this total, 1.6 million have severe humanitarian needs, a figure unmatched for five years, reflecting a deterioration in the physical and mental well-being and living conditions of populations across the country.
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The impact of attacks on health care in Fragile, Conflict-affected and Vulnerable (FCV) settings goes well beyond endangering health providers. Reduced capacity, interrupted services and loss of health care resources deprive vulnerable populations of urgently needed care, undermine health systems an...d jeopardize long-term public health goals.
As the world struggles with the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting health care where health systems are the most vulnerable has become more important than ever. Ensuring the right to access health care for everyone, everywhere is not only at the core of WHO’s commitment to achieve better health but also a stepping stone to a reaching the Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs.
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Countries across the world are facing diverse epidemiological situations with varying response
capacities and access to life saving tools. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that national authorities continue to apply a risk-based approach when implementing measures related to COVID-19... and international travel while respecting the dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of travellers. This approach should consider the risk posed by travel for the importation and exportation of cases in the context of the evolving epidemiology, including the emergence and circulation of virus variants of concern; the expansion of the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out; and lessons learned while responding to the pandemic, including on the early detection and management of cases and the application of public health and social measures.
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People on the move – migrants, refugees, asylum seekers and other displaced populations – face extraordinary risks to their lives, safety, dignity, human rights and well-being.
In part this is connected to the core reasons that lead to migration and displacement, ranging from violence, persec...ution, conflict, poverty, political and social issues, as well as disasters and the adverse effects of climate change. In 2021, we are seeing the compounding factors of the COVID-19 pandemic and the climate crisis driving higher numbers of people to migrate, exacerbating risks and vulnerabilities.
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Rumors emerge when people feel left out of the discussion, when their questions cannot be answered by authorities or their doubts are dismissed by official sources. But also, rumors present an opportunity – to understand the questions, concerns and anxieties communities may have about this pandemi...c.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Internews has followed its rumour-tracking methodology, including social media listening, to identify those rumors that are posing additional risks to the communities, ensuring content is collected from diverse demographic groups.
Internews produces and distributes rumor bulletins through its Rooted in Trust and its H2H (humanitarian-to-humanitarian network) projects. Rooted in Trust has collected close to 6,000 rumors from seven countries in 12 languages, and collects data across seven major social media platforms and a wide range of feedback collection channels. H2H is a collaboration to support responders at every level by analyzing information gaps and addressing them with evidence-based content in relevant languages, formats, and channels.
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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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WHO and Psyon Games have joined forces to launch a new tower defense game called the Antidote COVID-19 to turn complex, scientific information into a fun learning experience. During the course of the game, players will learn about their immune system, pathogens, vaccines and how to protect themselve...s from COVID-19.
The game comes at a critical point of the pandemic where misinformation is hindering COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and adherence to other public health measures due to fear, mistrust and doubt. By putting players in the driver’s seat, the game urges everyone to play a role in fighting harmful misinformation online, and learning and sharing the facts from trusted sources of information.
The game starts just before the pandemic begins. The player is recruited to halt the spread of SARS-COV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, by developing vaccines and helping the human immune system fight off the virus. Based on real events, this online adventure takes the player to the frontline of science, ultimately providing lifesaving information in the palms of their hands.
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For humanitarian organisations to respond effectively to complex crises, they require access to up-to-date evidence-based guidance. The COVID-19 crisis has highlighted the importance of updating global guidance to context-specific and evolving needs in humanitarian settings. Our study aimed to under...stand the use of evidence-based guidance in humanitarian responses during COVID-19. Primary data collected during the rapidly evolving pandemic sheds new light on evidence-use processes in humanitarian response.
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The WHO End TB Strategy aims to end the global TB epidemic by 2030, in alignment with Goal 3 of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Member States of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN committed to ending the TB epidemic through adoption of WHO’s End TB Strateg...y and the UN SDGs in 2014 and 2015, respectivel
Almost half of the deaths worldwide caused by TB in 2019 occurred in the WHO South-East Asia Region, home to around a quarter of the global population. Maintaining robust progress in this Region is therefore essential if the global goal of ending the TB epidemic is to be realized. Despite substantial gains made in the Region, the threat to
health worldwide posed by the COVID-19 pandemic has the potential to reverse these gains and eclipse the focus on the global TB emergency.
While continuing to tackle COVID-19-related challenges, countries will need to rapidly and urgently deploy supplementary measures to address the large numbers of missed cases, poor treatment outcomes and, potentially, a higher TB burden.
The Regional Strategic Plan towards Ending TB in the Region 2021–2025 clearly articulates priority interventions, analyses the challenges, bottlenecks and opportunities, and focuses on implementation considerations in the Region.
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Key questions
What is already known?
Critical illness is common throughout the world and COVID-19 has caused a global surge of critically ill patients.
There are large gaps in the quality of care for critically ill patients, especially in low-staffed and low-resourced settings, and mortal...ity rates are high.
Essential Emergency and Critical Care (EECC) is the effective lifesaving care of low-cost and low-complexity that all critically ill patients should receive in all wards in all hospitals in the world.
What are the new findings?
The clinical processes that comprise EECC and the essential care of critically ill patients with COVID-19 have been specified in a large consensus among clinical experts worldwide.
The resource requirements for hospitals to be ready to provide this care has been described.
What do the new findings imply?
The findings can be used across medical specialties in hospitals worldwide to prioritise and implement essential care for reducing preventable deaths.
Inclusion of the EEEC processes could increase the impact of pandemic preparedness and response programmes and policies for health systems strengthening.
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