KEY MESSAGES
Always talk to a GBV specialist first to understand what GBV services are available in your area. Some services may take the form of hotlines, a mobile app or other remote support.
Be aware of any other available services in your area. Identify services provided by humanitarian pa...rtners such as health, psychosocial support, shelter and non-food items. Consider services provided by communities such as mosques/ churches, women’s groups and Disability Service Organizations.
Remember your role. Provide a listening ear, free of judgment. Provide accurate, up-to-date information on available services. Let the survivor make their own choices. Know what you can and cannot manage. Even without a GBV actor in your area, there may be other partners, such as a child protection or mental health specialist, who can support survivors that require additional attention and support. Ask the survivor for permission before connecting them to anyone else. Do not force the survivor if s/he says no.
Do not proactively identify or seek out GBV survivors. Be available in case someone asks for support.
Remember your mandate. All humanitarian practitioners are mandated to provide non-judgmental and non-discriminatory support to people in need regardless of: gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, disability status, age, ethnicity/tribe/race/religion, who perpetrated/committed violence, and the situation in which violence was committed. Use a survivor-centered approach by practicing:
Respect: all actions you take are guided by respect for the survivor’s choices, wishes, rights and dignity.
Safety: the safety of the survivor is the number one priority.
Confidentiality: people have the right to choose to whom they will or will not tell their story. Maintaining confidentiality means not sharing any information to anyone.
Non-discrimination: providing equal and fair treatment to anyone in need of support.
If health services exist, always provide information on what is available. Share what you know, and most importantly explain what you do not. Let the survivor decide if s/he wants to access them. Receiving quality medical care within 72 hours can prevent transmission of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and within 120 hours can prevent unwanted pregnancy.
Provide the opportunity for people with disabilities to communicate to you without the presence of their caregiver, if wished and does not endanger or create tension in that relationship.
If a man or boy is raped it does not mean he is gay or bisexual. Gender-based violence is based on power, not someone’s sexuality.
Sexual and gender minorities are often at increased risk of harm and violence due to their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Actively listen and seek to support all survivors.
Anyone can commit an act of gender-based violence including a spouse, intimate partner, family member, caregiver, in-law, stranger, parent or someone who is exchanging money or goods for a sexual act.
Anyone can be a survivor of gender-based violence – this includes, but isn’t limited to, people who are married, elderly individuals or people who engage in sex work.
Protect the identity and safety of a survivor. Do not write down, take pictures or verbally share any personal/identifying information about a survivor or their experience, including with your supervisor. Put phones and computers away to avoid concern that a survivor’s voice is being recorded.
Personal/identifying information includes the survivor’s name, perpetrator(s) name, date of birth, registration number, home address, work address, location where their children go to school, the exact time and place the incident took place etc.
Share general, non-identifying information
To your team or sector partners in an effort to make your program safer.
To your support network when seeking self-care and encouragement.
more
Part of the CBM Prevention Toolkit on Cerebral Palsy. | This manual is meant to be used in combination with the Flipcharts on Cerebral Palsy developed by CBM and CCBRT (Tanzania). The full Prevention Toolkit on Cerebral Palsy (composed of the A4 Flipcharts, this Manual and a Fact sheet) aims to miti...gate the disabling effects of cerebral palsy through improved new born care and greater community awareness.
more
A practical handbook. This Health Cluster Guide (2nd edition, 2020) provides practical advice on how WHO, Health Cluster Coordinators and partners can work together during a humanitarian crisis to achieve the aims of reducing avoidable mortality, morbidity and disability, and restoring the delivery ...of and equitable access to preventive and curative health care.
It highlights key principles of humanitarian health action and how coordination and joint efforts among health and other sector actors can increase the effectiveness and efficiency of health interventions and promote better health outcomes. It draws on Inter-Agency Standing Committee and other expert guidance and includes lessons from field experience in acute and protracted crises.
The coordination principles and practice presented in Health Cluster Guide are equally valid for coordinators and members of health sector groups that seek to achieve effective health action in countries where the cluster approach has not been formally adopted.
more
Violence against women and girls is widespread in the Region of the Americas, resulting in enormous consequences for the health and wellbeing of women and girls, their families and communities. These costs are unacceptable and they can be prevented through evidence-based action, including the health... sector through its policies and protocols, as well as in collaboration with other sectors. This report remains the first of its kind and is a major milestone for the Region. It is specifically informed by the commitments of Member States in the regional Strategy and Plan of Action on Strengthening the Health System to Address Violence against Women. The report provides an analysis of efforts to advance the prevention of violence against women through health policies, clinical protocols, multisectoral plans and related approaches across the Americas. Attention to this topic is timely, as the COVID-19 pandemic has created new visibility for this area of work. This report offers critical information on efforts in the Region that can be learned from and used to build upon in the future to prevent and respond to violence against all women and girls everywhere.
more
Guidelines for good practice. 3rd edition
The Guidelines for Good Practice are intended to help organizations define their own needs in relation to stress management and develop their own staff care system. The process will be different for each organization. National and international agencies, bi...g and small organizations, will have to find the process and policies that work for them.
more
COVID-19 has turned the world upside down. Everything has been impacted. How we live and interact with each other, how we work and communicate, how we move around and travel. Every aspect of our lives has been affected.
The 2023 meeting of the WHO Clinical Consortium on Healthy Ageing (CCHA) was the group’s ninth gathering and took place in Geneva 5–7 December 2023. The meeting was structured around seven panels, with a series of technical presentations, plenary discussions and group work, and a final session o...utlining the work programme for 2024.
more
Nurses are key players in health promotion and disease prevention and the backbone of health care systems worldwide. Nurses work on the front lines of disease prevention, health promotion, and health management and are often the unsung heroes in health care facilities and emergency response. Despite... the critical role they play in health care, there is a nursing shortage across the world that will affect the delivery of competent nursing care. This document highlights key action points for targeted investment in the nursing workforce and calls on Member States to strengthen nursing within the context of their own country efforts.
more
Disability-inclusive development policy and practice is constantly changing and evolving. It is a foundational part of our work in CBM, underpinning all that we do. It requires us to be constantly reflecting, learning and improving our practice. In particular looking to the deeper questions: of the ...relationships and
representation of people with disabilities within our work; and how we partner with Disabled Peoples Organisations (DPOs) to achieve transformative, systemic change in the countries where we work.
more
In line with the Climate and Environment Charter for Humanitarian Organisations which IFRC, ICRC and various Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies have endorsed, this short Guide aims to help practitioners integrate environmental and climate change considerations into their work. It has been dev...eloped primarily for logistics staff, administrative staff, and management. It is not necessary to be an environmental expert to use this Guide.
more
This booklet presents key messages for action, summarized from a set of chapters on different environmental health issues, available at www.who.int/ ceh/publications/healthyenvironmentsforhealthychildren. The work is a result of an on-going partnership between WHO, UNEP and UNICEF in the area of chi...ldren’s environmental health, and seeks to update the 2002 joint publication “Children in the New Millennium: Environmental Impact on Health.”
more
Children and youth can face emotional strains after a traumatic event such as a car crash or violence. Disasters also may leave them with long-lasting harmful effects. When children experience a trauma, watch it on TV, or overhear others discussing it, they can feel scared, confused, or anxious. You...ng people react to trauma differently than adults. Some may react right away; others may show signs that they are having a difficult time much later. As such, adults do not always know when a child needs help coping. This tip sheet will help parents, caregivers, and teachers learn some common reactions, respond in a helpful way, and know when to seek support.
more
This MHPSS in Emergencies training aims to prepare MHPSS responders, disaster managers, and emergency team leaders for work in the field by building understanding of basic concepts of MHPSS in emergencies as well as planning and implementing PSS activities. It is for MHPSS focal points from the Red ...Cross and Red Crescent Societies Movement and humanitarian organizations responsible for initiating or supporting the overall mental health and psychosocial activities and interventions during emergencies. The training modules in this guide have been developed to be flexible and adapted to different contexts and training needs. The guide and accompanying materials include the information and materials you will need to design and facilitate MHPSS in Emergencies training.
more
The aim of this handbook is to provide guidance for trained anaesthetists working for the ICRC and to offer advice in areas where practice will differ from that in their home country. It is designed to supplement the practical training given in ICRC war-surgery seminars and to support the work of th...e ICRC in war surgery
more
This handbook is an adaptation from the WHO Clinical Handbook Health care for women subjected to intimate partner violence or sexual violence developed by the World Health Organization (WHO), UN Women and United Nations Population Fund. The handbook draws on the work from professionals who are dedic...ated to preventing and responding to Gender Based Violence.
The Handbook guides health care service providers to provide comprehensive services to survivors of intimate partner violence and/or sexual violence. It also guides health professionals with respect to relevant stakeholders for referral purposes. The purpose is to ensure that relevant authorities are informed timeously in order act and ensure that those affected by violence receive speedy service as required.
more
CBM’s approach is based on the principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and on CBM’s responsibility to promote accessibility and the principles of universal design in all spheres of its work, including CBM’s digital content and communications. With this... toolkit, we want to provide a guide and practice resource to people working with and for CBM so that together we produce accessible digital content and communications, and place accessibility at the centre of our Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) procurement processes. The toolkit contains a selection of tools for producing accessible content in electronic documents, videos, figures and tools to ensure web accessibility. It also provides tools and information for accessible ICT procurement including tips and resources on how to communicate CBM’s accessibility requirements for products and services being purchased; and how to evaluate what providers promise and deliver.
more
The report provides lessons and recommendations for other organizations and the wider humanitarian community on engaging persons with disabilities at all levels of humanitarian work. It draws on consultations with over 700 displaced persons—including persons with disabilities, their families, and ...humanitarian staff—in eight countries.
more
The purpose of this publication is to facilitate the implementation of existing WHO guidelines on nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive actions required for improving health and well-being of adolescents. Implementing these actions should explicitly take into account the heterogeneity of adoles...cents in general (for instance, in their state of physical growth and social development), as well as the diversity within their country (for instance, in terms of the expected responsibilities in the family, the number out of school or out of work and existing social norms).
more
This document was prepared by UNICEF Regional Office for West and Central Africa, under the leadership of Christophe Valingot and the review of Joachim Peeters (WASH Specialist) and Arnaud Laillou (Nutrition Specialist), on behalf of the WASH Regional Group and the Nutrition Regional Group.
This ...WASH - Nutrition strategic guidance note for West and Central Africa builds on the precedent WASH-in-NUT strategy elaborated in 2012 and is the regional outcome of a multiyear collaborative work conducted at country level between 2018 and 2022, in Mali, Niger, Nigeria Chad, Burkina Faso. This work is based on a strong multi-partner collaboration, involving national technical directorates of the water and sanitation sector as well as technical directorates of Health and Nutrition, civil society organizations, national and international NGOs as well as United Nations agencies.
This document can serve as a technical and strategic guide for any partner wishing to strengthen the intersectorality of WASH-Nutrition programmes. It presents the regional WASH & Nutrition context, a brief review of the latest scientific evidence, and proposes an integrated WASH-Nutrition programming framework adapted to the regional context of West and Central Africa. Beyond the implementation of programmes, this document also calls for the explicit and concrete inclusion of WASH-Nutrition integration into national policy documents.
more
These guidelines outline the minimum operational guidance for infection prevention and control (IPC) in ambulances transferring suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients. Ambulance staff should be trained in the procedures outlined here as part of their induction and prior to starting work. They are ...to be supported by their operating organization with available personal protective equipment (PPE) and cleaning materials. These guidelines are subject to adaptation according to the specific operational context. Standard infection control precautions must be used with all patients.
more