1. What do we mean by ‘psychosocial support (PSS)? | 2. What are the basic principles of psychosocial support for UNICEF? | 3. In what types of situations does UNICEF address psychosocial support? | 4. Are there certain psychosocial interventions in which UNICEF should not normally seek to inves...t? | 5. Are there any types of interventions we should discourage? | 6. Should UNICEF support one-to-one counselling? In what situations might this be appropriate? | 7. When should children be referred for professional mental health support? | 8. Should we avoid using the term “traumatised” when referring to children? | 9. How do we assess the type or response needed a) for quick, short term action? b) for medium-long term interventions? | 10. How can caregivers and professionals who have themselves experienced the same crises or exposures provide psychosocial support to children? | 11. What materials and tools are recommended to support and monitor PSS interventions? Where can these be obtained?
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WHO's Health in the Green Economy sector briefings examine the health impacts of climate change mitigation strategies considered by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in their Fourth Assessment Report (Climate Change, 2007). Large, immediate health benefits from some climate change strate...gies are to be expected.
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At the time of writing, the novel coronavirus pandemic had reached every region of the world, with millions of infections globally and untold disruptions to nearly every aspect of daily life.
Over the 20 years that followed, this unique partnership has invested more than US$53 billion, saving 44 million lives and reducing the combined death rate from the three diseases by more than half in the countries in which the Global Fund invests.
The Global Health Security Agenda programme develops national capacity to prevent zoonotic and non-zoonotic diseases while quickly and effectively detecting and controlling diseases when they do emerge. The Emerging Pandemic Threats programme improves national capacity to pre-empt the emergence and ...re-emergence of infectious zoonotic disease and to prevent the next pandemic.
Action against emerging pandemic threats is taken through projects on: Avian influenza, Middle East respiratory syndrome, Africa Sustainable Livestock 2050 and Emergency equipment stockpile. With high-impact diseases that jump from animals to humans on the rise, these programmes are reducing the risk to lives and livelihoods from national, regional and global disease spread.
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The devastating impacts of the 2015–16 El Niño will be felt well into 2017. This crisis was predicted, yet overall, the response has been too little too late. The looming La Niña event may further hit communities that are already deeply vulnerable. To end this cycle of failure, there is an urgen...t need for humanitarian action where the situation is already dire, to prepare for La Niña later this year, to commit to comprehensive new measures to build communities’ resilience, and to mobilize global action to address climate change which is creating a ‘new normal’ of higher temperatures, drought and unpredictable growing seasons.
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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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CORE Group has developed a module on cholera to address gaps in preparedness and response in at-risk countries and communities. The guide contains four different lesson plans and is complemented by flipcharts designed for use by community health workers. The lessons are aimed at mothers and carers o...f children under the age of five, as this age group is at increased risk of dying from cholera. The modules include measures that can be taken before, during and after a cholera outbreak
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The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) launched a new Framework for Environmental and Social Management (FESM) to ensure that both people and the environment are protected from any potential impacts of FAO programmes and projects.
“This Framework ensures that our proj...ects do both “no harm” and support the transformation to more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable agrifood systems by upholding the highest international standards for risk management,” FAO Director-General QU Dongyu explained during a virtual event.
The Framework, which includes key elements of a people-centered approach and establishes environmental and social performance requirements for FAO programming, is also intended to ensure that all stakeholders, including local and indigenous communities, have ample opportunities to actively participate in projects’ activities and to voice their concerns about them.
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Anxiety Disorders
Chapter F.4
"Patient decontamination principles are set forth here from a strategic perspective, rather than a tactical
one. The principles are meant to guide, but not specify, operational practices. The guidance is evidencebased
to the extent possible and the supporting evidence is documented and briefly dis...cussed."
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This module should always be used together with the
mhGAP Intervention Guide for Mental, Neurological
and Substance Use Disorders in Non-specialized Health
Settings (WHO, 2010), which outlines relevant general
principles of care and management of a range of other
mental, neurological and substa...nce use disorders.
(www.who.int/mental_health/publications/mhGAP_
intervention_guide/en/index.html)
In the future, this module may be integrated with other
products in the following ways:
– This module may be integrated – in its full form –
into future iterations of the existing mhGAP Intervention
Guide.
– The module will be integrated –in a simplified structure –
into a new product, the WHO-UNHCR mhGAP Intervention
Guide for Humanitarian Settings (planned for 2014).
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Transforming Health: Accelerating attainment of Health Goals | THE SECOND MEDIUM TERM PLAN FOR HEALTH