Every year, nearly 250 million people move across borders temporarily or permanently for a job opportunity, studying, to flee a crisis back home, or for other reasons. Another 750 million move for similar reasons within the borders of their countries. With the understanding that human mobility affec...ts public health, and health affects human mobility and migrants, for decades, IOM has been providing critical health services to women, children and men on the move, while standing by governments for technical and operational support as needed. In 2019, in lower-income settings and in complex emergencies, along the world’s most perilous migration routes, in the aftermath of natural disasters or in response to disease outbreaks, IOM’s health teams have provided hundreds of thousands with primary health-care consultations, mental health and psychosocial support, sexual and reproductive health care, pre-migration health services, and much more.
This year, more than ever before, as the world reels from the socioeconomic impact of COVID-19, we have experienced that health is a cross-cutting component of overall human development and well-being.
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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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The project was developed by the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations (IFMSA), in line with the Federation’s statement “a world in which students are equipped with knowledge, skills and value to take on health leadership roles locally and globally so to... shape a sustainable future”. This was supported by an ongoing and vital engagement from the World Health Organization (WHO) and their work the United Nations Alliance on Climate Change Education, Training and Public Awareness. The overall objective was to create a “all in one” type of resource to bring together climate change, health and youth advocacy.
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DHS Working Papers No. 110 | Zimbabwe Working Papers No. 11
DHS Working Paper No. 133
Training manual that outlines the training of smallholder farmers to improve biosecurity and practices in their farms to prevent infectious diseases and thus the need for use of veterinary drugs. Describes training sessions and includes exercises and handouts.
The humanitarian crisis in Yemen is the worst in the world, with over 80 per cent of the population estimated to be in need of humanitarian assistance. The protracted crisis has displaced millions of Yemenis, placing pressure on host communities with limited capacity to support displaced populations....
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An IPCC Special Report on climate change, desertification,
land degradation, sustainable land management, food security,
and greenhouse gas fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems.
States, the United Nations and civil society organisations continue to raise concerns about the humanitarian impact caused by the use of explosive weapons in populated areas (EWIPA). This issue is currently being examined from political, legal, socio-economic and humanitarian perspectives. The GICHD... has undertaken research to provide a technical perspective on the destructive effects of selected explosive weapons to inform the international debate.
The research project attempts to reduce an observed knowledge gap regarding EWIPA. It seeks to provide clarity concerning the immediate physical effects and terminology used when discussing explosive weapons. The project is guided by a group of experts dealing with weapons-related research and practitioners who address the implications of explosive weapons in humanitarian, policy, advocacy and legal fields.
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Systematic Review Summary 4
Working with limited resources in armed conflict and other situations of violence. Vol.2
A “catastrophic” combination of drought and communities’ declining resilience has left an estimated 2.3 million people facing severe acute food insecurity – up from an estimate of 1.7 million people a month ago.
Communities across southern Africa have been affected by drought since late 2...018.
This year, large parts of southern and western Zambia received their lowest seasonal rainfall totals since at least 1981, the base year from which normal rainfall is benchmarked. At the same time, northern and eastern parts of the country were affected by flash floods and waterlogging, resulting in poor harvests.
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This guide has been written for managers of national and district trachoma control programmes. It sets out, step-by-step, what is needed to assess the magnitude and extent of the trachoma problem in the area and how to plan, implement, monitor and evaluate a programme to control, and ultimately elim...inate, trachoma.
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STUDY REPORT | This study of the impact of the Nepal earthquake of 25 April, 2015, aims to understand the impact factors leading to the exclusion of older people and persons with disabilities from humanitarian action, barriers to their inclusion, and the extent to which their skills and knowledge we...re utilised to promote inclusive humanitarian action and, using this understanding, to formulate a set of recommendations for promoting inclusion. These recommendations will be used to sensitise the broader humanitarian community to the need for inclusive disaster risk management practices in future emergency responses which pay attention to factors such as gender, age, disability and ethnicity, and build upon the capacities of older people and persons with disabilities.
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On Sunday 16th December 2018, some villages in the Province of Mai-Nambiar, Democratic Republic of Congo, neighboring the district of Makotimpoko in the Republic of Congo (CongoBrazzaville) were affected by inter-ethnic conflict between the Banunu and the Batende. The fighting has resulted in 400 fa...talities and the destruction of property. A large number of the population of the conflict affected areas were forced to cross the river Congo and find refuge in several localities in the Cuvette (Konda and Youmba) and Plateaux (Makotimpoko, Bouemba, Patrick) areas in Congo-Brazzaville.
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The disaster and Red Cross Red Crescent response to date
9 March 2019: Tropical Cyclone Idai forms over Northern Mozambique Channel. CVM preparedness and early warning actions underway
13 March 2019: IFRC Surge Capacity is deployed to Maputo
14 March 2019: 342,562 Swiss francs allocated from th...e IFRC’s Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) to meet the immediate shelter, WASH and health needs of 1,500 households
15 March 2019: Tropical Cyclone Idai makes landfall in Beira,
Mozambique.
17 March 2019: IFRC Surge Capacity arrival in Beira with CVM to conduct preliminary assessments.
19 March 2019: IFRC issues an Emergency Appeal for 10 million Swiss francs for 75,000 people for 12 months.
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The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is a leading humanitarian agency dedicated to helping people whose lives have been shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover, and gain control of their future. Health comprises nearly half of IRC’s program portfolio globally and encompasses thr...ee sectors: 1) Primary Health (including child health, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and mental health); 2) Nutrition; and 3) Environmental Health. IRC health programming across its portfolio, in terms of the size and breadth, responds to significant needs in crisis affected settings, improving health and wellbeing while reducing causes of ill-health.
This five-year Health Strategy sharpens our focus on where we can have the most impact. It guides our efforts in planning, technical assistance, business development, advocacy, and internal and external collaboration. Through this strategy, we will invest and grow in areas that will help us achieve high impact at scale for our clients. For the next five years these priorities will include: Nutrition; Immunization: Infectious Disease Prevention and Control; Last Mile Delivery of Primary Health Care: Clean Water.
Our strategy aligns with Strategy 100 (S100) and Strategy Action Plans (SAPs). It lays out how IRC, through health, nutrition, and Environmental Health (EH) programming, will advance the IRC’s S100 ambitions, respond to global trends, and capitalize on our value add. The strategy will be complemented by delivery plans that detail investments, actions, and roles and responsibilities to advance our priorities. At the end of FY24, we will take stock of the implementation of the strategy, measure progress towards achieving our goals, and review if it continues to be fit for purpose.
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The scope includes the assessment of activities to improve the response to affected populations, stakeholders, partners and donors, building on lessons learnt so far in this outbreak.