In the wake of the Covid‑19 Pandemic, parts of the public health system at increased risk of reduced efficiency include healthcare services for women and children. This in turn could reverse all the progress achieved over the years in reducing maternal and child mortality. In th...is study, an attempt has been made to assess the indirect effect of the pandemic on maternal and child health services in public health facilities.
more
Recovery from COVID-19 has been challenging in Guatemala. As a result of the prolonged socio-economic impact of the pandemic, the average poverty rate nationwide has increased by almost 5%. This rise in the poverty level further exacerbates preexisting vulnerabilities and erodes the limited safety n...ets available to vulnerable populations. Year after year, recurrent disasters and humanitarian crises aggravate the historic social gaps that result in high levels of vulnerability, multidimensional poverty, and overall deprivation of essential services among hundreds of thousands of Guatemalans. According to the World Risk Report 2020, Guatemala is the tenth country with the highest level of exposure to disaster worldwide. Globally, it ranks 28th regarding vulnerability according to the 2021 INFORM’s risk index and 62nd in the Global Climate Risk Index 2021.
In 2020, Guatemala faced a record-breaking and devastating hurricane season with extreme rainfall, catastrophic winds, and deadly landslides, from which the country has not yet recovered. Unfortunately, recurrent extreme weather events, such as Hurricane Julia that hit Central America in early October 2022, progressively but deeply eroded a weak health infrastructure and local health systems.
more
In April 2020, the UN launched a coordinated global humanitarian response plan (GHRP) to fight COVID-19 in some of the world’s most vulnerable countries and address the needs of the most vulnerable people. This tips sheet provides practical tips to strengthen disability inclusion within the new up...date of COVID-19 Global HRP. The sheet was developed by the Disability Advisory Group for the DFID-UN SBC.
more
Health care and social service systems are facing exceptional demands at this time. Evidence is emerging that the COVID-19 pandemic is disproportionately impacting low-income neighborhoods, communities of color, immigrant and other economically and medically vulnerable patients. These are the patien...ts and communities Community Health Workers (CHWs) are best prepared
to serve. This workforce is defined by their connection to these populations and by their ability to communicate in linguistically and culturally appropriate ways.
more
Guidelines on care, treatment and support for women living with HIV/AIDS and their children in resource-constrained settings
The Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) Strategy for the Prevention of the Re-establishment of Malaria Transmission in Timor-Leste forms part of the National Strategic Plan (NSP) for 2021–2025. The strategy aims to support Timor-Leste's efforts to sustain malaria elimination by promot...ing responsive and preventive behaviours through targeted communication and community engagement. Created in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, the WHO, the Global Fund and other stakeholders, the SBCC strategy implements recommendations from the 2020 external review of the National Malaria Programme. Building on previous BCC initiatives (2015–2020), it emphasises surveillance, diagnosis, treatment and vector control, particularly focusing on vulnerable populations. The SBCC strategy provides partners and implementers with a dynamic guide to designing context-specific communication interventions that support malaria elimination and prevent the re-establishment of transmission.
Accessed on 18/06/2025.
more
This UNHCR guidance note provides comprehensive recommendations for the prevention and control of malaria in refugee settings worldwide. Aligned with the WHO Global Technical Strategy for Malaria, it outlines strategies to ensure access to effective prevention, diagnosis and treatment, implement sus...tainable transmission reduction measures and strengthen surveillance systems. The document is intended as a practical resource for humanitarian actors, public health officials and partners involved in planning and implementing malaria programmes in refugee operations, with the aim of reducing malaria-related morbidity and mortality among vulnerable populations.
more
Reprogramming examples for GC7. This document supports the introduction of climate change-related interventions
into programs to reduce transmission of malaria and protect vulnerable populations.
Tanzania has an estimated 2.9 million adults with diabetes, 35% of whom are undiagnosed, and over 22,000 people living with type 1 diabetes. While the 2023 Universal Health Insurance law aims to improve access to care, only 15% of people are insured. Over 700 clinics provide diabetes care and offer ...free insulin to children and young adults. However, challenges remain regarding insulin availability, diagnostics, patient education and the healthcare workforce. Community engagement, training and policy advocacy are essential for improving diabetes management and achieving universal health coverage.
more
In line with the Defeating meningitis by 2030: a global road map, the WHO guidelines on meningitis diagnosis, treatment and care Executive Summary provides a summary of the evidence-based recommendations for the clinical management of children and adults with community-acquired meningitis, including... acute and long-term care. Meningitis poses a significant public health threat, despite successful efforts to control the disease globally. The burden of morbidity and mortality from meningitis remains high, particularly in low- and middle-income countries and in settings experiencing large-scale, disruptive epidemics.
more
Malaria remains a significant public health concern in the SADC region, accounting for 20% of childhood deaths, as well as prompting numerous outpatient visits and hospitalisations. Around three-quarters of the population, including 35 million children under the age of five and 8.5 million pregnant ...women, are at risk. Transmission patterns vary from high and stable in the north to malaria-free in the south, with low, unstable and seasonal zones in between. Although interventions such as indoor residual spraying (IRS), insecticide-treated nets (ITNs/LLINs), intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy (IPTp), rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), and artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) have reduced the malaria burden, challenges persist in terms of funding, human resources, surveillance, and cross-border coordination. Achieving malaria elimination in the SADC region requires harmonised regional standards, strengthened surveillance, and improved access to quality treatment and policy prioritisation.
Accessed on 27/08/2025.
more
The Best Buys for Disease Elimination is a practical, evidence-based guide to the most effective actions for countries to implement in order to eliminate communicable diseases. The guide highlights the efficient use of resources and prioritizing populations in vulnerable situations.
“The Region... of the Americas is advancing steadily towards the elimination of communicable diseases,” said Dr. Jarbas Barbosa, PAHO Director. “To achieve this, it is necessary to increase and sustain high vaccination coverage, engage communities to expand access to diagnosis and treatment, strengthen surveillance, and bring integrated services to marginalized communities, incarcerated populations, and those living in informal settlements,” he added.
For each disease and condition included in the Elimination Initiative, the Best Buys are presented as one-page documents with clear, accessible information. Each Best Buy summarizes expected impact goals, disease elimination targets, key operational indicators, and priority interventions that have proven to be cost-effective in different contexts.
more
This report summarizes the latest scientific knowledge on the links between exposure to air pollution and adverse health effects in children. It is intended to inform and motivate individual and collective action by health care professionals to prevent damage to children’s health from exposure to ...air pollution.
Air pollution is a major environmental health threat. Exposure to fine particles in both the ambient environment and in the household causes about seven million premature deaths each year. Ambient air pollution alone imposes enormous costs on the global economy, amounting to more than US$ 5 trillion in total welfare losses in 2013.
This public health crisis is receiving more attention, but one critical aspect is often overlooked: how air pollution affects children in uniquely damaging ways. Recent data released by the World Health Organization (WHO) show that air pollution has a vast and terrible impact on child health and survival. Globally, 93% of all children live in environments with air pollution levels above the WHO guidelines (see the full report, Air pollution and child health: prescribing clean air. More than one in every four deaths of children under 5 years of age is directly or indirectly related to environmental risks. Both ambient air pollution and household air pollution contribute to respiratory tract infections that resulted in 543 000 deaths in children under the age of 5 years in 2016.
more
COVID-19 has triggered the deepest global recession since the 1930s. Extreme poverty has risen for the first time in 22 years, and unemployment has increased dramatically. Women and young people aged 15 – 29 working in the informal sector are being hit the hardest. School closures have affected 91... per cent of students worldwide.
Political conflicts are more intense and taking a heavy toll on civilians, disproportionately affecting children. Women and girls are at increased risk of conflict-related sexual violence. Attacks against aid and health workers persist. For the ninth consecutive year, more than 90 per cent of casualties from explosive weapons in populated areas were civilians.
The last decade saw the highest-ever number of people internally displaced by conflict and violence, with many locked in a state of protracted displacement. There are an estimated 51 million new and existing IDPs, and the number of refugees has doubled to 20 million.
more
This report summarizes the latest scientific knowledge on the links between exposure to air pollution and adverse health effects in children. It is intended to inform and motivate individual and collective action by health care professionals to prevent damage to children’s health from exposure to ...air pollution.
Air pollution is a major environmental health threat. Exposure to fine particles in both the ambient environment and in the household causes about seven million premature deaths each year. Ambient air pollution alone imposes enormous costs on the global economy, amounting to more than US$ 5 trillion in total welfare losses in 2013.
This public health crisis is receiving more attention, but one critical aspect is often overlooked: how air pollution affects children in uniquely damaging ways. Recent data released by the World Health Organization (WHO) show that air pollution has a vast and terrible impact on child health and survival. Globally, 93% of all children live in environments with air pollution levels above the WHO guidelines (see the full report, Air pollution and child health: prescribing clean air. More than one in every four deaths of children under 5 years of age is directly or indirectly related to environmental risks. Both ambient air pollution and household air pollution contribute to respiratory tract infections that resulted in 543 000 deaths in children under the age of 5 years in 2016.
more
The aim of this study was to determine the impact of the domestic care environment on the prevalence of potentially traumatic events (PTEs) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among orphaned and separated children in Uasin Gishu County, western Kenya.
PLos One March 2014 | Volume 9 | Issue 3 |... e89937
more
People younger than 20 years comprise 35% of the global population and 40% of the global population of least-developed nations. The number of children - neonates, infants, children, and adolescents up to 19 years of age - who need pediatric palliative care (PPC) each year may be as high as 21 millio...n. Another study found that almost 2.5 million children die each year with serious health related suffering and that more than 98% of these children are in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) (3). While estimates differ, there is no doubt that there is an enormous need for prevention and relief of suffering among children - for PPC.
more
The INEE Minimum Standards Handbook is the only global tool that articulates the minimum level of educational quality and access in emergencies through to recovery. The Minimum Standards express a commitment that all individuals—children, youth and adults—have a right to education.
There are... different languages available: Arabic, Azerbajan, Bahsa Indonesia, Bengali, Bosnian, Coratian, Serbian, Chinese, English, French, Japanese, Krygyz, Nepali, Pashto, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Urdu, Turkish, Vietnamese
more
The primary audience of this report with the compendium of resources are youth engagement practitioners in the Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies as well as technical experts and policy makers across the humanitarian landscape that thrive for meaningful interventions with and for children, ad...olescents, and young adults experiencing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
more
Sudan has a long history of hosting refugees and asylum seekers with 991,787 individuals, 51 per cent female and 53 per cent children, expected to live in Sudan by the end of 2020.