A new, and near final iteration of WHO’s reorganization will shrink its programme divisions even further than previous drafts – from 10 to only four – with health systems emerging as one key pillar of the revamped organization.  At the same time, disease control departments and preventive health teams – such as health promotion and […] Continue reading ->
The US-based Boston Consulting Group has been working with WHO’s senior leadership, under contract, to develop the major reorganization and cost-saving plan, now pending final presentation to staff and member states next week, Health Policy Watch has learned.  Members  of the Staff Association Committee confirmed to WHO staff members on Thursday, that BCG has been […] Continue reading ->
New weekly cases of mpox across Africa have dropped to around 2,000 for the first time this year giving hope that the outbreak may be waning, according to Dr Jean Kaseya, Director-General of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). In the mpox epicentre of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), new cases […] Continue reading ->
Nearly half of national nursing associations (48.4%) report a significant increase in nurses’ migration or exodus from the profession altogether since 2021 – against stagnant salaries, poor health system performance, and growing violence directed at nurses along with a continually increasing workload. These are among the key findings in a new report by the International […] Continue reading ->
At around 3am Wednesday, after three years of often intense negotiations, World Health Organization (WHO) member states agreed on a draft Pandemic Agreement, which sets out basic terms of engagement to prepare for, prevent and respond to pandemics. Bleary-eyed negotiators and co-chairs Precious Matsoso and Anne-Claire Amprou welcomed the final greening of the entire text […] Continue reading ->
Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent and 2024 was the warmest year on record, with record temperatures in the central, eastern and southeastern regions, according to the latest European State of the Climate 2024 report published jointly by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). Severe storms and flooding claimed 335 […] Continue reading ->
The United States federal government’s response to the rapidly spreading measles outbreak has faced steep criticism after Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr (RFK Jr) falsely claimed the vaccine’s protection “waned quickly” and hasn’t been “safely tested.”  While Kennedy endorsed the measles vaccine as the most effective way to protect against […] Continue reading ->
The number of WHO programme divisions would be reduced from 10 to just five and the number of directors in headquarters would shrink from nearly 80 to around 30 in an emergency reorganisation plan reviewed by the agency’s executive management group at a closed-door retreat on Saturday.    The plan, to be presented to member […] Continue reading ->