Global Health Spending Reached Record Level During Height of COVID Pandemic 18/12/2023 Kerry Cullinan Global spending on health increased during 2021 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, reaching a record $9.8 trillion or 10.3% of global gross domestic product (GDP) – mostly as a result of governments devoting more domestic resources to health, Country spending was highest on hospitals, accounting for 40% of expenditure, followed by ambulatory care […] Continue reading -> Climate Change, Conflict and Disease Outbreaks All Loom as Global Health Threats at Close of 2023 15/12/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher In the wake of COP28, WHO will press ahead with calls for fossil fuel phase out, stepped up commitments for health sector decarbonization, and a new resolution on Climate and Health, set to go before the World Health Assembly in May 2024. Those were key takeaways from an end-year WHO global press briefing by WHO […] Continue reading -> G20 Plans ‘One Health’ Meeting as Zoonotic Threats Grow 12/12/2023 Kerry Cullinan The powerful Group of 20 (G20) countries will host a high-level meeting on One Health in October 2024 to better prepare members to address the health of people, animals and ecosystems. This was revealed by Alexandre Ghisleni, Brazil’s Global Health Ambassador, at a COP28 side event to launch an implementation guide for the One Health […] Continue reading -> Global Red Cross Elects New President Amid Row Over Sexual Harassment Claims 12/12/2023 Michelle Langrand GENEVA – The election of the next president of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) was almost derailed on Monday after the body’s board tried to postpone voting to investigate sexual harassment allegations against one of the candidates, Kenya’s Abbas Gullet. However, Kate Forbes of the American Red Cross […] Continue reading -> WHO Governing Board Approves Consensus Resolution on Gaza Health and Humanitarian Situation 10/12/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher In a fragile show of unity, the World Health Organization Executive Board approved a draft resolution calling for “immediate, sustained and unimpeded” humanitarian relief to beleaguered Gaza, including safe passage of health personnel and supplies, as well as ambulances and patients. The WHO EB move, which will clear the resolution for approval by the May World […] Continue reading -> Bumper Week for Pandemic Negotiations 05/12/2023 Kerry Cullinan This is a bumper week for pandemic negotiations – the last formal set for the year – with meetings of both the World Health Organization’s (WHO) intergovernmental negotiating body (INB) and the Working Group on Amendments to the International Health Regulations (WGIHR). The INB, which is negotiating a pandemic agreement, meets until Wednesday, while the […] Continue reading -> Israeli Troops Enter Shifa Hospital – WHO Decries Move as “Totally Unacceptable” 15/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Israel launched what it described as a “targeted operation” into Gaza’s besieged Shifa Hospital early Wednesday morning – which was immediately denounced by the World Health Organization as “unacceptable” and contrary to international law – regardless of whether Hamas made use of the facility for military purposes. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, an Israeli delegation visiting Geneva […] Continue reading -> Fierce Gunbattles Waged Around Northern Gaza Hospitals 14/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Fierce gun battles between Israeli and Hamas forces raged in the vicinity of several strategically located hospitals in northern Gaza over the weekend and into Monday – leaving the fate of the remaining patients hanging in the balance. At Al Shifa hospital, hospital staff were reportedly trying to keep some 37 premature babies warm by […] Continue reading -> Second World Local Production Forum Launches New Collaborations; Civil Society Protests IP Barriers 10/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new Health Technology Access Pool (H-TAP), which aims to broaden the scope of IP and patent-sharing with low- and middle-income countries and a new African Union co-sponsored ‘manufacturing support platform’ were among the initiatives announced this week at the Second World Local Production forum in The Hague. The global forum, the second ever to […] Continue reading -> Hospitals and Ambulances Increasingly in Crosshairs of Israel-Hamas Conflict 06/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Gaza’s struggling health facilities were again caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend, as Israel acknowledged it had attacked an ambulance that it claimed was ferrying Hamas gunmen out of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, and a dozen UN leaders called for an urgent cease fire. Israel pounded Gaza by air and […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Climate Change, Conflict and Disease Outbreaks All Loom as Global Health Threats at Close of 2023 15/12/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher In the wake of COP28, WHO will press ahead with calls for fossil fuel phase out, stepped up commitments for health sector decarbonization, and a new resolution on Climate and Health, set to go before the World Health Assembly in May 2024. Those were key takeaways from an end-year WHO global press briefing by WHO […] Continue reading -> G20 Plans ‘One Health’ Meeting as Zoonotic Threats Grow 12/12/2023 Kerry Cullinan The powerful Group of 20 (G20) countries will host a high-level meeting on One Health in October 2024 to better prepare members to address the health of people, animals and ecosystems. This was revealed by Alexandre Ghisleni, Brazil’s Global Health Ambassador, at a COP28 side event to launch an implementation guide for the One Health […] Continue reading -> Global Red Cross Elects New President Amid Row Over Sexual Harassment Claims 12/12/2023 Michelle Langrand GENEVA – The election of the next president of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) was almost derailed on Monday after the body’s board tried to postpone voting to investigate sexual harassment allegations against one of the candidates, Kenya’s Abbas Gullet. However, Kate Forbes of the American Red Cross […] Continue reading -> WHO Governing Board Approves Consensus Resolution on Gaza Health and Humanitarian Situation 10/12/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher In a fragile show of unity, the World Health Organization Executive Board approved a draft resolution calling for “immediate, sustained and unimpeded” humanitarian relief to beleaguered Gaza, including safe passage of health personnel and supplies, as well as ambulances and patients. The WHO EB move, which will clear the resolution for approval by the May World […] Continue reading -> Bumper Week for Pandemic Negotiations 05/12/2023 Kerry Cullinan This is a bumper week for pandemic negotiations – the last formal set for the year – with meetings of both the World Health Organization’s (WHO) intergovernmental negotiating body (INB) and the Working Group on Amendments to the International Health Regulations (WGIHR). The INB, which is negotiating a pandemic agreement, meets until Wednesday, while the […] Continue reading -> Israeli Troops Enter Shifa Hospital – WHO Decries Move as “Totally Unacceptable” 15/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Israel launched what it described as a “targeted operation” into Gaza’s besieged Shifa Hospital early Wednesday morning – which was immediately denounced by the World Health Organization as “unacceptable” and contrary to international law – regardless of whether Hamas made use of the facility for military purposes. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, an Israeli delegation visiting Geneva […] Continue reading -> Fierce Gunbattles Waged Around Northern Gaza Hospitals 14/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Fierce gun battles between Israeli and Hamas forces raged in the vicinity of several strategically located hospitals in northern Gaza over the weekend and into Monday – leaving the fate of the remaining patients hanging in the balance. At Al Shifa hospital, hospital staff were reportedly trying to keep some 37 premature babies warm by […] Continue reading -> Second World Local Production Forum Launches New Collaborations; Civil Society Protests IP Barriers 10/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new Health Technology Access Pool (H-TAP), which aims to broaden the scope of IP and patent-sharing with low- and middle-income countries and a new African Union co-sponsored ‘manufacturing support platform’ were among the initiatives announced this week at the Second World Local Production forum in The Hague. The global forum, the second ever to […] Continue reading -> Hospitals and Ambulances Increasingly in Crosshairs of Israel-Hamas Conflict 06/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Gaza’s struggling health facilities were again caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend, as Israel acknowledged it had attacked an ambulance that it claimed was ferrying Hamas gunmen out of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, and a dozen UN leaders called for an urgent cease fire. Israel pounded Gaza by air and […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
G20 Plans ‘One Health’ Meeting as Zoonotic Threats Grow 12/12/2023 Kerry Cullinan The powerful Group of 20 (G20) countries will host a high-level meeting on One Health in October 2024 to better prepare members to address the health of people, animals and ecosystems. This was revealed by Alexandre Ghisleni, Brazil’s Global Health Ambassador, at a COP28 side event to launch an implementation guide for the One Health […] Continue reading -> Global Red Cross Elects New President Amid Row Over Sexual Harassment Claims 12/12/2023 Michelle Langrand GENEVA – The election of the next president of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) was almost derailed on Monday after the body’s board tried to postpone voting to investigate sexual harassment allegations against one of the candidates, Kenya’s Abbas Gullet. However, Kate Forbes of the American Red Cross […] Continue reading -> WHO Governing Board Approves Consensus Resolution on Gaza Health and Humanitarian Situation 10/12/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher In a fragile show of unity, the World Health Organization Executive Board approved a draft resolution calling for “immediate, sustained and unimpeded” humanitarian relief to beleaguered Gaza, including safe passage of health personnel and supplies, as well as ambulances and patients. The WHO EB move, which will clear the resolution for approval by the May World […] Continue reading -> Bumper Week for Pandemic Negotiations 05/12/2023 Kerry Cullinan This is a bumper week for pandemic negotiations – the last formal set for the year – with meetings of both the World Health Organization’s (WHO) intergovernmental negotiating body (INB) and the Working Group on Amendments to the International Health Regulations (WGIHR). The INB, which is negotiating a pandemic agreement, meets until Wednesday, while the […] Continue reading -> Israeli Troops Enter Shifa Hospital – WHO Decries Move as “Totally Unacceptable” 15/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Israel launched what it described as a “targeted operation” into Gaza’s besieged Shifa Hospital early Wednesday morning – which was immediately denounced by the World Health Organization as “unacceptable” and contrary to international law – regardless of whether Hamas made use of the facility for military purposes. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, an Israeli delegation visiting Geneva […] Continue reading -> Fierce Gunbattles Waged Around Northern Gaza Hospitals 14/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Fierce gun battles between Israeli and Hamas forces raged in the vicinity of several strategically located hospitals in northern Gaza over the weekend and into Monday – leaving the fate of the remaining patients hanging in the balance. At Al Shifa hospital, hospital staff were reportedly trying to keep some 37 premature babies warm by […] Continue reading -> Second World Local Production Forum Launches New Collaborations; Civil Society Protests IP Barriers 10/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new Health Technology Access Pool (H-TAP), which aims to broaden the scope of IP and patent-sharing with low- and middle-income countries and a new African Union co-sponsored ‘manufacturing support platform’ were among the initiatives announced this week at the Second World Local Production forum in The Hague. The global forum, the second ever to […] Continue reading -> Hospitals and Ambulances Increasingly in Crosshairs of Israel-Hamas Conflict 06/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Gaza’s struggling health facilities were again caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend, as Israel acknowledged it had attacked an ambulance that it claimed was ferrying Hamas gunmen out of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, and a dozen UN leaders called for an urgent cease fire. Israel pounded Gaza by air and […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Global Red Cross Elects New President Amid Row Over Sexual Harassment Claims 12/12/2023 Michelle Langrand GENEVA – The election of the next president of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) was almost derailed on Monday after the body’s board tried to postpone voting to investigate sexual harassment allegations against one of the candidates, Kenya’s Abbas Gullet. However, Kate Forbes of the American Red Cross […] Continue reading -> WHO Governing Board Approves Consensus Resolution on Gaza Health and Humanitarian Situation 10/12/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher In a fragile show of unity, the World Health Organization Executive Board approved a draft resolution calling for “immediate, sustained and unimpeded” humanitarian relief to beleaguered Gaza, including safe passage of health personnel and supplies, as well as ambulances and patients. The WHO EB move, which will clear the resolution for approval by the May World […] Continue reading -> Bumper Week for Pandemic Negotiations 05/12/2023 Kerry Cullinan This is a bumper week for pandemic negotiations – the last formal set for the year – with meetings of both the World Health Organization’s (WHO) intergovernmental negotiating body (INB) and the Working Group on Amendments to the International Health Regulations (WGIHR). The INB, which is negotiating a pandemic agreement, meets until Wednesday, while the […] Continue reading -> Israeli Troops Enter Shifa Hospital – WHO Decries Move as “Totally Unacceptable” 15/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Israel launched what it described as a “targeted operation” into Gaza’s besieged Shifa Hospital early Wednesday morning – which was immediately denounced by the World Health Organization as “unacceptable” and contrary to international law – regardless of whether Hamas made use of the facility for military purposes. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, an Israeli delegation visiting Geneva […] Continue reading -> Fierce Gunbattles Waged Around Northern Gaza Hospitals 14/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Fierce gun battles between Israeli and Hamas forces raged in the vicinity of several strategically located hospitals in northern Gaza over the weekend and into Monday – leaving the fate of the remaining patients hanging in the balance. At Al Shifa hospital, hospital staff were reportedly trying to keep some 37 premature babies warm by […] Continue reading -> Second World Local Production Forum Launches New Collaborations; Civil Society Protests IP Barriers 10/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new Health Technology Access Pool (H-TAP), which aims to broaden the scope of IP and patent-sharing with low- and middle-income countries and a new African Union co-sponsored ‘manufacturing support platform’ were among the initiatives announced this week at the Second World Local Production forum in The Hague. The global forum, the second ever to […] Continue reading -> Hospitals and Ambulances Increasingly in Crosshairs of Israel-Hamas Conflict 06/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Gaza’s struggling health facilities were again caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend, as Israel acknowledged it had attacked an ambulance that it claimed was ferrying Hamas gunmen out of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, and a dozen UN leaders called for an urgent cease fire. Israel pounded Gaza by air and […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
WHO Governing Board Approves Consensus Resolution on Gaza Health and Humanitarian Situation 10/12/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher In a fragile show of unity, the World Health Organization Executive Board approved a draft resolution calling for “immediate, sustained and unimpeded” humanitarian relief to beleaguered Gaza, including safe passage of health personnel and supplies, as well as ambulances and patients. The WHO EB move, which will clear the resolution for approval by the May World […] Continue reading -> Bumper Week for Pandemic Negotiations 05/12/2023 Kerry Cullinan This is a bumper week for pandemic negotiations – the last formal set for the year – with meetings of both the World Health Organization’s (WHO) intergovernmental negotiating body (INB) and the Working Group on Amendments to the International Health Regulations (WGIHR). The INB, which is negotiating a pandemic agreement, meets until Wednesday, while the […] Continue reading -> Israeli Troops Enter Shifa Hospital – WHO Decries Move as “Totally Unacceptable” 15/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Israel launched what it described as a “targeted operation” into Gaza’s besieged Shifa Hospital early Wednesday morning – which was immediately denounced by the World Health Organization as “unacceptable” and contrary to international law – regardless of whether Hamas made use of the facility for military purposes. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, an Israeli delegation visiting Geneva […] Continue reading -> Fierce Gunbattles Waged Around Northern Gaza Hospitals 14/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Fierce gun battles between Israeli and Hamas forces raged in the vicinity of several strategically located hospitals in northern Gaza over the weekend and into Monday – leaving the fate of the remaining patients hanging in the balance. At Al Shifa hospital, hospital staff were reportedly trying to keep some 37 premature babies warm by […] Continue reading -> Second World Local Production Forum Launches New Collaborations; Civil Society Protests IP Barriers 10/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new Health Technology Access Pool (H-TAP), which aims to broaden the scope of IP and patent-sharing with low- and middle-income countries and a new African Union co-sponsored ‘manufacturing support platform’ were among the initiatives announced this week at the Second World Local Production forum in The Hague. The global forum, the second ever to […] Continue reading -> Hospitals and Ambulances Increasingly in Crosshairs of Israel-Hamas Conflict 06/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Gaza’s struggling health facilities were again caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend, as Israel acknowledged it had attacked an ambulance that it claimed was ferrying Hamas gunmen out of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, and a dozen UN leaders called for an urgent cease fire. Israel pounded Gaza by air and […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Bumper Week for Pandemic Negotiations 05/12/2023 Kerry Cullinan This is a bumper week for pandemic negotiations – the last formal set for the year – with meetings of both the World Health Organization’s (WHO) intergovernmental negotiating body (INB) and the Working Group on Amendments to the International Health Regulations (WGIHR). The INB, which is negotiating a pandemic agreement, meets until Wednesday, while the […] Continue reading -> Israeli Troops Enter Shifa Hospital – WHO Decries Move as “Totally Unacceptable” 15/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Israel launched what it described as a “targeted operation” into Gaza’s besieged Shifa Hospital early Wednesday morning – which was immediately denounced by the World Health Organization as “unacceptable” and contrary to international law – regardless of whether Hamas made use of the facility for military purposes. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, an Israeli delegation visiting Geneva […] Continue reading -> Fierce Gunbattles Waged Around Northern Gaza Hospitals 14/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Fierce gun battles between Israeli and Hamas forces raged in the vicinity of several strategically located hospitals in northern Gaza over the weekend and into Monday – leaving the fate of the remaining patients hanging in the balance. At Al Shifa hospital, hospital staff were reportedly trying to keep some 37 premature babies warm by […] Continue reading -> Second World Local Production Forum Launches New Collaborations; Civil Society Protests IP Barriers 10/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new Health Technology Access Pool (H-TAP), which aims to broaden the scope of IP and patent-sharing with low- and middle-income countries and a new African Union co-sponsored ‘manufacturing support platform’ were among the initiatives announced this week at the Second World Local Production forum in The Hague. The global forum, the second ever to […] Continue reading -> Hospitals and Ambulances Increasingly in Crosshairs of Israel-Hamas Conflict 06/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Gaza’s struggling health facilities were again caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend, as Israel acknowledged it had attacked an ambulance that it claimed was ferrying Hamas gunmen out of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, and a dozen UN leaders called for an urgent cease fire. Israel pounded Gaza by air and […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Israeli Troops Enter Shifa Hospital – WHO Decries Move as “Totally Unacceptable” 15/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Israel launched what it described as a “targeted operation” into Gaza’s besieged Shifa Hospital early Wednesday morning – which was immediately denounced by the World Health Organization as “unacceptable” and contrary to international law – regardless of whether Hamas made use of the facility for military purposes. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, an Israeli delegation visiting Geneva […] Continue reading -> Fierce Gunbattles Waged Around Northern Gaza Hospitals 14/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Fierce gun battles between Israeli and Hamas forces raged in the vicinity of several strategically located hospitals in northern Gaza over the weekend and into Monday – leaving the fate of the remaining patients hanging in the balance. At Al Shifa hospital, hospital staff were reportedly trying to keep some 37 premature babies warm by […] Continue reading -> Second World Local Production Forum Launches New Collaborations; Civil Society Protests IP Barriers 10/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new Health Technology Access Pool (H-TAP), which aims to broaden the scope of IP and patent-sharing with low- and middle-income countries and a new African Union co-sponsored ‘manufacturing support platform’ were among the initiatives announced this week at the Second World Local Production forum in The Hague. The global forum, the second ever to […] Continue reading -> Hospitals and Ambulances Increasingly in Crosshairs of Israel-Hamas Conflict 06/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Gaza’s struggling health facilities were again caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend, as Israel acknowledged it had attacked an ambulance that it claimed was ferrying Hamas gunmen out of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, and a dozen UN leaders called for an urgent cease fire. Israel pounded Gaza by air and […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Fierce Gunbattles Waged Around Northern Gaza Hospitals 14/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Fierce gun battles between Israeli and Hamas forces raged in the vicinity of several strategically located hospitals in northern Gaza over the weekend and into Monday – leaving the fate of the remaining patients hanging in the balance. At Al Shifa hospital, hospital staff were reportedly trying to keep some 37 premature babies warm by […] Continue reading -> Second World Local Production Forum Launches New Collaborations; Civil Society Protests IP Barriers 10/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new Health Technology Access Pool (H-TAP), which aims to broaden the scope of IP and patent-sharing with low- and middle-income countries and a new African Union co-sponsored ‘manufacturing support platform’ were among the initiatives announced this week at the Second World Local Production forum in The Hague. The global forum, the second ever to […] Continue reading -> Hospitals and Ambulances Increasingly in Crosshairs of Israel-Hamas Conflict 06/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Gaza’s struggling health facilities were again caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend, as Israel acknowledged it had attacked an ambulance that it claimed was ferrying Hamas gunmen out of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, and a dozen UN leaders called for an urgent cease fire. Israel pounded Gaza by air and […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Second World Local Production Forum Launches New Collaborations; Civil Society Protests IP Barriers 10/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher A new Health Technology Access Pool (H-TAP), which aims to broaden the scope of IP and patent-sharing with low- and middle-income countries and a new African Union co-sponsored ‘manufacturing support platform’ were among the initiatives announced this week at the Second World Local Production forum in The Hague. The global forum, the second ever to […] Continue reading -> Hospitals and Ambulances Increasingly in Crosshairs of Israel-Hamas Conflict 06/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Gaza’s struggling health facilities were again caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend, as Israel acknowledged it had attacked an ambulance that it claimed was ferrying Hamas gunmen out of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, and a dozen UN leaders called for an urgent cease fire. Israel pounded Gaza by air and […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts
Hospitals and Ambulances Increasingly in Crosshairs of Israel-Hamas Conflict 06/11/2023 Elaine Ruth Fletcher Gaza’s struggling health facilities were again caught in the crosshairs of the Israeli-Hamas conflict over the weekend, as Israel acknowledged it had attacked an ambulance that it claimed was ferrying Hamas gunmen out of Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, and a dozen UN leaders called for an urgent cease fire. Israel pounded Gaza by air and […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older postsNewer posts