CAPE TOWN – The Omicron-related travel bans imposed on southern Africa are costing the economically fragile region millions of dollars every day – and countries that introduced them did not follow the process laid out in the International Health Regulations (IHR) adopted by the World Health (WHO) Organization in 2005. A snap survey of over […] Continue reading ->
In a first face-to-face meeting in Geneva since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization’s 194 member states appeared set to adopt a landmark decision to negotiate a new treaty or framework convention governing pandemic response, dubbed “Our World Together”, and with over 100 countries now declaring co-sponsorship.   But from the start […] Continue reading ->
Some civil society organisations (CSO) are sceptical about whether a ‘pandemic treaty’ is the best way to address future global health crises, while treaty supporters say it will provide a legal framework binding countries and global health bodies to more agile and rapid responses to future outbreaks.  A session Monday sponsored by the Geneva Global […] Continue reading ->
While a “pandemic treaty” could take years to establish, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Health Regulations (IHR) could be revised more rapidly to significantly improve global disease outbreak response, top US officials are saying.  The statements coincided with a 3-day working group meeting of WHO member states to discuss ways to strengthen the global […] Continue reading ->
This year’s 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), will be a critical moment of decision on climate policies, as the clock runs down before the more severe ravages of global warming become irreversible. Against the panoply of issues under debate, health is getting more attention from this year’s COP26 organisers as a […] Continue reading ->
In the wake of COVID-19, both the needs and the skills of frontline healthcare workers need to be made integral to the design of global mental health services, said experts at a Wednesday webinar, sponsored by the Geneva-based Global Self-Care Federation (GSCF).     While mental health issues have come more to the forefront during the COVID […] Continue reading ->
Healthcare professionals, and particularly community health workers who have been the backbone of local and national health systems during the COVID crisis, are also unsung ‘first responders’ to the massive mental health fallout from the pandemic, now and going forward.   That is the central theme of a webinar panel on ‘COVID-19 and Frontline Workers’, Wednesday, 30th […] Continue reading ->
A paradigm shift towards health systems and societies that emphasize health promotion, disease prevention and environmental protection could prevent and reduce 50% of the global disease burden worldwide, experts at an informal session on the margins of the 74th World Health Assembly  said on Thursday. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the inextricable relationships between environments […] Continue reading ->