This document aims to assist policy‑makers, health care providers and researchers to understand key concepts in health ethics and to identify basic ethical questions surrounding health and health care. It illustrates the challenges of applying ethical principles to global public health and outline...s practical strategies for dealing with those challenges.
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Advising principles. The purpose of this document is to support competent authorities in charge of IHR implementation to improve national capacities for the prevention, detection and control of events, by strengthening communications and coordination between points of entry and the national health s...urveillance system
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A Toolkit for Implementation. Module 4: Training guide for facilitators of the participatory community assessment in maternal and newborn health
Resource Guide for Advanced Learning
Exposure to air pollution causes 7 million deaths worldwide every year and costs an estimated US$ 5.11 trillion in welfare losses globally. In the 15 countries that emit the most greenhouse gas emissions, the health impacts of air pollution are estimated to cost more than 4% of their GDP. Actions to... meet the Paris goals would cost around 1% of global GDP. The report provides recommendations for governments on how to maximize the health benefits of tackling climate change and avoid the worst health impacts of this global challenge.
It describes how countries around the world are now taking action to protect lives from the impacts of climate change – but that the scale of support remains woefully inadequate, particularly for the small island developing states, and least developed countries. Only approximately 0.5% of multilateral climate funds dispersed for climate change adaptation have been allocated to health projects
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Long-term planning for an adequate and safe supply of drinking-water should be set in the context of growing external uncertainties arising from changes in the climate and environment. The water safety plan (WSP) process offers a systematic framework to manage these risks by considering the implica...tions of climate variability and change.
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Advances have been made through expanded interventions delivered through five public health approaches: innovative and intensified disease management; preventive chemotherapy; vector ecology and management; veterinary public health services; and the provision of safe water, sanitation and hygiene. I...n 2015 alone nearly one billion people were treated for at least one disease and significant gains were achieved in relieving the symptoms and consequences of diseases for which effective tools are scarce; important reductions were achieved in the number of new cases of sleeping sickness, of visceral leishmaniasis in South-East Asia and also of Buruli ulcer.
The report also considers vector control strategies and discusses the importance of the draft WHO Global Vector Control Response 2017–2030.
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The Mental Health Atlas, released every three years, is a compilation of data provided by countries around the world on mental health policies, legislation, financing, human resources, availability and utilization of services and data collection systems. It serves as a guide for countries for the de...velopment and planning of mental health services. The Mental Health Atlas 2020 includes information and data on the progress made towards achieving mental health targets for 2020 set by the global health community and included in WHO’s Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan. It includes data on newly-added indicators on service coverage, mental health integration into primary health care, preparedness for the provision of mental health and psychosocial support in emergencies and research on mental health. It also includes new targets for 2030.
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This report presents, for the first time, a global assessment of the extent to which health care facilities provide essential water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services. Drawing on data from 54 low- and middle-income countries, the report concludes that 38% lack access to even rudimentary levels ...of water, 19% lack sanitation and 35% do not have water and soap for handwashing. When a higher level of service is factored in, the situation deteriorates significantly. A number of areas require urgent action and WHO will work with UNICEF, Governments and other partners to develop a global plan to address the most pressing needs and ensure that all health care facilities have WASH services.
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The toolkit aims to provide researchers with guidance for improving the quality of studies that use administrative data to better ascertain child maltreatment incidence, response and service delivery. However, these are complex studies to conduct, and the toolkit is not meant to be comprehensive. Re...searchers using the toolkit should be prepared to follow up on the recommended resources contained within and to consult with other professionals, such as statisticians, to further improve the research design and execution
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Data on the essential building blocks of mental health systems, including mental health
governance, financing, service delivery, human resources and information, are reported. For
mental health planning, it is important to know not only the level of resources in these six areas,
but also how thos...e resources are being organized and utilized. Thus, data on efficiency, access,
equity, linkages with other sectors and respect for human rights are reported as well.
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Interim guidance. 12 May 2021. The Continuity of essential health services: Facility Assessment Tool can be used by countries to rapidly assess the capacity of health facilities to maintain the provision of essential health services during the COVID-19 pandemic. It can help to alert the authorities ...and other stakeholders about where service delivery and utilization may require modification and/or investment. This assessment tool covers the following aspects of essential health services:
health workforce (numbers, absences, COVID-19 infections, health workforce management, training and support);
financial management and barriers;
service delivery and utilization (facility closures, changes in service delivery, community communication campaigns, changes in service utilization and catch-up strategies);
IPC capacities (protocols, safety measures, guidelines and the availability of personal protective equipment (PPE) for staff);
availability of therapeutics, diagnostics and supplies, and vaccine readiness; and
provision of COVID-19 primary care services.
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The WHO Quality Health Services: a planning guide focuses on actions required at the national, district and facility levels to enhance quality of health services, providing guidance on implementing key activities at each of these three levels. It highlights the need for a health systems approach to ...enhance quality of care, with a common understanding on the activities needed by all stakeholders. The guide articulates the key actions required to improve the quality of health services for the entire population. It recognizes that the path varies for each country, district and facility – stimulating the reader to consider multiple factors and entry points for action. This planning guide is for staff working at all levels of the health system (i.e. national, district and facility) who have a role in enhancing the quality of health services. It is also relevant to all stakeholders initiating and supporting action at facility, district and/or national levels both in the public and private sectors.
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This guide is available in English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic and Chinese
This guide consolidates COVID-19 guidance for human resources for health managers and policy-makers at national, subnational and facility levels to design, manage and preserve the workforce necessary to manage the COVI...D-19 pandemic and maintain essential health services.
The guide identifies recommendations to protect, support and empower health workers at individual, management, organizational and system levels.
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The 2020 Report analyzes global health spending for 190 countries from 2000 to 2018 and provides insights as to the health spending trajectory from the MDG era to the SDG era prior to the crisis of 2020. The report shows that global spending on health continually rose between 2000 and 2018 and reach...ed US$ 8.3 trillion or 10% of global GDP. The data also show that out-of-pocket spending has remained high in low and lower-middle income countries, representing greater than 40% of total health spending in 2018. We also report and summarize the data on expenditures for PHC, as well as by disease and intervention, including for immunization. The report also analyzes the available data on budget allocation in response to the COVID-19 crisis. In addition, we combine World Bank/IMF projections of the macroeconomic and fiscal impact of the crisis with an analysis of the historical determinants of health spending patterns and UHC indicators, and based on this, we draw out the likely implications of 2020 for future health spending, highlighting key policy and monitoring concerns.
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Intended for use primarily by those responsible for developing policies and directing the working practices of nurses, midwives and other frontline health-care providers, these guidelines aim to promote and strengthen the case against the medicalization of female genital mutilation and support and p...rotect nurses, midwives and other health personnel in adhering to WHO guidelines not to close an opened-up infibulation.
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WHO needs US$2.54 billion to provide life-saving assistance to millions of people around the world facing health emergencies. WHO’s Health Emergency Appeal is a consolidation of WHO’s priorities and financial requirements for 2023 to carry out health interventions in emergency and humanitarian r...esponses. The number of people in need of humanitarian relief has increased by almost a quarter compared to 2022, to a record 339 million. WHO is responding to an unprecedented number of intersecting health emergencies: climate change-related disasters such as flooding in Pakistan and food insecurity across the Sahel in the greater Horn of Africa; the war in Ukraine; and the health impact of conflict in Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria and north eastern Ethiopia – all of these emergencies overlapping with the health system disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and outbreaks of measles, cholera, and other killers. Contributions to the appeal can be fully flexible, flexible across a region, or flexible within a country appeal.
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Access to health workers who are fit for purpose, motivated and protected is a fundamental force of health service delivery and the achievement of universal health coverage and the health and health-related Sustainable Development Goals. Data and knowledge of the distribution, skill mix and future d...evelopment needs of the health workforce can mean the difference between enabling or impeding health systems performance, inclusive economic growth and global health security preparedness and response
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The full-scale invasion of Ukraine has caused a deterioration in the level of access to health-care services and medicines in the country, particularly for people living in regions close to the front line and areas that are not partially or fully controlled by the Government of Ukraine, and for peop...le who have been internally displaced. Cost and time constraints involved in getting to and from health facilities, as well as limited transportation options were the main barriers to accessing essential health-care services. At the same time, the findings show that the country’s health system remains resilient and that overall access to health services is fairly high.This report is based on data collected through a quantitative cross-sectional survey of self-reported health needs of the general population in Ukraine. It presents results of the first round survey conducted in September 2022 and could help to address the specific health-care needs of the population groups concerned.
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Antimicrobial agents like antibiotics are essential to treat some human and animal diseases. Microbes, such as bacteria, can develop resistance to antimicrobials meaning that a drug such as an antibiotic is no longer effective in treating the infection. The development of resistance is caused by the... incorrect use of these drugs, for example, using antibiotics (which help to treat bacteria) for viral infections like flu, or as a growth promoter in agriculture.
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