WHO health supplies to earthquake areas last week. © WHO
WHO’s Special Fund for Emergencies (CFE) enabled it to immediately begin sending life-saving supplies to Turkey and the Syrian Arab Republic after a devastating earthquake struck the countries on 6 February, affecting an estimated 26 million people.
“These life-saving health supplies are critical to treating the injured and providing emergency care to all those affected by this tragedy in both countries,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who has spent several days meeting with survivors and response teams. . “Survivors are facing freezing conditions, persistent aftershocks and very limited access to shelter, food, water, heat and medical care. We are in a race against time to save lives.”
So far, WHO has released more than US$16 million from CFE for the earthquake response and flown in more than 100 metric tons of trauma and medical supplies. Twenty-five member states have contributed to the CFE since its inception in 2015.
The WHO has also launched one flash appeal to save lives immediately after the earthquake and to minimize the mental and physical health consequences to come. Funds raised will help restore health services, prioritizing areas and communities with the greatest health needs. Anyone can contribute to the complaint through the WHO Foundation.
As the earthquake struck, WHO was already responding to an unprecedented number of complex health emergencies related to armed conflicts, natural disasters and disease outbreaks. This week’s issue features reports from Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, the Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey, Ukraine and Yemen.
WHO’s Global Logistics Center in Dubai International Humanitarian City has been working around the clock to send supplies
in Turkey and the Syrian Arab Republic. ©WHO
See also:
Ukraine builds its capacity to provide health services in the event of a nuclear emergency
First responders in Ukraine take part in a training exercise for nuclear and radiation incidents. Funding from Germany supported WHO training. © WHO
The WHO is helping Ukraine prepare for nuclear emergencies by training thousands of first responders in patient care and releasing an updated list of medicines countries should have on hand to treat exposure to toxic chemicals and radiation.
“In radiation emergencies, people can be exposed to radiation in doses ranging from negligible to life-threatening. Governments must make treatments available to those who need them – fast,” said Dr Maria Neira, WHO Assistant Director-General, Division of Healthier Populations.
Since the start of the war a year ago, WHO has sent more than 2,000 metric tons of medical supplies to Ukraine, including power generators to keep hospitals and clinics running, oxygen machines, surgical supplies and medicine. In January, WHO donated 26 ambulances to Ukraine’s health ministry, with the support of funding from the European Union.
Read the full stories at WHO List of critical drugs for radiological and nuclear emergenciesof Ukraine chemical preparedness and response trainingand the new one donation of ambulances.
WHO sets up health camp in a long-time inaccessible area of Somalia
Demand for health services is increasing in Jamame district ©WHO/Somalia
Munira Aden Saleh was one of the first medical professionals to enter an agrarian area in the south of the country after armed groups were driven out in October.
“Residents, including women and children, suffered from numerous diseases, including diarrhea and measles, intestinal worms, pneumonia and bronchitis,” she said. “Our teams had to set up a temporary camp within the district to start outpatient consultations immediately.”
Since October, medical teams have provided medical consultations to nearly 4,000 residents of Jamame, arranged treatment for more than 1,800 severely malnourished children, treated nearly 2,600 cases of diarrhea, vaccinated nearly 6,000 children, etc.
WHO worked with partners including UNICEF and the World Food Program to deliver an integrated response. Read about the new health camp
More from Somalia: Cholera prevention during the crisis
A health worker makes door-to-door visits in a camp for internally displaced people in Somalia ©WHO/Ismail Taxta
WHO and partners launched a campaign in Somalia in late January to vaccinate nearly 1 million children and pregnant women against cholera, an intestinal disease that poses a particular risk to those malnourished during one of the worst droughts in history. country.
“We don’t expect the situation to get out of our hands,” said Federal Health Minister Dr Ali Haji Adan. “The government and partners are well prepared and this special campaign has been designed and launched in collaboration with WHO and UNICEF to help prevent unnecessary morbidity and mortality in high-risk areas.” Read more
See also: Japan offers grants for health services in Somalia AND SUDAN
South Sudan health workers go door-to-door to prevent measles amid humanitarian crisis
A health worker administers a measles vaccine in Yirol West County, Lakes State © WHO/South Sudan
WHO and partners have responded to measles outbreaks in South Sudan with a vaccination campaign targeting young children.
Measles and other infectious diseases can flourish when emergencies – such as South Sudan’s floods – displace communities, disrupt already fragile health care systems and shrink food supplies. Measles has killed at least 40 people in South Sudan since the country declared an outbreak in December.
Before the campaign, WHO and partners mobilized community volunteers to inform parents about the importance of measles vaccination, which led to greater participation among children. Read more
More WHO news from the Horn of Africa:
Djibouti launches the fourth phase of its polio vaccination campaign
Ethiopia launches integrated measles vaccination campaign
Sudan launches campaign against polio and yellow fever
A baby is checked for malnutrition in the Abu Shouk camp for internally displaced persons in North Darfur. Sudan is one of several countries in the greater Horn of Africa where WHO is responding to complex humanitarian crises caused by drought and armed conflict. ©WHO/ Lindsay Mackenzie
Keeping Yemen’s public health laboratories equipped and operational
© WHO Yemen
WHO has renewed its partnership with the King Salman Center for Humanitarian Aid and Relief (KSrelief) to supply the Yemeni health system with medicines, supplies and equipment for children, reproductive and maternal health, dialysis, non-communicable diseases and care general.
Eight years of armed conflict have crippled Yemen’s health facilities and laboratories, reducing the quality and availability of many essential health services.
“We have been providing intermittent services since I started working here,” said Diana Nasser Mohammed, a medical laboratory assistant since 2011 at the National Center for Public Health Central Laboratories in Aden. “Thanks to the support we have received, our services are almost uninterrupted.” Check out the full photo essay
The year in focus: the main health emergencies of 2022 in the Eastern Mediterranean region
Health care workers wade through Pakistan flood waters in 2022. ©WHO
When last week’s earthquakes struck Turkey and the Syrian Arab Republic, WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Region was already responding to the health consequences of floods, droughts, other earthquakes, armed conflicts, bomb blasts, health care attacks and a sharp increase in disease outbreaks.
See the year in photos and storieswith reports from Afghanistan, the Greater Horn of Africa, Libya, Pakistan, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.
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WHO thanks all governments, organizations and individuals who are contributing to the work of the Organization, with special appreciation to those who provide fully flexible contributions to maintain a strong and independent WHO.
Donors and partners featured in this week’s stories include:
Contributors (2022-23) to WHO Contingency Fund for Emergencies (Canada, Estonia, Germany, Kuwait, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Portugal, Slovakia, Switzerland, United States of America)
European Union
International Humanitarian City
Japan
UNICEF
United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
World Food Programme
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