News and top stories

Rabies fatal once symptoms appear

Rabies: Emma Laudon with her son, Joseph, Malawi
Mission Rabies

25 September 2015 -- Worldwide, there is about 1 rabies death every 15 minutes. For World Rabies Day, 28 September, this feature story from Malawi reminds us that once rabies symptoms appear, the disease is almost always fatal. However, rabies is a vaccine-preventable disease. And vaccinating dogs is the most cost-effective strategy for preventing rabies in people.

WHO Welcomes Sustainable Development Goals

26 September 2015-- As 150 world leaders launch the new Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs), WHO’s Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health 2015 aims to end all preventable deaths of women, children, and adolescents by 2030. Its’ Noncommunicable Disease (NCD) Progress Monitor tracks the response of 194 countries. WHO's new partnership to support countries in improving primary health care also supports the 40 health targets within the SDGs.

WHO Removes Nigeria from Polio Endemic List

WHO/T. Moran

25 September 2015 -- WHO announced today that polio is no longer endemic in Nigeria. This is the first time that Nigeria has interrupted transmission of wild poliovirus, bringing the country and the African region closer than ever to being certified polio-free. Polio, which can cause lifelong paralysis, has now been stopped nearly everywhere in the world following a 25-year concerted international effort.

As Syria’s armed conflict grows, WHO aid to the region is unrelenting

A child receives polio vaccine in a refugee camp, Al-Hassake, Syrian Arab Republic
WHO Syria

23 September 2015-- Since armed unrest erupted more than 4 years ago in the Syrian Arab Republic, resulting in huge movements of the population inside the country and spilling into neighbouring countries, WHO has taken a lead role to support the displaced. The numbers are overwhelming: Inside the country, the conflict, now a civil war – has left 12.2 million people in need of humanitarian assistance; additionally there are more than 4 million Syrians registered as refugees and living outside their country.

Ebola: sustaining a resilient zero

A health worker instructs a group in infection control: Liberia.
WHO/M. Winkler

18 September 2015 -- The new Ebola Phase 3 framework includes new knowledge and tools into the ongoing Ebola response and recovery work to achieve and sustain a "resilient zero". The framework builds upon the rapid scale-up of treatment beds, safe and dignified burial teams, and behaviour change; and the enhanced capacities for case finding, contract tracing, and community engagement. It includes new developments and breakthroughs in Ebola control, from vaccines, diagnostics and response operations to survivor counselling and care.

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Emergencies

Ebola outbreak » MERS-CoV outbreak »

WHO fact sheets

Measles vaccination campaign, Liberia
WHO/M. Winkler

Highlights

  • Launch of mHealth toolkit for reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health
    September 2015 -- A new toolkit has been launched for mobile health innovators to help improve maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health. The MAPS Toolkit (mHealth Assessment and Planning for Scale) helps developers around the world use WHO’s guidelines, monitoring and evaluation tools on reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health.
  • Recommended composition of influenza virus vaccines
    September 2015 -- Twice annually, WHO organizes consultations to analyse influenza virus surveillance data and issues recommendations on the composition of the influenza vaccines for the following influenza season. These recommendations are used by the national vaccine regulatory agencies and the pharmaceutical companies to develop, produce and license influenza vaccines.
  • Stepping up response to cholera outbreak in Iraq
    September 2015 -- Under the provision of the International Health Regulations (IHR 2005), the Ministry of Health of Iraq, in consultation with WHO, declared a cholera outbreak in governorates of Najaf, Diwaniya, and parts of west Baghdad on 15 September 2015, and announced a stepping up of measures to stop transmission and prevent further spread of the disease.

Disease outbreak news

Emergency reform

WHO/V. Nguyen Hoan

WHO is reforming its work in outbreaks and emergencies with health and humanitarian consequences to ensure the Organization can respond rapidly to future crises.

Commentary

Marleen Temmerman, Director, Department of Reproductive Health and Research including UNDP-UNFPA-UNICEF-WHO-World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction
WHO

Ebola diaries

Stories from countries

Events

Tweets from WHO

What we do

Dr Chan, WHO Director-General, visits Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India, three of the four countries where indigenous transmission of wild poliovirus has not yet been interrupted.
WHO

Data

- Annual rate of reduction 1990-2000: 1.8%
- Annual rate of reduction 2000-2015: 3.9%


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