Infographics

Dar es salaam – Call Centers are among the most commonly used tools by health authorities in the response public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The reason is three-fold, first, they establish a direct link between at-risk populations and emergency responders. Secondly, they improve responders’ understanding of people’s perceptions, attitudes and concerns. Finally, they provide public health advice, counselling and/or referral to other services.

Abuja - 23 December 2022 - The festive season is a time for celebration. However, enjoying the holiday’s food does not mean neglecting healthy diet, being inactive and putting your health at risk. 

Elizabeth Agbonkhese, a chef and event planner residing in Abuja, says despite the celebration in the air, she will ensure her family eats healthy meals during the yuletide season. 

WHO Namibia with support from the Regional Office in Africa trained 45 school staff, nurses, and school board members from schools in the Oshana region as part of the SURGE flagship programme. The aim of the training was to increase capacity of schools to implement the health promoting school initiative and prepare better to minimize impact of health outbreaks and other public health events on schools.

The Ministry of Health and Social Services with support from WHO, trained national and regional risk communication and community engagement pillar members on Infodemic management. The spread of the COVD-19 pandemic has been followed by unprecedented and repeated waves of misinformation and disinformation generating what has been defined as an Infodemic. This overabundance of misleading information has been amplified by social media and affected the deployment of public health responses, generating fear and anxiety in local populations about preventive measures and vaccination campaigns.

WHO Namibia supported the Council of Churches in Namibia (CCN) seminar on mental health to raise awareness on mental health promotion and suicide prevention amongst the church and community leaders and mobilize efforts in support of mental health care at community level.  The seminar with church leaders, lay counselors and youth leaders was held on 15 and 16 November as part of the World Mental Health Day commemoration.   

Namibia joined the rest of the world in commemorating World Diabetes Day on 14 November under the theme “Access to diabetes care” which highlight the importance of prevention and response efforts.

Yola, 20 December, 2022 - In August 2022, 31 years old Mrs Jenifer James, of Mumore community, Tongo Local Government Area in Adamawa State had just returned from the market when she developed a fever. 
“It started with a headache, high temperature, body ache and later rashes all over my body,” she says in an interview, as she describes the agonizing symptoms associated with the mpox (monkeypox) disease.  
Adding to the physical pain from the lesions was the mental stress because she did not know about the disease or where to go for care. 

Maiduguri, 20 December, 2022 – "At some point, I lost it,” says Hafsat Naya,* 59, who lives in Jere, a Local Government Area in Borno State, Nigeria. “I was separated from the people I knew. Everyone had been displaced. There were a lot of killings and we could not go to the farm or market because of fear.”

In Borno State, over two million women, children, and men have been forced to flee their homes to stay alive. More than a decade of conflict in north-east Nigeria has resulted in an ongoing humanitarian crisis, with a dramatic mental health cost.