WHO/Europe monthly newsletter, with public health news and events highlights from around the WHO European Region.
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Public health news from around the WHO European Region.
News highlights
July 2025
The second European Programme of Work (EPW2) is a strategic and operational framework to guide Member States and WHO/Europe’s work on health in 2026–2030. EPW2 is being developed together with countries, with contributions from health actors, governments, civil society organizations, academia, development partners, youth groups, the private sector and others, to ensure that the framework truly reflects key health issues across the diverse European Region. Read more
Launch and first hearing of the Pan-European Commission on Climate and Health
11 June 2025, 12:00 – 15:00 CEST, Reykjavík, Iceland
TOP STORIES
23 June 2025
As summer approaches the European Region, the promise of sunshine and outdoor activities often overshadows a growing, silent threat: extreme heat. Far from being a mere discomfort, soaring temperatures can pose an escalating risk to human health – claiming lives, causing suffering and burdening health-care systems globally. By raising awareness of these risks and taking simple protective measures, we can safeguard our health throughout the summer months.
The urgency of this heat–health crisis has prompted calls for action from the highest levels, from the WHO Regional Director for Europe declaring the climate crisis and extreme weather a public health emergency in 2023 to the United Nations Secretary-General’s “Call to action on extreme heat” in 2024, both emphasizing the need for robust strategies to protect vulnerable populations.
16 July 2025, Virtual
Climate change has become an undeniable driver of adverse health outcomes worldwide, with evidence mounting on its multifaceted impacts. However, the burden of climate-related health risks is not evenly distributed. Populations more likely to be affected are those exposed to higher risks due to social, economic and environmental factors, including socioeconomic deprivation, geographic location and occupational exposure. Read more
11-06-2025
New commission will offer pragmatic and cost-effective health sector solutions to address climate change. In response to escalating climate-driven health threats, including emergencies, WHO/Europe is today launching the Pan-European Commission on Climate and Health (PECCH), a bold new initiative to confront one of the defining health challenges of our time. Read more
Strengthening hospital readiness in Ukraine amidst war
26-06-2025
Ukraine: with EU support, WHO delivers 25 intensive care beds to frontline regions
10-06-2025
27-06-2025
Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) remain the leading cause of death and disability in the world, including in the WHO European Region. Here, 1 in 5 men and 1 in 10 women die before 70 years of age because of NCDs such as cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases and diabetes. Read more
“What could matter more to a mother than being heard when she asks for help?”
19-06-2025
WHO designates new collaborating centre on public health leadership and workforce development
12-06-2025
WHO launches new guide to help shape assistive technology markets
04-06-2025
New WHO collaborating centre supports evidence-based decision-making in health
04-06-2025
Young people speak up on the benefits and harms of digital life
02-06-2025
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Reykjavík, Iceland, 11 June 2025
WHO/Europe launches bold new commission to fight deadly heat, air pollution and floods with real health-sector solutions.
Opening remarks by Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, at the launch and first hearing of the Pan-European Commission on Climate and Health.
COUNTRIES
17-06-2025
The retention of nurses in Member States of the WHO European Region is central to “Nursing Action”, a landmark European Union (EU)-funded initiative aimed at strengthening the nursing workforce across the EU and Norway and ultimately improving people’s health.
Representatives from 20 participating countries recently gathered at WHO/Europe in Copenhagen, Denmark, to discuss draft national reports analysing retention of nursing staff across 7 key dimensions. These reports, which are the result of a comprehensive policy mapping and statistical review process, are a stepping stone towards the goals of “Nursing Action”. Read more
A chance to catch up: how Kyrgyzstan is fighting measles
30-06-2025
New WHO/Europe report identifies coverage policy options to improve financial protection in Malta
22-06-2025
Bringing clean water to where life begins: a neonatologist’s story from Ukraine
12-06-2025
WHO designates new collaborating centre on palliative care in the Russian Federation
05-06-2025
15 – 18 July 2025 - Nice, France
The Special Initiative on Noncommunicable Diseases and Innovation (SNI) of the WHO Regional Office for Europe, the Université Côte d’Azur and Ulysseus European University have opened a call for applications for the 2025 Summer school: Systems thinking and innovation for the prevention of noncommunicable diseases (NCD) and a healthy ageing population in the WHO European Region. Systems thinking and systems-based approaches have the potential to support the development of more coherent and synergistic policies to tackle NCDs and NCD risk factors throughout the life course. Read more
Webinar: Alcohol availability policies – regulating access to reduce consumption
3 September 2025, 10:00–11:00 CEST, Online
Crisis-ready: strengthening hospital response to mass casualty events in Romania
8 July 2025 - Bucharest, Romania
Population health surveillance training for Central Asian countries
7 – 11 July 2025 - Samarkand, Uzbekistan
