WHO/Europe Health Emergencies Newsletter - Issue No.42: 05.12.2024
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Health Emergencies Newsletter #42
Including:
- News from the Regional Committee;
- New cases of mpox clade 1b reported in the UK;
- 1000 days of war in Ukraine;
- Children evacuated from Gaza to Spain for specialist medical care;
- The adoption of Preparedness 2.0 and the EMT Action Plan 2030 boost emergency preparedness in the European Region;
TOP STORY
30 October 2024: The Member States of the WHO European Region have nominated Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge to the office of WHO Regional Director for Europe for a second 5-year term, which will begin in February 2025 after his formal election by the WHO Executive Board.
Public health priorities for the coming half-decade will focus on critical areas including national health security, mental health, the climate crisis and gender-based violence.
5 November 2024: The United Kingdom confirmed additional cases of clade Ib mpox. Both patients lived in the same household with a person who tested positive shortly after travel to several African countries. This made them the first locally transmitted clade Ib mpox cases in the WHO European Region, and the first outside Africa since a Public Health Emergency of International Concern was declared for a second time in August 2024.
02 December: WHO/Europe is calling on countries in the European Region to urgently scale up the evacuations of sick and injured Palestinians requiring critical medical care. In this regard, Spain has set an example for other countries to follow.
In July, 15 Gazan children and their caregivers were evacuated from Egypt to Spain. The evacuation was supported through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism in partnership with WHO. The Palestine Children’s Relief Fund facilitated the patients’ documentation and evacuation approvals. The Government of Egypt supported the children’s care while they were there, and 6 Spanish government ministries provided additional support for the evacuation.
02 December: Eleen was just 4 years old when she was diagnosed with leukaemia. She was receiving treatment in Gaza, but the hospital was destroyed by shelling when war broke out in 2023.
Iman, her mother, made the heartbreaking decision to leave her husband and family behind to seek asylum and treatment for Eleen in Spain, where they are now trying to integrate into Spanish society – a formidable challenge.
18 November: 1000 days since the Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine was marked on 19 November 2024. The toll on the health of the Ukrainian population and its health-care system has been immense. The war has escalated health needs, especially in areas such as mental health, trauma care and noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), affecting millions who face continuous attacks, trauma and restricted access to health care due to ongoing hostilities and financial barriers. Ukrainian citizens are bearing increased physical and psychological strain, heightening the need for accessible care across all health services.
With over 6 million Ukrainians displaced as refugees and an additional 3.5 million internally displaced, health-care worker shortages, especially near frontlines, have deepened. These shortages include doctors, nurses, midwives and other essential personnel, who are crucial for delivering care in a system under severe stress. Despite the challenges, Ukraine’s health workforce has shown remarkable resilience, working tirelessly to sustain services and support both the country’s recovery and ongoing health-care reforms.
08 November: In February 2024 Ukraine adopted a resolution allowing influenza vaccination to be administered in pharmacies across the country. The Ministry of Health also made changes to regulations on the training of specialists. To provide a vaccination service, pharmacists must undergo at least a week of appropriate training at a medical university. Under the new rules, pharmacies that carry out vaccination in the country must also obtain a licence to practise medicine.
20 November: WHO and the World Bank have unveiled their new joint report “Health financing in Ukraine: reform, resilience and recovery”, which highlights the critical role of health financing reforms in strengthening Ukraine's health system amid unprecedented challenges.
The report, launched at a joint event in Kyiv on 20 November during a high-level health systems mission to the country, underscores how recent reforms have bolstered Ukraine’s health system resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing war. It details the importance of sustained investment in health and outlines concrete steps to ensure the system remains equitable, efficient and prepared for future crises.
21 November: A new WHO/Europe report analysing the health labour market in Ukraine has revealed significant challenges facing the country’s health and care workforce, particularly in nursing. Compiled with financial support from the European Union (EU), it highlights critical shortages in primary health care (PHC) and key specialties, with the nursing workforce under severe strain.
The findings paint a sobering picture of a sector grappling with the compounded effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, ongoing conflict and migration pressures. Geographic disparities exacerbate the issue, with underserved rural regions bearing the brunt of the challenges.
COVID-19 AND RESPIRATORY VIRUSES
23 October: A new study from the WHO Regional Office for Europe shows that COVID-19 vaccines prevented over half of COVID-19-related hospitalizations and over half of all severe outcomes, including death. These findings highlight again the power of COVID-19 vaccination to safeguard health, especially for the most vulnerable, including older persons and people with underlying conditions.
Published in The Lancet Regional Health – Europe, this COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness study, conducted in 6 countries and areas (Albania, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, North Macedonia, Serbia and Kosovo 1) from January 2022 to November 2023, is the first study to evaluate COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness in middle-income countries and areas across the eastern part of the WHO European Region. The 6 countries and areas are part of EuroSAVE – the European Severe Acute Respiratory Infection Vaccine Effectiveness network.
23 October: Wildfires ravaged many parts of Greece this summer, endangering the health of firefighters and local communities.
Firefighters face significant health challenges during wildfire season – intense heat, smoke inhalation and strenuous physical demands put them at risk of respiratory problems and long-term health issues.
18 October: Climate change is intensifying extreme weather globally and Bosnia and Herzegovina is reeling from some of the most severe flooding in a decade. Heavy rains triggered catastrophic floods, particularly in the southern and central regions, devastating communities in Jablanica, Kiseljak, Kreševo, Fojnica and Vareš. Rising waters and landslides destroyed infrastructure, severed access to crucial roads and railways, and tragically claimed over 20 lives while leaving countless numbers of people without homes or livelihoods. And, while physical recovery is urgent, the mental toll on survivors, rescuers and health-care workers is equally pressing.
28 November: As the climate crisis wreaks more havoc across Europe and central Asia year after year, WHO Member States are urgently seeking to strengthen their readiness for a range of emergencies, both individually and in collaboration with each other. It was within this context that the annual Joint Assessment and Detection of Events (JADE) exercise – the WHO European Region’s biggest simulation exercise, designed to mimic real-world public health emergencies – was carried out. Converging online and in Copenhagen on 19–21 November, participants from 46 of the 53 Member States of the WHO European Region faced the scenario of a fictional flood, with public health consequences.
EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS
31 October 2024: In Copenhagen, at the 74th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe, a major milestone was achieved for the WHO European Region – the Member States adopted 2 critical strategies aimed at enhancing health emergency preparedness and response regionwide. The adoption of both the Preparedness 2.0 regional strategy and action plan on health emergency preparedness, response and resilience (2024–2029), and the Emergency Medical Teams (EMT) regional action plan 2024–2030 underscores the ongoing commitment of the 53 Member States of the WHO European Region to building resilience and bolstering health security for individual countries and the Region as a whole.
29 October 2024: The health of humans, animals and ecosystems is linked – this has long been noted. With this interconnectedness comes the risk of spreading many types of infectious diseases, as was highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. An integrated One Health approach addresses these linkages and vulnerabilities, aiming to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals and ecosystems through multisectoral and disciplinary collaboration.
To this end, and to deepen One Health advocacy and solicit high-level commitment, WHO/Europe held a high-level briefing as part of the 74th Session of the WHO Europe Regional Committee (RC74) to engage Member States to adopt, adapt and implement the One Health approach based on their context and in line with global and regional priorities.
WHO PUBLICATIONS
COVID-19
COVID-19 epidemiological update – 6 November 2024
MPOX (MONKEYPOX)
Joint ECDC/ WHO mpox surveillance bulletin- 16 October 2024
Multi-country outbreak of mpox, External situation report #42- 9 November 2024
UKRAINE EMERGENCY
War in Ukraine: situation report from WHO Country Office in Ukraine: issue No. 76, 21 June 2024
MULTI-EMERGENCIES
WHO's Operational Update on Health Emergencies - October 2024
