Indigenous Public Health Advocacy in Norway

On September 14 – 15, 2023, Emma Rawson, Vice-President of the WFPHA visited the Norwegian Public Health Association (NOPHA). Together with Lasse Heimdal, Chair, Annica Øygard, General Secretary, and Irena Jakopanec, Board Member of NOPHA, Emma visited the Storting, the Norwegian Parliament. Meeting Dag Inge Ulstein, former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Emma highlighted Indigenous public health issues.

She also met the team and students from the Norwegian Directorate of Health and discussed the Indigenous considerations for the Norwegian White Paper on Sami Health.

Established in 1998, the NOPHA works to increase understanding and interest in public health research, teaching, dissemination, policy development, management, and practice. The NOPHA is a member of the WFPHA.

Have the SDGs Lost Their Aspirational Force?

Adopted by the United Nations in 2015, the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are an urgent universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity.

The 17 SDGs are integrated; they acknowledge that actions in one area will have an impact on others and that development must balance social, economic, and environmental sustainability.

All countries in a global partnership have committed to prioritizing progress for those who’re behind. The creativity, technology, and financial resources of all societies are necessary to achieve the SDGs in every context.

On September 28, 2023, at 14:00 (CEST), esteemed global speakers will gather to have an exchange about the current state of the SDGs and how the principle of sustainable health equity can be utilized to advance the SDG agenda in a practical and actionable manner.

Participation in this webinar is free, but registration is mandatory. Save your spot by clicking on the link below.

Public Health Climate Advocacy in the Digital Health Era

The climate and nature crisis presents severe challenges to the operations of global health systems. Pollution, biodiversity loss, and burning fossil fuels create public health emergencies at scale and disrupt health systems. Digital health may have a role in the management of such challenges and in greenhouse gas emission reduction. However, this management and reduction can only be effective if there is buy-in at the national level. How can the international health community use technology to influence governments, not just to decarbonize the health sector, but all of society?

On September 26, 2023, at 13:00 (CEST), in celebration of World Environment Health Day, the WFPHA and Health Care Without Harm have brought together a global panel to discuss this existential question as well as to introduce the #HealthClimateActionGuide.

Participation in this webinar is free, but registration is mandatory. Save your spot by clicking on the link below.

Launching the Global HPV Consortium: Working Together to Prevent HPV & Eliminate Cervical Cancer

On September 5 – 6, 2023, the Global HPV Consortium has been launched in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Sabin Vaccine Institute has led the Consortium and served as the Secretariat. The WFPHA, represented by its Executive Manager, Dr Marta Lomazzi, has attended this event.

In alignment with World Health Organization’s (WHO) Immunization Agenda 2030 and Cervical Cancer Elimination Initiative, the Consortium serves as a worldwide public and private collaboration focused on accelerating the prevention of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) and eliminating cervical cancer as a public health concern.

During the event, Anuradha Gupta, President of Global Immunization at Sabin, emphasized the need to revolutionize global public health by crafting a strategic roadmap to enhance access and adoption of HPV prevention tools, including vaccines, screening, and precancerous lesion treatment. Dr Lomazzi has emphasized the importance of ensuring universal access to gender-neutral HPV vaccination across all nations.

Cervical cancer claims the lives of approximately 350,000 women annually, with over 600,000 affected each year. This largely preventable disease primarily impacts low- and middle-income countries with limited secondary prevention resources, such as screening and treatment. Without intervention, cervical cancer is projected to surge by almost 50% by 2040. Despite the HPV vaccine’s availability for 17 years, its uptake remains low, exacerbated by the pandemic.

The Consortium has united diverse public and private stakeholders, including those focusing on vaccination, cancer control, non-communicable diseases, HIV, reproductive and adolescent health, gender equity, and women’s empowerment. Country leaders, policymakers, implementers, researchers, youth advocates, women champions, non-profits, and industry representatives, including manufacturers of vaccines, syringes, cold-chain, diagnostics, and therapeutics, have joined the launch.

The WFPHA is excited to support the Consortium to work together to prevent HPV and eliminate cervical cancer.

Our Public Health Professionals’ Education and Training Working Group Is Looking for Interns

The World Federation of Public Health Associations (WFPHA) is currently looking for 1-2 intern(s) for its Public Health Professionals’ Education and Training Working Group.

WFPHA offers a unique environment for an internship for students in international health and development. Interns are given substantial responsibility for performing activities such as researching and writing articles, establishing contact with health and development NGOs around the world, planning international conferences, and fundraising. Each internship is structured to suit the needs and interests of the intern, such as working on an individual research assignment, as well as the requirements of WFPHA.

During the course of the internship, interns will further develop their writing and research skills and become more familiar with the key issues and actors in international health and development. They will have extensive networking opportunities as WFPHA is an international NGO in official relations with WHO, and has extensive contacts with other organizations worldwide.

Internship Summary

The Public Health Professionals’ Education and Training Working Group seeks to understand the current best practices as well as the gaps and challenges of public health education. To better understand this objective, a benchmarking project of global schools and programs of public health is underway with the goal of analyzing school data to better assess the current state of public health education. Interns will participate in data collection from assigned institution websites, monthly project team meetings, monthly working group committee meetings, and data management and analysis, with the potential to participate in survey and publication development.

Qualification and Experience

• Student or graduate degree with strong academic backgrounds and an interest in global public health
• Interest in public health workforce, public health infrastructure, or public health systems
• Experience and/or interest in data collection
• Knowledge of MS Office and Google Drive
• English: A must
• Good writing skills
• Eager to work within a multicultural and international environment
• A good team player with a “can-do” attitude
• Good at multi-tasking and working with strict deadlines

Modality

The intern will work fully remotely.

Compensation

The internship is unpaid but is intended to serve as a career-building opportunity for an early-career academic.

The organization does not cover re-location expenses and does not sponsor international student visas.

Period

Starts as soon as possible for a minimum of 3 months. The internship may be part-time or full-time.

Application Deadline

September 25, 2023

How to Apply

If you are interested in applying for the internship, please send CV and motivation letter to Geri Kemper Seeley: gkemperseeley@gwu.edu

Protecting Healthcare Workers in Low- & Lower-Middle-Income Countries through Vaccination: Barriers, Leverages, & Next Steps

Healthcare workers play a vital role in providing medical care to individuals and communities. Compared to the general public, healthcare workers are at a higher risk of exposure to infectious diseases, including vaccine-preventable ones, due to the nature of their work. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends healthcare workers be vaccinated against tuberculosis (BCG), hepatitis B, polio, diphtheria, measles, rubella, meningococcal, influenza, varicella, pertussis, and COVID-19; yet, despite clear guidelines, these are not always implemented, especially in less wealthy countries.

Importance of Routine Vaccination of Healthcare Workers

Routine vaccination of healthcare workers not only protects them from contracting infectious diseases but also helps prevent the spread of diseases to their patients, reduce healthcare costs associated with treating infected individuals, and reduce the risk of outbreaks that overburden health systems and increase costs. Moreover, healthcare workers who are protected against vaccine-preventable diseases are less likely to miss work due to illness or infection which can improve confidence and increase overall productivity. This, in turn, is essential for providing quality healthcare and improving the efficiency of the overall healthcare system. Similarly, vaccinated healthcare workers would be more confident in their ability to perform their duties as they are less likely to experience stress and anxiety related to their work.

Despite its importance, the implementation of policies for routine vaccination of healthcare workers in low- and lower-middle-income countries faces several challenges. In a recent article published by the researchers of the WFPHA and its International Immunization Policy Taskforce, they analyzed the barriers and recommendations for policy implementation and the role of partnerships.

Main Barriers to the Implementation of Policies for Routine Vaccination of Healthcare Workers

According to the article, lack of funds, lack of specific schedules for healthcare workers, lack of evidence-based data, hesitancy, beliefs, and low literacy are the main barriers to the implementation of policies for routine vaccination of healthcare workers in low- and lower-middle-income countries.

Recommendations for the Implementation of Policies for Routine Vaccination of Healthcare Workers

Expanding the COVAX initiative to cover healthcare workers, building partnerships with WHO, GAVI, governments, universities, and communities, mandatory insurance for healthcare workers, including vaccination, utilizing COVID vaccination infrastructures to vaccinate healthcare workers, collecting national data focusing on healthcare workers vaccination, increasing awareness and literacy from the university partnering with health-related student organizations, advocacy at different levels, providing specific schedules and funds addressed to healthcare workers (as done for children and pregnant women), and considering healthcare workers vaccination as part of the Occupational Safety Plan are the main recommendations for the implementation of policies for routine vaccination of healthcare workers in low- and lower-middle-income countries.

It is crucial to remember that the primary requirement for implementing the recommendations is the genuine commitment of governments to protect healthcare workers. Regrettably, numerous governments are yet to prioritize the protection of healthcare workers as essential for the well-being and prosperity of their nations. Consequently, this lack of prioritization hinders the successful implementation of the proposed recommendations, despite their potential for positive outcomes.