Health and care activities in the IFRC include first aid and emergency response as well as epidemic control, programmes in health promotion and prevention, addressing stigma, providing psychosocial care and enabling community empowerment.
Health and care activities in the IFRC include first aid and emergency response as well as epidemic control, programmes in health promotion and prevention, addressing stigma, providing psychosocial care and enabling community empowerment.
Around the world, hundreds of thousands of volunteers work in communities to promote health, prevent diseases and demonstrate positive values through their actions. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and its National Societies actively support communities through their network of volunteers, their community-based approach, their expertise and experience.
The past decade has seen major gains towards improving global health. Today, less people die of measles or malaria and the number of new HIV-infections has been stabilized in some countries.
At the same time, implementing primary health care at the community level remains a challenge:
- Worldwide, an estimated 14 million people continue to die each year from infectious diseases. Many more suffer from malnutrition and disruption of livelihood
- More than 1 billion people don’t have access to safe water
- 2.6 billion people lack access to basic sanitation.
- More than 500,000 women die each year in pregnancy or childbirth and still too many children die before their fifth birthday.
This situation will get worse because of global trends such as climate change, population growth and ageing, urbanisation, migration, food and water shortages, poverty, emergent diseases and the lack of access to health services.
Recent additions to the resources library
An outbreak of measles was declared on 6 February in the National Capital and Central Luzon Regions. By 2 March, nearly 16,350 people had been infected, 261 people had died, and the disease had spread to several other regions. Babies and children are p …
Outbreaks of Ebola are threatening lives in Democratic Republic of the Congo’s North Kivu and Equateur Provinces. This revised Emergency Appeal will support 800,000 of the most vulnerable people in these areas for nine months, and will also undertake p …
In a health crisis, the media has the power to save lives. Effective communication can help to prevent or reduce the spread of disease, and guide those affected towards health services and treatment. This manual provides tips for media practitioners on …
Health in Action
World First Aid Day
The IFRC is the largest first aid educator and provider in the world. In 2014, over 15 million people were trained, and for more than 150 years, first aid has provided by our volunteers.
In focus: Ebola
During the 2014-15 Ebola outbreak, Red Cross teams worked with community leaders to ensure families knew about how the virus is spread, what the symptoms are, and the importance of early treatment.
World Water Day
Water, sanitation and good hygiene practices are fundamental to healthy life. Our collective aim is to ensure every family has affordable and sustainable access to safe water and adequate sanitation.
Health news
Since she wakes up until she goes to bed, Jane Pacheco focuses all her energy and resources on stimulating and taking care of little Milagros, her two-year old daughter.
Sukmuang Tippadoe, 92, lives alone in his home in Huai Ping Village in Thailand’s northern province of Lamphun. Apart from a recurring skin rash, he says he’s trying to stay healthy to avoid going to the doctors.
Three-year-old Mohammed Sofit lies on the cold bare earth inside his family home. For the last 24 hours he has been suffering from chicken pox – an all too familiar ailment in the sprawling Kutapalong camp, built into steep hillsides close to the Myanmar-Bangladesh border.
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