Health
WHO, UNICEF hold meeting in Doha on priorities for Afghanistan health sector
The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF are holding a high-level meeting in Qatari capital Doha on interim priorities for the health sector in Afghanistan over the next 18-24 months.
The meeting started on Tuesday and will wrap up on Thursday.
It includes delegates from WHO, UNICEF, Qatar, Afghanistan, donors, and other humanitarian organizations. Afghanistan is represented at the meeting by the acting minister of public health.
The meeting is expected to review progress and persistent gaps in humanitarian response and emergency risk management (including COVID-19, disease outbreaks, acute malnutrition) and identify options for addressing them, according to a WHO statement.
It is also convened to identify and prioritize the elements of a health system, including health workforce, supply chain management, coordination and governance and others, requiring support and short-term solution.
Delegates are expected to agree on approaches to support the implementation of the Afghanistan National Emergency Action Plan for Polio Eradication and leverage polio assets in support of other humanitarian and development needs.
According to the United Nations, over 24 million people will need humanitarian assistance this year. They face displacement, drought, food insecurity and malnutrition, COVID-19, and many other health challenges.
“Investing in the health and education of Afghanistan is an investment in the future of people who have suffered so much,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at the meeting. “WHO remains committed to working with all partners for a healthier, safer, fairer future for Afghanistan.”
Health
Azerbaijan urged to help improve capacity of Afghan health workers
Acting Minister of Public Health Qalandar Ebad, in a meeting with Azerbaijan’s ambassador, Ilham Mohammadov, called for the country’s assistance in improving the capacity of Afghanistan’s health workers.
The two sides also discussed cooperation in the health sector, capacity building of Afghan health workers, and Azerbaijan’s role in the health sector and other issues, according to a statement released by the Public Health Ministry.
Azerbaijan’s envoy said that his country seeks to cooperate with Afghanistan in a sustainable manner in the field of health.
In other news, the foundation stone for the construction of oxygen production facility was laid at the Indira Gandhi children hospital in Kabul.
Officials of the Ministry of Public Health said that the facility will be built with the financial and technical assistance of the World Health Organization, and with the capacity to produce 200 cylinders of oxygen daily to meet not only the needs of the hospital, but also other health facilities.
Health
Balkh health officials report sharp increase in number of cancer patients
Balkh Public Health Department officials say there has been a significant increase in the number of patients with cancer in the province.
“In 1401, about 2,613 OPD (out patient department) cases were registered with us. In 1402, these figures were 4,912 cases,” said Ehsanullah Kaliwal, the head of the oncology department at Balkh Regional Hospital.
Some doctors say genetic factors, environmental pollution, arbitrary use of medicines, and excessive consumption of meat were reasons for the sharp increase.
One doctor said cancer was also hereditry.
However, a large percentage of cancer patients in Balkh have stomach cancer. Many of them have appealed for the government to improve treatment facilities.
According to health officials, in the first month of this solar year (April), 423 cancer patients visited this hospital for treatment.
Health
Majority of Afghans with mental disorders are women: officials
Based on last year’s data, 52 percent of people with mental disorders in Afghanistan are women, the Ministry of Public Health said.
However, after the Islamic Emirate took over the country and with the improvement of nationwide security and the provision of better health services, mental disorders have decreased, the ministry said.
“Overall, the mental security of men and women in Afghanistan is not ensured and their mental security is disturbed. According to the figures shared with us, in 2023, 52 percent of the visitors for mental disorders were women,” said Sharaft Zaman Amarkhil, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Public Health.
“Generally speaking, we can say that compared to the past, the instances of mental illnesses have decreased,” he added.
People suffering mental disorders mostly refuse to share their problem, willingly or unwillingly.
“There are many problems at home; We are poor. I finished school, but didn’t find any job,” Ansar, a mentally ill person, said.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), half of Afghanistan’s population suffers from mental distress.
Factors such as unemployment, poverty, domestic violence, ban on girls’ and women’s education and work, and drugs are said to be key contributors to mental distress.
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