Spotlight on: Venezuela
The collapse of virtually all systems (economic, medical, infrastructure, etc.) across Venezuela has created a staggering humanitarian crisis. To date, it has been estimated that 3.4 million Venezuelans have fled the country. Those who remain are struggling daily to meet the most basic human needs of food, water, and shelter.
The articles and video below highlight some of the dire challenges that people in Venezuela are facing.
The articles and video below highlight some of the dire challenges that people in Venezuela are facing.
In the News: Infectious Diseases
Many infectious diseases that were previously controlled (or nearly eradicated) with vaccines or medication are now once again on the rise. Here are some articles that outline which diseases are spreading - and where.
Unsplash/Drew Hays
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The Plague Years: How the Rise of Right-Wing Nationalism is Jeopardizing the World's Health
Unsplash/Sasan Rashtipour
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As noted in the above Infectious Disease section, there has been a precipitous rise in diseases around the world - many of which were previously controlled, prevented, or even eradicated, by vaccines.
What's changed? This article examines how "distrust of expertise, suspicion of immigrants, shunning of international cooperation" have caused policy changes around vaccines as a result nationalist movements in Africa and Europe. But the place where official attitudes toward global public health have changed most sharply is actually the United States. |
" Measles cases are multiplying across the globe for the same reason that the international campaign to eradicate polio has stalled, and that Ebola outbreaks continue, and that opportunistic new diseases like Zika take us by surprise: a rise in nationalist politics, which is causing countries to turn inward, harden their borders, and distrust outsiders."
Sri Lanka's Tragedy and the Global Health Burden of Trauma
Sri Lankan statues. Unsplash/Eddy Billard
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Recently, a series of bombings in Sri Lanka killed over 200 people and injured hundreds more, in what police have called coordinated terrorist attacks.
The drivers of trauma are all around us—from natural disasters, to gun violence, to racism, homophobia, and the many forms of interpersonal abuse. The bombings are just the latest reminder that trauma is a ubiquitous human experience that touches millions daily. |
Unsplash/Andrew Stutesman
Tracking Cancer Hot Spots Around the WorldCancer rates vary wildly across the world, and we don’t know why. To solve this mystery, scientists are tracking down causes of cancer by the fingerprints they leave in the genome.
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Unsplash/Zach Vessels
Kifafa: Why this East African "Nodding Syndrome" May Also Hold Clues to Treatment of Alzheimer'sDespite decades of research, no one has managed to figure out what’s causing the strange and deadly nodding syndrome prevalent in East Africa.
The search for answers could save thousands of lives – and incidentally, may also unlock new treatments for intractable diseases such as Alzheimer’s. |