In the aftermath of the EVD outbreak in the Republic of Uganda, the threat of cross-border spread to the neighboring countries, such as South Sudan, has been elevated from “high” to “very high.” As a result, South Sudan has been re-classified as a priority country for the EVD prevention and preparedness. South Sudan faces an elevated risk due to its fragile health systems, porous borders, sociocultural and traditional beliefs, and socioeconomic inadequacies. Fortunately,there has not been…

The world’s second largest Ebola outbreak occurred in the Democratic Republic of Congo from 2018 to 2020. At the time, risk of cross-border spread into South Sudan was very high. Thus, the South Sudan Ministry of Health scaled up Ebola preparedness activities in August 2018, including implementation of a 24-h, toll-free Ebola virus disease (EVD) hotline. The primary purpose of the hotline was to receive EVD alerts and the secondary goal was to provide evidence-based…

Recent global health emergencies have highlighted the critical role of health care workers in stemming the spread of pandemics. Healthcare workers provide an essential service to local communities impacted by epidemics such as Ebola. Global health scholars suggest that carers may suffer harm while performing this essential work. Building on feminist theories of ‘harm’ and ‘social reproduction’, this article uses as case studies the early 21st century Ebola epidemics that broke out in West Africa…

This report provides a review of literature on the societal impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as past health and economic shocks, and possible solutions for mitigating impact at individual, household and societal levels. The evidence base on the societal impacts of the pandemic is still nascent. For children, it is weaker still, largely due to the paucity of age-disaggregated data and the relatively low number of paediatric studies, particu-larly in low- and middle-income…

The guiding questions for Conflict Sensitivity & Public Health Emergencies are: How can we better practice our commitments to conflict sensitivity in the context of public health emergencies? How can we use a better understanding of local power dynamics to increase the effectiveness of our public health interventions while minimizing negative effects on existing conflicts? What are the practical considerations and approaches for using the Do No Harm Framework in places experiencing disruptions from public…

The ongoing pandemic of the coronavirus disease 2019 has spread rapidly to all countries of the world. Africa is particularly predisposed to an escalation of the pandemic and its negative impact given its weak economy and health systems. In addition, inadequate access to the social determinants of health such as water and sanitation and socio-cultural attributes may constrain the implementation of critical preventive measures such as hand washing and social distancing on the continent. Given these facts,…

Key points: Efforts to situate gender-based violence (GBV) within the COVID-19 pandemic remain inadequate. Based on the knowledge that the public health crises of violence and infectious disease are intersecting, we use a syndemic perspective to examine their shared influence in humanitarian settings. When the humanitarian community exclusively prioritises the lives saved from infectious diseases, such as Ebola and COVID-19, the lives impacted by interrelated factors, such as GBV, can be overlooked. This narrative leverages…

Strengthening health systems and maintaining essential service delivery during health emergencies response is critical for early detection and diagnosis, prompt treatment, and effective control of pandemics, including the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Health information systems (HIS) developed during recent Ebola outbreaks in West Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) provided opportunities to collect, analyze, and distribute data to inform both day-to-day and long-term policy decisions on outbreak preparedness. As COVID-19 continues to…

Summary: There is little to no published research on process mapping being conducted during health emergen-cies to improve the current outbreak response. Our research shows that despite the chaos and complexities associated with emerging pathogen outbreaks, process mapping can address immediate response priorities while simultaneously strengthening components of a health system. This methodology could be applied to any country that has an outbreak, including COVID-19 cases. There is an acute need in the global health…

The securitization of health is not a new phenomenon. However, global responses to the 2014–2016 Ebola outbreak in West Africa reveal the extent to which epidemic preparedness and response is now shaped by geopolitical concerns. UN Security Council Resolution 2177 epitomizes this. The resolution asserted that “the outbreak is undermining the stability of the most affected countries … [and] the Ebola outbreak in Africa constitutes a threat to international peace and security” (UN 2014: 1)….