Reporting Period: 24 - 30 August 2002
Email to submit information for next week's newsletter: wro@whoafg.org (mention in subject line:
“for weekly update on health sector”. Reports can also be requested through this address.)
Coordination
Sub-sectors
Regional overview
Missions to Afghanistan, international meetings/ training & workshops
Surveys and assessments
Calendar of forthcoming activities
Planning for the first capacity building seminar for the MoPH was finalized. The seminar will be held on 31 st August and 1 st Sep 2002 and will be for senior staff and managers of the MoPH.
Initial work was done on preparing the National Development Budget Submission for the health sector.
Primary Health Care
Training of provincial health management teams on carrying out PHC activities is ongoing in
Kandahar, Herat, Jalalabad and Mazar.
A group of senior public health professionals from the MoPH will travel to Iran for a study tour to see the PHC and community level health care system from September 15 to 30.
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EPI & Polio Eradication
The preparatory status of Fall NID is almost completed. All vaccines including logistics are in place. The first round of the Fall NID will be held from 3-5 September 2002 targeting approximately 6 million children under five years of age. According to the MoPH and, for the first time in Afghan history, the president of Afghanistan, President Hamid Karzai, may launch the NID at the Kabul Stadium.
Five polio cases have been confirmed this year, including two this month. Additional polio immunization was carried out in the Western region where one of the cases was confirmed. An investigation team led by WHO & UNICEF is now visiting the Western and Southern Regions of
Afghanistan to assess the current challenges in national immunization days, AFP surveillance, and high-risk groups, including returnees and nomads.
Maternal and Child Health
1. MCH Working Group meeting was held on 27 th August 2002 at WHO Office in Kabul. The group discussed on mapping of MCH clinics in Kabul city as well as Job descriptions of the MCH staff. Draft job descriptions for Director of MCH clinic, Pediatrician, Obstetrician and Midwife have been developed during the meeting.
2. MCH Dept. MoPH /WHO have visited 5 MCH clinics in Kart-e-say, Mirwais Maidan , Gul khana , Qala-e-Wazir and Allaudine area .The purpose of the visit was to assess the
MCH services being provided in these clinics .
The next MCH Working group meeting is planned to be held on 9 th Sep 2002.
MoPH trainers whom have just completed a competency based training in Bangladesh on
Emergency Obstetric Care supported by UNICEF, are back in Kabul and will start practicing new acquired skills in active management of third stage labour paragraph uses and measures of infection prevention. Experience will be shared with all the staff of MoPH, the Organization of gynecologists, NGOs and other UN agencies.
The ongoing qualitative research on maternal mortality, carried out by an Afghan team and led by an anthropologist (CERE TECS research company) has now been completed in Lagman and is being pursued in Kandahar.
The Women’s Radio Health project designed to contribute to the reduction of maternal mortality through the provision of health information to women has begun with its launch on September 4, giving a training workshop on basic journalism skills for women journalists of the Educational Unit of Radio Afghanistan. The Women’s Radio Health project is co-financed by WHO and UNICEF with implementing partners from the MoPH, MoWA, BBC and Habitat. The project output will be the production of a series of health programs designed by the newly trained women journalists themselves.
Nutrition
Food Aid Forum meeting was held on 27 th Aug at WFP conference room, attended by UNHCR,
UNAMA, FAO, UNICEF, USAID, WHO, NGOs, Governmental organizations and Embassies. The results of the FAO / WFP food and crop supply assessment were presented. Up-dates on resources for the winterization plans as well as area of priority were discussed.
Ongoing supplementary feeding interventions in 134 feeding centers run by 26 NGO partners
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and supported by UNICEF in 32 provinces are continuing. In Panjwai District of the Southern
Area, the blanket feeding intervention in two IDP camps covers a total of 18 805 children. The treatment of severely malnourished children continues in 34 therapeutic centers located in different parts of the country.
To raise awareness on the importance of breast milk for growth and development of children and to protect the breastfeeding environment, orientation meetings were held in the Ministry of
Women Affairs, Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Rural Development and Rehabilitation.
UNICEF pursues preparatory work related to Vitamin C continues as well as the analysis of the salt situation analysis and a short-term strategy to support imports of iodized salt by salt traders.
Communicable Diseases
The number of severe dehydration is increasing. Emergency Task Forces are meeting regularly in all areas. Joint efforts concentrate on health education and chlorination of wells in areas of high risk. The overall situation is under control.
UNICEF has continued to supply infectious disease hospitals, including those run by NGOs in the northern region with medical supplies. The revitalization of ORT corners is part of the intervention is continuing in order to prevent shortage of therapeutic means for severe dehydration.
Water and Sanitation
Emergency chlorination project initiated on July 18,02 is on going. WHO is providing technical assistance as well as the hygiene education material. Arrangement for the third round of this activity has been made with UNICEF to avoid interruption in chlorination activities due to change of supporting agencies, UNICEF has agreed in response to WHO recommendation to proceed with the third round. The fourth round would be undertaken by WHO.
CWS staff participated in 08,02 WSG as well as in the hygiene education meetings. Moreover,
CWS staff participated in another preparatory meeting to discuss the details of another workshop to be held to specify the role local authorities and religious leaders in hygiene promotion in
Afghanistan.
CWS staff also participated in cholera task force meeting in MoPH.
Health Promotion
On August 25, 2002 Health Education Coordination meeting was held in the MoPH on the elaboration of the proposed manual at the Health Promotion workshop, held on September 15-18
2002. Dr.Atifi, Deputy Director of the Health Education Department stressed the involvement of
NGOs to expedite the process of the finalization of the manual in local languages for the health workers and health professionals on national level. The consensus among the group of NGOs
(IMC, ACF, AHDS, IFRC, Medair, SC/UK) was that all the stakeholders should attend the meeting on September 2, with all their publications at hand to start working on the manual.
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Central Area
EPI / PEI activities: Preparations for Fall NIDs
Training has been completed for all categories in the 47 districts of the central region:
Supervisors: 344, volunteers: 4,462, social mobilizers: 344, monitors: 83. Orientation of 220 religious leaders in the MoPH hall for further training of 1200 other mosque leaders to disseminate the NID’s messages.
Twenty-eight of the senior MoPH staff were trained for NID monitoring capacity building exercise to assure the better quality of NID’s.
Around 20 monitors of UN and NGOs have been trained for monitoring of all activities to reach the last child in remote areas.
Monitoring of Training: Every day three missions went to various districts to monitor the activities.
NIDs Coordination committee meeting were held to assure a high quality campaign. Monitoring activities were stressed upon. Arrangement for inauguration of FR-1 NIDs in Kabul stadium were made as Mr Hamed Karzai will inaugurate it.
Coordination meetings for supply and logistics of Fall NIDs 2002 have taken place at MoPH where REMT, UNICEF and WHO have finalized the plans and Supplies have been sent to the
Provincial cold rooms.
Social mobilization: messages and spots have been broadcasted through the Radio and TV for mobilization of the community.
AFP Surveillance: Two AFP cases have been detected this week from Dahsabz District of Kabul
Province and Ghorband District of Parwan Province. The two samples were adequate and in good condition when sent to the referral laboratory in Islamabad.
North-Eastern Area, Faizabad
During a visit of His Excellency President Hamid Karzai and Her Excellency Dr. Suahila Sidiq,
Minister of Public Health on August 27, a meeting with all local authorities, NGOs and agencies was held. Among other specific needs for the North Eastern Region, health was mentioned as an issue of high priority. The National Health Coordinator of WHO Faizabad sub-office briefed the president and t he minister on WHO’s activities in the area, ongoing since 1991.
A Technical Support Team for Health, comprising MoPH, UNICEF and WHO met to discuss the control of communicable diseases and the distribution of bed nets. To assist the MoPH in these activities, relevant districts were distributed between agencies (Baharak District will be supported by MsF, Zebak District by UNICEF, Jurm District by SCA). Suspected cases of cholera have been reported from Kishem and Jurm District. WHO is supporting the provision of necessary medical supplies.
An independent team visited Darayam and Jurm District to assess the quality of NIDs. The outcome was very positive; the door-to-door-strategy was found to be applied 100%. In the
Kokcha River High School a volley ball competition took place to promote the forthcoming round of NIDs. The athletes wore tricots with NID logos.
Kunduz
Continuation of Malaria mass treatment program in Kunduz and Khanabad District by 10 mobile teams as Malaria appears being a major Public Health problem in the area;
General Coordiantion meeting: IDPs from Amirabad camp, Khanabad and Bagh-I-Shirakat,
Kunduz, will stay in the camps due to security problems in their villages of origin; the number of returnees is increasing.
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Health education on the prevention on communicable diseases was carried out in Narrhin District, where still many people are without shelter after the severe earthquake in March. 8 teams went from village to village, mosque to mosque, school to school, providing information on safe water, personal hygiene and sanitation, EPI, safe motherhood, Malaria and ARI. The campaign was supported by SCA and WHO.
24 medical doctors and health workers of Pulikhumri hospital received refresher training in the management of acute watery diarrhea. In Baghlan Province 20 village health workers were trained on treatment and prevention of Malaria.
Western Area, Herat
A Malaria outbreak was reported from Jawand District, Badghis Province. The national Malaria officer and the regional EHA coordinator visited the area. 20 Village Health Workers were trained in reporting and treating Malaria.
On August 21 a joint mission (UNICEF, WFP, WHO, UNHCR, MFA, MOR) went to some villages in Ghor Province, close to the Iranian border as reports reached Herat, stating a deterioration of the food security, health, water and education situation. Within a total of 300 families 113 widows were counted. Previously the main income generated from livestock and drug trafficking. Both sources are not longer available. The complete mission report is available through UNAMA.
WHO, together with the MoPH will establish a mobile clinic in this area.
In both main IDP camps, Maslakh and Shaidayee, mortality rates remain under the emergency alert level; there is no outbreak of any communicable disease.
Southeastern Area, Ghazni
Monthly Health Coordination Meeting July 31: potential of epidemic prone diseases in the area was discussed; agencies agreed on using weekly watch wall chart for early detection of epidemics and weekly reporting to Ghazni, PHC department. An Emergency Task Force will meet on weekly basis; SCA, being the biggest NGO in the area, stated, that 250 medical staff of SCA will receive refresher training in CDD, ARI and other epidemic prone diseases. Other NGOs such as NCA, MsF and ARCS have also trained their staff and are ready for close collaboration for the control of Diarrheal Diseases. WHO has a sufficient amount of medical supplies for CDD in stock.
MCH: SCA has integrated MCH services to 12 BHC in the area, also providing one female medical doctor.
The district health profile was distributed to all participants. Data on health services should be updated.
5000 families have returned to Ghazni during the past months. As concerns on health problems were raised by UNHCR, a physician was seconded from MoPH to assist the returnees in this regard. WHO is supporting the provision of medical supplies.
Weekly emergency Task Force Meeting, August 20: no indication for Cholera in the area; chlorination of shallow wells is ongoing.
 August 31 to September 1, Library MoPH: First Capacity Building Seminar on Policy and
Strategy Development for MoPH senior staff
 Tuesday 10 September 2002, Malaria Task Force Meeting, Institute of Malaria and
Parasitic Diseases

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WHO Afghanistan Office
House No. 249, Street No. 10
Wazir Akbar Khan Mina
Kabul, Afghanistan
Tel: (0093) 70279010/1-2
Digital lines : 2300181/2
E-mail : registry@afg.emro.who.int
Fax No : 0047 233 08112 2207
WHO Afghanistan Support Office
P. O. Box No. 1936
House 218, Margalla Road, F-10/3
Islamabad, Pakistan
Tel: (92 51) 221 1224, 2104770.4
Fax: (92 51) 228 0830
E-mail: supply@whoafg.org
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