Worldcrunch
Poland is known for having the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe. As political debates about the issue rage on, a Gazeta Wyborcza investigation finds that women are dying in medical facilities — notably in John Paul II Hospital — because doctors refuse to perform life-saving abortions.
That it fools nobody is essential to the plot. That people are dying turns it into tragedy.
An outbreak of Hepatitis-A led to the deaths of two children in an isolated village in Kashmir. Some point fingers at the lack of surveillance by trained doctors and poor sanitation, and others, to the faith villagers place in traditional healers.
Seven out of ten children in Egypt are born by Caesarian section, over three times the world average, according to recent government data. C-sections may be more profitable and easier to schedule for overworked and understaffed medical personnel, but they represent a higher physical and mental health risk for new mothers and babies. Civil society and the government are trying to bring more awareness — but reversing the trend will take time.
The U.S. will stop funding vaccines but says it wants equitable access. That’s not possible in a predatory system.
India is one of the world’s worst countries for air pollution, with women more likely to be affected by the problem than men. Now, experts and activists are fighting to reframe pollution as a gendered health crisis.
Too many people no longer follow basic protocol: mask wearing, physical distancing and avoiding crowded events. The consequences are an increase in both daily case numbers and long COVID.
Traditional medicines, once banned, have regained favor. Government and health officials are endorsing them alongside COVID-19 vaccinations.
Among the most immediate effects of the overturning of Roe v. Wade is that women who find themselves in states where abortion is outlawed will travel to where it is legal. But that of course requires the right information and economic means to do so.
Death rates are down, masks are off, but many who have been infected by COVID have still not recovered. Long COVID continues to be hard to diagnose and treatments are still in the developmental stage.
From self-induced trance to psychedelics, altered states of consciousness are experiencing a renewed interest in the scientific community for their therapeutic value.
A growing number of studies around the world show that COVID and lockdown restrictions have prompted a disproportionate increase in mental health illness and suicide attempts among adolescent females.
A Swiss-German anti-vax dating app is the latest tool for COVID-19 skeptics. As the pandemic becomes increasingly politicized around the world, will it permanently change how and who we date?
With the country’s mental health care severely lacking, Haitians seek the assistance of Vodou priests.
In Canada’s Western province of Alberta, hospital beds are running out and forcing officials to “triage” to decide who does and doesn’t get care. The same formula should not apply to those who have chosen not to get the COVID vaccine.
This small Italian town is remembered well for being on the front line in the fight against COVID-19. Now it faces vaccine hesitancy.
Relatives of an 84-year-old said they left her at a clinic overnight after medics had refused to even look at a worsening leg infection. Who’s responsibility is it?
Countries are rolling out increasingly aggressive campaigns in an international effort to vaccinate the world out of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two weeks ago, Italy became the first European country to make COVID-19 health passes mandatory for all workers, while others, including the U.S, France and Hungary, have mandated vaccination for federal workers or healthcare staff. […]
Video captures doseless jab…
Delays, reluctance, shortages… the rollout of the coronavirus vaccines across the world has been beset by some recurring obstacles.
‘Covidization’ of healthcare systems worldwide has led to rising mortality rates in pathologies like cancer, and more births in the Third World.
PORTLAND — I’m far from the first American living in Europe to extol the virtues of universal health care. It’s almost a cliche at this point, but may have renewed relevance as the pandemic has laid bare the failures in medical systems around the world. After living through COVID-19 in France, a trip home would […]
The scale and spread of the coronavirus pandemic may make so-called ‘herd immunity’ virtually inevitable, but it can also prompt Argentina to integrate its scattered healthcare services into a single, national service.
Skeptical. Overwhelmed. Disappointed. Exhausted. Helpless. Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, healthcare workers have felt it all. But in recent weeks, doctors and nurses around the world have added one adjective to their list of feelings: angry. In Europe, the mood has indeed shifted from the images of people applauding their medical heroes every night, from […]
The 1968 pandemic was the first spread by mass air travel on its way to a toll of 1 million dead. Yet somehow it has been largely ignored by history, even if its lessons raise many questions for the COVID-19 world.
The insidious path of COVID-19 across the planet is a blunt reminder of how small the world has become. For the coming weeks, Worldcrunch will be delivering daily updates on this crisis from the best, most trusted international news sources — regardless of language or geography. To receive the daily Coronavirus Global Brief in your […]
With its oil-dependent economy and mostly privatized healthcare system, Colombia is particularly ill prepared for the pandemic.
To meet its current healthcare needs, France looks to the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec which are giving more autonomy to nurses rather than boost the number of doctors.
In the absence of qualified staff, grandmothers from the Friendship Benches program offer free listening and advice to patients suffering from depression.
As the bombs continue to drop on parts of Syria, doctors struggle to give basic medical care to women, which then has ramifications for children.
Hong Kongers really like soup. Is that the secret to their long leases on life?
Growing old doesn’t necessarily have to mean leaving a beloved home. A growing market of technology-related services for senior citizens is helping them to keep their beloved independence.
BEIJING — Earlier this month, in the central Hunan province, the family of a cancer patient beat up the attending doctor and a pregnant nurse because they had been unable to save the patient’s life. The nurse nearly had a miscarriage afterwards, while the hospital ward facilities were badly damaged. On June 5, the Chinese […]
An Aleppo ear-nose-and-throat specialist had to suddenly face the treating of war’s horrific injuries, especially after a government barrel-bomb offensive began there in December.
Set to be available in the US this year, this mixture of medicines in one pill is aimed at reducing heart attacks. Its inventor says even middle age people with no symptons should take it.
Doctors are left “playing God,” having to choose which patient will get the costly treatment.
MADRID – Since September 1, undocumented immigrants in Spain are now excluded from public health care. Only pregnant women and minors can still enjoy free public coverage, which had long been available to all undocumented residents. Others can still get care in cases of emergency, but for basic medical treatment, immigrants in Spain illegally will […]
MOSCOW – Although the World Health Organization (WHO) has been monitoring the state of health in various countries for the past 60 years, it has never explicitly compared countries with one another. So Bloomberg news, using WHO data as well as other data from the World Bank and the United Nations, put together a rating […]