World Health Day and World Health worker week - this coming week

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World Health Day

April 7  - 'Small bite, big threat'

More than half the world’s population is at risk from diseases such as malaria, dengue, leishmaniasis, Lyme disease, schistosomiasis, and yellow fever, carried by mosquitoes, flies, ticks, water snails and other vectors. Every year, more than one billion people are infected and more than one million die from vector-borne diseases.

This World Health Day – 7 April – WHO is highlighting the serious and increasing threat of vector-borne diseases, with the slogan “Small bite, big threat”.

The Organization also emphasizes that these diseases are entirely preventable. Newly published "A global brief on vector-borne diseases" outlines steps that governments, community groups and families can all take to protect people from infection.

On World Health Day 2014, WHO is calling for a renewed focus on vector control and better provision of safe water, sanitation and hygiene – key strategies outlined in WHO’s 2011 Roadmap for the control, elimination and eradication of neglected tropical diseases, which sets targets for the period 2012–2020.

World Health Worker Week

 April 7-11

They are caretakers.
They are educators
They are your neighbors, friends, and family.
They are on the front lines every day.
This April, show the world just how much health workers count.

The WHO has released an "engagement toolkit" for World Health Worker week.