· January, 2009

Stories about Health from January, 2009

Palestine: “They used our clothes as a toilet”

  31 January 2009

Bloggers in Gaza are gathering information about what happened during the recent Israeli attacks. In this update, we hear from families whose homes were looted and left covered with faeces by Israeli soldiers, learn what the effects of DIME weapons are, and are told the story of a father whose baby daughter was shot, his wife breastfeeding the girl as she bled to death.

Indonesia: Fatwa against smoking, yoga, vasectomies….

  30 January 2009

Indonesian bloggers are reacting to the Fatwa issued by the Indonesian Ulema Council which included, among others, a ban on yoga that contain Hindu elements, a ban on vote abstention, a ban on smoking in public places, and a ban on vasectomy.

R.E.S.C.A.T.A.R.: Dengue: Manu militari contra la irresponsabilidad

  30 January 2009

Carlos Rodríguez of Rescatar [es] writes that is shameful that the local government must threaten property owners to keep their land free of standing water, which is a breeding ground for mosquitoes. This is very important since Paraguay is suffering from the spread of dengue caused by these mosquitoes.

Ethiopia: What a Difference Water Makes

  30 January 2009

At the end of last year, five families decided that visiting Ethiopia with their daughters would be the best way for them to see what their donations to provide fresh, clean and safe water sources were doing to change the lives of families and complete villages. Through their blog and videos, they have been able to share the importance of charity:water in making this possible, and hopefully raise more donations and engage more people to help.

Jamaica, Zimbabwe: Hunger Strike

  29 January 2009

“Do people in Jamaica and the Caribbean care enough about events in Zimbabwe to lend their help to this call for moral action?”: Annie Paul has a friend who is on a hunger strike to draw attention to the humanitarian crisis in Zimbabwe and tells us how we can help.

Ukraine: Medical Center for Street Children

  28 January 2009

Scenes from the Sidewalk posts pictures and writes about the only medical center in Kyiv “where street children can get medical attention without documents”: “Many At-Risk Children or street children do not have these documents and will be turned away at the door if they try to get medical attention....

Russia: “Economic Shock Therapy”

  28 January 2009

Sean's Russia Blog cites the director of the Serbsky State Scientific Center for Social and Forensic Psychiatry, who says that “since the financial crisis requests for psychologists have grown by 10 percent and psychotherapy by 20 percent. So much so that the Center has opened a hotline for people in...

Cuba: Political Prisoners

  27 January 2009

Diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense reports on the experience of some of Cuba's political prisoners because he believes that “it is a truth that one day will set them, and their country, free.”

Barbados: Help Needed

  27 January 2009

“If you need an ambulance in Barbados…call a newspaper reporter!”: Barbados Free Press hates “the ‘island time’ third world standards and attitudes that keep us down.”

Taiwan: Photos of industrial town

  25 January 2009

Daliao Township in Kaohsiung County has been the site of several poisonous gas leaks in the past two months. The EPA came under fire for its poor handling of the case and a protest by locals turned violent. Shan Ding Lu has a photo essay of the town showing the...

Brunei: Better pay for doctors

  24 January 2009

Brunei doctors are asking for higher salaries: “Doctors deserve a high salary. After all those long demanding years of study and training; and the demanding long hours of work day and night.”

Bolivia: Dealing With Dengue Fever

  23 January 2009

Heavy rains in the Bolivian Orient help create the breeding ground for mosquitos that spread the virus that causes dengue fever. There is also a much more severe form which causes dengue hemorrhagic fever and has already caused 3 deaths in the country. One blogger writes about firsthand experience with this illness.

Cuba: Quelling the Rumours

  22 January 2009

Child of the Revolution confirms that recent rumours of Fidel Castro's demise have been just that – thanks to reports from Havana that the president of Argentina met with him on the last day of her visit to the island.

Trinidad & Tobago, Bahamas: Start at Home

  22 January 2009

While Alien in the Caribbean [Trinidad & Tobago] encourages those with dysfunctional families to finally break free, Doing Theology from the Caribbean [Bahamas] suggests that peacemaking begins at home.

Iran: AIDS Doctors face prison

  21 January 2009

Physicians for human rights site reports that Kamiar and Arash Alaie are sentenced to terms of three and six years respectively. This site calls this imprisonment as first test of Obama Administration. Read more here.

Bangladesh: Drug Users And HIV

  21 January 2009

HIV infections are on the rise in Dhaka city, the capital of Bangladesh. Photo Journalist Monirul Alam posts a photo in his Photoblog showing street drug users injecting with used syringes.

About our Health coverage

Juhie Bhatia
Juhie Bhatia is the Global Health editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.