Regional Stories
November 2024"Death was present every minute, and people were lying around, infected with measles—especially children, the most defenseless—due to the lack of something as essential as vaccines," recalls nurse Julia Paredes López. At the age of 17, she was in a Mexican state locality called Loreto, in the state of Chihuahua, where she witnessed…
World Prematurity Day is celebrated every November 17th as a day to raise awareness of the challenges faced by premature babies and the critical need for quality neonatal care. In the context of this day, powerful stories emerge of families struggling to provide their premature children with the best possible care. PAHO emphasizes that quality…
November 2024Rocio Lazcano is an indigenous leader and President of the Social Health Council in the Department of Pando in Northern Bolivia, an area of rainforest that borders Brazil. She is passionate about ensuring the health of the indigenous population by advocating and representing the needs of the community.“It is very important for the…
October 2024A round 8,400 women die each year in the Americas due to preventable complications during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period. The main causes of maternal mortality in the region are hemorrhage (23.1%) and pregnancy-induced hypertension (22.1%). Insufficient contact between women and the healthcare system during pregnancy…
About 80% of the population in Colombia’s Putumayo Department lives in dispersed rural areas. Reaching them requires navigating rivers for five to six hours. “This makes it difficult for the population to travel to the health posts, and very difficult for the vaccines to reach all the communities and for the vaccination schedules to be complete,”…
In the context of World Rabies Day, the recent vaccination campaign for dogs and cats in Bolivia is an outstanding example of an effort to combat this disease. Countries in the Region of the Americas have reduced human cases by almost 98%, from 300 in 1983 to seven in 2023.— September 2024 —
T he 14 UTOPIAS in Iztapalapa, Mexico City, offer accessible public spaces, community kitchens, cultural centers, and sports activities to more than 1.8 million people. In the context of PAHO Wellness Week 2024, these initiatives are outstanding examples of local policies that promote and foster social cohesion, equity…
For several years, Haiti has been engulfed in a socioeconomic, political and humanitarian crisis that, since mid-September 2022, reached critical levels. The situation further escalated in February this year due to armed violence and gang control of territory.— August 2024 —Widespread insecurity and political instability have drastically…
I n the context of International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples, observed on 9 August each year, this story highlights ongoing efforts to raise awareness and improve the health of Indigenous communities in the Americas. International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples serves as a reminder of the urgent need to address those diseases…