Children and COVID-19 Research Library

The current Covid-19 pandemic has interested the whole word, changing habits and use of places and cities. In the lockdown period, cities and public spaces became completely empty and new urban landscapes substituted the previous ones, transforming the private in public. Children, young and elder people were those who mainly had problems: to them, real life was negated at the time of their life in which this is more important. In Italy, the second country after China which was interested by the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown, the reopening of all the public spaces happened after 2 months of closure. This allowed again “in presence” social interactions, although in respect of the physical distance, confirming the importance of these places for all people. Starting from these premises, the aim of this paper is to present the results of a study carried in the framework of the Horizon 2020 research project Urban Maestro, New Governance Strategies for Urban Design, of the ISMed-National Research Council post Covid research, and of the INU Community Public Space,the last two initiatives coordinated by the author. The objective is to identify the relationships between theory and practice of the Charter of Public Space after 10 years of its creation, and verify its validity, in particular, in this Covid-19 emergency period.

This report presents key indicators on health and health systems in 33 Latin America and the Caribbean countries. This first Health at a Glance publication to cover the Latin America and the Caribbean region was prepared jointly by OECD and the World Bank. Analysis is based on the latest comparable data across almost 100 indicators including equity, health status, determinants of health, health care resources and utilisation, health expenditure and financing, and quality of care. The editorial discusses the main challenges for the region brought by the COVID‑19 pandemic, such as managing the outbreak as well as mobilising adequate resources and using them efficiently to ensure an effective response to the epidemic. An initial chapter summarises the comparative performance of countries before the crisis, followed by a special chapter about addressing wasteful health spending that is either ineffective or does not lead to improvement in health outcomes so that to direct saved resources where they are urgently needed.

In health outcomes terms, the poorest countries stand to lose the most from these disruptions. In this paper, we make the case for a rational approach to public sector health spending and decision making during and in the early recovery phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on ethics and equity principles, it is crucial to ensure that patients not infected by COVID-19 continue to get access to healthcare and that the services they need continue to be resourced. We present a list of 120 essential non-COVID-19 health interventions that were adapted from the model health benefit packages developed by the Disease Control Priorities project.

This commentary aims to examine the crucial role of dissemination and implementation (D&I) science—the study of methods to promote adoption and integration of evidence-based research in real-world policy or practice—to improve public health post–COVID-19. D&I science was created for this very situation, in which scientific knowledge is greatly needed but only if it holds practical relevance for the policy, environmental, and organizational systems that advance health. The paper discusses the application of D&I science to rapid evaluations of federal child nutrition assistance programs deployed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Child abuse and neglect are high‐priority public health issues around the world, but it is known that early care for families with parenting anxiety and stress is essential for preventing abuse (World Health Organization, 2006). In Japan, the country has created a national campaign plan called The Second Term of Healthy Parents and Children 21 (2015‐2024) to address two prioritized agenda: (1) supporting parents with difficulties raising their children; and (2) preventing child abuse from pregnancy. Public health nurses (PHNs) play a crucial role in preventing child abuse and neglect by providing family healthcare in each municipality. In Japan, more than 70% of PHNs work for municipalities or prefectures covering people at various health stages from birth to old age, identifying health issues for infants and their parents before preschool through a variety of health checkups and home visits.