Global Health

Steve Hillyar, a volunteer firefighter in Australia's New South Wales, suffered sleepless nights and lingering sounds of smoke detectors long after the fire had been put out.

As Fires Worsen, A Mental Health Crisis For Those Battling Them

7:02pm February 26, 2021

by Nathan Rott

Wildfires are burning more frequently and intensely in a warming world, making them harder to put out. Some fire agencies are expanding support as they see increased cases of anxiety and depression.

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According to the CDC using a brace or mask fitter over a disposable mask or a cloth mask is a good way to make your mask more secure and prevent leaks.

Health & Safety

Coronavirus FAQs: What Are Mask Braces? What If I Get COVID After 1 Vaccine Dose?

5:31pm February 26, 2021

Double masking earns praise as a way to keep safe from more contagious variants. Are there other mask hacks? And vaccines are prompting some queries.

A British Airways plane comes in to land behind a tail fin at Heathrow Airport in London. On Friday, the head of the group that owns BA called for instituting an electronic health pass for passengers as the company announced steep losses due to COVID-19.

British Airways Owner Calls For Digital Health Passes For Passengers

4:26pm February 26, 2021

by Scott Neuman

Luis Gallego, the CEO of International Airlines Group, wants "common testing standards and the introduction of digital health passes."

Hunt, Gather, Parent: What Ancient Cultures Can Teach Us About the Lost Art of Raising Happy, Helpful Little Humans, by Michaeleen Doucleff

'Hunt, Gather, Parent' Offers Lessons Collected Around The World

6:00am February 25, 2021

by Rachel Martin

NPR's Michaeleen Doucleff found that parenting books she read after becoming a mom left a lot out. When she went through a tough period with her daughter, she traveled the world in search of guidance.

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Polio vaccinator Zeenat Parveen, holding the clipboard, and a volunteer go door-to-door to reach children in Rawalpindi, a city near the Pakistani capital of Islamabad.

Pakistan's Polio Playbook Has Lessons For Its COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout

2:30pm February 24, 2021

by Diaa Hadid

The pandemic has slowed efforts to eradicate the contagious disease. Yet the country's polio effort offers insights on the launch of its coronavirus vaccine campaign.

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An employee makes dry ice pellets at Capitol Carbonic, a dry ice factory in Baltimore in Nov. 2020. Dry ice helps keep COVID-19 vaccines cool during transport.

What Is A Cold Chain? And Why Do So Many Vaccines Need It?

2:19pm February 24, 2021

by Pranav Baskar

Many of the coronavirus vaccines like it cold. Really cold. Sub-zero cold. Why is this the case? And how is the world handling this frigid requirement?

A shipment of COVID-19 vaccines from the COVAX global program arrived at the Kotoka International Airport in Accra on Wednesday, as Ghana received the group's first vaccine shipment.

Ghana Becomes First Country To Get COVAX Vaccine Doses

2:11pm February 24, 2021

by Bill Chappell

The shipments are the start of "what should be the largest vaccine procurement and supply operation in history," the WHO and UNICEF say.

Dr. Rochelle Walensky likens the call she got from the Biden team, asking her to lead the CDC amid a pandemic, to a hospital alarm that goes off when a patient's heart has stopped. "I got called during a code," she says. "And when you get called during a

Biden's Straight-Talking CDC Director Has Long Used Data To Save Lives

11:21am February 24, 2021

by Carey Goldberg

Dr. Rochelle Walensky says scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were "muzzled" and "diminished" by the Trump team, especially during the pandemic. She aims to fix that.

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(Left to right) Tippy Tap, Oxfam hand-washing station and SolaWash

A Tale Of The Taps: Which Hand-Washing Station Is Best In Emergencies?

9:29am February 24, 2021

by Rosemary Misdary

In areas with limited access to clean running water, hand-washing stations can help limit the spread of disease. But experts say not all taps are created equal.

Top left: An officer asks people to observe lockdown rules in Brighton, England. Bottom left: A protester at a lockdown demonstration in Brussels, Belgium last month. Top right: Malaysian health officers screen passengers with a thermal scanner at Kuala L

Do 'Tight' Cultures Fare Better In The Pandemic Than 'Loose' Cultures?

9:48pm February 23, 2021

by Fran Kritz

That's the question posted by a study in The Lancet Planetary Health. In case you're wondering, the United States is characterized as "loose." And Singapore is "tight."