Photo by Erin Patrick, Women’s Refugee Commission. Woman and Baby, Thailand.

In addition to establishing health clinics and providing care, health actors undertake education campaigns on the prevention and management of health concerns, including hand-washing and sanitation, for example. When displaced women and children are exposed to noxious smoke and indoor air pollution (IAP) from cooking fires day after day, often for as much as three to seven hours per day, they are prone to respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia. Young children are particularly susceptible to dying from respiratory disease, as their lungs are not fully developed. Gender based violence and physical assault during firewood collection can cause lasting physical and psycho-social damage, and increase the risk of contracting HIV. As fuel gatherers walk many miles and carry several kilos on their backs, they are prone to dehydration, as well as physical pain and injuries. Undercooking food because of a lack of cooking fuel, can lead to foodborne illness. Finally, access to clean, safe and sufficient household energy is also vital for general health care.

Health Resources

General
Indoor Air Pollution
 

General

Evaluating Household Energy and Health Interventions: A catalogue of methods   
Tools/Manuals/Handbooks

Author: World Health Organization (WHO)

Date: 2008

Synopsis: This catalogue provides information on a diverse range of methods for evaluating household energy interventions, as well as basic guidance on choosing between various evaluation options according to feasibility, organizational objectives, type of intervention etc.

Programme for Biomass Energy Conservation in Southern Africa: The role of household energy conservation in HIV/AIDS mitigation
Presentations

Author: Programme for Basic Energy and Conservation (ProBEC)/German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ)

Date: 2006

Synopsis: This presentation describes how household energy conservation indirectly mitigates the effects of HIV/AIDS by decreasing stress, increasing food security/nutrition and reducing vulnerability to infection through indoor air pollution, for example.

Clinical Management of Rape Survivors: Developing protocols for use with refugees and internally displaced persons
Guidelines/Standards

Author: World Health Organization (WHO) & United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

Date: 2004

Synopsis: Intended for qualified health care professionals, this guide describes best practices in the clinical management of rape victims in emergency situations. Specifically, this guide outlines eight steps in clinical management: making preparations, preparing the survivor for examination, taking the history, collecting forensic evidence, performing the physical/genital exam, prescribing treatment, counseling, and follow-up care.

Indoor Air Pollution (IAP)

Technologies to Reduce Emissions Harmful to Health: Report of a Landscape Analysis of Evidence and Experience

Reports
Author: USAID-TRAction Project & University Research Co., LLC                             

Date: November 2010

Synopsis: This landscape analysis reports on evidence linking Indoor Air Pollution (IAP) to adverse health and experiences with technologies and interventions to mitigate IAP. Specifically, the report highlights knowledge gaps that remain in the scientific literature that links IAP exposure to ill-health, identifies challenges in bringing IAP mitigation technologies to scale and assesses the landscape of international donor support for these mitigation efforts. Additionally, the report identifies six countries in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa suitable for IAP mitigation technology scale-up and continued research. Lastly, it outlines four priority areas of research and study.

Environmental Health Risk and the Use of Biomass Stoves in Sri Lanka
Reports

Author: RTI International

Date: October 2010

Synopsis: This research brief examines environmental health risks in Sri Lanka due to indoor air pollution (IAP) from biomass stove use. As Sri Lanka has burgeoning aging and young populations, IAP poses significant health risks for large segments of the population that are likely to be at home during biomass stove operation. Further research and analysis are required to inform public health policy, advocacy and interventions.

Firewood and Pneumonia: A Fatal Combination in Humanitarian Settings
Reports

Author: Women’s Refugee Commission

Date: 2009

Synopsis: This document outlines the correlation between displacement and the burning of firewood, which causes indoor air pollution (IAP) and increases the risk of pneumonia and other acute lower respiratory infections in children under five. This document also briefly outlines the objectives of WRC’s Fuel and Firewood Initiative.

Indoor Air Pollution and Lower Respiratory Tract Infections in Children
Reports

Author: World Health Organization (WHO)

Date: 2007

Synopsis: This document reports on the preliminary results of a randomized control trial (RCT), presented at the International Society of Environmental Epidemiology in Paris (2006), examining the effect of the reduction in air pollution exposures on the health outcomes of 500 Mayan Indian children in Guatemala, using improved woodstoves with chimneys as the intervention (versus open wood fires). While more research is needed, it was concluded that improved stoves reduce IAP and hence the incidence of acute lower respiratory infection in infants.

Fuel for Life: Household Energy and Health
Reports

Author: World Health Organization (WHO)

Date: 2006

Synopsis: This report describes the global burden of disease due to indoor air pollution (IAP), energy poverty, the connection between household energy and the millennium development goals (MDGs), and the necessary investment and scale up of interventions. 

Energie Domestique et Santé: Des combustibles pour vivre mieux
Reports

Auteur: Organisation Mondiale de la Santé (OMS)

Date: 2006

Synopsis: Ce rapport décrit la charge mondiale de morbidité due à la pollution de l’air intérieur, la pauvreté énergétique, les liens entre l’énergie domestique et les objectifs de millénaire pour le développement (OMD), et   l'investissement et l’échelle nécessaire pour des interventions efficaces.

Energía Doméstica y Salud: Combustible para una vida mejor
Reports

Autor: Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS)

Fecha: 2006

Sinopsis: Este informe describe la carga mundial de morbilidad debido a la contaminación del aire en interiores, la pobreza de energía, la conexión entre la energía doméstica y los objetivos de desarrollo del milenio (ODM), y la inversión necesaria y el aumento de intervenciones.

Author: World Health Organization (WHO)

Date: 2006

Synopsis: These guidelines introduce the cost-benefit framework for evaluating household energy interventions to reduce indoor air pollution (IAP). These guidelines describe the approach in a step-by-step manner and are intended for economists and professionals working on household energy, the environment and health.

Indoor Air Pollution and Household Energy Monitoring: Workshop Resources
Tools/Manuals/Handbooks

Author: World Health Organization (WHO)

Date: 2005

Synopsis: These workshop resources provide training on how to monitor and evaluate interventions and programs aimed at ameliorating the negative health and social effects of indoor air pollution (IAP).

Indoor Air Pollution, Health and the Burden of Disease
Reports

Author: World Health Organization (WHO)

Date: 2005

Synopsis: This is WHO’s second thematic briefing on indoor air pollution: its health effects and the global burden of disease by geographic region.

Indoor air pollution from solid fuels and risk of low birth weight and still birth
Reports

Author: World Health Organization (WHO)

Date: September 2005

Synopsis: This report summarizes the evidence linking maternal/fetal exposure to indoor air pollution (IAP) to both low birth weight (LBW) and stillbirth, as reviewed in a symposium held at ISEE 2005 in Johannesburg. It concludes that there is consistent evidence linking solid fuel exposure with both LBW and stillbirth outcomes.

Indoor Smoke from Solid Fuels: Assessing the environmental burden of disease at national and local levels
Tools/Manuals/Handbooks

Author: World Health Organization (WHO)                     

Date: 2004

Synopsis: This guide outlines a method for estimating the disease burden caused by household exposures to indoor smoke from solid fuels, using a combination of exposure levels and relative risks. This guide is designed to help policy-makers identify and prioritize environmental and public health interventions, at national or local levels.