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Children : the hidden pandemic 2021 : a joint report of COVID-19- associated orphanhood and a strategy for action
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July 19, 2021
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[PDF-26.53 MB]
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Description:No country is unaffected by the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic. The data on death and illness have clearly focused attention on the tragic and disproportionate burden among older adults – yet this has served to divert attention and understanding away from the needs of the world’s children. History conveys clear lessons of how short-sighted it is to ignore children and their needs in a pandemic1. The ramifications are lifelong and inter- generational. As early as 2002 the HIV/AIDS epidemic provided a stark example: when parental death was examined, much of it was found to be clustered in the world’s poorest social environments2. For children, the death of a parent, the loss of their caregiver and abrupt changes to their lives have a devastating and long-term impact on their economic, physical, and emotional welfare. The “Children on the Brink 2002”3 report, addressing the consequences of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, foresaw that an unprecedented crisis was underway and projected that international assistance would be needed for “at least two decades”. That report informed a global strategy that addressed the needs of HIV/AIDS-affected “orphaned and vulnerable children” and provided many lessons in response, prevention, and care2. This year – 2021 – marks two decades of progressive reductions in HIV/AIDS prevalence, yet as a lasting legacy, there remain close to 14 million children who have lost one or both parents to AIDS.
Today, the world is faced with another new and devastating pandemic that has left vast numbers of bereaved children in its wake, at an unprecedented speed. The COVID-19 pandemic had, by the end of April 2021, left over 1.5 million children experiencing the death of a parent or a grandparent caregiver who lived in their homes and helped care for them. Without immediate action, the COVID-19 pandemic is destined to leave millions more children orphaned. This is a critical moment to understand how COVID-19 will affect the lives of children, how lessons learned from prior emergencies can be adapted, and how an understanding of complex adversities can maximize the effectiveness of our response.
“Children: The Hidden Pandemic 2021 – A joint report of COVID-19- associated orphanhood and a strategy for action” reflects the contributions of technical experts from all core agencies contributing as co-authors to the linked report in the Lancet, “Global minimum estimates of children affected by COVID-19-associated orphanhood and deaths of caregivers: a modeling study.” (Published Online July 20, 2021. Available at https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(21)01253-8), prepared by the Global Reference Group on Children Affected by COVID-19: Joint Estimates and Action.
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orphanhood-report.pdf?ACSTrackingID=USCDC_490-DM61693&ACSTrackingLabel=Hidden%20Pandemic%3A%201.5M%20children%20have%20lost%20a%20caregiver%20due%20to%20COVID-19&deliveryName=USCDC_490-DM61693
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Content Notes:PREFACE -- INTRODUCTION -- TOLL OF COVID-19 ON CHILDREN -- ENDURING IMPACTS ON CHILDREN, FAMILIES, AND COMMUNITIES -- A STRATEGY FOR CARING ACTION -- APPENDIX 1: Estimates by Country for COVID-19-associated Orphanhood and Death among Caregivers -- APPENDIX 2: Methods and Additional Regional Results -- REFERENCES.
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Pages in Document:60 numbered pages
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