PREVIEW

It takes health to end violence against children: Assessing alignment of national health policies with WHO’s Global Plan of Action to address interpersonal violence

June 12, 2018
Authors: Meghan Stanley
Organization: World Vision International, Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children

The World Health Organization has adopted a Global Plan of Action to strengthen the role of the health system to respond to violence against women and children.  This Global Plan for Action officially recognizes the role that the health system must play and provides a mandate for countries and their health systems to address violence against children as a global and urgent public health problem.  How well are health systems doing in meeting their mandate?  World Vision undertook a review of 24 countries’ national health policies to identify whether they are aligned with the global plan and to formulate recommendations for future policies.  The report provides an assessment of current health systems to address violence against children, identifies promising practices as well as challenges and gaps for country health systems to address.