Global Health

Leif Parsons for NPR

Goats and Soda

What, Really, Does 'Sustainable' Mean?

September 23, 2015 • A version of the word sustainable appears at least 75 times in the sustainable development goals the U.N. will endorse this weekend. We asked some analysts to tell us what, exactly, it means.

The World Is Running Out Of A Critical Snakebite Antidote

Black mambas are one of the fastest snakes in the world and grow up to 14 feet long. But their venom is no match for the antidote Fav-Afrique. Balint Porneczi/Bloomberg/Getty Images hide caption

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Balint Porneczi/Bloomberg/Getty Images

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The World Is Running Out Of A Critical Snakebite Antidote

September 9, 2015 • If a venomous snake bites you in Africa, you're likely to survive when you're near a hospital. That might not be the case next year.

The World Is Running Out Of A Critical Snakebite Antidote

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What Jimmy Carter Did After His 'Involuntary Retirement'

A long legacy in global health: Former President Jimmy Carter has worked to end neglected diseases since 1982. Here he sits with former South African President Nelson Mandela at a ceremony in Soweto, celebrating a new AIDS project in 2002. AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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AFP/Getty Images

Goats and Soda

What Jimmy Carter Did After His 'Involuntary Retirement'

August 20, 2015 • The former president is now fighting cancer. For the past 30 years, he has fought to wipe out diseases that plague millions of people. The efforts have brought one parasite to the edge of eradication.

Zero Ebola Cases Reported In Sierra Leone, As Epidemic Peters Out

A celebration erupts in the streets of the Massessehbeh village on Friday, after President Ernest Bai Koroma officially ended Sierra Leone's largest remaining Ebola quarantine. Sunday Alamba/AP hide caption

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Sunday Alamba/AP

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Zero Ebola Cases Reported In Sierra Leone, As Epidemic Peters Out

August 20, 2015 • A year ago, West Africa was reporting more than 500 new Ebola cases each week. This week, the region had just three. Could the epidemic finally be grinding to a halt?

One Man's Quest To Combat Counterfeit Drugs — With A Suitcase

The PharmaChk is a bit like a litmus test for drugs: You pop in a pill at one end, and in 15 minutes, a number appears on a screen telling you the drug's potency. Mahafreen H. Mistry/NPR hide caption

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Mahafreen H. Mistry/NPR

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One Man's Quest To Combat Counterfeit Drugs — With A Suitcase

August 10, 2015 • Fake and shoddy medications kill about 100,000 people around the world each year. Many "drugs" are no more than just chalk or water. An engineer in Boston is trying to change that.

Ebola Vaccine Hailed As 'Game Changer' In Fight Against The Virus

A woman receives the rVSV-ZEBOV Ebola vaccine at a clinical trial in Conakry, Guinea. The vaccine appears effective after only one shot. Cellou Binani/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Cellou Binani/AFP/Getty Images

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Ebola Vaccine Hailed As 'Game Changer' In Fight Against The Virus

July 31, 2015 • In a small trial, an experimental vaccine protected 100 percent of people at high risk for Ebola. But more data are needed to figure out exactly how well the vaccine works.

Ebola Vaccine Hailed As 'Game Changer' In Fight Against The Virus

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What Do A Chlorinator And A Condom Tied To A Catheter Have In Common?

Slum dwellers near Calcutta get their water from a municipal pipe. Water coming out of the tap on the left is for bathing and so is untreated. The blue Zimba chlorinator is hooked up to the tap on the right, which is used for drinking water. Courtesy of Suprio Das/Zimba hide caption

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Courtesy of Suprio Das/Zimba

Goats and Soda

What Do A Chlorinator And A Condom Tied To A Catheter Have In Common?

July 17, 2015 • They're both featured on a list of 30 innovations that could save millions of lives over the next 15 years.

Cholera Vaccine Protects Whole Community, Even Unvaccinated

A family receives treatment for cholera at a clinic run by Doctors Without Borders in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in October 2011, a year after the overwhelming outbreak began. Ramon Espinosa/AP hide caption

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Ramon Espinosa/AP

Goats and Soda

Cholera Vaccine Protects Whole Community, Even Unvaccinated

July 10, 2015 • A cheap, oral vaccine — about the size of an "energy shot" — offers fresh hope for preventing cholera epidemics, like the one that has killed nearly 10,000 people in Haiti.

Tough Painkiller Rules Push Some Russian Cancer Patients To Suicide

Russia has strict rules on dispensing painkillers. Family members say some cancer patients killed themselves because they could not obtain the medicine and the pain was too great. Andy Baker/Ikon Images/Getty Images hide caption

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Andy Baker/Ikon Images/Getty Images

Parallels

Tough Painkiller Rules Push Some Russian Cancer Patients To Suicide

July 10, 2015 • The rules have been altered following cases where patients killed themselves, saying they couldn't bear the pain and couldn't get painkillers. But advocates say the changes haven't gone far enough.

Tough Painkiller Rules Push Some Russian Cancer Patients To Suicide

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A woman in Yatta, Kenya, explains how to make clean water using a car battery and just the right mixture of salt and water. Jane Mauser/Courtesy of MSR hide caption

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Jane Mauser/Courtesy of MSR

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How Salt + Car Battery = Clean Water

July 2, 2015 • A clever device uses technology developed by the military to make chlorine quickly and cheaply. The goal is to give schools and hospitals around the world an easy way to purify water.

Ebola Returns To Liberia With A Mysterious Case Near Monrovia

Health workers wash their hands after taking a blood sample from a child to test for the Ebola virus. On Tuesday, the workers tested people in the village outside Monrovia where a 17-year-old boy died of the disease over the weekend. Abbas Dulleh/AP hide caption

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Abbas Dulleh/AP

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Ebola Returns To Liberia With A Mysterious Case Near Monrovia

June 30, 2015 • A teenage boy tested positive for Ebola in a town outside the capital city. It's unknown where he caught the virus, and health officials are concerned the case could spark another outbreak.

Having many different species of animals around may reduce people's risk of catching some diseases. Anne Wilson/Ikon Images/Corbis hide caption

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Anne Wilson/Ikon Images/Corbis

Goats and Soda

Save Wildlife, Save Yourself?

June 26, 2015 • Protecting the environment may reduce many diseases, such as Lyme and West Nile, a study finds. The tantalizing idea suggests that conservation and human health may be more connected than we thought.

Pot For Parasites? Pygmy Men Smoke Out Worms

An Aka man smokes hemp while hunting in the Central African Republic. Veronique Durruty/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images hide caption

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Veronique Durruty/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images

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Pot For Parasites? Pygmy Men Smoke Out Worms

June 23, 2015 • When it comes to reefer madness, nobody can top a group of traditional hunter-gatherers in the Congo Basin. About 70 percent of men smoke cannabis. The drug could be doing more than getting them high.

Will A Surgical Mask Keep You Safe In A Viral Outbreak?

The outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome is slowing down in South Korea, but people were still wearing surgical masks around Seoul on Monday. Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images

Goats and Soda

Will A Surgical Mask Keep You Safe In A Viral Outbreak?

June 22, 2015 • When Middle East respiratory syndrome erupted in South Korea, people started wearing masks everywhere, even at weddings. So how good are these masks at stopping MERS or even the flu?

A police officer guards the home of a family under a 21-day Ebola quarantine in Freetown, Sierra Leone, back in March. Michael Duff/AP hide caption

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Michael Duff/AP

Goats and Soda

Why Ebola Won't Go Away In West Africa

June 19, 2015 • Over the past few months, case tallies have dipped toward zero, only to bounce back up. Health officials worry the outbreak could never end if people keep hiding cases and dead bodies.

Why Ebola Won't Go Away In West Africa

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Wednesday September 23, 2015

Wednesday September 9, 2015

The World Is Running Out Of A Critical Snakebite Antidote

Thursday August 20, 2015

Monday August 10, 2015

Friday July 31, 2015

Ebola Vaccine Hailed As 'Game Changer' In Fight Against The Virus

Friday July 17, 2015

Friday July 10, 2015

Tough Painkiller Rules Push Some Russian Cancer Patients To Suicide

Thursday July 2, 2015

Tuesday June 30, 2015

Friday June 26, 2015

Tuesday June 23, 2015

Monday June 22, 2015

Friday June 19, 2015

Why Ebola Won't Go Away In West Africa