Nurturing Care Framework for Early Child Development and the Nurturing Care Handbook

Nurturing Care Handbook is composed of 6 guides and is produced by the World Health Organization in collaboration with partners. The first guide ‘Start here’ is an orientation to the entire handbook and provides an introduction to the handbook as well as practical advice on working in program cycles, engaging all stakeholders, and advocacy. The second guide ‘Lead and Invest’, provides guidelines on how to do governance, planning, and financing. The third guide ‘Focus on families and communities, explores how to listen to families, encourage communities, and use the media. The fourth guide ‘Strengthen services’ explores how to build systems, improve the workforce, and provide three-level support. The fifth guide ‘Monitor progress’ explores how to monitor populations, implementation, and individual children’s development. The sixth and the last guide ‘Scale up and innovate’ explores how to expand programs, engage with the private sector, and use digital solutions.  

Responding to Children and Adolescents Who Have Been Sexually Abused: WHO Clinical Guidelines 

This guideline provides recommendations aimed primarily at front-line healthcare providers (e.g. general practitioners, nurses, pediatricians, gynecologists) providing care to children, including adolescents up to the age of 18 years, who have, or may have, experienced sexual abuse, including sexual assault or rape. The guideline, while global, is particularly concerned with applicability in healthcare settings in low- and middle-income countries, taking into account the more limited healthcare resources available. The objectives are to support healthcare providers to provide quality, immediate and long-term clinical care and to apply ethical, human-rights-based, and trauma-informed good practices in the provision of such care.  

Technical Report: WHO Guidelines for the Health Sector Response to Child Maltreatment

This technical report includes the recommendations for the WHO Guidelines for the Health Sector Response to Child Maltreatment that were approved by the WHO Guideline Review Committee on 28 August 2019. These guidelines are aimed at workers in the health sector who may encounter and respond to cases of suspected and known child maltreatment. It provides guidance primarily for front-line health workers. Guiding principles are derived from ethical principles, obligations to protect, prevent, and respond to all forms of violence against children and adolescents, and international human rights standards, and instruments. These guidelines are updated in 7–10 years or following the identification of new evidence that reflects the need for changing any recommendations.  

Family Care for Children with Disabilities: Practical Guidance for Frontline Workers in Low- and Middle-Income Countries 

This Guidance is for people in all regions who work directly with children and families in a government, non-governmental organization (NGO) or community-based system and who have limited or no training specifically on disability. Families caring for children with disabilities may also find the resources in this guidance useful, although it is not written explicitly for them. You can use this Guidance to learn more about children with disabilities and how you can support them to live in the care of their families. This can be their immediate or extended family, or a foster or adoptive family. You can also use this Guidance to, review and revise your existing case management regulations, guidance, and standard operating procedures, build the capacity of the people you work with, and advocate from an informed standpoint for the rights of children with disabilities in your community. 

Inspire: Seven Strategies for Ending Violence Against Children 

INSPIRE is an evidence-based resource for everyone committed to preventing and responding to violence against children and adolescents – from government to grassroots, and from civil society to the private sector. It represents a select group of strategies based on the best available evidence to help countries and communities intensify their focus on the prevention programs and services with the greatest potential to reduce violence against children. The seven strategies are: Implementation and enforcement of laws; Norms and values; Safe environments; Parent and caregiver support; Income and economic strengthening; Response and support services; and Education and life skills. Additionally, INSPIRE includes two cross-cutting activities that together help connect and strengthen – and assess progress towards – the seven strategies. Policy-makers and other decision-makers have the power to transform these circumstances. The seven INSPIRE strategies give policymakers and key actors the tools to act, and to act now.