Reading guide
Health and environment scorecard:
Aims for healthier populations
Scope Aim Reading guide
These scorecards summarize the state of health and The scorecards aim to highlight some of the major This example scorecard, entitled Aims for healthier
environment in specific countries, drawing on data environmental health issues at country level. This populations, provides an overview of the “ideal”
from the World Health Organization and other sources. information can be used to set priorities for action indicator values that countries should aspire to
They achieve this by presenting a set of key indicators to create healthier populations through healthy achieve. It is therefore useful to compare the data on
illustrating local exposure to environmental health environments. The scorecards are limited by data a scorecard for a specific country with this example in
risks, how much ill health is attributable to these risks, availability – they may not include all areas of health order to assess each country’s progress and identify
and which related policies have been put in place. and environment, or all data of concern. Lists of key areas for action. In addition to serving as a tool
specific actions in each thematic area can be found in for comparison, this example scorecard is a “reading
the Compendium of WHO and other UN guidance on guide” with additional details and notes on the
health and environment. indicators that are not self-explanatory.
Extent of the problem Health impact Policies
Air
pollution <1x the WHO
guideline air
quality value for PM2.5
0% of deaths
from stroke and
Existence of legal
standards for PM2.5
ischaemic heart
disease caused by
WHO Guideline: Country annual mean air pollution
5 μg/m3 air quality value:
<5 μg/m3
Compliant with WHO Air
0%
Quality Guidelines
View actions
of population 0% 100%
and interventions
without clean
fuels and technology
for cooking
Existence of national
Clean fuels and technologies are those that attain the policy on household
fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and carbon monoxide
(CO) levels recommended in the WHO Air Quality energy
Guidelines (2021). Clean fuels include solar, electric,
biogas, natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), Reaching 0% of deaths may require even better air
and alcohol fuels including ethanol. quality than complying with the WHO Guideline values.
0% 0%
Financial resources available for
WASH of population of deaths implementation of national plans
without safe drinking from diarrhoea caused Urban Rural
Drinking water
water by unsafe drinking
water, sanitation and
inadequate personal
0%
hygiene >75% of what >75% of what
of population is needed is needed
View actions without safe
and interventions
sanitation 0% 100%
Sanitation
>75% of what >75% of what
is needed is needed
Safely managed sanitation services are improved
facilities (flush/pour flush toilets connected to piped Safely managed drinking water is water from an
sewer systems, septic tanks or pit latrines; pit latrines improved source (piped water, boreholes or tubewells,
Hygiene
with slabs (including ventilated pit latrines), and protected dug wells, protected springs, rainwater,
composting toilets”) that are not shared with other and packaged or delivered water) that is accessible on
households and where excreta are safely disposed of premises, available when needed and free from faecal >75% of what
in situ or removed and treated off site. and priority chemical contamination. is needed
Climate
0x
Targets are country Existence of national
change specific and health and climate
more heat deaths change plan or strategy
depend on the in 2050 compared to
emission scenario 1961-1990 period
View actions
and interventions
© World Health Organization 2022. Some rights reserved. This work is available under the CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO license.
Health and environment scorecard: aims for healthier populations
Extent of the problem Health impact Policies
Chemicals International Health
Regulations (IHR) capacity
score for chemical events
Less than 1
out of 100,000
children under five die from
Existence of legal
limit on lead paint
poisonings every year
IHR capacity score
View actions
of 100%
for chemical events
Existence of a poison
centre
and interventions
0%
not attained
Hg Party to the Minamata
NB: The IHR provide a binding legal framework Convention on Mercury
that defines countries’ rights and obligations
in handling public health events that have the
potential to cross borders.
1
International Health Regulations
Radiation (IHR) capacity score for radiation
Existence of standards
Less than out of 100,000 people on electromagnetic fields
emergencies die from melanoma and other skin
cancers every year
IHR capacity score
100% Existence of regulation
1
of
for radiation of artificial tanning
emergencies
Less than out of 100,000 people devices/sun beds
View actions die from residential radon every year
and interventions
0%
not attained Existence of national
radon regulations for
dwellings
NB: The IHR provide a binding legal framework
that defines countries’ rights and obligations
in handling public health events that have the
potential to cross borders. only if the country has a radon issue
Occupational
0% 1
Existence of
health of informal Less than out of 100,000 people programmes for
of working age die from diseases due occupational health and
employment in total
to occupational risks every year safety of health workers
employment
View actions
and interventions
0% of the
working age
Less than 1
out of 100,000 people
of working age die from injuries due 3 of 3 key international
population exposed to occupational risks every year labour conventions on occupational
to long working safety and health ratified
hours (≥55 hours/
week) C155 C161 C187
Occupational Occupational Promotional
safety and health framework
health services
References: Air pollution: WHO global air quality guidelines 2021 • WHO SDG Indicator 11.6.2 for lead paint, updated 2021 • WHO: World directory of poison centres, updated 2021 • UNEP: Minamata
Concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5); 2016 data • WHO household air pollution data; 2019 Convention on Mercury, 2021 data. Radiation: WHO: Average of 13 International Health Regulations core
data • WHO air pollution data portal; health impact data for 2016 • UNEP 2021: Regulating air quality: the capacity scores, 2020 data • WHO: Deaths from melanoma and other skin cancers, 2019 data • IHME:
first global assessment of air pollution legislation; data for 2020 • WHO Household energy policy repository; Deaths from residential radon, 2019 data • WHO: Electromagnetic fields, updated 2018 • WHO: Legislation
data continuously updated. WASH: WHO, UNICEF: Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation on artificial tanning sunbeds, updated 2021 • WHO: National radon regulations, 2019 data. Occupation:
and Hygiene, 2020 data • WHO water, sanitation and hygiene: burden of disease, 2016 data • WHO ILOSTAT: informal economy, updated 2022 • WHO/ILO: Disease burden from long working hours, 2016 data
GLAAS 2018/2019 cycle. Climate change: Honda et al. 2014 • WHO: Climate change and country profiles. • WHO/ILO: Joint estimates of the work-related burden of disease and injury, 2016 data • ILO ratifications of
Chemicals: WHO: Average of 13 International Health Regulations core capacity scores, 2020 data C155, C161 and C187, updated 2021.
• WHO: Mortality rate attributed to unintentional poisonings; data for 2019 • WHO: legally binding controls
