Quantifying disease from inadequate housing

Report of a WHO editorial review meeting held in Bonn, Germany, 8-9 September 2008

Abstract

Selected experts met to review and assess the first draft of a report on quantifying the environmental burden of disease (EBD) of inadequate housing.

Participants reviewed all chapters and provided advice to WHO on the EBD assessment and its evidence base. Comments will be forwarded to the authors of individual chapters. Further advice was given on the production of the general chapters (Introduction, Conclusions and Policy implications) and the main messages such a report should deliver for different audiences such as research communities, policy-makers or housing professionals.

The WHO secretariat was charged with a number of tasks for finalizing the current chapters in collaboration with the authors, developing new versions for general chapters, and identifying authors for chapters on important housing and health topics that are not yet covered.

The development of the EBD report is part of WHO/Europe's work to address the question “how much human health is negatively affected by inadequate housing?”.