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In the Sichuan earthquake on May 12, 2008, schools were hardest hit. The School Social Work service at the You Ai School of Dujiangyan became a major factor in assisting 140 children, disabled in the disaster, in their psychosocial recovery. This article aims to identify indicators of recovery for children from early primary to junior high. Content analysis is used instead of a lengthy psychological scale, as the latter might not be applicable for young children. Results show that disabled children are capable of recovery 3 years after the disaster. Effects of social work intervention and inclusive education have yet to be studied.

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Health disparities exist within and across countries. Medical facilities, in numbers and capabilities, vary greatly between countries. In March 2020, the United Nations launched the Humanitarian Response Plan for COVID-19, in which the most vulnerable countries were identified. National governments are generally held accountable to bridge gaps in internal health disparities. However, a lack of interest in cross-country health equity is evident. The distribution of masks and vaccines, for example, was left to market forces. Health gaps widened and did not bridge when global supply chains broke down. Vaccines were regarded as a profitable product instead of a necessity. This paper studied and compared health disparities between the top 20% of the “best prepared countries” and the lowest 20% of the “least prepared countries,” according to the Global Health Security Index (GHSI). Qualitative and quantitative data were analyzed to illustrate global health gaps during COVID-19 and beyond. These data demonstrated that health disparities have widened in the last two years.

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Older people were globally the most vulnerable during the pandemic. This paper examines the mortality and psychological crisis of older people during the pandemic in four cities, namely Wuhan, Milan, London, and Hong Kong, in order to explain their high death rates. The sample cities were purposefully selected to cover different degrees of social connectedness and outbreak periods. Quantitative data were employed to account for death and suicide data. Qualitative data analyses in government reports, public press releases, NGO announcements, and journal articles were used to study government responses and disruptions of essential healthcare services. Published scientific studies provided important information on the psychological stress and resilience of older people. Findings based on a welfare regime perspective showed that society and governments have not learned from the experiences of other countries, which resulted in high numbers of preventable deaths. Older people have successfully coped with living difficulties while serious psychological disturbances and suicidal ideations were absent at least for the period up to 2022. Older care home residents, unfortunately, were not protected with proper shielding and available vaccinations. Public inefficiency and negligence contributed to a disproportionately high rate of mortality in nursing homes.

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