Thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Nursing Science in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Stellenbosch University.
The mobile clinic health care services fulfil an essential role in delivering primary health care to the dwellers in the rural commun...ities of the Western Cape. However, occupational health and safety, as well as quality assurance are issues that need to be addressed urgently. It is thus recommended that policy makers take cognizance of the specific needs of every individual mobile clinic team.
more
In the light of the transmissibility of coronaviruses, and the global experience with MERS-CoV (ongoing) and SARS in 2003 which were also caused by coronaviruses, South African authorities have compiled this guideline document to support surveillance, case finding, diagnosis, management and public h...ealth responses to cases under investigation.
*Please note*
The interim guidelines are based on what is currently known about the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). The National Department of Health (NDOH) and National Institute for Communicable Diseases will update these interim guidelines as needed and as additional information becomes available.
more
Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity. The decade ahead will test the nation's nearly 4 million nurses in new and complex ways. Nurses live and work at the intersection of health, education, and communities. Nurses work in a wide array of settings and practice at a range of professional levels. T...hey are often the first and most frequent line of contact with people of all backgrounds and experiences seeking care and they represent the largest of the health care professions.
Free download available, register for free
more
May 17,2022 MEDBOX Issue Brief no.21
The Lancet Planetary Health Published:May 17, 2022DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(22)00090-0
Every year pollution causes 9 million deaths—1 in every 6 deaths worldwide, according to a Lancet Commission on pollution and health.
While the number of deaths caused by household air pollution a...nd water pollution decreased from 2015 to 2019, overall deaths remain roughly the same because of a 7% increase in deaths caused by air pollution and toxic chemical pollution.
more
Guía de tratamiento farmacológico y manejo deescenarios clínicos de casos de COVID-19 – enero 2022 Guía de tratamiento farmacológico y manejo deLeer más
Epidemics of infectious diseases are occurring more often, and spreading faster and further than ever, in many different regions of the world. The background factors of this threat are biological, environmental and lifestyle changes, among others. A potentially fatal combination of newly-discovered ...diseases, and the re-emergence of many long-established ones, demands urgent responses in all countries. Planning and preparation for epidemic prevention and control are essential. The purpose of this “Managing epidemics” manual is to provide expert guidance on those responses.
more
Lancet 2022; 399: 1155–200 Published Online March 15, 2022 https://doi.org/10.1016/
S0140-6736(21)02488-0
Tuberculosis continues to represent a severe public health problem in the Region of the Americas, even more so in the case of indigenous peoples, whose TB incidence is much higher than that of the general population. To achieve tuberculosis control in these communities, it is necessary to respond t...o communities’ diverse needs from an intercultural perspective that allows the application of a holistic approach—from a standpoint of equality and mutual respect—and considers the value of their cultural practices. In the Region of the Americas, although there has been progress toward recognizing the need for an intercultural approach to health services, obstacles rooted in discrimination, racism, and the exclusion of indigenous peoples and other ethnic groups persist. To respond to this situation, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) prepared this guidance which––based on an intercultural approach in accordance with the priority lines of the current PAHO Policy on Ethnicity and Health and its practical development in the Region’s indigenous populations––represent a support tool for implementing the End TB Strategy. This publication integrates PAHO’s accumulated experience and best practices developed by its Member States in recent years, including discussions and experiences shared in regional meetings on the issue, and emphasizes innovation and social inclusion. This requires an urgent shift away from traditional paradigms, taking specific actions that gradually reduce TB incidence and moving toward effective multisectoral actions that have proven effective in quickly containing the epidemic. This publication integrates PAHO’s accumulated experience and best practices developed by its Member States in recent years, including discussions and experiences shared in regional meetings on the issue, and emphasizes innovation and social inclusion. This requires an urgent shift away from traditional paradigms, taking specific actions that gradually reduce TB incidence and moving toward effective multisectoral actions that have proven effective in quickly containing the epidemic.
more
Health Policy and Planning, Volume 35, Issue 1, February 2020, Pages 47–57, https://doi.org/10.1093/heapol/czz122
Colombia has an underreporting of 30% of the total cases, according to World Health Organization (WHO) estimations. In 2016, successful tuberculosis (TB) treatment rate was 70%, and t...he mortality rate ranged between 3.5% and 10%. In 2015, Colombia adopted and adapted the End TB strategy and set a target of 50% reduction in incidence and mortality by 2035 compared with 2015.
more
The leishmaniases are a group of diseases caused by Leishmania spp., which occur in cutaneous, mucocutaneous and visceral forms. They are neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), which disproportionately affect marginalized populations who have limited access to health care. HIV co-infected patients with... Leishmania infection are highly infectious to sandflies, and an increase in the coinfection rate in an endemic area is likely to increase the effective infective reservoir.
more
The COVID-19 HEalth caRe wOrkErs Study (HEROES): Regional Report from the Americas is a multicenter prospective cohort study to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of health care workers in 26 countries on four continents and how it is affected by several factors at diffe...rent interrelated levels: individual, family, occupational, and social. This brief report presents the evidence generated from the baseline survey of 11 participating countries in the Region of the Americas. Using validated scales, the findings show high rates of depressive symptoms, suicidal ideation, and psychological distress in several countries of the Region. The spirit of the project is not only to generate quality scientific evidence on the mental health of health care workers, but also to help develop interventions (both individual and institutional) and policies to address the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health.
more
During the COVID-19 health crisis, community pharmacists had an enhanced role in supporting health-care systems that were overburdened by managing seriously ill patients. This study was undertaken to determine the patterns of community supply of antiviral and antibacterial agents from community phar...macies during the COVID-19 pandemic in selected countries in eastern Europe and central Asia. Nine countries – Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, North Macedonia, the Russian Federation, Serbia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan – participated in this cross-sectional study.
more
Nurses are key players in health promotion and disease prevention and the backbone of health care systems worldwide. Nurses work on the front lines of disease prevention, health promotion, and health management and are often the unsung heroes in health care facilities and emergency response. Despite... the critical role they play in health care, there is a nursing shortage across the world that will affect the delivery of competent nursing care. This document highlights key action points for targeted investment in the nursing workforce and calls on Member States to strengthen nursing within the context of their own country efforts.
more
Updated 2 June 2022.#
This entry contains the Status Report of WHO Collaborating Centres in the Americas by Country and a new document with information of Collaborating Centres by Outcome of the Strategic Plan of the Pan American Health Organization 2020‑2025.
Policy Brief. 24 June 2022. This policy brief, one of two on the updated hepatitis C (HCV) guidelines, focuses on the new recommendations on simplified service delivery for a public health approach to HCV testing, care and treatment. These recommendations include decentralization, integration and ta...sk-sharing, in addition to the use of point-of-care (POC) HCV viral load assays and reflex viral load testing.
more
Expanding access to quality health services through task sharing
2nd edition. These guidelines include several notable changes from the first edition. For cutaneous leishmaniasis, ketoconazole has been removed from the list of treatment options; the number of Leishmania species for which there is strong evidence for the efficacy of miltefosine has increased from ...two to four; and the recommendation for intralesional antimonials is now strong. For mucosal leishmaniasis there is now a strong recommendation for use of pentavalent antimonials with or without oral pentoxifylline. For visceral leishmaniasis, the strong recommendations for use of pentavalent antimonials and amphotericin B deoxycholate are now conditional.
more