Access to medical personal protective equipment (PPE) is essential for routine healthcare delivery, and a critical tool for containing outbreaks, as well as preventing and responding to pandemics. It is one of our most effective tools against COVID-19, and an undervalued tool more generally in infec...tion control.
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In the face of rapid increases in the number of hospitalizations due to COVID-19 in Latin America and the Caribbean, coupled with shortages of human and material resources, including medical equipment and gases, there is a need to redesign models of care in the Region to optimize available resources... and ensure that more patients receive the quantity and quality of oxygen they need. Oxygen is included in the World Health Organization’s list of essential medicines and is used to care for patients at all levels of integrated health services networks. The efficacy of oxygen use in the treatment of patients with respiratory conditions caused by COVID-19 has been demonstrated, but there is great opportunity to improve the effectiveness of its use if it is used in a rational, sustainable, and safe way. Bearing in mind that the efficacy of a health technology is measured by its benefit under actual conditions of use, practical actions can be taken to improve the use of medical oxygen and avoid oxygen shortages. A drug is considered to be used rationally when patients receive it according to their clinical needs, in doses appropriate to their individual needs, for an appropriate period, and at a low cost to them and their community. By providing instruction on the rational use of oxygen and promoting it, negative repercussions can be avoided, such as loss of efficacy as a result of activities related to oxygen storage, distribution, and administration. Rational use of oxygen also involves controlling waste due to leaks in storage and distribution systems, use of gas at incorrect pressures, use of incorrectly adjusted flowmeters, and disconnections, among other problems. Another aspect to consider is the provision of adequate technical support for all oxygen production systems, in terms of maintenance and calibration, availability of electrical energy, and specific knowledge about these systems. For these reasons, a set of guidelines has been put together for the development of an efficient management system to deal with situations of oxygen scarcity, both now and in the future.
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The volume presents data on the surgical burden of disease, disability, congenital anomalies, and trauma, along with health impact and economic analyses of procedures, platforms, and packages to improve care in settings with severe budget limitations. Essential Surgery identifies 44 surgical procedu...res that meet the following criteria: they address substantial needs, are cost effective, and are feasible to implement in low- and middle-income countries. If made universally available, the provision of these 44 procedures would avert 1.5 million deaths a year and rank among the most cost effective of all health interventions.
Entire Volume large file: 19 MB!!!
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Nursing Times [online]; 117: 11, 18-21.
In 2014, the Ministry of Health (MOH) in Malawi conducted a nationwide assessment of emergency obstetric and newborn care (EmONC) services. This cross-sectional facility-based survey used 10 data collection modules. Data collection began on 23rd September 2014 and concluded on 17th October 2014, in ...all 28 districts. Facilities in both the public and private sector (for-profit and not-for-profit) were included. Since the focus of the assessment was obstetric and newborn care, health facilities that did not offer maternal and newborn health (MNH) services were not selected. In all districts, a census of all hospitals and a 60 percent random sample of health centres that ought to have performed deliveries in the previous year yielded a total of 365 facilities: 87 hospitals and 278 health centres. All these facilities were visited during the assessment. During analysis, weighting procedures were applied to extrapolate results to the district and national level, representing all 87 hospitals and 464 health centres. Such weighting was necessary as a stratified random sample of health centres was taken and weighting applied to all indicators and presentations that have health facility as a unit of measurement. Case reviews and provider’s interviews, on the other hand, are not weighted as their sampling strategy is based on convenience.
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This is an open-access training course for frontline healthcare providers who manage acute illness and injury with limited resources. Produced in response to requests from multiple countries and international partners, the BEC package includes a Participant Workbook and electronic slide decks for ea...ch module. Integrating the guidance from WHO Emergency Triage, Assessment and Treatment (ETAT) for children and the Integrated Management of Adult/Adolescent Illness (IMAI), BEC teaches a systematic approach to the initial assessment and management of time-sensitive conditions where early intervention saves lives
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Updated Guideline.
The Emergency Triage Assessment and Treatment (ETAT) guidelines provide guidance on the most common emergency conditions in children presenting at the health facility. These include but are not limited to airway obstruction and other breathing problems; circulatory impairment or ...shock; severely altered CNS function (coma or convulsive seizures); and severe dehydration which require urgent appropriate care to prevent death.
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In order to maintain daily operations and patient care services, health care facilities need to develop an Emergency Water Supply Plan (EWSP) to prepare for, respond to, and recover from a total or partial interruption of the facilities’ normal water supply. Water supply interruption can be caused... by several types of events such as natural disaster, a failure of the community water system, construction damage or even an act of terrorism.
The planning guide provides a four step process for the development of an EWSP:
1. Assemble the appropriate EWSP Team and the necessary background documents for your facility;
2. Understand your water usage by performing a water use audit;
3. Analyze your emergency water supply alternatives; and
4. Develop and exercise your EWSP
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World Health Organization. (2021). Minimum technical standards and recommendations for reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health care for emergency medical teams. World Health Organization.
According to WHO, infection prevention and control (IPC) is a scientific approach and practical solution designed to prevent harm caused by infection to patients and health workers. It is grounded in infectious diseases, epidemiology, social science and health system strengthening. IPC occupies a un...ique position in the field of patient safety and quality universal health coverage since it is relevant to health workers and patients at every single health-care encounter. Poor WASH and IPC lead to health acquired infections, transmission of diseases from health facilities to communities and increased use of antibiotics and exacerbate outbreak and spread of infections- in this case- COVID- 19. On the contrary, effective IPC reduces hospital-acquired infections by at least 30% (WHO 2016).
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Sexual violence is a major problem in South Africa, with studies showing that up to one in four women have been raped in their lifetime.
Strengthening rehabilitation in health emergency preparedness, response, and resilience: policy brief outlines the evidence for rehabilitation in emergencies and the need for greater preparedness of rehabilitation services. It shows how existing guidelines support the integration of rehabilitation i...n emergencies and sets out the steps that decision-makers can take to better integrate rehabilitation into health emergency preparedness and response.
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The objective of Critical Considerations and Actions for Achieving Universal Access to Sexual and Reproductive Health in the Context of Universal Health Coverage through a Primary Health Care Approach is to provide guidance to WHO Member States for ensuring progress towards universal access to compr...ehensive sexual and reproductive health (SRH) in the context of primary health care (PHC)- and universal health coverage (UHC)-related policy and strategy reforms.
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Forcibly Displaced Myanmar National / Rohingya Refugee Response.
This document gives guidance for medical providers to understand the care of both healthy and COVID suspect or confirmed patients who present for antenatal (ANC), intrapartum (IP), postnatal (PNC), or emergency obstetric and neonatal ...care (EmONC) in the context of caring for the forcibly displaced Myanmar national (FDMN) / Rohingya refugee population.
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The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent public health guidance to reduce the spread of the diseasehave wide-reaching implications for children’s health and wellbeing. Furthermore, paediatric emergency departments(EDs) have rapidly adapted provision of care in response to the pandemic. This qualitativ...e study utilized insight frommultidisciplinary frontline staff to understand the changes in paediatric emergency healthcare utilization duringCOVID-19 the experiences of working within the restructured health system.
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This report is not a country scorecard. Rather, its purpose is to act as a compass to guide progress towards health in the SDGs.
There has been a significant improvement in the state of health in the region with healthy life expectancy - time spent in full health - in the region increasing from 50....9 years to 53.8 between 2012 and 2015 - the most marked increase of any region in the world.
What is making Africans sick is changing. The top killers are still lower respiratory infections, HIV and diarrhoeal disease and countries have routinely focused on preventing and treating this trio, often through specialized programmes. The payoff has been significant declines in deaths due to these diseases. There has been a 50% reduction in the burden of disease caused by what have been the top 10 killers since 2000 and death rates have dropped from 87.7 to 51.1 deaths per 100,000 persons between 2000 and 2015...
Chronic diseases like heart disease and cancer are now claiming more lives with a person aged 30 to 70 in the region having a one in five chance of dying from a noncommunicable disease (NCDs).
Countries are specifically failing to provide essential services to two critical age groups – adolescents and the elderly...
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