Updated Interim guidance 29 July 2020
The provision of safe water, sanitation and waste management and hygienic conditions is essential for preventing and for protecting human health during all infectious disease outbreaks, including of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Ensuring evidenced-based ...and consistently applied WASH and waste management practices in communities, homes, schools, marketplaces, and healthcare facilities will help prevent human-to-human transmission of pathogens including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
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Heat is the top killer among all types of weather hazards, including hurricanes and tornadoes. But hospitals and health care providers do not always report heat-related illnesses or heat as an underlying cause of a death, making it hard to measure the actual impact of extreme heat on health.
BUKO Pharma-Kampagne has investigated the causes and consequences of antibiotic resistance in India, South Africa, Tanzania and Germany. Together with our partners we collected data and did interviews with numerous stakeholders. The outcome is presented in a brochure that is now available in English...
Resistant bacteria are spreading worldwide. In collaboration with partners in India, Tanzania, South Africa and Germany, we have investigated the causes and consequences of this spread.2 This Pharma-Brief Special presents the results. It examines the risks for humans, animals and the environment. It focuses on local problems and approaches, international interactions and the re-sponsibility of doctors, farmers and consumers.
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There is no secret to our procedure: the daily scanning of the literature helps us to stay afloat in the never-ending waves of new publications about SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19. Many papers discussed in the Top 10 will eventually make it into subsequent editions of COVID Reference.
For COVID-19, as for many infectious diseases, the true level of transmission is frequently underestimated because a substantial proportion of people with the infection are undetected either because they are asymptomatic or have only mild symptoms and thus typically fail to present at healthcare fac...ilities. There may also be neglected or under-served segments of the population who are less likely to access healthcare or testing. Under-detection of cases may be exacerbated during an epidemic, when testing capacity may be limited and restricted to people with severe cases and priority risk groups (such as frontline healthcare workers, elderly people and people with comorbidities). Cases may also be misdiagnosed and attributed to other diseases with similar clinical presentation, such as influenza.
Differences in mortality between groups of people and countries are important proxy indicators of relative risk of death that guide policy decisions regarding scarce medical resource allocation during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This document is intended to help countries estimate CFR and, if possible, IFR, as appropriately and accurately as possible, while accounting for possible biases in their estimation
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Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) provides a vast amount of information and the highest possible resolution for pathogen subtyping. The application of WGS for global surveillance can provide information on the early emergence and spread of AMR and further inform timely policy development on AMR control.... Sequencing data emanating from AMR surveillance may provide key information to guide the development of rapid diagnostic tools for better and more rapid characterization of AMR, and thus complement phenotypic methods. This document addresses the applications of WGS for AMR surveillance, including the benefits and limitations of current WGS technologies
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This report presents an assessment of the institutional readiness to detect, prevent and address health issues associated with ASGM and aims to provide an input to the Ministry of Health (MISAU) to define key priorities in the Public Health Strategy on ASGM. Based on the consultation of representati...ves of MISAU as well as various other ministries and stakeholder groups concerned with ASGM, the report assesses institutional capacity strengths and challenges in the public health sector and identifies key stakeholders relevant for the development and implementation of a public health strategy for the ASGM sector.
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Social and behavior change (SBC) professionals have often been tasked to find ways to influence knowledge, attitudes, and practices, about vaccines. Now that the COVID-19 vaccines are becoming available worldwide, renewed emphasis and urgency for SBC efforts arise.
To that end, WHO has offered thre...e factors that play a role in vaccine hesitancy, the first two of which can be addressed by SBC: Complacency: Low perceived risk of vaccine-preventable diseases, and vaccination not deemed necessary. Other life/health issues are a greater priority.
Confidence: Low levels of trust in vaccines, in the delivery system, and in health authorities
Convenience: Barriers related to geographic accessibility, availability, affordability, and acceptability of services
This resource page provide a selection of SBC research, tools, and examples that aid in understanding this issue, especially in light of the recent availability of COVID-19 vaccines and the urgency for immunization worldwide.
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The purpose of the review was to assign a cause of death, to ascertain the fac-tors that contributed to the death and to identify any systemic issues that could be addressed to prevent future similar deaths. The perinatal mortality audit process in 2019 provided important insights and evidence-based... recommendations that can be used both to address system errors and barriers and to identify and praise points of strength. The aim is to pro-vide recommendations for better care for mothers and their infants during pregnancy, childbirth and the neonatal period and improve the quality of care provided throughout the health system.
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A Situational Assessment and Five-YearAction Plan for the Africa CDC Strengthening Regional Public Health Institutions and Capacity for Surveillance and Response Program
13 May 2021
To avoid a reversal of progress from the adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, new knowledge and lessons from successful programmatic innovations are urgently needed to improve TB prevention and care. Experience can provide evidence for innovative approaches and strategies to mainta...in and scale up high-quality TB services. WHO therefore called for case studies on programmatic innovations that address emerging challenges in TB prevention and care during the pandemic in order to collect and disseminate the findings to the TB community. Between November 2020 and February 2021, a total of 23 case studies relevant to the call were accepted from 19 countries in the six regions of WHO. The lessons learnt from these country activities to ensure the continuity of essential services like TB care in the face of the crippling crisis may also inform strategies for minimizing the impact of future emerging pathogens on health services.
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This guide is intended to support national governments developing their national deployment and vaccination plans (NDVPs) for COVID-19 vaccines by outlining the roles, needs and opportunities for community health workers (CHWs) to contribute. This note builds on and is structured to align with the G...uidance on developing a national deployment and vaccination plan for COVID-19 vaccines. By providing CHW-relevant considerations for the VIRAT Tool, this document aims to support national governments in developing robust NDVPs for introducing COVID-19 vaccine(s) that leverage all the community-based deployment, implementation and monitoring tools at their disposal.
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This document is based on currently available scientific evidence on treatment for drug use disorders and sets out a framework for the implementation of the Standards, in line with principles of public health care. The Standards identify major components and features of effective systems for the tre...atment of drug use disorders. They describe treatment modalities and interventions to match the needs of people at different stages and severities of drug use disorders, in a manner consistent with the treatment of any chronic disease or health condition. The Standards are aspirational, and such, national or local treatment services or systems need not attempt to meet all the standards and recommendations made in this document all at once. However over time, progressive quality improvement, with ‘evidence-based and ethical practice’ as an objective, can and should be expected to achieve better organized, more effective and ethical systems and services for people with drug use disorders.
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As the world population is growing and health care resources are in high demand the pressure on medical services is becoming higher. Developing countries are already at a crisis point in health care provision, and time demands a new approach in structuring medical resources. Primary care is t...he vital pillar for fundamental health care at community level and has been deemed as a cost-effective modality. In the West the primary care physician manages chronic medical conditions in communities and therefore reduces unnecessary hospital admissions. In the West, the primary care system is extremely well organised. Low-income countries must improve teaching, training and funding in primary care. In this article the urgent need for primary care is discussed in developing countries, and ways to minimise costs and improve clinical outcomes at community level.
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This document aims to describe a minimum set of surveillance activities recommended at the national level to detect and monitor the relative prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 variants and outline a set of activities for the characterization and assessment of risk posed by these variants. A set of indicators ...is also provided to standardize monitoring and public reporting of variant circulation.
The document is primarily intended for national and sub-national public health authorities and partners who support implementation of surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 variants
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A technical and environmental comparative overview of common shelter typologies found in settlements across UNHCR operations
The African Development Bank has launched a consultation process with health ministers and other partners as it develops a strategy to drive enhanced access to health services across Africa through 2030.
Input from ministers in the Bank’s 54 regional member countries, development partners and c...ivil society is expected to strengthen the Bank’s Strategy for Quality Health Infrastructure in Africa (2021-2030). A robust scoping study titled “Good Health and Well-being” underpins the strategy.
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The Kenyan Health Sector has been playing a critical role in
providing health care services in response to the population
needs in line with the Kenya Health Policy, 2014-2030’s goal
of attaining the highest possible health standards in a manner
responsive to the population needs.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global threat that requires urgent
collaborative action within and among countries. As a result of the worldwide reports of the increasing rates of AMR to hospital and community-acquired infections and in the agricultural sector, the Global Action Plan on AMR was... adopted in 2015. T
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The roadmap describes the actions needed to
achieve the three development goals for TB
vaccines set by the WHO:
1. A safe, effective and affordable TB vaccine
for adolescents and adults.
2. An affordable TB vaccine for neonates and
infants with improved safety and efficacy.
3. A therapeutic v...accine to improve TB
treatment outcomes
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