Progress in reducing tobacco use is a key indicator for measuring countries’ efforts to implement the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control – target 3.a under the Sustainable Development Goals agenda. Countries have adopted this indicator to report progress also towards the tobacco reducti...on target under the Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases 2013–2020 and the WHO’s Global Programme of Work triple billions target.
Fourth edition.
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Using the WHO model list of essential medicines to update a national essential medicines list
Since 1977, WHO has been working with countries to design the package of essential medicines as an integral component of treatment within the continuum of care, developing and disseminating the Model List ...of Essential Medicines (Model List). WHO is committed to supporting Member States in sharing best practices in selecting
essential medicines, and in developing processes for the selection of medicines for national essential medicines lists (national EMLs, or NEMLs) consistent with the evidence-based methods used for updating the WHO Model List.
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WHO estimates that in 2015, 257 million people were living with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection worldwide, and that 900 000 died from HBV infection, mostly through the development of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Worldwide, the majority of persons with chronic hepatitis B infecti...on and associated deaths in adulthood acquired their infection at birth through mother-to-child perinatal transmission or in early childhood.
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These guidelines provide evidence-based guidance on the use of peripartum antiviral prophylaxis in HBsAg-positive pregnant women for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HBV.
Overcoming barriers in low- and middle-income countries
For the first time, this year’s report includes information on hepatitis C diagnostics. With a focus on selected countries with diverse HCV epidemics, the report provides updates on the various dimensions of access to HCV diagnostics and pha...rmaceutical products, including product pricing, the regulatory environment and patent status, which together shape the national hepatitis response in different settings. It highlights key areas for action by ministries of health and other government decision-makers, pharmaceutical manufacturers and technical partners.
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This manual provides a framework for morbidity management and disability prevention of patients affected by NIDs and gives specific guidance for the proper care of patients suffering from chronic conditions caused by lymphatic filariasis, leprosy, trachoma, and Chagas disease. It is intended to be u...sed mainly by health care workers at the primary health care level, but health workers at more complex and specialized levels may also find it useful.
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Noma (cancrum oris) is a severe gangrenous disease of the mouth and face. It mostly affects children between the ages of 2 and 6 years living in extreme poverty. In addition to the known factors such as malnutrition, lack of vaccination in children and poor oral hygiene, several social and environme...ntal factors such as maternal malnutrition and close spacing of pregnancies that result in offspring with increasingly weakened immune systems are potentially related to the onset of the disease.
The aim of this guide is to assist the ministries of health (MoHs) to identify a general goal to be attained by the end of five years, with a view to sustainably reducing the incidence of noma as a public health problem through programmes that are fully integrated with national health planning, strengthening of primary health care (PHC) and attainment of UHC.
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Validation of elimination of mother-to-child transmission, or vertical transmission, of HIV, syphilis and hepatitis B virus (HBV), is an attestation that a country has successfully met standard criteria for elimination, or for being at 1 of the 3 levels of achievement on the ‘Path to Elimination... while delivering quality services for women, girls and their children, through the life-course, respecting human rights and ensuring gender equality and community engagement.
This document, the third version, adds on EMTCT of hepatitis B virus (HBV), bringing together a package of interventions and metrics to support integrated management and monitoring of vertical transmission across a wide range of epidemiological and programmatic contexts.
This document, the third version, adds on EMTCT of hepatitis B virus (HBV), bringing together a package of interventions and metrics to support integrated management and monitoring of vertical transmission across a wide range of epidemiological and programmatic contexts.
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The WHO End TB Strategy aims to end the global TB epidemic by 2030, in alignment with Goal 3 of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Member States of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN committed to ending the TB epidemic through adoption of WHO’s End TB Strateg...y and the UN SDGs in 2014 and 2015, respectivel
Almost half of the deaths worldwide caused by TB in 2019 occurred in the WHO South-East Asia Region, home to around a quarter of the global population. Maintaining robust progress in this Region is therefore essential if the global goal of ending the TB epidemic is to be realized. Despite substantial gains made in the Region, the threat to
health worldwide posed by the COVID-19 pandemic has the potential to reverse these gains and eclipse the focus on the global TB emergency.
While continuing to tackle COVID-19-related challenges, countries will need to rapidly and urgently deploy supplementary measures to address the large numbers of missed cases, poor treatment outcomes and, potentially, a higher TB burden.
The Regional Strategic Plan towards Ending TB in the Region 2021–2025 clearly articulates priority interventions, analyses the challenges, bottlenecks and opportunities, and focuses on implementation considerations in the Region.
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national programmes for occupational health and safety for health workers: lessons learned from countries: summary report of the WHO online workshop, 15 July 2020
20 April 2022. The response to the COVID-19 pandemic continues to adversely affect essential TB services in many countries. A first report of case studies was published in 2021 comprising 23 examples of innovative interventions implemented by countries to effectively respond to disruptions of TB ser...vices caused or exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This second, consolidated report incorporates new case studies, as well as updates to previously reported case studies
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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.
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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.
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2014-2020, Draft March 2014
Promover el seguimiento de los sistemas de salud para prestar mejores servicios a la población de personas mayores forma parte de la serie titulada La Década del envejecimiento saludable en las Américas: situación y desafíos. El propósito de la serie es favorecer la priorización de medidas ef...icaces a nivel local, así como el seguimiento de los datos y las políticas de salud pública, mediante la presentación de información basada en la evidencia. Con el objetivo de presentar el conocimiento actualizado disponible sobre la situación de la salud y el envejecimiento en el inicio de la Década del Envejecimiento Saludable en la Región de las Américas, en este trabajo se brinda información sobre el seguimiento de los sistemas de salud para satisfacer mejor las necesidades de las personas mayores, de manera de subrayar la necesidad de que las sociedades y los sistemas de salud se adapten mejor al envejecimiento poblacional. Además se presenta la herramienta sobre la visión de 360° como una guía para adaptar los sistemas de salud mediante el seguimiento de los indicadores indirectos y destacar los datos y la información que están fácilmente disponibles, desglosados por edad. Esta información puede ayudar en la toma de decisiones y la asignación de recursos para brindar apoyo a las necesidades de las personas mayores. Hasta ahora, se ha llegado a un consenso sobre siete indicadores indirectos con gran pertinencia para fundamentar las políticas y en los estudios de casos en algunos países seleccionados se ha evaluado la viabilidad de este enfoque. En este documento, se presentan la lista de indicadores y el proceso relacionado con la elaboración de la herramienta. La Década del Envejecimiento Saludable 2021-2030 es un período designado para guiar las actividades de transformación de las sociedades con respecto al envejecimiento poblacional y fomentar la inclusión de las personas mayores en cada decisión. El propósito de este documento es contribuir a esta estrategia y poner de relieve los próximos desafíos y oportunidades en relación con el envejecimiento saludable.
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This report compiles data for the first time on the far-reaching consequences of uncontrolled hypertension, including heart attacks, strokes and premature death, along with substantial economic losses for communities and countries. It also contains information on the global, regional and country-lev...el burden of hypertension and progress of control efforts.
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