The global coronavirus pandemic, which has brought death to hundreds of thousands and serious illness to millions more, also poses profound spiritual questions and real challenges to Christians everywhere.
The pandemic itself has become a fundamental test of our faith in God and God’s providence,... and it urges us to earnest re-examination of our relationship to God, each other, and the natural world.
In Healing the World, the World Council of Churches offers these eight Bible studies to facilitate our coming to terms—as individuals, groups, and communities of faith—with the loss, fear, and confusion engendered by the pandemic, and the bracing prospect of building the world anew.
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In the area of nutrition and HIV, children deserve special attention because of their additional needs to ensure growth and development and their dependency on adults for adequate care. It was therefore proposed to first develop guidelines for children and thereafter consider a similar approach for... other specific groups.
The content of these guidelines acknowledges that wasting and undernutrition in HIV-infected children reflect a series of failures within the health system, the home and community and not just a biological process related to virus and host interactions. In trying to protect the nutritional well-being or reverse the undernutrition experienced by infected children, issues of food insecurity, food quantity and quality as well as absorption and digestion of nutrients are considered. Interventions are proposed that are practical and feasible in resource-poor settings and offer a prospect for clinical improvement.
The guidelines do not cover the feeding of infants 0 to 6 months old, because the specialised care in this age group is already addressed in other WHO guidelines and documents.
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Recent systematic reviews and meta-analysis of the impact of chemical-based mollusciciding (King et al., 2015, Sokolow et al., 2016) have concluded that regular mollusciciding is likely to contribute significantly towards elimination of schistosomiasis in high-risk areas. The WHO roadmap’s new foc...us on “transmission control, wherever possible” (WHO, 2012a) reinforces the need to promote intermediate-host snail control to prevent schistosomiasis transmission.
This operational manual is intended to facilitate the reintroduction of practices and protocols for use of molluscicides in the field in schistosomiasis control programmes. It is complemented by guidelines on the laboratory and field testing of the efficacy of molluscicides for schistosomiasis control (WHO, 2017 [in preparation]).
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Today more people are exposed to hazards. While humanitarian action to mitigate the impact of disasters will always be vitally important, the community is facing critical challenge- how to better anticipate, manage and reduce - disaster risks by integrating the potential threat into its planning and... policies at the community level. This manual aims to improve the capacity of the Panchayati Raj Institutions - the local self government and communities that face hazards due to environmental reasons. To help such capacity development efforts, we need learning materials focusing on key areas - water supply, environmental sanitation for better disaster management and preparedness.
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With this World Health Day, WHO is drawing attention to a group of diseases that are spread by insects and other vectors, the heavy health and economic burdens they impose, and what needs to be done to reduce these burdens. Many of these diseases have been historically confined to distinct geographi...cal areas, but this situation has become more fluid due to a host of ills, including climate change, intensive farming, dams, irrigation, deforestation, population movements, rapid unplanned urbanization, and phenomenal increases in international travel and trade. The control of vector-borne diseases can make a major contribution to poverty reduction, as it precisely targets the poor
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SARS-CoV-2 infections among children and adolescents cause less severe illness and fewer deaths compared to adults. While a less severe course of infection is a positive outcome, there are concerns that mild symptoms may have led to less testing, resulting in fewer identified cases of COVID-19 in ch...ildren. If children with mild or no symptoms transmit the disease, they may act as drivers of transmission within their communities. Understanding symptoms, infectivity and patterns of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in children and adolescents is essential for developing, adapting and improving control measures for COVID-19 across all ages. This is a summary of the current knowledge around SARS-CoV-2 infection acquisition and transmission and COVID-19 disease symptoms in children and adolescents. It aims to inform decisions, based on local contexts, on how to best keep schools, kindergarten and day-care facilities open and what advice to apply to intergenerational mixing.
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In Control imparts knowledge, provokes reflection and triggers curiosity. The first half of the book provides an overview of the organisations, principles, frameworks and themes that every professional deploying to health emergencies should be aware of. The second half of the book provides practical... advice to help professionals survive and thrive during their mission – from staying healthy, protecting oneself from cyber-attacks and coping with stress to building trust among the host community or dealing with language barriers and the press.
This handbook is free of charge and can be made available in small quantities as long as supply lasts. To order, please send this form to: incontrol-handbook@rki.de
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This report challenges policy-makers and political leaders to tackle fossil fuel production and consumption as a health control issue, in the same way that smoking has been reduced and regulated. Fossil fuel combustion is a major source of toxic air pollution that kills 7 million people every year, ...almost the same as the number of deaths caused by tobacco smoking.
In 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) recognised air pollution as a major health risk factor. There is widespread public discussion about the effects of fossil fuel combustion and emissions on climate change… but what about the effect on our health? Climate change poses a threat not only to the health of the planet, but also to humans.
The case studies evaluated in this report offer examples of mechanisms that can be used to restrict the production and consumption of unhealthy commodities, so that the health, air pollution and climate communities can learn from one another, using shared approaches and language. These case studies show that the connection with health is a strong argument to support sustainable change.
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This book provides significantly expanded content and experience in relation to a broader stewardship context- for example, stewardship in specific populations, different countries as well as the role of different professions in stewardship to political and media engagement. We hope this book has so...mething to offer everyone practicing in this area. Therefore, The British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy [BSAC] in collaboration with ESGAP are very pleased to present this e-book on Global Antimicrobial Stewardship that is relevant to health care professions working in preventing and managing infection across the healthcare communities and health care facilities. It aims to support health care professionals, or teams, or policy makers interested in learning about bringing the principles of stewardship to the bed side
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Today, the world is facing a learning crisis: While millions of children have entered education systems for the first time, many of them cannot read, write or do basic mathematics, even after several years of primary school.1 This global learning crisis has its roots in children’s earliest years, ...when failure to invest in quality early childhood education (ECE)results in children starting school already behind in a host of critical skills they need to succeed in primary school.2Investing in the foundations of learning during the child’s early years benefits children,3 families, education systems and societies at large.4 Participation in quality ECE sets in motion a positive learning cycle and is a proven strategy to address the global learning crisis at its roots by closing early learning gaps, strengthening the efficiency of education systems and providing a solid foundation for human capital development and economic grow
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The overall goal of this strategy is to ensure accurate understanding of the
benefits of covid-19 vaccination and alleviate apprehension about the vaccine, to ensure its acceptance and encourage uptake across various audiences.
Objectives
x Create demand, promote acceptability and accessibility o...f COVID-19
vaccine among at least 90% of the general public.
x Develop appropriate messages and identify channels to communicate
the potential benefits and risks of the vaccine to all concerned parties,
including decision-makers at all levels.
x Provide timely and accurate information to address misinformation,
rumors and other crisis situations.
x Effectively mobilize and empower communities to ensure participation
and ownership of the vaccination process
x Strengthen communication mechanisms and partnerships among key
stakeholders to support the national communication effort.
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Asthma is the most common chronic disease in children, imposing a consistent burden on health system. In recent years, prevalence of asthma symptoms became globally increased in children and adolescents, particularly in Low-Middle Income Countries (LMICs). Host (genetics, atopy) and environmental fa...ctors (microbial exposure, exposure to passive smoking and air pollution), seemed to contribute to this trend. The increased prevalence observed in metropolitan areas with respect to rural ones and, overall, in industrialized countries, highlighted the role of air pollution in asthma inception. Asthma accounts for 1.1% of the overall global estimate of “Disability-adjusted life years” (DALYs)/100,000 for all causes. Mortality in children is low and it decreased across Europe over recent years. Children from LMICs particularly suffer a disproportionately higher burden in terms of morbidity and mortality. Global asthma-related costs are high and are usually are classified into direct, indirect and intangible costs. Direct costs account for 50–80% of the total costs. Asthma is one of the main causes of hospitalization which are particularly common in children aged < 5 years with a prevalence that has been increased during the last two decades, mostly in LMICs. Indirect costs are usually higher than in older patients, including both school and work-related losses. Intangible costs are unquantifiable, since they are related to impairment of quality of life, limitation of physical activities and study performance. The implementation of strategies aimed at early detect asthma thus providing access to the proper treatment has been shown to effectively reduce the burden of the disease.
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Published: November 24, 2020 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000938
Climate change is expected to have complex effects on infectious diseases, causing some to increase, others to decrease, and many to shift their distributions. There have been several important advances in understanding the ...role of climate and climate change on wildlife and human infectious disease dynamics over the past several years. This essay examines 3 major areas of advancement, which include improvements to mechanistic disease models, investigations into the importance of climate variability to disease dynamics, and understanding the consequences of thermal mismatches between host and parasites. Applying the new information derived from these advances to climate–disease models and addressing the pressing knowledge gaps that we identify should improve the capacity to predict how climate change will affect disease risk for both wildlife and humans.
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7 Febr. 2021
As COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc in countries – decimating people’s livelihoods, and leaving health systems struggling to provide healthcare and vaccines for the entire population - governments and donors should look to the Church as a partner. The essential Church networks, tr...usted and rooted in local communities, can reach the most vulnerable people and remote places where governments often struggle to reach. DR Congo is among several countries where the Catholic Church is the main provider of community health services, particularly in more remote areas.
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https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0002439
South Sudan has a high burden – among the highest in sub-Saharan Africa – of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). This adversely affects the health and social and economic well-being of people in the country. The prevention, control and eventual elim...ination of many NTDs depend heavily on improved access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and, once there is access, on sound sanitation and hygiene practices. This is especially the case in NTD endemic communities.
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Disaster Management Reference Handbook Series Overview.
Floods, storms, and wind account for large proportions of displacement compared to other disasters. Floods are the most frequent type of disaster whereas wind-related disasters constitute the biggest losses in terms of economic damage, displac...ement, and number of affected people. ASEAN has succeeded in developing institutions not only for addressing the threat posed by natural hazards but also for building resilience into communities at risk
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This handbook follows a comprehensive approach to health system strengthening at borders in order to support IHR national focal points and other national agencies in developing and implementing evidence-based action plans for IHR capacity development at ground crossings. The approach includes the mo...vement of travellers and baggage, cargo, containers, conveyances, goods and postal parcels across ground crossings, as well as the interaction with adjacent border communities. Other factors can be considered, if needed, throughout the risk assessment.
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The humanitarian crisis in Northeast Nigeria, driven by conflict, climate-related shocks, and food insecurity, has created immense challenges for the health sector in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe (BAY) States. About 1.8 million people remain displaced(1), with inadequate access to healthcare services an...d persistent disease outbreaks, malnutrition, and mental health challenges. This strategy outlines a comprehensive localization approach to strengthen the health sector's capacity by empowering local and national actors (L/NAs) include state and local government structures to lead humanitarian responses at respective levels with minimal oversight functions.
The localization strategy aligns with the global commitments of the Grand Bargain 2.0, prioritizing equitable partnerships, capacity sharing, and resource mobilization to enhance sustainable, community-owned health systems(2). Key components include increasing the visibility and meaningful participation of L/NAs in health sector coordination, promoting direct funding to local actors, and addressing systemic barriers such as governance, leadership, capacity, and resource gaps.
The global humanitarian community made a commitment, as reflected in the Grand Bargain 2.0, to localization (3) to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of humanitarian aid. A key priority of this commitment is to empower local actors to take a leading role in delivering assistance, ultimately leading to better outcomes for affected communities. A localized health response, strengthened by partnerships, can achieve several key outcomes, including rapid response and access, community acceptance, cost-effectiveness, links to long-term development, and increased accountability to the community. Localization in health matters because it ensures sustainable and community-owned health responses.
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The Second Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy (EDPRS 2) is a launch into the home straight of our Vision 2020. We are faced with new challenges of ensuring greater self-reliance and developing global competitiveness. Conscious of these challenges, we forge ahead knowing that by work...ing together, we always overcome. The EDPRS 2 period is the time when our private sector is expected to take the driving seat in economic growth and poverty reduction. Through this strategy we will focus government efforts on transforming the economy, the private sector and alleviating constraints to growth of investment. We will develop the appropriate skills and competencies to allow our people particularly the youth to become more productive and competitive to support our ambitions. We will also strengthen the platform for communities to engage decisively and to continue to develop home grown solutions that have been the bedrock of our success. These are fundamental principles as we work to improve the lives of all Rwandans in the face of an uncertain global economic environment.
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The 2030 health-related Sustainable Development Goals call on countries to end AIDS as a public health threat and also to achieve universal health coverage. The World Health Organization (WHO) promotes primary health care (PHC) as the key mechanism for achieving universal health coverage, and the PH...C approach is also essential for ending AIDS and reaching other Sustainable Development Goal targets.
The PHC approach is defined as a whole-of-society approach to health that aims to maximize the level and distribution of health and well-being through three components: (1) primary care and essential public health functions as the core of integrated health services; (2) multisectoral policy and action; and (3) empowered people and communities.
This publication helps decision-makers to consider and optimize the synergies between existing and future assets and investments intended for both PHC and disease-specific responses, including HIV. Specifically, it aims to:
• provide guidance to policy-makers, health system managers and programmatic leads from both PHC and HIV backgrounds regarding opportunities to jointly advance their respective efforts to strengthen PHC and end AIDS as a public health threat; and
• provide a resource for all stakeholders who seek to contribute to strengthening PHC and ending AIDS as a public health threat in a synergistic manner, including people living with HIV, members of key and vulnerable populations, community and civil society representatives, people working in all areas of health systems, researchers, funders and private-sector decision-makers.
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