National tuberculosis (TB) prevalence surveys provide a nationally representative measurement of the burden of TB disease in the population, at a given point in time. Repeat surveys allow assessment of trends and tracking of progress towards national and global targets for reductions in TB disease b...urden. Survey data also provide important insights that can help national TB programmes to identify ways to improve TB diagnosis and treatment.
National TB prevalence surveys are relevant in countries that do not yet have national disease notification and vital registration systems that are of sufficiently high quality and coverage to allow reliable tracking of TB disease burden.
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This operational guidance provides a structured approach to support countries in sustaining priority services for HIV, viral hepatitis and sexually transmitted infections in the context of reduced external funding. The guidance is intended for national governments, public health programmes, communit...y-led organizations, civil society, technical partners and donors working to safeguard priority services, support phased adaptation, protect health outcomes and preserve hard-won gains.
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The document "Combating False Information on Vaccines: A Guide for Health Workers" is designed to help health workers address vaccine misinformation. It begins by defining misinformation and explaining why it spreads rapidly, often due to its emotional appeal and simplistic explanations. The guide i...dentifies common sources of vaccine misinformation, including influential individuals who profit from spreading false information. The document outlines strategies for combating misinformation, emphasizing the importance of health workers as trusted sources. It provides tips for identifying misinformation online, such as checking URLs, dates, and author credentials, and recognizing tactics like evoking strong emotions or pushing conspiracy theories. Two main approaches to fighting misinformation are discussed: prebunking and debunking. Prebunking involves warning individuals about potential misinformation before they encounter it, while debunking aims to correct false information after it has been consumed. The guide offers practical examples for both methods. Additionally, the document highlights the role of health workers in supporting peers and patients to trust immunization. It suggests being kind, nonjudgmental, and transparent when addressing concerns, and using motivational interviewing techniques to understand and respond to patients' doubts. Overall, the guide emphasizes the critical role of health workers in maintaining trust in vaccines and provides comprehensive strategies to identify, address, and prevent the spread of vaccine misinformation in clinical and community settings. The guide is a valuable resource for health workers to enhance their ability to combat vaccine misinformation, support informed decision-making, and promote trust in vaccines within their communities, and it addresses a pressing issue with practical solutions, supports trusted health workers, and ultimately aims to protect public health by promoting accurate information and trust in vaccines.
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The document "Combating False Information on Vaccines: A Guide for EPI Managers" is designed to help Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) managers address vaccine misinformation. It begins by defining misinformation and explaining why it spreads rapidly, often due to its emotional appeal and simpl...istic explanations. The guide identifies common sources of vaccine misinformation, including influential individuals who profit from spreading false information. The document outlines strategies for combating misinformation, emphasizing the importance of EPI managers as trusted sources. It provides tips for identifying misinformation online, such as checking URLs, dates, and author credentials, and recognizing tactics like evoking strong emotions or pushing conspiracy theories. Two main approaches to fighting misinformation are discussed: prebunking and debunking. Prebunking involves warning individuals about potential misinformation before they encounter it, while debunking aims to correct false information after it has been consumed. The guide offers practical examples for both methods. Additionally, the document highlights the role of EPI managers in supporting health workers to trust immunization. It suggests being kind, nonjudgmental, and transparent when addressing concerns, and using motivational interviewing techniques to understand and respond to health workers' doubts. The guide also emphasizes the importance of creating a supportive environment for health workers, promoting pro-vaccine norms, and providing continuing education on vaccines. Overall, the guide aims to help EPI managers maintain trust in vaccines and provides comprehensive strategies to identify, address, and prevent the spread of vaccine misinformation in clinical and community settings. This document is necessary to equip EPI managers with the knowledge and tools to combat vaccine misinformation, support their teams, and promote trust in vaccines, ultimately protecting public health.
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Scope: The purpose of this guideline is to assist health care providers caring for patients with suspected or confirmed arboviral disease caused by dengue, chikungunya, Zika or yellow fever viruses. This guideline includes recommendations on the management of patients admitted to health care facilit...ies (defined for the purpose of this guidance as “severe disease”) and those seen in outpatient facilities (defined for the purpose of this guidance as “non-severe disease”).
Target audience: This guideline is designed primarily for health care providers who manage patients with clinically apparent arboviral infections. The guideline can be applied at all levels of the health system, including community-based care, primary care, emergency departments and hospital wards.
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A Call for Action in Safeguarding Dignity and Saving Women’s Lives: Clinical and Psychosocial Support for Survivors of Sexual Violence in Eastern DRC's Protection Crisis
Tens of thousands: According to the GBV AoR’s 6W mapping tool, there is a significant increase in number of reported cases of... sexual violence during the first quarter (January–March) of 2025 from the last quarter of 2024 in the North Kivu province only representing 61% of GBV incidents. In reality, tens of thousands more women and girls at risk are no longer receiving care.
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Integrated Outbreak Analytics (IOA) applies a multidisciplinary approach to understanding outbreak dynamics and to inform outbreak response. It aims to drive comprehensive, accountable, and effective public health and clinical strategies by enabling communities, and national and subnational health a...uthorities to use data for operational decision-making. IOA embraces a holistic perspective of outbreak dynamics throughout: from the trigger questions to the data that are collected or accessed, to the interpretation of results and the recommendations that follow. In addition, IOA promotes co-development and monitoring of evidence informed actions.
The IOA toolkit aims to provide a clear understanding of IOA and highlight the importance of using an integrated, holistic approach to manage outbreak responses. It provides step-by-step guidance for setting up IOA and putting IOA principles into action. Finally, this toolkit provides guidance on applying IOA in humanitarian and emergency contexts, offering a practical and adaptable approach to informing public health emergency responses.
Developed based on the model from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), its creation involved extensive consultation with experts experienced in IOA applications. The toolkit was piloted in Tanganyika Province, DRC, as well as Somalia and Sudan, demonstrating its adaptability to diverse emergency scenarios. It builds upon an existing array of tools, templates, reports, case studies, animations, and publications used by stakeholders in diverse contexts.
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Access to safe, effective and quality-assured health products and technologies is crucial for achieving universal health coverage and primary health care goals. The continued growth of the aging population; increasing burden of noncommunicable diseases; growing burden of mental health issues; climat...e change; shifting patterns of vector borne diseases, fungal disease and waterborne diseases; antimicrobial resistance; and new infectious hazards create an ongoing need for equitable access to safe, effective and quality-assured health products and technologies, and renewed investments in research and development for innovative health products and technologies.
The coronavirus pandemic exposed the inequalities in access to health products, highlighting the need for longer-term strategies to strengthen access to health products and technologies outside of and in emergency situations. While technological and scientific advances present an opportunity to increase access to health products and technologies, the risk of increasing inequality due to higher prices for new health products and technologies; the persisting problem of substandard and falsified medical products; a lack of skilled workforce in many low- and middle-income countries; and a lack of data for decisionmaking and for measuring progress present significant challenges.
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The Gaza Strip is experiencing one of the most severe food security crises globally, with the entire population of approximately 2.1 million people now facing crisis-level food insecurity or worse (IPC Phase 3+). As of May 2025, more than one in five Gazans—about
470,000 people—are at risk of s...tarvation (IPC Phase 5: Catastrophe), while over half are classified in Emergency (IPC Phase 4). This marks a significant deterioration compared to just one month earlier and reflects the impact of a comprehensive blockade that has
restricted all humanitarian and commercial supplies since early March. Vital goods have been depleted, food prices have skyrocketed by over 3,000 percent in some areas, and coping mechanisms have all but collapsed, forcing many to scavenge for food or go without entirely. Acute malnutrition has reached serious levels and is projected to worsen, particularly in North Gaza, Gaza, and Rafah, where critical levels are expected between May and September 2025.
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The Gaza Strip is experiencing one of the most severe food security crises globally, with the entire population of approximately 2.1 million people now facing crisis-level food insecurity or worse (IPC Phase 3+). As of May 2025, more than one in five Gazans—about
470,000 people—are at risk of s...tarvation (IPC Phase 5: Catastrophe), while over half are classified in Emergency (IPC Phase 4). This marks a significant deterioration compared to just one month earlier and reflects the impact of a comprehensive blockade that has restricted all humanitarian and commercial supplies since early March. Vital goods have been depleted, food prices have skyrocketed by over 3,000 percent in some areas, and coping mechanisms have all but collapsed, forcing many to scavenge for food or go without entirely. Acute malnutrition has reached serious levels and is projected to worsen, particularly in North Gaza, Gaza, and Rafah, where critical levels are expected between May and September 2025.
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The Compendium of Solid Waste Management in Humanitarian Contexts is a comprehensive, structured and userfriendly manual and planning guide that provides a systematic overview of existing Solid Waste Management (SWM) technologies and approaches appropriate for use in humanitarian contexts.
El Plan de acción regional sobre inmunización para las Américas (RIAP) constituye un paso fundamental para consolidar los avances alcanzados y proporciona una visión clara para enfrentar los desafíos actuales y futuros, con el objetivo de alcanzar las metas establecidas para el año 2030. Este ...plan es esencial para fortalecer los sistemas de salud, mejorar el acceso a la vacunación y optimizar la coordinación entre las partes interesadas, de manera de asegurar que todos los sectores de la población tengan la oportunidad de beneficiarse de programas de inmunización resilientes, eficaces y equitativos a lo largo del curso de vida. Diseñado en el marco de la política sobre Revitalizar la inmunización como un bien de salud pública para la salud universal y en consonancia con la Agenda de Inmunización 2030, en este plan se integran las prioridades definidas por los países y territorios, con indicadores que abordan seis líneas de acción: gobernanza, seguimiento, integración, comunicación, recursos humanos y toma de decisiones basada en la evidencia. Este enfoque integral e inclusivo reafirma el compromiso con el logro de la cobertura universal de salud y de los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible. De cara al futuro, es esencial mantener un compromiso sólido a todos los niveles y adaptar las estrategias a los cambios que enfrentan los países y territorios, a fin de avanzar de manera eficaz en los esfuerzos de inmunización mediante mejores prácticas y enfoques innovadores. Se invita a todas las partes interesadas a unirse a este esfuerzo colectivo para garantizar la inmunización como un bien público y proteger a la población contra las enfermedades prevenibles por vacunación.
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Le Plan d'action régional pour la vaccination dans les Amériques (RIAP) constitue une étape fondamentale pour consolider les progrès accomplis et offre une vision concrète pour relever les défis actuels et futurs en vue d'atteindre les objectifs fixés pour l'année 2030. Ce plan est essentiel... pour renforcer les systèmes de santé, améliorer l'accès à la vaccination et optimiser la coordination entre les parties prenantes, en veillant à ce que tous les secteurs de la population aient la possibilité de bénéficier de programmes de vaccination résilients, efficaces et équitables tout au long du parcours de vie. Conçu dans le cadre stratégique de la politique pour la Revitalisation de la vaccination en tant que bien de santé publique pour une santé universelle et aligné sur le Programme pour la vaccination à l’horizon 2030, le plan d’action synthétise les priorités déterminées par les pays et les territoires, en utilisant des indicateurs qui ciblent six axes stratégiques d’intervention : la gouvernance, la surveillance, l'intégration, la communication, les ressources humaines et la prise de décision fondée sur des données probantes. Cette approche globale et inclusive réaffirme la volonté de parvenir à la couverture sanitaire universelle et d'atteindre les objectifs de développement durable. À l'avenir, il sera essentiel de maintenir un engagement fort à tous les niveaux en adaptant les stratégies aux changements que connaîtront les pays et les territoires, afin de faire progresser efficacement leurs efforts de vaccination par la mise en œuvre de meilleures pratiques et d’approches novatrices. Toutes les parties prenantes sont encouragées à participer à cet effort collectif pour que la vaccination soit considérée comme un bien public et que la population soit protégée contre les maladies évitables par la vaccination.
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Progrès dans la notification des données sur l’envenimation par morsure de serpent: défis et opportunités. Englisch/Francais. WEEKLY EPIDEMIOLOGICAL RECORD, NOS. 51/52, 20 DECEMBER 2024, pp. 770-775
World Health Organization’s (WHO) presence in Sierra Leone throughout 2023 has been fulfilling. Out attention has been focused on advancing Universal Health Coverage and strengthening emergency preparedness and response. Collaborating closely with the Ministry of Health, our donor partners, and va...rious stakeholders, WHO supported capacities for Health Systems strengthening and delivery of impactful interventions, particularly towards improving maternal and child health outcomes, as well as the overall well-being of the population.
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The Lancet Microbe Volume 5, Issue 10100982October 2024
What does the future hold for the world’s children?
In many ways, the future is now. Today’s actions and decisions will determine the future children inherit.
Unfortunately, today's children live in a world fraught with crises, poverty and discrimination. Where far too many are deprived of... opportunities to meet their full potential.
We can and must do better.
The future of childhood hangs in the balance.
This year’s State of the World’s Children Report examines the forces and trends shaping our world today and reflects on how they might shape the future.
The report explores three megatrends that will profoundly impact children’s lives between now and 2050: demographics shifts, the climate and environmental crises and frontier technologies.
It also presents three future scenarios – possible outcomes, not predictions – for how children could experience the world of 2050.
As we consider what we can do today, our responsibility is clear: now is the time to shape a better future for every child.
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The IFRC Psychosocial Centre has published a guidance note providing an overview of the psychosocial consequences of virus outbreaks, with a focus on mpox, and outlines key considerations for MHPSS programming.
The current mpox outbreaks present numerous challenges for responding National Societi...es. A key issue is addressing stigma as individuals infected, or suspected of having mpox may experience social ostracization, discrimination, and even violence. In many African communities, where cultural and social norms are vital to community health, considering the cultural and psychosocial implications of virus outbreaks is integral for effective disease management. In addition, Red Cross Red Crescent staff and volunteers may be personally exposed and working in complex environments with rumours and misinformation generating fear and anxiety. This guidance addresses the key mental health and psychosocial support implications of the ongoing mpox crisis.
Guleed Dualeh, MHPSS Advisor
This guidance note is intended for Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies and IFRC departments who may be responding to mpox in their country, or region. It includes guidance on:
Common reactions and behaviours in epidemics
Caring for staff and volunteers in health emergencies
Integration of MHPSS considerations for into health responses
Links to existing relevant materials
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In 2015, the world reaffirmed its commitment to sustainable development by endorsing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 SDGs (2030 Agenda). To reach older people – an important, heterogeneous and growing population – and to create visibility in global and national policy and ...accountability mechanisms, a closer examination is needed of the kinds of data collection mechanisms and methods, and types of data collected to measure each SDG indicator relevant for older persons, including existing levels of disaggregation, analysis and dissemination.
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The purpose of this manual is to provide guidance on how to implement Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) recommendations for malaria elimination at the local level. It is a streamlined, more operational version of the Manual for Stratifying Malaria Risk and Elimination of Foci, aimed primarily ...at operational teams working in the field. The content has been prioritized and the steps of the process organized to facilitate greater understanding by local teams. Adjustments have also been made to underscore its versatility for all malaria transmission scenarios in the Region of the Americas.
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