The website "Bereit zu Reisen" provides comprehensive guidance on malaria prophylaxis for travelers to endemic regions. It emphasizes preventive strategies, including mosquito bite avoidance through protective clothing, insect repellents, and sleeping under treated nets. In addition, the site detail...s chemoprophylaxis options, explaining recommended medications, dosing schedules, and duration of use before, during, and after travel. Emergency self-treatment procedures are also outlined for situations where immediate medical care is unavailable. Overall, the resource serves as a practical reference for travelers, combining evidence-based recommendations on exposure prevention, medication use, and prompt response to potential malaria symptoms to ensure safe and healthy travel.
Accessed on 26/08/2025.
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The 'Mosquito Bite Prevention Poster – Kids' is an educational public health resource designed to teach children how to protect themselves from mosquito bites. Using clear, simple instructions and visual cues, the poster engages young audiences by emphasising practical prevention strategies, such ...as correctly applying insect repellent, wearing protective clothing and avoiding standing water where mosquitoes breed. This tool serves as a preventive guide for children and caregivers alike, encouraging health-conscious behaviours within the community.
Accessed on 27/08/2025.
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Early Adolescent Skills for Emotions (EASE) is an evidence-based group psychological intervention to help 10–15-year-olds affected by internalizing problems (e.g. stress and symptoms of anxiety, depression) in communities exposed to adversity. Published by the World Health Organization (WHO) and U...nited Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), EASE aims to support adolescents and their caregivers with skills to reduce distress. The EASE training manual accompanies the EASE intervention manual and is designed to be used to train EASE helpers (those who deliver the EASE intervention to adolescents and caregivers) and EASE trainers/supervisors (those who will go on to train/supervise future EASE helpers).
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This website provides comprehensive guidance on vaccinations, malaria prevention and general health measures for travellers to tropical and developing regions. It emphasises two main vaccination criteria: the administrative requirements of the destination country and the actual health risks to the t...raveller. Malaria prevention measures include chemoprophylaxis (e.g. atovaquone-proguanil, doxycycline or mefloquine) and vector control methods such as insecticide-treated nets, insect repellents and environmental protection measures. Additional travel health risks covered include bites from other arthropods, envenomations, dog and mammal bites, food and water hygiene, traveller's diarrhoea, and considerations for pregnant women, infants, the elderly, and people with chronic conditions. It strongly recommends carrying a travel medical kit and having a pre-travel consultation. Overall, the document aims to minimise illness and ensure safe travel.
Accessed on 27/08/2025.
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Malaria is an infection caused by Plasmodium species endemic to most parts of Africa, South America, East Asia, and parts of Europe and the Middle East. At least 10 to 30 thousand of the 125 million travelers to these areas are infected each year. All visitors to endemic areas should receive counsel...ing on malaria risk, mosquito bite avoidance, and tailored chemoprophylaxis based on their medical histories and travel plans. This activity reviews the evaluation and management of chemoprophylaxis of malaria and highlights the role of the healthcare team in improving care for patients with potential exposure to this condition.
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This table summarises the drugs used for malaria prevention, including adult and paediatric dosages, timing and special considerations. The medications listed are atovaquone/proguanil, chloroquine, doxycycline, hydroxychloroquine, mefloquine, primaquine and tafenoquine. The guidance covers the use o...f these drugs for primary and terminal prophylaxis, as well as contraindications (e.g. G6PD deficiency, pregnancy, and psychiatric or cardiac conditions) and safety precautions for children and special populations. The aim is to help travellers and healthcare providers reduce the risk of malaria during travel.
Accessed on 27/08/2025.
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The 2022 report reviews the global malaria diagnostics market and technological landscape to support Unitaid’s 2023–2027 strategy for quality malaria case management. The report highlights the stalled progress of malaria control efforts, the gaps in access to diagnostics and the public health im...plications of P. falciparum HRP2/3 gene deletions, which compromise the accuracy of the widely used HRP2-detecting rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs). The report analyses the malaria RDT market, noting supplier diversification, price trends and production shifts resulting from the pandemic. It also addresses the emerging point-of-care G6PD testing market, which is required to ensure the safe radical cure of P. vivax infections. It surveys technological innovation, including digital microscopy, hemozoin tests, nucleic acid detection and biosensors, while emphasising that RDTs and microscopy will remain the mainstay of case management in the near term. The report identifies market shortcomings, access barriers and opportunities to improve malaria case management and diagnostic coverage.
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Combination therapy is a cornerstone of modern malaria treatment, particularly in the context of widespread multidrug resistance. Using two or more antimalarial drugs with different mechanisms simultaneously enhances efficacy, shortens treatment duration, improves compliance and delays the developme...nt of resistance. Artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs), such as artemether–lumefantrine, artesunate–amodiaquine and artesunate–sulfadoxine/pyrimethamine, are highly effective in rapidly clearing parasites and reducing gametocyte carriage. They are also generally well tolerated. Non-artemisinin combinations, quinine-based regimens and novel combinations (e.g. piperaquine–dihydroartemisinin) offer alternative therapeutic options, although clinical experience with these remains limited. Although ACTs are the preferred first-line treatment, factors such as cost, local drug resistance patterns, safety during pregnancy and paediatric use must inform implementation and policy decisions.
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The 2024 World Malaria Report shows that the malaria burden remains overwhelmingly concentrated in Africa. The continent accounted for 94% of global cases and 95% of malaria-related deaths in 2023. Although the number of malaria cases increased globally from 204 million in 2000 to 246 million in 202...3, the number of deaths declined from 805,000 to 569,000. Children under five are still the most affected group, accounting for 76% of malaria deaths in Africa. A few countries, particularly Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, carry the highest burden. Since 2000, Africa has significantly reduced malaria incidence and mortality, averting over 1.7 billion cases and 12 million deaths. Nevertheless, malaria continues to pose a significant health challenge, necessitating ongoing action and investment.
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Health in All Policies (HiAP) promotes health and equity. It is based on the recognition that our greatest health challenges for example, non-communicable diseases, health inequities and inequalities, climate change, and spiraling health care costs are highly complex and often linked through the soc...ial determinants of health (SDH). In this context, promoting healthy communities, and in particular health equity across different population groups, requires that we address the social determinants of health, such as public transportation, education access, access to healthy food, economic opportunities, and more. While many public policies work to achieve this, conflicts of interest may arise. Alternatively, unintended impacts of policies are not measured and addressed. This requires innovative solutions, and structures that build channels for dialogue and decision-making that work across traditional government policy siloes. Hence, HiAP could be adopted to ensure commitment from the highest decision makers within government to address the social determinants of health.
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The handbook is the starting point for anyone interested in learning about and understanding the key principles and concepts of supply chain management for health commodities. Concepts described in this handbook will help those responsible for improving, revising, designing, and operating all or par...t of a supply chain. The addendum provides an overview of health care supply chain management in the humanitarian response context, to help supply chain managers better prepare and deliver to the people who need relief during a crisis.
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Updated guidance on the integration of diabetes, hypertension and mental health services, and interventions to support adherence to antiretroviral therapy. The guideline offers practical implementation guidance for countries and key stakeholders as well as outlining key research gaps. As life expec...tancy for people living with HIV continues to increase, managing noncommunicable diseases, mental health, and adherence to antiretroviral therapy is essential to sustaining treatment success, quality of life, and engagement in care. A life course approach addresses these needs from childhood through older age. Service integration supports more person-centred, coordinated care across the life course.
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he UNFPA “Programmatic guidelines: Cash and Voucher Assistance in Sexual and Reproductive Health programming in Emergencies” explains how CVA can be effectively integrated into humanitarian responses to help women, girls, and other vulnerable groups access lifesaving and comprehensive SRH servic...es. Rooted in UNFPA’s mandate, this document provides practical direction for designing, implementing, and monitoring CVA within SRH programming.
The guidance highlights the barriers that hinder access to SRH care, such as affordability, availability, acceptability, and appropriateness, and illustrates how CVA can address financial obstacles by covering transport, user fees, or other indirect costs, while reinforcing health system strengthening efforts. CVA is presented as a complementary tool that supports both emergency and long-term SRH goals. Within humanitarian emergencies, it can contribute directly to achieving MISP objectives, including:
Enabling survivors of sexual violence to access clinical and psychosocial care;
Supporting the continuation of HIV and STI treatment, including coverage of transport;
Facilitating safe deliveries and emergency obstetric and newborn care; and
Removing financial barriers to voluntary family planning and contraceptive access, while ensuring informed choice and avoiding coercion.
Beyond the MISP, CVA also supports the transition to comprehensive SRH services in protracted emergencies and recovery phases. Examples include using cash or vouchers to encourage antenatal and postnatal care, ensure menstrual hygiene, sustain cancer prevention and treatment, fund obstetric fistula repair, and promote SRH education among adolescents.
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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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The Global Health Network is an open source platform that provides trusted knowledge, guidance, tools and resources to support the generation of more and better health research data. During emerging outbreaks it is vital to learn as much as possible to generate evidence on best practice for preventi...on, diagnosis and treatment and to facilitate effective preparedness and response for future outbreaks.
This pop-up space for 2019 Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 (formerly 2019-nCoV) supports evidence generation by pooling protocols, tools, guidance, templates, and research standards generated by researchers and networks working on the response to this outbreak. Findings from previous outbreaks, largely obtained during MERS and SARS, are also available. This all aims to make research faster and easier and to enable standardised, quality data to be collected and prepared for sharing.
Latest updates will be provided on transmission as well as recommendations for healthcare professionals on transmission, disease management, and care.
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INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted health systems around the world. The objectives of this study are to estimate the overall effect of the pandemic on essential health service use and outcomes in Mexico, describe observed and predicted trends in services over 24 months, and to estimat...e the number of visits lost through December 2020.
METHODS: We used health information system data for January 2019 to December 2020 from the Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS), which provides health services for more than half of Mexico's population-65 million people. Our analysis includes nine indicators of service use and three outcome indicators for reproductive, maternal and child health and non-communicable disease services. We used an interrupted time series design and linear generalised estimating equation models to estimate the change in service use and outcomes from April to December 2020. Estimates were expressed using average marginal effects on the risk ratio scale.
RESULTS: The study found that across nine health services, an estimated 8.74 million patient visits were lost in Mexico. This included a decline of over two thirds for breast and cervical cancer screenings (79% and 68%, respectively), over half for sick child visits and female contraceptive services, approximately one-third for childhood vaccinations, diabetes, hypertension and antenatal care consultations, and a decline of 10% for deliveries performed at IMSS. In terms of patient outcomes, the proportion of patients with diabetes and hypertension with controlled conditions declined by 22% and 17%, respectively. Caesarean section rate did not change.
CONCLUSION: Significant disruptions in health services show that the pandemic has strained the resilience of the Mexican health system and calls for urgent efforts to resume essential services and plan for catching up on missed preventive care even as the COVID-19 crisis continues in Mexico.
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WHO today released its first roadmap to tackle postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) – defined as excessive bleeding after childbirth - which affects millions of women annually and is the world’s leading cause of maternal deaths.
Despite being preventable and treatable, PPH results in around 70 000 de...aths every year. For those who survive, it can cause disabilities and psychological trauma that last for years.
“Severe bleeding in childbirth is one of the most common causes of maternal mortality, yet it is highly preventable and treatable,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “This new roadmap charts a path forward to a world in which more women have a safe birth and a healthy future with their families.”
The Roadmap aims to help countries address stark differences in survival outcomes from PPH, which reflect major inequities in access to essential health services. Over 85% of deaths from PPH happen in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Risk factors include anaemia, placental abnormalities, and other complications in pregnancy such as infections and pre-eclampsia.
Many risk factors can be managed if there is quality antenatal care, including access to ultrasound, alongside effective monitoring in the hours after birth. If bleeding starts, it also needs to be detected and treated extremely quickly. Too often, however, health facilities lack necessary healthcare workers or resources, including lifesaving commodities such as oxytocin, tranexamic acid or blood for transfusions.
“Addressing postpartum haemorrhage needs a multipronged approach focusing on both prevention and response - preventing risk factors and providing immediate access to treatments when needed - alongside broader efforts to strengthen women’s rights,” said Dr Pascale Allotey, WHO Director for Sexual and Reproductive Health and HRP, the UN’s special programme on research development and training in human reproduction. “Every woman, no matter where she lives, should have access to timely, high quality maternity care, with trained health workers, essential equipment and shelves stocked with appropriate and effective commodities – this is crucial for treating postpartum bleeding and reducing maternal deaths.”
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Principaux faits
D’après les estimations, 6 à 7 millions de personnes dans le monde sont infectées par Trypanosoma cruzi (T. Cruzi), le parasite responsable de la maladie de Chagas. La plupart de ces personnes vivent en Amérique latine.
La transmission à l’être humain se fait principalem...ent, en Amérique latine, par l’intermédiaire d’un insecte appelé triatome, qui peut être porteur de T. cruzi.
Parmi les autres modes de transmission de la maladie de Chagas, figurent : la transmission orale (par voie alimentaire), la transfusion de sang ou de produits sanguins, la transmission mère-enfant (congénitale), la transplantation d’organes et les accidents de laboratoire.
La maladie de Chagas ne touchait auparavant que des zones rurales de la Région des Amériques, et surtout de l’Amérique latine. Ces dernières décennies, toutefois, les mouvements de population ont fait que la plupart des personnes infectées sont des habitants de zones urbaines (urbanisation) et que la maladie s’est propagée à d’autres continents (où T. cruzi se transmet par des voies non vectorielles).
L’infection à T. cruzi est curable si un traitement est instauré rapidement après l’infection.
Chez les personnes infectées de façon chronique, un traitement antiparasitaire peut éventuellement prévenir ou enrayer la progression de la maladie, et éviter sa transmission, notamment de la mère à l’enfant.
Jusqu’à 30 % des personnes infectées de façon chronique présentent des troubles cardiaques, et jusqu’à 10 % d’entre elles souffrent de troubles digestifs et/ou neurologiques, ce qui peut imposer un traitement particulier.
Les principales méthodes de prévention de la maladie de Chagas en Amérique latine sont la lutte antivectorielle ainsi que d’autres stratégies visant à réduire la transmission vectorielle.
Dans le monde entier, le dépistage sanguin joue un rôle crucial dans la prévention de l’infection par transfusion ou transplantation d’organes.
Il est essentiel de détecter et de traiter l’infection chez les femmes et les filles en âge de procréer, ainsi que de soumettre tout nouveau-né et ses frères et sœurs à un dépistage dans le cas où la mère est infectée et n’a jamais reçu de traitement antiparasitaire.
Certains facteurs socio-économiques et environnementaux influent fortement sur la maladie de Chagas, dont la propagation et les différentes dimensions interdépendantes justifient la nécessité de mettre en œuvre des stratégies de lutte multisectorielles.
Quelques pays ont mis en place la notification et la surveillance des cas aigus et chroniques et des voies de transmission actives, qui sont essentielles à la lutte contre la maladie de Chagas.
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KEY MESSAGES
Always talk to a GBV specialist first to understand what GBV services are available in your area. Some services may take the form of hotlines, a mobile app or other remote support.
Be aware of any other available services in your area. Identify services provided by humanitarian pa...rtners such as health, psychosocial support, shelter and non-food items. Consider services provided by communities such as mosques/ churches, women’s groups and Disability Service Organizations.
Remember your role. Provide a listening ear, free of judgment. Provide accurate, up-to-date information on available services. Let the survivor make their own choices. Know what you can and cannot manage. Even without a GBV actor in your area, there may be other partners, such as a child protection or mental health specialist, who can support survivors that require additional attention and support. Ask the survivor for permission before connecting them to anyone else. Do not force the survivor if s/he says no.
Do not proactively identify or seek out GBV survivors. Be available in case someone asks for support.
Remember your mandate. All humanitarian practitioners are mandated to provide non-judgmental and non-discriminatory support to people in need regardless of: gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, disability status, age, ethnicity/tribe/race/religion, who perpetrated/committed violence, and the situation in which violence was committed. Use a survivor-centered approach by practicing:
Respect: all actions you take are guided by respect for the survivor’s choices, wishes, rights and dignity.
Safety: the safety of the survivor is the number one priority.
Confidentiality: people have the right to choose to whom they will or will not tell their story. Maintaining confidentiality means not sharing any information to anyone.
Non-discrimination: providing equal and fair treatment to anyone in need of support.
If health services exist, always provide information on what is available. Share what you know, and most importantly explain what you do not. Let the survivor decide if s/he wants to access them. Receiving quality medical care within 72 hours can prevent transmission of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and within 120 hours can prevent unwanted pregnancy.
Provide the opportunity for people with disabilities to communicate to you without the presence of their caregiver, if wished and does not endanger or create tension in that relationship.
If a man or boy is raped it does not mean he is gay or bisexual. Gender-based violence is based on power, not someone’s sexuality.
Sexual and gender minorities are often at increased risk of harm and violence due to their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Actively listen and seek to support all survivors.
Anyone can commit an act of gender-based violence including a spouse, intimate partner, family member, caregiver, in-law, stranger, parent or someone who is exchanging money or goods for a sexual act.
Anyone can be a survivor of gender-based violence – this includes, but isn’t limited to, people who are married, elderly individuals or people who engage in sex work.
Protect the identity and safety of a survivor. Do not write down, take pictures or verbally share any personal/identifying information about a survivor or their experience, including with your supervisor. Put phones and computers away to avoid concern that a survivor’s voice is being recorded.
Personal/identifying information includes the survivor’s name, perpetrator(s) name, date of birth, registration number, home address, work address, location where their children go to school, the exact time and place the incident took place etc.
Share general, non-identifying information
To your team or sector partners in an effort to make your program safer.
To your support network when seeking self-care and encouragement.
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BACKGROUND: Growing political attention to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) offers a rare opportunity for achieving meaningful action. Many governments have developed national AMR action plans, but most have not yet implemented policy interventions to reduce antimicrobial overuse. A systematic evidenc...e map can support governments in making evidence-informed decisions about implementing programs to reduce AMR, by identifying, describing, and assessing the full range of evaluated government policy options to reduce antimicrobial use in humans.
METHODS AND FINDINGS: Seven databases were searched from inception to January 28, 2019, (MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, PAIS Index, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Web of Science, and PubMed). We identified studies that (1) clearly described a government policy intervention aimed at reducing human antimicrobial use, and (2) applied a quantitative design to measure the impact. We found 69 unique evaluations of government policy interventions carried out across 4 of the 6 WHO regions. These evaluations included randomized controlled trials (n = 4), non-randomized controlled trials (n = 3), controlled before-and-after designs (n = 7), interrupted time series designs (n = 25), uncontrolled before-and-after designs (n = 18), descriptive designs (n = 10), and cohort designs (n = 2). From these we identified 17 unique policy options for governments to reduce the human use of antimicrobials. Many studies evaluated public awareness campaigns (n = 17) and antimicrobial guidelines (n = 13); however, others offered different policy options such as professional regulation, restricted reimbursement, pay for performance, and prescription requirements. Identifying these policies can inform the development of future policies and evaluations in different contexts and health systems. Limitations of our study include the possible omission of unpublished initiatives, and that policies not evaluated with respect to antimicrobial use have not been captured in this review.
CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge this is the first study to provide policy makers with synthesized evidence on specific government policy interventions addressing AMR. In the future, governments should ensure that AMR policy interventions are evaluated using rigorous study designs and that study results are published.
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