2018
Vol.5 No.2:73
DOI: 10.21767/2254-9137.100092
Health Systems and Policy Research ISSN 2254-9137
National emergency medical teams are the best option for providing immediate and appropriate surge response for emergencies directly affecting populations, while international teams may help relieve overwhelmed health systems. The efficiency and effectiveness of countries and local authorities in mo...bilizing existing resources is only as good as the quality of care they are able to provide. This publication serves as a practical guide for teams and aims to compliment emergency response systems, fostering seamless collaboration with all emergency response actors and networks
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Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) published a clinical case definition of post COVID-19
condition, by a Delphi consensus, on 6 October 2021. That process concluded that a separate definition
may be applicable for children. It is important to understand the frequency, characteristics ...and risk factors
that lead to post COVID-19 condition, along with its impact on everyday functioning and development of
children and adolescents. Long-term outcomes of the condition are currently unknown and need to be
studied. For these reasons, a globally standardized clinical case definition is needed.
Aim: To develop a globally relevant standardized clinical case definition for children and adolescents by
building on the WHO clinical case definition for post COVID-19 condition in adults.
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Cardiovascular disease is a major cause of disability and premature death throughout the world, and contributes substantially to the escalating costs of health care. The underlying pathology is atherosclerosis, which develops over many years and is usually advanced by the time symptoms occur, genera...lly in middle age. Acute coronary and cerebrovascular events frequently occur suddenly, and are often fatal before medical care can be given. Modification of risk factors has been shown to reduce mortality and morbidity in people with diagnosed or undiagnosed cardiovascular disease.
This publication provides guidance on reducing disability and premature deaths from coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease and peripheral vascular disease in people at high risk, who have not yet experienced a cardiovascular event. People with established cardiovascular disease are at very high risk of recurrent events and are not the subject of these guidelines. They have been addressed in previous WHO guidelines.
Several forms of therapy can prevent coronary, cerebral and peripheral vascular events. Decisions about whether to initiate specific preventive action, and with what degree of intensity, should be guided by estimation of the risk of any such vascular event. The risk prediction charts that accompany these guidelinesb allow treatment to be targeted accord-
ing to simple predictions of absolute cardiovascular risk.
Recommendations are made for management of major cardiovascular risk factors through changes in lifestyle and prophylactic drug therapies. The guidelines provide a framework for the development of national guidance on prevention of cardiovascular disease that takes into account the particular political, economic, social and medical circumstances.
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The article is a scoping review that explores the challenges in diagnosing asthma in children in three sub-Saharan African countries: Nigeria, South Africa, and Uganda. It identifies key barriers, such as a lack of community awareness, inadequate healthcare access, limited diagnostic tools like spir...ometry, and insufficient knowledge among healthcare workers. The review also highlights the stigma associated with asthma and the absence of relevant diagnostic guidelines. Solutions proposed include community education, development and adherence to diagnostic guidelines, and strengthening healthcare systems. The study aims to inform policymakers and healthcare providers to improve asthma diagnosis and care for children in these regions.
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National action plans on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) often overlook the critical intersection of gender, despite evidence that exposure and susceptibility to infection, health-seeking behaviours, as well as antimicrobial prescribing and use patterns are all influenced by gender.
INT J TUBERC LUNG DIS 22(2):197–205 http://dx.doi.org/10.5588/ijtld.17.0245
A national overview with a case study from Cam Le district
The overall aims of this study are (1) to assess the extent to which social protection systems in Vietnam address the needs of people with disabilities; and (2) to identify and document elements of good practice, as well as challenges, ...in the design and delivery of social protection for people with disabilities. As most social protection programmes in Vietnam are targeted to various vulnerable groups (e.g. orphans, widows, single parents), the research mainly focuses on disability-specific schemes, as they are relevant to a higher proportion of people with disabilities.
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The document provides comprehensive guidelines for managing cholera outbreaks, including detection, confirmation, response, treatment, and prevention. It emphasizes the importance of rehydration, water sanitation, hygiene promotion, and community mobilization to limit the spread. This guide is desig...ned for healthcare professionals and public authorities to ensure an effective and coordinated response.
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Health Policy Plan (2017) 32 (5): 603-612; 10 pp. 318 kB
This paper aims to explore the conditions needed for sustainable community based rehabilitation (CBR) programmes for persons with disabilities in Vietnam, and to identify the conditions and opportunities missing at present for the implementation of such programmes.
Background: Community health worker (CHW) programmes are a valuable component of primary care in resource-poor settings. The evidence supporting their effectiveness generally shows improvements in disease-specific outcomes relative to the absence of a CHW programme. In this study, we evaluated expan...ding an existing HIV and tuberculosis (TB) disease-specific CHW programme into a polyvalent, household-based model that subsequently included non-communicable diseases (NCDs), malnutrition and TB screening, as well as family planning and antenatal care (ANC).
Methods: We conducted a stepped-wedge cluster randomised controlled trial in Neno District, Malawi. Six clusters of approximately 20 000 residents were formed from the catchment areas of 11 healthcare facilities. The intervention roll-out was staggered every 3 months over 18 months, with CHWs receiving a 5-day foundational training for their new tasks and assigned 20–40 households for monthly (or more frequent) visits.
Findings: The intervention resulted in a decrease of approximately 20% in the rate of patients defaulting from chronic NCD care each month (−0.8 percentage points (pp) (95% credible interval: −2.5 to 0.5)) while maintaining the already low default rates for HIV patients (0.0 pp, 95% CI: −0.6 to 0.5). First trimester ANC attendance increased by approximately 30% (6.5pp (−0.3, 15.8)) and paediatric malnutrition case finding declined by 10% (−0.6 per 1000 (95% CI −2.5 to 0.8)). There were no changes in TB programme outcomes, potentially due to data challenges.
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The limitation of a single sector approach. HNP Discussion Paper
This document is to guide policy makers, managers, districts, health workers, communities, NGOs and all other stakeholders on how to implement newborn health services.