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 technical report presents the results of a cross-sectional survey conducted in Banja Luka, the Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina, between July and August 2017, as part of the FEEDcities Project (Food Environment Description in cities – eastern Europe and central Asia). The aim of the r...eport is to describe the city’s local street food and takeaway food environment, exploring the characteristics of food vending sites, the industrially produced and homemade foods they typically offer, and the nutritional composition of these foods. Finally, the report provides guidance on how to address its findings through policy action.
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Looking forward, the 2019-2020 Regional Refugee Response Plan (RRRP) for the DRC situation aims at addressing the needs of new arrivals of Congolese refugees in the region, and those in protracted situations. By supporting livelihoods opportunities and through a resilience-based approach, refugees w...ill be able to contribute to the development of their host countries, and of their country of origin upon their return. Given the limited capacity of host communities to support the impact of massive numbers of refugees, the response strategy will also address the needs of local populations, strengthening peaceful co-existence and building social cohesion.
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The classification of digital health interventions (DHIs) categorizes the different ways in which digital and mobile technologies are being used to support health system needs. Historically, the diverse communities working in digital health—including government stakeholders, technologists, clinic...ians, implementers, network operators, researchers, donors— have lacked a mutually understandable language with which to assess and articulate functionality. A shared and standardized vocabulary was recognized as necessary to identify gaps and duplication, evaluate effectiveness, and facilitate alignment across different digital health implementations. Targeted primarily at public health audiences, this Classification framework aims to promote an accessible and bridging language for health program planners to articulate functionalities of digital health implementations.
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Yu et al. BMC Public Health (2018) 18:825 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-018-5731-z
Research Article
March 2018, Vol. 108, (3 Suppl 1)
Inequality of access to palliative care and symptom relief is one of the greatest disparities in global health care (1). Currently, there is avoidable suffering on a massive scale due to lack of access to palliative care and symptom relief in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) (1). Yet basic p...alliative care that can prevent or relieve most suffering due to serious or life-threatening health conditions can be taught easily to generalist clinicians, can be provided in the community and requires only simple, inexpensive medicines and equipment. For these reasons, the World Health Assembly (WHA) resolved that palliative care is "an ethical responsibility of health systems"(2). Further, most patients who need palliative care are at home and prefer to remain there. Thus, it is imperative that palliative care be provided in the community as part of primary care. This document was written to assist ministries of health and health care planners, implementers and managers to integrate palliative care and symptom control into primary health care (PHC).
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This report is not a country scorecard. Rather, its purpose is to act as a compass to guide progress towards health in the SDGs.
There has been a significant improvement in the state of health in the region with healthy life expectancy - time spent in full health - in the region increasing from 50....9 years to 53.8 between 2012 and 2015 - the most marked increase of any region in the world.
What is making Africans sick is changing. The top killers are still lower respiratory infections, HIV and diarrhoeal disease and countries have routinely focused on preventing and treating this trio, often through specialized programmes. The payoff has been significant declines in deaths due to these diseases. There has been a 50% reduction in the burden of disease caused by what have been the top 10 killers since 2000 and death rates have dropped from 87.7 to 51.1 deaths per 100,000 persons between 2000 and 2015...
Chronic diseases like heart disease and cancer are now claiming more lives with a person aged 30 to 70 in the region having a one in five chance of dying from a noncommunicable disease (NCDs).
Countries are specifically failing to provide essential services to two critical age groups – adolescents and the elderly...
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Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response.
The 2018 Sphere Handbook builds on the latest developments and learning in the humanitarian sector. Among the improvements of the new edition, readers will find a stronger focus on the role of local authorities and communities as ...actors of their own recovery. Guidance on context analysis to apply the standards has also been strengthened. New standards have also been developed, informed by recent practice and learning, such as WASH and healthcare settings in disease outbreaks, security of tenure in shelter and settlement, and palliative care in health. Different ways to deliver or enable assistance, including cash-based assistance, are also integrated into the Handbook.
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Civil Society Organisations’ contribution towards community engagement to access and demand health services and encourage communities to practice appropriate health-seeking behaviour in Mon and Chin States. The study recognizes that civil society can promote people-centered health by creating an e...nabling environment for broad and active citizen participation. The VHCs/Volunteer Working Groups play a key role in facilitating engagement between the village community and the Basic Health Staff (BHS).
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This is an abridged version of the 2019 Standards containing the evidence-based recommendations most pertinent to primary care. The tables and figures have been renum-bered from the original document to match this version. The complete 2019 Standards of Care do...cument, including all supporting references, is available at professional.diabetes.org/standards.
This is an abridged version of the American Diabetes Association’s Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes—2019. Diabetes Care2018;42(Suppl. 1):S1–S194. The complete 2019 Standards supplement, including all supporting references, is available at professional.diabetes.org/standards.
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The survey is representative of the Union Territory, its states and regions and urban and rural areas. It was conducted in all the districts and in 296 of the 330 townships of Myanmar. A total of 13,730 households were interviewed. It collects data on the occupations of people, how much income they ...earn, and how they use this to meet the food, housing, health, education and other needs of their families. The main focus of the survey is to produce estimates of poverty and living conditions, to provide core data inputs into the System of National Accounts and the Consumer Price Index and to support monitoring of the Sustainable Development Goals.
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The Philippine Government, International Non-government Organizations (INGOs) and local NGOs are all making attempts to address the impact of disasters and climate change at various levels. The Philippine Government has made significant strides in the implementation of disaster risk reduction (DRR) ...planning and activities through the development of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) which acts as the lead agency for DRR in the Philippines. The disaster focal points are the NDRRMC and the Office of Civil Defence (OCD). The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is responsible for leading immediate disaster relief efforts.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is a primary responder in disasters and have been deployed frequently to several disaster relief operations in the country in recent years. The Philippines has endured disasters that involve national and international assistance.
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March - June 2018
Myanmar introduced Child Death Surveillance and Response (CDSR) in 2015 as an initiative to reduce child (under-5) mortality, an initiative that will contribute to the country’s efforts to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Technical Guidelines for CDSR were devel...oped in 2015 followed by the development of Training Package in 2016. An Implementation Plan was made in 2016; and this led to all townships implementing CDSR in early 2017. After one year of implementation an assessment was carried out in early 2018.
The assessment was conducted in 3 region/states – Ayeyarwaddy, Magway, Shan South, with information gathered from the state/region, district, township and basic health unit levels. In addition a caretaker interview was conducted to see health-seeking behavior. In addition to these three regions/states, information was also gathered from three other regions/states but only at the region/state level – Mandalay, Yangon, Kachin.
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Regional situation analysis, practices, experiences, lessons learned and ways forward.
The scale of international migration in the WHO European Region has increased substantially in the last decade. The dynamics of large-scale migration pose specific challenges and opportunities to health systems, and responses will differ from country to country. Strengthening health system responses... is one of the priority areas in the 2016 Strategy and action plan for refugee and migrant health in the WHO European Region. Its agreed actions include the identification and mapping of practices for developing and delivering health services that respond to the needs of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants. This compendium aims to collect and present some of these practices in the form of case studies. Selected in 2016, the case studies reflect experience from different levels of administration in a variety of European countries, and during the different phases of the migration journey.
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Technical guidance.
This technical guidance aims to inform policy and practice development specifically related to improving the health of older refugees and migrants within the European Union and the larger WHO European Region. Both ageing and migration are in themselves complex multidimensional p...rocesses shaped by a range of factors at the micro, meso and macro levels over the life-course of the individual, but also with intertwined trajectories. Relevant areas for policy-making include healthy ageing over the life-course, supportive environments, people-centred health and long-term care services, and strengthening the evidence base and research
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