A guidance document in simple language for health personnel, setting out their rights and responsibilities in conflict and other situations of violence. It explains how responsibilities and rights for health personnel can be derived from international humanitarian law, human rights law and
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medical ethics.The document gives practical guidance on:
- The protection of health personnel, the sick and the wounded; - Standards of practice; - The health needs of particularly vulnerable people; - Health records and transmission of medical records; - "Imported" health care (including military health care);
- Data gathering and health personnel as witnesses to violations of international law; - Working with the media
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Model Chapter for textbooks for medical students and allied health professionals
Guidance for General Medical and Specialised Mental Health Care Settings
Recommendations for the adaptation of Emergency Medical Teams (EMTs) at temporary sites for COVID-19 vaccination. Draft Version 2.3, November 2021
Interim Guidance.
A number of medical problems have been reported in survivors, including mental health issues. Ebola virus may persist in some body fluids, including semen. Ebola survivors need comprehensive support for the
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medical and psychosocial challenges they face and also to minimize the risk of continued Ebola virus transmission. WHO has developed this document to guide health services on how to provide quality care to survivors of Ebola virus disease
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This leaflet is intended to inform physicians — mainly GPs — and medical students on how to recognize a possible radiation injury. It is important to note that radiation injury has no special signs and symptoms. However, the combination of some
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of them may be typical of radiation injury.
Arabic version available: http://www.who.int/ionizing_radiation/pub_meet/en/Arabicleaflet.pdf?ua=1
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This is the fifteenth edition of the lecture notes. They were first published in 1987 as a summary of the material used in the biannual epilepsy teaching weekend organised under the auspices of the UK Chapter of the International League against Epilepsy. You can download 59 different chapters in 11
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sections: basic science; spectrum of epilepsy; differential diagnosis epilepsy; investigations; medical treatment of epilepsy; outcome; special groups; surgical treatment of epilepsy; social aspects; provision of care
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This protocol provides information on the safe management of dead bodies and burial of patients who died from suspected or confirmed Ebola or Marburg virus disease. These measures should be applied not only by medical personnel but by anyone involve
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d in the management of dead bodies and burial of suspected or confirmed Ebola or Marburg patients.
Twelve steps have been identified describing the different phases Burial Teams have to follow to ensure safe burials, starting from the moment the teams arrive in the village up to their return to the hospital or team headquarters after burial and disinfection procedures.
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L’OMS a mis sur pied un protocole visant à fournir des renseignements concernant la gestion sûre de l’inhumation des personnes décédées de maladie à virus Ebola suspectée ou confirmée.
Ces mesures devraient être appliquées non seulement par le personnel
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médical, mais également par toutes les personnes jouant un rôle dans la gestion de l’inhumation des personnes décédées de maladie à virus Ebola suspectée ou confirmée.
Douze étapes ont été définies. Elles décrivent la façon dont les équipes de fossoyeurs doivent procéder pour garantir la sécurité des inhumations, depuis le moment où les équipes arrivent dans le village jusqu’à leur retour à l’hôpital ou dans leurs locaux après les procédures d’inhumation et de désinfection. Ces étapes sont fondées sur les expériences engrangées sur le terrain.
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For several years, agencies supporting preparedness and response to cholera outbreaks have supplied medicines and medical devices through the Interagency Diarrhoeal Disease Kits (IDDK).
In an effort to better align the presentation and content of
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the kits to field needs, the composition of the cholera kits has been reviewed by WHO and its partners in 2015 and again in 2020. The content of all modules have been slightly revised with no changes except for the cholera laboratory check list.
The revised cholera kits 2020 are designed to help prepare for a potential cholera outbreak and to support the first month of the initial response for 100 cases. The overall package consists of six different kits, each divided in several modules.
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Efficient triage of patients with COVID-19 at all health facility levels (primary, secondary and tertiary) will help the national response planning and case management system cope with patient influx, direct necessary medical resources to efficientl
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y support the critically ill and protect the safety of health-care workers. The objective of this algorithm is to give overall guidance for the triage and referral of symptomatic COVID-19 patients. Intended for use by ministries of health, hospital administrators and health workers involved in response planning for COVID-19 and/or patient triage, management and referral, this algorithm provides a general framework to be adapted to local health systems in countries.
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The Guideline for Disinfection and Sterilization in Healthcare Facilities, 2008, presents evidence-
based recommendations on the preferred methods for cleaning, disinfection and sterilization of patient-
care medical devices and for cleaning and d
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isinfecting the healthcare environment. This document
supercedes the relevant sections contained in the 1985 Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Guideline for
Handwashing and Environmental Control. 1 Because maximum effectiveness from disinfection and
sterilization results from first cleaning and removing organic and inorganic materials, this document also
reviews cleaning methods. The chemical disinfectants discussed for patient-care equipment include
alcohols, glutaraldehyde, formaldehyde, hydrogen peroxide, iodophors, ortho-phthalaldehyde, peracetic
acid, phenolics, quaternary ammonium compounds, and chlorine. The choice of disinfectant,
concentration, and exposure time is based on the risk for infection associated with use of the equipment
and other factors discussed in this guideline. The sterilization methods discussed include steam
sterilization, ethylene oxide (ETO), hydrogen peroxide gas plasma, and liquid peracetic acid. When
properly used, these cleaning, disinfection, and sterilization processes can reduce the risk for infection
associated with use of invasive and noninvasive medical and surgical devices. However, for these
processes to be effective, health-care workers should adhere strictly to the cleaning, disinfection, and
sterilization recommendations in this document and to instructions on product labels.
LAST UPDATE 2019
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Spirometry is required as part of the comprehensive evaluation of both adult and paediatric individuals with suspected or confirmed respiratory diseases and occupational assessments. It is used in the categorisation of impairment, grading of severity, assessment of potential progression and response
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to interventions. Guidelines for spirometry in South Africa are required to improve the quality, standardisation and usefulness in local respiratory practice. The broad principles of spirometry have remained largely unchanged from previous versions of the South African Spirometry Guidelines; however, minor adjustments have been incorporated from more comprehensive international guidelines, including adoption of the Global Lung Function Initiative 2012 (GLI 2012) spirometry reference equations for the South African population.
All equipment should have proof of validation regarding resolution and consistency of the system. Daily calibration must be performed, and equipment quality control processes adhered to. It is important to have standard operating procedures to ensure consistency and quality and, additionally, strict infection control as highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Adequate spirometry relies on a competent, trained operator, accurate equipment, standardised operating procedures, quality control and patient co-operation. All manoeuvres must be performed strictly according to guidelines, and strict quality assurance methods should be in place, including acceptability criteria (for any given effort) and repeatability (between efforts).
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The recommendations in this guideline are intended to inform development of national and subnational health policies, clinical protocols and programmatic guides. The target audience includes national and subnational public health policy-makers, implementers and managers of maternal, newborn and chil
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d health programmes, health-care facility managers, supervisors/instructors for in-service training, health workers (including midwives, auxiliary nurse-midwives, nurses, paediatricians, neonatologists, general medical practitioners and community health workers), nongovernmental organizations, professional societies involved in the planning and management of maternal, newborn and child health services, academic staff involved in research and in the pre-service education and training of health workers, and those involved in the education of parents.
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The Active Learning Package is designed to provide methodology, substantive support and practical instruction for the training of health personnel in Health as Bridge for Peace issues. https://www.who.int/hac/techguidance/hbp/active_training_package/en/index5.html
Infectious disease outbreaks are periods of
great uncertainty. Events unfold, resources
and capacities that are often limited
are stretched yet further, and decisions
for a public health response must be
made quickly, even though the evidence
for decision-making may be scant. In
such a
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situation, public health officials,
policy-makers, funders, researchers, field
epidemiologists, first responders, national
ethics boards, health-care workers, and public
health practitioners need a moral compass
to guide them in their decision-making.
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The updated List of Essential Diagnostics contains 46 general tests that can be used for routine patient care as well as for the detection and diagnosis of a wide array of disease conditions, and 69 tests intended for the detection, diagnosis and monitoring of specific diseases.
The List is divid
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ed into two sections depending on the user and setting: one for community settings, which includes self-testing; and a second one for clinical laboratories, which can be general and specialized facilities.
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The purpose of this guideline is to explain to healthcare professionals and administrative employees what their records management obligations are in terms of the National Archives and Records Service of South Africa