Building on our decades of commitment to human rights in medicine and healthcare, we have published a new report on emerging threats in health-related human rights both globally and in the UK.
'Health and human rights in the new world (dis)order' outlines a shifting rights landscape in which new ...technologies, environmental change and geopolitical reconfigurations are putting renewed and at times intense stress on human rights, both in medicine and healthcare more broadly.
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An interdisciplinary study within the framework of the dialogue project on the contribution of the Catholic Church to a socio-ecological transformation.
The study examines the obstacles to the implementation of the socio-ecological transformation and develops recommendations for action.
Epidemics of infectious diseases are occurring more often, and spreading faster and further than ever, in many different regions of the world. The background factors of this threat are biological, environmental and lifestyle changes, among others. A potentially fatal combination of newly-discovered ...diseases, and the re-emergence of many long-established ones, demands urgent responses in all countries. Planning and preparation for epidemic prevention and control are essential. The purpose of this “Managing epidemics” manual is to provide expert guidance on those responses.
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This profile is part of a series of Climate Risk Country Profiles developed by the World Bank Group (WBG). The country profile synthesizes most relevant data and information on climate change, disaster risk reduction, and adaptation actions and policies at the country level. The country profile seri...es are designed as a quick reference source for development practitioners to better integrate climate resilience in development planning and policy making. This effort is managed and led by Veronique Morin (Senior Climate Change Specialist, WBG) and Ana E. Bucher (Senior Climate Change Specialist, WBG)
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Climate change is a major risk to good development outcomes, and the World Bank Group is committed to playing an important role in helping countries integrate climate action into their core development agendas. The World Bank Group is committed to supporting client countries to invest in and build a... low-carbon, climate-resilient future, helping them to be better prepared to adapt to current and future climate impacts
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Cities are uniquely positioned to understand local needs and respond rapidly to changing conditions to safeguard health. These changes require strong city leadership to implement multisectoral, health-relevant policies and public services that engage communities. The response to malaria must be an i...ntegral part of such policies and processes.
This framework supports the control and elimination of malaria in urban environments. It provides guidance for city leaders, health programmes and urban planners as they respond to the challenges of rapid urbanization in a targeted way. For each urban context, the strategic use of data can inform effective, tailored responses and help build resilience against the threat of malaria and other vector-borne diseases.
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31 Oct 2022 his plan outlines how the ACT-Accelerator will support countries as the world transitions to long-term COVID-19 control.
Recognizing the evolving nature of the COVID-19 virus and pandemic, the plan outlines changes to ACT-A’s set-up and ways of working, to ensure countries co...ntinue to have access to COVID-19 tools in the longer term, while maintaining the coalition’s readiness to help address future disease surges.
Developed through a consultative process with ACT-A agencies, donors, industry partners, civil society organizations (CSOs) and Facilitation Council members, the plan summarizes priority areas of focus for the partnership’s pillars, coordination mechanisms and other core functions, and highlights the work to be maintained, transitioned, sunset, or kept on standby.
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Three classess of tests are now recommended in the latest consolidated guideles on tests for tuberculosis infection. It includes for the first-time a new class of Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigen-based skin tests (TBSTs), and the two existing classes of tests: the tuberculin skin test (TST) and t...he interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs).
IGRAs and TBSTs use Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex specific antigens and represent a significant advancement to TST which has been used for over half a century.
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The results of the report clearly show that in 2020, a year dominated by the emergence of COVID-19 and its associated health and economic crises, governments around the world rose to the challenge. Sharp increases in government spending on health at all country income levels underpinned the rise in ...health spending to a new high of US $9 trillion (approximately 11% of global GDP). Government health spending generally increased and offset declines in out-of-pocket spending. Importantly, the rise in government health spending was part of a much broader fiscal response to the pandemic. In high income and upper-middle income countries social protection spending also increased sharply in as governments attempted to cushion populations from the economic impacts of COVID-19. In contrast to health and social protection, growth in education spending was relatively subdued. Countries face the further challenge of sustaining increased public spending on health and other social sectors in the face of deteriorating macroeconomic conditions and rising debt servicing. This also includes the challenge of sustaining external support for low income countries, which is essential for reducing ensuring poverty, ensuring access to health services and strengthening pandemic preparedness.
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PLoS Neglected Tropical diseases August 16, 2021 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0009697
Chagas disease, also known as American trypanosomiasis, is a neglected tropical disease transmitted by triatomine insects, first identified in 1909. Chagas disease affects approximately 6–7 million peop...le globally and is highly prevalent in Latin America where most cases are reported. However, there is increasing evidence that Chagas disease is now an important public health issue outside the “classical” endemic countries due to population migration. Our understanding of Chagas disease, including its pathologies and factors relating to progression, remains to date limited, and is also challenged by lack of diagnosis and highly effective treatment. This systematic review aims to describe studies with Chagas patients receiving antiparasitic treatment. Databases were searched for relevant studies published after 1997, and the results of these searches were screened.
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The sixteenth meeting of the Strategic and Technical Advisory Group for Neglected Tropical Diseases (STAG-NTD) was held as a hybrid meeting, 27–28 September 2022.
Dr Ren Minghui, Assistant Director-General, Universal Health Coverage/Communicable and Noncommunicable Diseases, welcomed participan...ts to the meeting. He said the World Health Organization’s Department of Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases (WHO/NTD) was in a state of transition. Following the death of the late esteemed Director Dr Mwelecele Ntuli Malecela earlier in the year, Dr Gautam Biswas had taken over as Acting Director but would soon retire; the appointment of a new Director was under way. Owing to rotation of STAG-NTD members, this would be the last meeting for some and the first meeting for several new participants. The work however would continue with the same commitment. Discussions over the next two days would focus on critical issues regarding recovery of NTD services following the disruptions caused by coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which had impacted many health services worldwide. He looked forward to receiving the advice and guidance of STAG-N
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The Practical manual on laboratory strengthening, 2022 update provides practical guidance on implementation of WHO recommendations and best practices for TB laboratory strengthening. It is an updated version of the GLI Practical Guide to Laboratory Strengthening published in 2017 and provides the la...test practical guidance on use of newly recommended diagnostics as well as guidance in key technical areas, including quality assurance and quality management systems, specimen collection and registration, procurement and supply-chain management, diagnostic connectivity, biosafety, data management, human resources, strategic planning, and model algorithms. The key changes are:
inclusion of recent or updated WHO recommendations for tests to diagnose TB and detect drug resistance;
alignment with the latest WHO critical concentrations for phenotypic drug-susceptibility testing (DST) and the new definitions of pre-XDR-TB and XDR-TB;
updated information on building quality-assured TB testing and management capacity using the Stepwise Laboratory Quality Improvement Process Towards Accreditation (SLIPTA) approach (Score-TB package1);
updated information on assessing, analysing and optimising TB diagnostic networks; and
updated information on the use of next-generation sequencing (NGS) to detect mutations associated with drug resistance for surveillance purposes.
The document also provides references to resources and tools relevant for work on laboratory strengthening.
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This document compiles the recommendations made by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to help professionals in charge of vector control programs in Latin America and the Caribbean at the national, subnational, and local level update their knowledge in... order to make evidence-based decisions on the most appropriate control measures for each specific situation. IVM can be used for surveillance and control or for elimination of VBDs and can help reduce the development of insecticide resistance through the rational use of these products. This document provides instructions for fulfillment of the 2008 PAHO mandate set forth in CD 48/13 (Integrated Vector Management).
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El presente documento reúne un conjunto de recomendaciones formuladas por la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) y la Organización Panamericana de la Salud (OPS) para ayudar, a los profesionales encargados de los programas de control de vectores de Latinoamérica y el Caribe a nivel nacional, ...subnacional y local, a actualizar y tomar decisiones basadas en la evidencia sobre las medidas de control más apropiadas para cada situación específica. El MIV puede utilizarse cuando la meta es la vigilancia y el control o la eliminación (dependiendo de la situación específica) de las ETV y puede contribuir a reducir el desarrollo de la Resistencia a los insecticidas mediante el uso racional de estos productos. Este documento contiene las instrucciones para llevar a cabo el mandato de la OPS del 2008 sobre el control integrado de vectores (resolución CD48.R8, documento CD48/13) y, en particular, complementa una serie de guías de la OMS publicadas en el 2012
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Cholera is a diarrheal disease caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholera. The infection primarily spreads through contaminated water and food. Symptoms include the onset of acute diarrhea and/or vomiting, muscle cramps, and body weakness. If untreated, the infection can result in rapid dehydration and ...death within hours.
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PLoS Negl Trop Dis 15(8): e0009697. Chagas disease (CD), caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, affects ~6–7 million people worldwide. Significant limitations still exist in our understanding of CD. Harnessing individual participant data (IPD) from studies could support more in-depth analyses t...o address the many outstanding research questions. This systematic review aims to describe the characteristics and treatment practices of clinical studies in CD and assess the breadth and availability of research data for the potential establishment of a data-sharing platform.
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The objectives of the meeting were:
1. To step up the commitment of national authorities and technical and financial partners toWHO’s elimination objective for g-HAT.
2. To share achievements, challenges and views on the elimination goal among countries and implementing partners.
3. To assess t...he status of critical technical aspects to be solved in research and development of drugs and diagnostic tools, epidemiology, vector control and animal reservoirs.
4. To define the mechanisms for strengthening and organizing collaboration and coordination among stakeholders.
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