This report provides a review and analysis of the research landscape for three diseases – Chagas disease, human African trypanosomiasis and leishmaniasis – that disproportionately afflict poor
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and remote populations with limited access to health services. It represents the work of the disease reference group on Chagas Disease, Human African Trypanosomiasis and Leishmaniasis (DRG3) which was established to identify key research priorities through review of research evidence and input from stakeholders' consultations.
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The WHO Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI)’s new Polio Eradication and Endgame Strategic Plan targets the end of all kinds of polioviruses by 2018, including the wild and rare vaccine-rela
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ted strains which cause paralysis among thousands of children worldwide. The plan is focused on developing and deploying a shot version of the anti-polio vaccine to replace the current oral variant, which is known to occasionally cause the same disease that it is supposed to prevent. This document is intended for the use of individuals and organizations involved in polio eradication efforts
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The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of the issues in regulating and managing international emergency in a selection of large and small-scale sudden onset disasters (SODs). In doing
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so, it aims to contribute to several key international commitments as well as its objective in disasters and emergencies to “reduce the consequences the event may have on world health and its social and economic implications”.
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The Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Assessment Framework (IPCAF) is a tool to support the implementation of the World Health Organization (WHO) Guidelines on core components of IPC programmes at the acute health care facility level. The user
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should be familiar with the contents of these guidelines, including the Interim practical manual supporting the implementation of the IPC core components at the facility level before using this tool. The IPCAF is a systematic tool that can provide a baseline assessment of the IPC programme and activities within a health care facility, as well as ongoing evaluations through repeated administration to document progress over time and facilitate improvement.
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This manual will contribute directly to the fourth focus area of the FAO Action Plan by promoting the prevention of infections and the prudent use of antibiotics in the pig and poultry sectors. The
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pig and poultry sectors are addressed together, as these sectors generally have the highest use of antibiotics. This manual is jointly applicable to veterinarians, other health professionals and farmers; a key to success in using antibiotics effectively and prudently is good dialogue among these professions.
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This publication describes an arduous campaign to tackle the use of antimicrobials - specifically antibiotics - in the Danish swine-producing sector thanks to the collaboration between the regulatory sector within the Ministry of Environment and Foo
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d, private veterinary practitioners and swine producers. The document is a retrospective tribute to all those who had the foresight to make significant changes to ensure consumer protection - improving hygiene at primary sites, developing options for intervention, identifying sites for intervention, setting targets, restructuring the relationship between the veterinary services and farmers, and implementing changes in behaviour for greatest impact
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Interim practical manual supporting implementation of the WHO guidelines on core components of infection prevention and control programmes
Infectious disease outbreaks and epidemics are increasing in frequency, scale and impact. Health care facilities can amplify the transmission of emerging infectious diseases or multidrug-resistant o
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rganisms (MDRO) within their settings and communities. Therefore, evidence-based infection prevention and control (IPC) measures in health care facilities are critical for preventing and containing outbreaks, while still delivering safe, effective and quality health care. This toolkit is intended to support IPC improvements for outbreak management in all such facilities, both public and private throughout the health system. Specifically, this document systematically describes a framework of overarching principles to approach the preparedness, readiness and response outbreak management phases. The document also provides a toolkit of resource links to guide specific actions for each infectious disease and/or MDRO outbreak management phase at any health facility. This document is specifically tailored to an audience of stakeholders who establish and monitor health care facility-level IPC programs including: IPC focal points, epidemiologists, public health experts, outbreak response incident managers, facility-level IPC committee(s), safety and quality leads and managers, and other facility level IPC stakeholders.
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Rabies is a disease of animals but too often the outcome is gauged in terms of human suffering and
death. Despite this, in areas of the world where rabies is endemic there is often a lack of communication between veterinary
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and medical professionals, to the extent that the disease continues to thrive and potential victims are not treated. The problem is partly
exacerbated by a lack of awareness and experience of the disease and of what to do when confronted by suspect cases. In these technologically advanced days, although it is possible to learn “all there is to know” about almost any subject, it is sometimes difficult to distil the essence.
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Health Evidence Network synthesis report 53
These guidelines form part of efforts to institutionalise the prevention and containment of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in health care facilities in South Africa, as outlined in the Antimicrobial Resistance Strategic Framework
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and Implementation Plan. The focus of these guidelines is on two interrelated aspects of prevention of healthcare associated infections (HAIs) and their spread; and the application of antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) practices at hospital level.
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These guidelines form part of efforts to institutionalize the prevention and containment of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in healthcare facilities in South Africa, as outlined in the Antimicrobial Resistance Strategic Framework
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and Implementation Plan. The focus of these guidelines is on two interrelated aspects of prevention of healthcare associated infections (HAIs) and their spread; and the application of antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) practices at hospital level. They aim to serve as a practical, step-by-step or ‘how-to’ guide, addressing the infection prevention and AMS components of a robust response in a hospital. They draw on
evidence from various international guidance documents and standards for interventions that have been shown to be successful in infection
prevention and AMS programmes. These interventions have been customised to the South African hospital setting based on local
experiences in the public and private health sectors. This was done through a series of workshops and requests for comment involving
country-level experts.
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