31 Janaury 2021
SCORE for health data technical package. The first global assessment on the status and capacity of health information systems in 133 countries, covering 87% of the global population
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It identifies gaps and provides guidance for investment in areas that can have the greatest impact on the quality, availability, analysis, accessibility and use of health data.
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Background
Asthma education, a key component of long-term asthma management, is challenging in resource-limited settings with shortages of clinical staff. Task-shifting educational roles to lay (no
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n-clinical) staff is a potential solution. We conducted a randomised controlled trial of an enhanced asthma care intervention for children in Malawi, which included reallocation of asthma education tasks to lay-educators. In this qualitative sub-study, we explored the experiences of asthmatic children, their families and lay-educators, to assess the acceptability, facilitators and barriers, and perceived value of the task-shifting asthma education intervention.
Methods
We conducted six focus group discussions, including 15 children and 28 carers, and individual interviews with four lay-educators and a senior nurse. Translated transcripts were coded independently by three researchers and key themes identified.
Results
Prior to the intervention, participants reported challenges in asthma care including the busy and sometimes hostile clinical environment, lack of access to information and the erratic supply of medication. The education sessions were well received: participants reported greater understanding of asthma and their treatment and confidence to manage symptoms. The lay-educators appreciated pre-intervention training, written guidelines, and access to clinical support. Low education levels among carers presented challenges, requiring an open, non-critical and individualised approach.
Discussion
Asthma education can be successfully delivered by lay-educators with adequate training, supervision and support, with benefits to the patients, their families and the community. Wider implementation could help address human resource shortages and support progress towards Universal Health Coverage.
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This is the sixth of our 11-paper supplement entitled “Community Health Workers at the Dawn of New Era”. Expectations of community health workers (CHWs) have expanded in recent years to encompass a wider array
of services to numerous subpopulations, engage communities to collaborate with and to
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assist health systems in responding to complex and sometimes intensive threats. In this paper, we explore a set of key considerations for training of CHWs in response to their enhanced and changing roles and provide actionable recommendations based on
current evidence and case examples for health systems leaders and other stakeholders to utilize.
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This study aims to analyze national and international stakeholders and their initiatives in Early Warning Systems in Myanmar, to identify priority gaps that need to be addressed by all stakeholders. It is presented as a first step towards supporting
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GoUM in information-gathering under the Myanmar Action Plan for Disaster Risk Reduction (MAPDRR), in particular under Components (2) Risk Assessment, (3) Multi-hazard Early Warning System and (4) Preparedness at all levels, and especially in implementing Sub-Component (3.4) Enhanced Flood Monitoring and Forecasting Capacities at Township Levels.
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This toolkit was developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention (DHDSP) to provide healthcare organizations, including those in resource-constrained settings, with the information a
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nd resources to implement the HMP and improve hypertension control among their patients. CDC DHDSP developed an online toolkit that consists of interactive e-learning modules that are designed to guide learners through the key features of the ten HMP components and prepare them for implementation at their health system. The online e-learning modules are accompanied by a PDF toolkit document that can be used as an additional resource for users.
The purposes of this toolkit and the associated online e-learning modules are to provide healthcare organizations:
An overview of the HMP, its ten core components, and suggestions for implementing the HMP in clinical settings.
Guidance to staff, administrators, and other healthcare professionals on how to implement and adapt the HMP for their unique clinical setting.
The online e-learning modules you can find here:
https://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/pubs/toolkits/hmp-toolkit/index.htm
accessed 29.07.2021
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The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (DCHA/OFDA) requested Food and Nutrition Technical Assistance II Project (FANTA-2) assistance to review Community-Based
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Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) in four West African countries—Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger—to help identify DCHA/OFDA 2010 and 2011 program priorities, including where DCHA/OFDA investment should be directed to support CMAM. The goal was to review CMAM program implementation and its integration into national health systems to provide DCHA/OFDA a status report for each country; draw lessons learned; and make recommendations on challenges, promising practices, gaps, and priority areas for DCHA/OFDA support during 2010 and 2011. The review was intended for DCHA/OFDA program planning purposes and also potentially as an advocacy tool to guide other donors in planning CMAM support in the region. After all four countries have been reviewed, FANTA-2 will develop a synthesis report. The current document presents a summary report on CMAM in Burkina Faso only.
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Based on the Vulnerability Index developed in this review, an estimated 22.7 million persons in Myanmar, or 44% of the population, were found to have some form of vulnerability related to human development and/or exposure to active conflict/violence. These people experience varying combinations of p
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oor housing, lack of education, poor educational attainment, lack of access to safe sanitation and improved drinking water, and direct exposure to conflict.
Shan and Ayeyarwady have the largest populations of vulnerable persons, a function of both their size and relative vulnerability in comparison to other States and Regions. Yangon and Shan show the widest variation in vulnerability across townships (in terms of the number of vulnerable persons and their level of vulnerability), followed by Mandalay, Chin and Rakhine.
Original file: 15 MB
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Lessons learned from an M&E task-shifting initiative in Botswana
The package is designed to help address the WASH in Schools monitoring deficit at the national level.
The package consists of three modules:
The EMIS module: a set of basic monitoring questions on WASH in Schools to be incorporated into national
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Education Monitoring Information Systems (EMIS), usually administered annually;
The survey module: a more comprehensive set of questions, observations and focus group discussion guidelines for use in national WASH in Schools surveys as well as for sub-national, project level or thematic surveys;
The children’s monitoring module: a teacher’s guide and tool set for the monitoring of WASH in Schools by students, including observation checklists, survey questions and special monitoring exercises.
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The education sector forms an important part of the child protection response in refugee settings, and UNHCR’s Education Strategy (2012-16) reflects a focus on refugee
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education as a core component of UNHCR’s protection mandate. The right to education for all children also forms part of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. UNHCR’s Education Strategy promotes the importance of schools as safe learning environments, emphasises improving access to quality education for refugee children and maximises the protective benefits of participation in school. It advocates for the integration of refugee children into national education systems.
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A series of information sheets to help empower communities and strengthen health systems
This series of information sheets introduces health lit
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eracy, its
relevance to public policy, and the ways it can be used to inform
the promotion of good health, the prevention and management
of communicable and noncommunicable diseases, and the
reduction of health inequities. It provides information and links
to further resources to assist organizations and governments
to incorporate health literacy responses into practice, service
delivery systems, and policy.
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The primary aim of this assessment is to evaluate current approaches to malaria surveillance in Myanmar and to provide a set of practical and feasible recommendations to further strengthen the surveillance system in the short to medium term. The assessment focuses on the surveillance of malaria case
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s (as distinct from more general surveillance to support monitoring and evaluation) and, more specifically, on instruments and systems to collect, collate, report and analyse malaria data as a basis for informing malaria control policy and practice.
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Updated with information on Ebola virus disease and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus
A wide variety of health events ranging in severity may occur related to air transport, requiring different responses or, perhaps, no response at all.
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The target audience for this guidance document includes the national focal points (NFP) for the IHR and public health authorities at PoE, as well as national aviation regulatory authorities, airport operators and personnel, aircraft operators, air crew and other stakeholders involved in air transport and emergency preparedness and response to public health events
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Data on the essential building blocks of mental health systems, including mental health
governance, financing, service delivery, human resources and information, are reported. For
mental health pl
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anning, it is important to know not only the level of resources in these six areas,
but also how those resources are being organized and utilized. Thus, data on efficiency, access,
equity, linkages with other sectors and respect for human rights are reported as well.
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Despite the increasing uptake of information and communication technologies (ICT) within healthcare services across developing countries, community healthcare workers (CHWs) have limited knowledge to fully utilise computerised clinical
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systems and mobile apps. The ‘Introduction to Information and Communication Technology and eHealth’ course was developed with the aim to provide CHWs in Malawi, Africa, with basic knowledge and computer skills to use digital solutions in healthcare delivery. The course was delivered using a traditional and a blended learning approach.
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The guide aims to provide health and DRM practitioners, planners and policymakers across sectors with targeted information to help them strengthen national health systems and integrate the risks of
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disease outbreaks in national DRR strategies
The following are some of the principles and approaches that have been based on lessons learned to date and may be considered to ensure effective all-hazards health EDRM, including prevention and preparedness for disease outbreaks, are addressed as part of the multihazard, multisectoral approach to developing or updating DRR strategies
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Guidance has been updated on a number of chemicals: asbestos, bentazone, chromium, iodine, manganese, microcystins, nickel, silver, tetrachloroethene and trichloroethene. Guidance has also been added for chemicals not previously assessed in the Guidelines: anatoxin-a and analogues, cylindrospermopsi
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ns and saxitoxins. The new guidance on organotins has replaced the prior guidance focused on dialkyltins. With these updates, the guideline values for tetrachloroethene and trichloroethene have been revised while new guideline values for cylindrospermopsins, manganese, microcystins, and saxitoxins have been established .
Updated information on cyanobacteria has been included, introducing an alert level framework for early-warning and to guide short-term management responses. Guidance has also been updated in the sections on adequacy of water supply, climate change, emergencies, food production and processing, and radiological aspects, particularly on managing radionuclides when exceeding WHO screening values and guidance levels.
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The EiE Competency Framework builds on the INEE Minimum Standards to articulate a set of required, valued and recognized competencies for the humanitarian and education in the emergencies sectors. It broadly describes expected standards of performan
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ce across a number of competencies that can be applied to different roles within an organization or sector. The framework provides a common lexicon for core humanitarian and technical competencies and defines expected knowledge, skills and attributes for each.
The framework is intended to inform staff recruitment, learning and professional development, performance management, planning, and organizational design. It is a sector-wide guidance to advance the accountability, effectiveness, and predictability of educational preparedness, response and recovery for affected populations.
The framework is primarily intended for use by EiE practitioners in humanitarian contexts. However, it is also relevant at the global level or in development settings in support of planning and emergency preparedness. It is best used in conjunction with the Core Humanitarian Competency Framework (CHCF) and where applicable, the Child Protection in Humanitarian Action (CPHA) Competency Framework. It is transferable across people, countries, and cultures and can be a valuable tool for entry-, mid-, and senior level professional development.
Available in English, Arabic, French, Portuguese and Spanish
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