The Government of the Republic of Zambia has placed priority on ensuring that Zambians are healthy and
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productive as a catalyst to the attainment of socioeconomic development . The Vision 2030 aims to transform Zambia into a prosperous middle-income country as articulated also in the 7th National Develop-ment Plan (7NDP) and National Health Strategic Plan 2017 – 2021 (NHSP 2017-2020). However, this aspiration is threatened by the double burden of Communicable and Non-Communicable Diseas¬es. Zambia has been recording an increase in morbidity and mortality due to Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) such as cancers, diabetes, chronic respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. According to the 2016 WHO NCD country profiles, 29% of all deaths in Zambia are attributed to NCDs. This is unacceptably high, considering that most of these diseases can be reduced by modifying four main behavioural risk factors for NCDs which are tobacco use, harmful use of alcohol, unhealthy diets and physical inactivity.
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In 1964 medical mission was challenged and called to define its distinctiveness and its special role in the context of that particular ti
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me. The consultation "Tuebingen I" clearly stated: "The Christian church has a specific task in the field of health and healing"1, and developed a concept of wholeness and of the role of the congregation in health provision. 50 years later, the question of the proprium of Christian health services is again a very important one. At a time when governments, international non-governmental organizations and other philanthropic organizations participate in health care, the question has to be asked: What is the specific contribution of a Christian health service or ministry of healing? At a time when chronic disease challenges not only rich but now also poor countries, when infections like Ebola that for years were hidden in Africa pose a threat to the global situation, Christians have to reflect on the question of the proprium of Christian health care.
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Moving from accelerated burden reduction to malaria elimination in Zambia
The availability of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services in health care facilities, especially in maternity and primary-care settings wher
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e they are often absent, supports core aspects of quality, equity and dignity for all people. This document describes an approach for conducting a national situational analysis of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) as a basis for improving quality of care. This document describes the process from the initial preparatory stages, including triggers for action, through data collection and analysis to the dissemination of results. Each element of the approach is described and possible limitations and mechanisms to mitigate these are explored.
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The Government of Malawi, in fulfilling its primary role of protecting the lives of its vulnerable citizens during disasters
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and reducing their exposure to risk through preparedness, led the development of a National Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Preparedness and Response Plan.
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El Niño conditions persisting during the 2015/16 planting season have caused the worst drought in 35 years in Southern Africa, resulting in a second consecutive failed harvest. This has created severe food shortages and compounded existing vulnerab
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ilities. Since July 2016, Namibia and Botswana have declared national drought emergencies, in addition to the declarations made earlier by Lesotho, Malawi, Swaziland and Zimbabwe. Madagascar issued a letter of solidarity with the SADC Appeal, and Mozambique has maintained a red alert in affected areas.
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Recently, a renewed interest in large-scale community health worker (CHW) programs has been seen globally. This renewal provides an opportune moment to take stock of issues and challenges such progr
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ams face and what can be done to make them as effective as possible. With this in mind, this manual is intended to be used a practical guide for policymakers and program
managers wishing to develop or strengthen a CHW program, drawing lessons from other countries that have implemented CHW programs at-scale. Throughout, we discuss major policy and programmatic issues that decision-makers and planners need to consider when designing, implementing, scaling up or strengthening a national-level CHW program. We offer an overview
of specific challenges CHW programs face, country lessons, tools, and other resources that may be helpful, while incorporating relevant programmatic examples as much as possible.
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The regional Migrant Response Plan (MRP) for the Horn of Africa and Yemen includes urgent life-saving humanitarian and protection interventions to
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improve safe and dignified access to basic services for migrants and host communities while ensuring medium- to long-term actions aimed at addressing the drivers of migration.
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Growing evidence indicates that large proportions of children around the world experience physical, sexual and emotional violence every year, with enormous implications for human rights, public heal
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th and economic and social development.1 Over the last five years, national governments and Together for Girls – a global public-private partnership comprising UNICEF,
other United Nations (UN) agencies, the United States (US) Government and various private sector agencies – have worked to mobilize and sustain a global movement to end violence against children, with a focus on sexual violence against girls.
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The Event-based Surveillance Framework is intended to be used by authorities and agencies responsible for
surveillance and response. This framework serves as an outline to guide stakeholders inter
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ested in implementing
event-based surveillance (EBS) using a multisectoral, One Health approach. To that end, the document is arranged
in interlinked chapters and annexes that can be modified and adapted, as needed, by users.
This is a revised version of the original “Framework for Event-based Surveillance” that was published in 2018. This
framework does not replace any other available EBS materials, but rather builds on existing relevant or related
documents and serves as a practical guide for the implementation of EBS in Africa. This framework is aligned with
the third edition of the WHO Joint External Evaluation for the following indicators: strengthened early warning
surveillance systems that are able to detect events of significance for public health and health security (Indicator
D2.1); improved communication and collaboration across sectors and between National, intermediate and local
public health response levels of authority regarding surveillance of events of public health significance (Indicator
D2.2); and improved national and intermediate-level capacity to analyse data (Indicator D2.3). As countries begin
to implement and demonstrate EBS functionality they will ensure an increase in JEE scores and progress towards
meeting the requirements outlined in the IHR3F
Additionally, in African Union Member States that have adopted the Integrated Disease Surveillance and
Response (IDSR) strategy, this document is a complement to and can enhance the implementation of IDSR,
especially for the 3rd edition (2019) that includes components related to EBS.
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The toolkit is a collection of assessment tools and checklists that describe the key considerations to be taken into account when transitioning to Option B/B+. The toolkit provides a roadmap to supp
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ort the planning and implementation of Option B/B+, and to help countries scale up more effective interventions and programs to achieve the goals of the Global Plan Towards the Elimination of New HIV Infections among Children by 2015 and Keeping their Mothers Alive.
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This guide is an attempt to redress the deficit in understanding of implementation research and to encourage programme personnel and implementers t
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o take a greater interest in the subject, recognizing that implementation research is in fact an integral part of programme planning and execution, rather than something that happens once programmes are up and running. Intended for newcomers to the field, those already conducting implementation research, and those with responsibility for implementing programmes, the guide provides an introduction to basic implementation research concepts and language, briefly outlines what it involves, and describes the many exciting opportunities that it presents
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