Interium guidance, 25 June 2021Timely and accurate diagnostic testing is an essential tool in preventing and controlling the spread of COVID-19. This document describes recommendations for national testing strategies and the use of PCR and rapid antigen tests in different transmission scenarios of t...he COVID-19 outbreak, including how testing might be rationalized in low resource settings. All testing should be followed by a strong public health response including isolating those who test positive and providing them care, contact tracing and quarantine of contacts.
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6 July 2021. Three new nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) classes are endorsed by WHO and included.
The latest operational handbook includes the new classes recommended by WHO. It aims at facilitating the implementation of the WHO recommendations by the Member States, technical partners, and ot...hers involved in managing patients with TB and DR-TB. The operational handbook provides practical information on existing and new tests recommended by WHO, step-by-step advice on implementing and scale-up testing to achieve local and national impact and lastly, model diagnostic algorithms, which are updated to incorporate the latest recommendations. An overview of budgetary considerations and information sheets on each of the newly recommended tests is provided.
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Updated May 2021. Manual 2. The Practical Approach to Care Kit – PACK – is used by nurses, doctors and community health workers in their everyday work to care for patients at the clinic and in the community –PACK Adult, PACK Adolescent, PACK Child and PACK Community.PACK Home is designed for p...eople seeking more information about how to care for their own health and the health of their family at home.Collect and read all the PACK Home volumes in English, Afrikaans, isiXhosa, isiZulu or Sesotho
Download the different languages: https://knowledgetranslation.co.za/pack/pack-home/
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Available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish. You can download a summary of the main report and background documents!
The report demonstrates that the current system—at both national and international levels— was not adequate to protect people from COVID-19. The time it t...ook from the reporting of a cluster of cases of pneumonia of unknown origin in mid-late December 2019 to a Public Health Emergency of International Concern being declared was too long. February 2020 was also a lost month when many more countries could have taken steps to contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and forestall the global health, social, and economic catastrophe that continues its grip. The Panel finds that the system as it stands now is clearly unfit to prevent another novel and highly infectious pathogen, which could emerge at any time, from developing into a pandemic.
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Modelling the health impacts of disruptions to essential health services during COVID-19 Module 1
Several epidemiological models have been created to assess the potential impact of disruptions to essential health services caused by COVID-19 on morbidity and mortality from conditions other than COVI...D-19 illness. This guide presents models that have been used to assess these indirect impacts. The effects have been studied in various settings, using a variety of models.
The guide is intended for people who need to understand what the models say, their construction and their underlying assumptions, or need to use models and their outcomes for planning and programme development and to support policy decisions for a country or region.
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Many African countries were amongst the most rapid to respond to the emerging threat of COVID-19, implementing large-scale interventions at very early stages of their epidemic. As demonstrated in this document using very simple models, this rapid mobilization and timeliness of implementing control m...easures is likely to be an important determinant of their success. Indeed, as these measures were relaxed, subsequent waves of disease have been observed in many countries including South Africa, Kenya, Tunisia, Morocco, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where such waves have severely impacted the health system by straining the supply of oxygen and ICU beds and inflicting a heavy toll on healthcare workers, often necessitating the re-imposition of control measures.
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6 July 2021. The “WHO consolidated guidelines on tuberculosis. Module 3: Diagnosis - Rapid diagnostics for tuberculosis detection 2021 update” is the latest document replacing the one issued in 2020. Three new nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) classes are endorsed by WHO and included in the... latest consolidated guideline
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Pharmaceutical regulators are at the forefront of ensuring that only safe and effective medicines are authorized and available in the market. This document builds on the recommendations in the above publication and has been prepared to specifically assist national medicines regulatory authorities to... understand the nature and extent of oxytocin quality issues and to provide key technical information and quality requirements for oxytocin products in dossier assessments. Furthermore, this document also presents recommendations on other regulatory actions needed to ensure that only quality-assured oxytocin products are authorized and made available to women.
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1 July 2021; Report shows big COVID-19-related HIV prevention programme service disruptions, but highlights that HIV service innovations and adaptations are possible.
A synthesis report on programme disruptions and adaptations during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020
Soil-transmitted helminths are a group of intestinal worms that include Ascaris lumbricoides (giant roundworm), Trichuris trichiura (whipworm), and Ancylostoma spp. (A. duodenale, A. ceylanicum) and Necator americanus (hookworms). Despite the clear biological differences among the different species,... their transmission is characterized by the same sequence of events: (i) infected individuals excrete worm eggs through their stool in soil; (ii) under optimal conditions of moisture and temperature the excreted eggs develop into infectious stages; and (iii) finally, infection occurs through oral uptake (Ascaris, Ancylostoma and Trichuris) or skin penetration (Ancylostoma and Necator) of these infectious stages (embryonated eggs and third stage larvae) that reside in the soil and/or in the environment (referring to their common name).
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Pessoas privadas de liberdade, por exemplo, detentos em presídios e outros locais de detenção, podem estar mais vulneráveis a doença do coronavírus (COVID-19) quando comparadas à população em geral, devido às condições de confinamento em que vivem com outras pessoas por períodos prolong...ados. Além disso, a experiência mostra que prisões, cadeias e locais semelhantes onde as pessoas estejam reunidas próximas entre si podem agir como fonte de infecção, amplificação e propagação de doenças infecciosas dentro e fora das prisões.
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Food and nutrition security in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is subject to the relentless impact of conflict, epidemics and climate events that have persisted in the country for decades, further compounded by the global COVID-19 pandemic. Lack of infrastructure and investment in agriculture, ...health and human capital development combine to impede progress towards the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals 2 and 17. While there are several legal instruments and policies that promote food and nutrition security, poor coordination, weak national capacity and exponential population growth present serious obstacles to the achievement of zero hunger. Political instability and siloed sectoral responses to humanitarian and development needs have also affected results to date.
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National emergency medical teams are the best option for providing immediate and appropriate surge response for emergencies directly affecting populations, while international teams may help relieve overwhelmed health systems. The efficiency and effectiveness of countries and local authorities in mo...bilizing existing resources is only as good as the quality of care they are able to provide. This publication serves as a practical guide for teams and aims to compliment emergency response systems, fostering seamless collaboration with all emergency response actors and networks
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The steps reassert the sequence of the HPC, with needs analysis directly informing decisions about the response and monitoring, whether for the preparation of new plans or adjustments to existing ones. The steps of the HPC have a rationale and cannot be skipped. However, the depth of work under each... step can and should be adapted to the realities of the operating environment and capacities.
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This version of the glossary is substantially changed from the original. Some terms have been omitted, many have been modified in light of practical experiences and the evolution in concepts, and new terms have been added. The list of terms is not intended to be either exhaustive or exclusive, and d...raws upon the wide range of disciplines in which health promotion has its roots. Wherever possible, definitions are sourced or derived from existing, publicly accessible WHO documents. Specific sources are referenced, and where possible a web link is also provided to facilitate access to source documents. Hyperlinks were correct at the time of publication but are subject 2 Health Promotion Glossary of Terms 2021 to inevitable change. In some examples the definitions have been adapted to reflect the application of a term to the current health promotion context. Where relevant, this focus is acknowledged in individual definitions.
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La OMS ha elaborado una definición de caso clínico de la afección posterior a la COVID-19 mediante la metodología Delphi que incluye 12 dominios, disponible para su uso en todos los entornos. Esta primera versión fue elaborada por pacientes, investigadores y otras personas, en representación d...e todas las regiones de la OMS, en el entendimiento de que la definición puede cambiar a medida que surjan nuevas pruebas y siga evolucionando nuestra comprensión de las consecuencias de la COVID-19.
La afección posterior a la COVID-19 se produce en personas con antecedentes de infección probable o confirmada por el CoV-2 del SRAS, normalmente a los 3 meses de la aparición de la COVID-19 con síntomas y que duran al menos 2 meses y no pueden explicarse por un diagnóstico alternativo. Los síntomas más comunes son la fatiga, la dificultad respiratoria y la disfunción cognitiva, pero también otros, y generalmente tienen un impacto en el funcionamiento diario. Los síntomas pueden ser de nueva aparición tras la recuperación inicial de un episodio agudo de COVID-19 o persistir desde la enfermedad inicial. Los síntomas también pueden fluctuar o recaer con el tiempo.
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