Urban poor communities including the homeless, residents of informal settlements, residents at risk of being evicted, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), undocumented persons, low-income renters, as well as homeowners are perhaps at greatest risk from both COVID-19 and the response interventions to... it.
more
N95 or equivalent respirators are single-use personal protective equipment (PPE) designed for use by health workers that provide direct care to patients with diseases transmitted by aerosols or during aerosol generating procedures (AGP) for patients with acute respiratory disease, as is the case of ...COVID-19. • Given the current shortage of N95 and equivalent respirators, the World Health Organization (WHO) has suggested the possibility of their extended use by the same individual for up to 6 hours or the reprocessing of respirators when necessary.
more
This guidance document has been produced by WHO to assist blood services in the development of national plans to respond to any emerging infectious threats to the sufficiency or safety of the blood supply, whether from an existing infectious agent that is changing in incidence and spread, or from a ...newly identified infectious agent. It is intended that this document be followed to guide the national blood service through the process of planning how to respond in a timely, controlled and appropriate way to any specific infectious threat that may subsequently emerge. It is acknowledged that it is not only the blood supply that may be affected by such emerging infectious threats; in those countries undertaking transplantation, the supply of cell, tissues and organs may also be threatened. Increasingly, blood services are taking overall national responsibility for transplantation in their capacity as the organization responsible for the collection, processing, storage and supply of cells, tissues and organs. This approach is both sensible and appropriate, as the overall donor selection and screening processes are the same or very similar. This guidance document can therefore also be used to assist those bodies responsible for the provision of cells, tissues and organs to prepare for an emerging infectious threat.
more
Letter of the holy father
The progressive development of peoples is an object of deep interest and concern to the Church. This is particularly true in the case of those peoples who are trying to escape the ravages of hunger, poverty, endemic disease and ignorance; of those who are seeking a larger share in the benefits of ci...vilization and a more active improvement of their human qualities; of those who are consciously striving for fuller growth.
more
The WHO Global Health Estimates show that nearly half a million deaths (493 471) occurred in the WHO European Region due to violence and injuries in 2016. This represents a decline of 29% from 2000. Injuries account for 5.3% of all deaths and 9.6 of all years of life lost. They are a leading cause o...f death in people aged 15–29 years and the second leading cause of death for young people aged 5–14. The three leading causes of injury deaths are self-directed violence (141 089), falls (83 325) and road-traffic injuries (78 198). Inequalities in injury deaths exist in the Region, with mortality rates 2.4 times higher in males than in females and 1.5 times higher in middle-income compared to high-income countries.
more
Everyday experience shows that there is a commonality between spirituality and medical practice. A text message I received from a friend recently read, "Please pray for me. I've been getting a mysterious headache for some days now. I will be seeing the doctor today." This clearly speaks of a relatio...nship: asking for prayer so as to be relieved of a "mysterious headache", yet going to see a doctor whose job is not to cure mysterious headaches. Even though both areas of human experience have their peculiar and largely unrelated methodologies, this paper argues that any extreme separation of the two is injurious to the teleology of both disciplines in relation to human well-being, which forms the core of spirituality and medicine.
more
Our spiritual health profoundly impacts our physical health, well-being, and quality of life. Just as medical professionals care for our bodies and minds, spiritual care practitioners care for our spirits. The increasing need for spiritual care makes these practitioners even more crucial. However, m...any of us have limited access to quality, professional spiritual care. At times of struggle, this lack of spiritual care can have a negative impact on our health and well-being.Investigators and researchers are creating a growing body of evidence for the innumerable benefits of professional spiritual care, yet many people still do not have a lot of accurate information about these practitioners. To create this publication, the six largest healthcare chaplaincy organizations in North America collaborated to share the facts about spiritual care and practitioners’ roles, training, and standards.By providing evidence and dispelling myths, the thousands of spiritual care practitioners represented by these organizations hope to increase access to spiritual care for the benefit of all.
accessed July 2020
more
TO HIS HOLINESS POPE JOHN PAUL II
A paper presented during a conference on The Catholic Social Teaching and its Social and Political impact on the Development 9thto 10th December, in Schloss Eichholz Koln/Cologne/GermanyPresented by Sr. Dr. Elizabeth Nduku
accessed July 2020
The call to justice and peace has always been an essential part of the life of the Christian. Our sacred texts offer a constant reminder of the centrality of this call. In the Old Testament the prophet Micah tells us: “this is what Yahweh asks of you: only this, to act justly, to love tenderly, a...nd to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).
more
Subsidiarity guides people to establish relationships where they can make decisions, accomplish good work, and live their lives in a manner that respects human dignity
Version 4
The purpose of these standard operating procedures (SOPs) is to offer policy guidance and to provide performance standards on how to respond to any type of poliovirus outbreak or event in a timely and effective manner, and specifically, to stop an outbrea...k within 120 days.
more
This guidance is targeted to primary health care policy-makers and only addresses issues relevant for primary health care providers. It has been prepared on the basis of a systematic review of the best available evidence and emergent country practices in response to the COVID-19 outbreak in the WHO ...European Region. It will be updated on a regular basis as new information becomes available.
more
Catholic hospitals and other health services provide invaluable care to many in the community. This article accentuates the pastoral nature of Catholic health care, which is definitive to its Catholic identity. Discussing contemporary Catholic health care in conjunction with the works of Henri Nouwe...n we explore the challenges faced by today’s Catholics in Catholic health care and respond to these issues. In support of the discussion are the results of qualitative research into the perceptions Perth parishioners have of Catholic health care’s pastoral nature and Catholic identity. This research aims towards understanding the challenges facing Catholic health care providing pastoral care within its Catholic identity.
more
A thesis submitted for the Degree of Master of Theology at the South African Theological Seminary
HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies ISSN: (Online) 2072-8050, (Print) 0259-9422
Journal of Palliative Medicine Volume 21, Number 10, 2018
DOI: 10.1089/jpm.2018.0248ad
This s a systematic review of English language literature from 2000 to 2010 covering spiritual care in end of life care settings which includes spiritual assessment tools and ongoing intervention models.