Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD), mainly heart attack and stroke, is the
leading cause of premature mortality in low and middle income countries (LMICs).
Identifying and managing individuals at high risk of CVD is an important strategy to prevent and control CVD, in addition to multisector...al population-based interventions to reduce CVD risk factors in the entire population.
Methods: We describe key public health considerations in identifying and managing individuals at high risk of CVD in LMICs.
Results: A main objective of any strategy to identify individuals at high CVD risk is to maximize the number of CVD events averted while minimizing the numbers of
individuals needing treatment. Scores estimating the total risk of CVD (e.g. ten-year risk of fatal and non-fatal CVD) are available for LMICs, and are based on the main CVD risk factors (history of CVD, age, sex, tobacco use, blood pressure, blood cholesterol and diabetes status). Opportunistic screening of CVD risk factors enables identification of persons with high CVD risk, but this strategy can be widely applied in low resource settings only if cost effective interventions are used (e.g. the WHO Package of Essential NCD interventions for primary health care in low resource settings package) and if treatment (generally for years) can be sustained, including continued availability ofaffordable medications and funding mechanisms that allow people to purchase medications without impoverishing them (e.g. universal access to health care). Thisalso emphasises the need to re-orient health systems in LMICs towards chronic diseases management.
Conclusion: The large burden of CVD in LMICs and the fact that persons with high
CVD can be identified and managed along cost-effective interventions mean that
health systems need to be structured in a way that encourages patient registration, opportunistic screening of CVD risk factors, efficient procedures for the management of chronic conditions (e.g. task sharing) and provision of affordable treatment for those with high CVD risk. The focus needs to be in primary care because that is where most of the population can access health care and because CVD programmes can be run effectively at this level.
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A manual for health care providers.
This manual provides expert guidance on the laboratory techniques and procedures used in the diagnosis of Buruli ulcer, a disease caused by Mycobacterium ulceran...s. Aimed at laboratory technicians and scientists working on this disease, the manual details the exact procedures to follow when performing a range of diagnostic tests. Recommended procedures, intended for use throughout the health system, are presented at levels appropriate for peripheral, district and central services and in accordance with the varying resources, skills and equipment typically found in countries where Buruli ulcer is endemic.
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The primary audience for this guideline includes health-care professionals who are responsible for developing national and local health-...="attribute-to-highlight medbox">care protocols and policies, as well as managers of maternal and child health programmes and policy-makers in all settings. The guideline will also be useful to those directly providing care to pregnant women and preterm infants, such as obstetricians, paediatricians, midwives, nurses and general practitioners. The information in this guideline will be useful for developing job aids and tools for pre- and in-service training of health workers to enhance their delivery of maternal and neonatal care relating to preterm birth.
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Inerim Guidance for health-care providers. This document describes guidance for a supportive response by healthcare providers (e.g. physicians, nur...ses), focusing primarily on women affected by Zika virus infection during pregnancy and their families, for their mental health and psychosocial needs.
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A pocket atlas for clinical health-care professionals
at the national and acute health care facility level
Guidelines for treatment of drug-susceptible tuberculosisand patient care
2017 Update
Guide for community-based management and care of people with dementia
Version 1.0
Mental Health and Substance Abuse
Division of NCD and Health... through the Life-Course
World Health Organization Regional Office for the Western Pacific
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WHO published guidance for clinicians and health care decision-makers on the use of corticosteroids in patients with COVID-19.
We recommend systemic corticosteroids for the treatment of patients ...with severe and critical COVID-19. We suggest not to use corticosteroids in the treatment of patients with non-severe COVID-19 as the treatment brought no benefits, and could even prove harmful. Treatment should be under supervision of a clinician.
Corticosteroids are listed in the WHO model list of essential medicines, readily available globally at a low cost. WHO encourages countries to maintain sufficient stocks of corticosteroids to treat COVID-19 and the other disease for which they are effective, while not maintaining excessive stocks which could deny other countries access.
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The World Health Organization’s comprehensive antenatal care (ANC) guideline WHO recommendations on antenatal care for a positive pregnancy exper...ience was first published in 2016 with the objective of improving the quality of routine health care that all women and adolescent girls receive during pregnancy. The overarching principle – to provide pregnant service users with a positive pregnancy experience – aims to encourage countries to expand their health-care agendas beyond survival, with a view to maximizing health, human rights and the potential of their populations. Recognizing that ANC provides a strategic platform for important health-care functions, including health promotion and disease prevention, 14 out of the 49 recommendations in the WHO 2016 ANC guideline relate to nutritional interventions in pregnancy.
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These guidelines group all recommendations on TB care and support in one document and are complemented by an operational handbook. The guidelines are to be used primarily by national TB programmes, or their equivalents in Ministries of ...ass="attribute-to-highlight medbox">Health, stakeholders and technical organizations working on TB care in the public and private sectors and in the community.
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The World Health Organization’s comprehensive antenatal care (ANC) guideline WHO recommendations on antenatal care for a positive pregnancy exper...ience was published in 2016 with the objective of improving the quality of routine health care that all women and adolescent girls receive during pregnancy. The overarching principle – to provide pregnant service users with a positive pregnancy experience – aims to encourage countries to expand their health-care agendas beyond survival, with a view to maximizing health, human rights and the potential of their populations. Recognizing that ANC provides a strategic platform for important health-care functions, including health promotion and disease prevention, 14 out of the 49 recommendations in the WHO 2016 ANC guideline relate to nutrition in pregnancy.
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This document provides guidance to health care workers on the use of the counselling cards. The Counselling cards depict key infant and young child feeding concepts and behaviours for ...ttribute-to-highlight medbox">health workers to share with mothers, fathers, grandparents and other caregivers.
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WHO recently conducted a survey to assess the availability and cost of a national tracer list of essential medicines in the outpatient sector in Ukraine using a new collection tool – the WHO Essential Medicines and Health ...-highlight medbox">Products Price and Availability Monitoring Mobile Application. This tool facilitates rapid and inexpensive data collection at the facility level.
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Guidance for health care workers.
Emergency medical teams (EMT) are first response health care providers – doctors, nurses, paramedics, and others – during outbreaks and emergencies or disasters, working with governments, charit...ies such as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), armies, and international organizations such as the International Red Cross/Red Crescent movement. They comply with the classification and minimum standards set by the World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners and bring to an emergency their training and self-sufficiency so as not to burden the national health system. EMT initiatives strengthen national surge capacities and facilitate the deployment of internationally classified teams of health- care professionals to countries and territories during emergencies, particularly during disease outbreaks and natural disasters, providing immediate assistance when national health systems are overwhelmed . Considering that they aim to support the provision of quality clinical care services to populations affected by public health emergencies, the expectation is that financial resources and equipment will be available to enable the performance of the requested task.
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Updated 17 April 2020
Improving care for women during pregnancy and around the time of childbirth to prevent and treat pre-eclampsia and eclampsia is a necessary step towards the achievement of the health... targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Efforts to prevent and reduce morbidity and mortality due to these conditions can help address the profound inequities in maternal and perinatal health globally. To achieve this, healthcare providers, health managers, policy makers and other stakeholders need up-to-date and evidence-informed recommendations to guide clinical policies and practices.
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The guide contains valuable tools for wound care and the rehabilitation of people affected by Buruli ulcer. It is also helpful for peripheral health centres in areas where Buruli ulcer is endemic an...d to people and their families affected by the disease
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Antibiotics use with care
Preferred product characteristics” (PPCs) are key tools to incentivize and guide the development of urgently needed health products. The PPC publ...ished here describes the characteristics of new types of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) to control malaria transmission in areas with insecticide-resistant mosquito populations. The document was developed to address the public health need caused by the evolution and spread of insecticide resistance, particularly to pyrethroids. Such resistance threatens the effectiveness of the current standard of malaria vector control in many countries, namely pyrethroid-only long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs).
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