July 2018
This fourth edition of the Unitaid/WHO market and technology landscape: HIV rapid diagnostic tests for self-testing report summarizes the current HIV testing gap; the challenges facing efforts to scale up; and the potential role HIV self-testing (HIVST) could play to achieve the United... Nation’s 90-90-90 targets. In particular, the report synthesises the existing and emerging market demand and supply of kits.
The information in this report is intended for manufacturers, donors, national programmes, researchers and other global health stakeholders who are exploring the potential role of HIVST.
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NSW Disaster Mental Health Handbook 1
The Disaster Mental Health Manual and associated handbooks are intended as a resource for mental health staff who are seeking background information and practical guidance and resources to assist in a disaster mental health response.
This brief summarises key considerations about the social, political and economic context of Goma in relation to the outbreak of Ebola in the DRC as of March 2019. Goma is the administrative capital of North Kivu province and a major urban centre in the Great Lakes Region. The city is home to an est...imated 1.5 million people and serves as an important economic and transportation hub that links eastern Congo to the broader East African sub-region. The arrival of Ebola in Goma would substantially increase the at-risk population and heighten the potential for cross-border transmission to neighbouring countries, particularly Rwanda. This brief therefore focuses on local social and political structures that can be leveraged to promote preparedness and readiness actions.
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This report is primarily intended for the community of policymakers and researchers concerned about the rising risks of domestic, regional, and global infectious disease epidemics, and the collective failure to take the coordinated actions required to reduce such risks. These risks include the expec...ted health, economic, and societal costs that are borne by countries, regions, and even all nations in the case of pandemics (which are worldwide epidemics). These risks also include the consequences of increasing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and its spread within regions and globally. A necessary first step is to monitor whether a broad range of stakeholders are acting to prevent outbreaks from becoming epidemics, whether their capacities to respond to epidemics are robust, and whether preparedness to respond to pandemics and limit the resulting economic and health damage is improving. Analyzing the adequacy of these efforts is vitally important for the decisions of policymakers to invest in the public health and disaster-risk management capacities. Early and effective control of disease outbreaks prevents substantial health and economic costs whether or not the disease can spread globally and become a pandemic.
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What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Need to Do
Tuberculosis (TB) prevention is essential for reaching the End TB targets in the South-East Asia Region (SEAR) of World Health Organization (WHO)1. The targets of 80% reduction in TB incidence rate and 90% reduction in TB mortality by 2030 (compared to 2015 levels) can be achieved only with addition...al interventions aimed at preventing TB, according to epidemiological modelling studies commissioned by the WHO South-East Asia Regional Office (WHO SEARO). Optimal implementation of TB preventive treatment (TPT) is a critical intervention to accelerate reduction in TB burden in the SEA Region, which bears nearly 43% of the global TB burden. TPT by itself has the potential to reduce the overall annual TB incidence rates by 8.3% (95% CrI 6.5–10.8) relative to 2015.
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Healthy maternal nutrition, exclusive breastfeeding, and optimal infant and young child nutrition are critical for appropriate growth and development, as well as reducing the risk of developing noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), for both mothers and children. On 7–8 November 2018 the WHO Regional Of...fice for Europe convened an international conference of key stakeholders to discuss good practices and share experiences on these important issues.
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Types of radiotherapy equipment covered by the guide include external beam radiotherapy machines (both Cobalt-60 and linear accelerators), brachytherapy devices that apply radiation sources directly to tumours and complementary imaging devices such as conventional or computed tomography (CT) simulat...ors, as well as other tools essential for safe operation and quality control. Depending on the type of radiotherapy machine, the need for specialized professionals and infrastructure, as well as quality assurance and maintenance, may vary.
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Member States have requested WHO policy guidance on how to facilitate the implementation of national AMS activities in an integrated and programmatic approach. This policy guidance responds to that demand from Member States and is anchored in public health guiding principles in the human health sect...or. It aims to provide a set of evidence-based and pragmatic recommendations to drive comprehensive and integrated AMS activities under the purview of a central national coordination unit, National AMR steering or coordinating committees or other equivalent national authorities.
Available in English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Chinese
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The Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on Immunization held a meeting on 3-6 October 2022. This report summarizes the discussions, conclusions and recommendations.
It covers the following items:
Global Reports
Immunization Agenda 2030 and Regional reports
Monkeypox
RSV
COVID-19 vacci...nes
Polio vaccination
Ebola (Sudan ebolavirus outbreak update)
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The objectives of the meeting were:
1. To step up the commitment of national authorities and technical and financial partners toWHO’s elimination objective for g-HAT.
2. To share achievements, challenges and views on the elimination goal among countries and implementing partners.
3. To assess t...he status of critical technical aspects to be solved in research and development of drugs and diagnostic tools, epidemiology, vector control and animal reservoirs.
4. To define the mechanisms for strengthening and organizing collaboration and coordination among stakeholders.
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The availability of controlled medicines is crucial for patients requiring palliative care, pain relief and symptom management. Many individuals worldwide, especially in low- and middle-income countries, continue to experience limited access to these essential medicines. Enhancing access to controll...ed medicines is paramount in promoting universal health coverage. This report offers a detailed situational analysis of policies and programmes aimed at improving access to affordable, high-quality controlled medicines for pain management in the WHO South-East Asia Region. The report identifies the existing barriers, challenges and possible solutions to facilitate access to such medicines across all Member States.
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Globally, over two million women live with obstetric fistula with the majority of the cases
being from Africa. In low-resource settings such as Zambia, obstetric fistula (OF) is a visible indicator of
gaps in maternal health care resulting in failure to provide adequate, accessible and quality m...aternal health
care, including family planning, skilled birth attendance, basic and emergency obstetric and neonatal care,
and affordable treatment of fistula. OF is preventable and treatable, and no woman in Zambia should continue to endure the condition. It is therefore necessary that Zambia intensifies national scale up of OF management centers including
community based interventions, train more surgeons and other health workers to provide quality and
affordable care closer to the women who are silently suffering from obstetric fistula.
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Advances in the treatment of pediatric cancer have made it possible to expand initiatives beyond cure and cover aspects such as early detection, continuity of treatment and reduction in toxicity. All this has paved the way for a more comprehensive vision of patient care, which means better chances o...f healing and a fuller life - objectives of the World Initiative against Childhood Cancer. Within this comprehensive care, psychosocial care includes the social, psychological, spiritual and functional dimensions of the disease process of patients. This series includes guidelines and standards based on evidence that guarantee the quality of said care. The standards are the result of discussion and review by different professionals from Latin America and the Caribbean. Module 1 focuses on psychosocial evaluation as a strategy to support the objectives of the World Initiative against Childhood Cancer, and as a tool for health professionals to gather the necessary information to offer these patients a comprehensive approach focused on well-being, adaptation to the disease process, and adherence to treatment.
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The Summary of the Global status report on road safety 2023 shows that the number of annual road traffic deaths has fallen slightly to 1.19 million. The report shows that efforts to improve road safety are having an impact, and that significant reductions in road traffic deaths can be made if proven... measures are applied. Despite this, the price paid for mobility remains too high. Road traffic injuries remain the leading killer of children and young people aged 5-29 years. More than half of fatalities occur among pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists, in particular those living in low and middle-income countries. Urgent action is needed if the global goal of at least halving road traffic deaths and injuries by the year 2030 is to be achieved.
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A year ago, the second Special Session of the World Health Assembly (WHASS) unanimously agreed to start a diplomatic process for a new binding instrument aimed at ensuring the international community is better prepared for the next health emergencies. The establishment of an Intergovernmental Negoti...ating Body (INB) at the WHO paved the terrain for a proper negotiation, which has started to unfold. The INB will be releasing the “conceptual zero draft” of the treaty text in early December 2022.
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