Working Document Nov. 2020
The COVAX Supply and Logistics workstream lead by UNICEF, Gavi and WHO have released a working copy of the COVID-19 Vaccination, Country Readiness & Delivery: Supply ...n class="attribute-to-highlight medbox">and Logistics Guidance. Countries might find this Guide useful when developing and strengthening their supply chain strategies to receive, store, distribute and manage the COVID-19 vaccines and their ancillary products, in line with their national deployment and vaccination plan (NDVP). The document also provides links to the different tools and resources to aid countries in performing assessment, planning and capacity-building activities.
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The World Health Organization (WHO)6, the Civil Society Action Committee and the Lancet Migration global collaboration are amongst many organisations that have advised governments against returning irregular migrants during the Coronavirus d...isease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The expulsion of irregular migrants to under-prepared countries puts migrants and communities at risk, and is against the principles of solidarity and public health that should inspire action during these challenging times. It also puts at risk the staff who implement these policies. Detention, overcrowded conditions and lack of hygiene all render irregular migrants more vulnerable to the impact of COVID-19. Irregular laborers, agricultura land food workers, cleaners and caregivers are all essential in the response to the pandemic, there fore the temporary or longer term regularisation of migrants to facilitate their access to health, social services and employment should be considered as a humane, practical and self-interested alternative to forcible return.
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An in-depth analysis of the health-seeking behaviour of patients and health system response in seven countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region
This third edition of the landscape analysis provides regional and country-specific data. This report illustrates the complexities in surveillance of influenza and other respiratory viruses ...ass="attribute-to-highlight medbox">and highlights differences in the countries’ preparedness capacities through charts, infographics, tables, and brief narratives.
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The report provides a brief introduction to patents and licences and their effect on the market for antiretroviral (ARV) medicines. It gives an overview of the patent landscape with respect to a sel...ect number of ARV medicines in developing countries as of April 2014. The focus is primarily on those ARVs that are recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) as well as new ARVs that have either recently obtained regulatory approval or are in phase III clinical trials.
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Vitamin A supplementation (VAS) programs targeted at children aged 6–59 months are implemented in many countries. By improving immune function, vitamin A (VA) reduces mortality associated with measles, diarrhea, ... medbox">and other illnesses. There is currently a debate regarding the relevance of VAS, but amidst the debate, researchers acknowledge that the majority of nationally-representative data on VA status is outdated. To address this data gap and contribute to the debate, we examined data from 82 countries implementing VAS programs, identified other VA programs, and assessed the recentness of national VA deficiency (VAD) data.
Article published in: Nutrients, 2017, 9, 190
https://doi.org/10.3390/nu9030190
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User satisfaction with assistive devices is a predictor of use and an important outcome measure. This study evaluated client satisfaction with prosthetic and orthotic assistive devices ...attribute-to-highlight medbox">and services in three provinces in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic. Clients were quite satisfied with the assistive device and services provided, yet many reported barriers to optimal device use and difficulties in accessing follow-up services. There is a need to examine how prosthetic and orthotic devices can be improved further for better comfort and ambulation on uneven ground in low-resource contexts and to address access barriers.
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This publication seeks to describe the best treatments and practices based on the scientific evidence available at the time of writing as evaluated by the authors and may change as a result of new r...esearch. Readers need to apply this knowledge to patients in accordance with the guidelines and laws of their country of practice. Some medications may not be available in some countries and readers should consult the specific drug information since not all the unwanted effects of medications are mentioned.
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This third regional report discusses gaps and challenges in reducing the harmful use of alcohol and how countries can reverse current trends in a c...ost-effective and expedited way.
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Key questions
What is already known?
Critical illness is common throughout the world and COVID-19 has caused a global surge of critically ill patients.
There are large gaps in the quality of care for critically ill patients, especially in... low-staffed and low-resourced settings, and mortality rates are high.
Essential Emergency and Critical Care (EECC) is the effective lifesaving care of low-cost and low-complexity that all critically ill patients should receive in all wards in all hospitals in the world.
What are the new findings?
The clinical processes that comprise EECC and the essential care of critically ill patients with COVID-19 have been specified in a large consensus among clinical experts worldwide.
The resource requirements for hospitals to be ready to provide this care has been described.
What do the new findings imply?
The findings can be used across medical specialties in hospitals worldwide to prioritise and implement essential care for reducing preventable deaths.
Inclusion of the EEEC processes could increase the impact of pandemic preparedness and response programmes and policies for health systems strengthening.
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This report, which involved input from across WaterAid, in particular from the Programme Support Unit (PSU) of WaterAid UK, includes case studies from a variety of countries, including Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Ghana, India ... class="attribute-to-highlight medbox">and Nepal, each demonstrating what must be done now to improve WASH services and address current challenges, in order to increase community resilience to climate change.
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During fresh fruit and vegetables (FFV) production, water is used for a variety of purposes. Even the water was conventionally treated and disinfected, it may still potentially contain human pathoge...ns, albeit at low concentrations. A risk assessment, appropriate to the national or local production context, should be conducted to assess the potential risks associated with a specific water source or supply in order to devise the appropriate risk mitigation strategies.
Since the 48th session of Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH) noted the importance of water safety and quality in food production and processing, FAO and WHO has undertaken the work on this subject. This report describes the output of the third in a series of meetings, which examined appropriate and fit-for-purpose microbiological criteria for water used with fresh fruit and vegetables. The advice herein will support decision making when applying the concept of fit-for-purpose water for use in the pre- and post-harvest production of fresh fruit and vegetables.
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The indicators and questions in this document are designed for use by national AIDS programmes and partners to assess the state of a country’s HIV and...span> AIDS response, and to measure progress towards achieving national HIV targets. Countries are encouraged to integrate these indicators and questions into their ongoing monitoring efforts and to report comprehensive national data through the Global AIDS Monitoring (GAM) process. In this way they will contribute to improving understanding of the global response to the HIV epidemic, including progress that has been made towards achieving the commitments and global targets set out in the new United Nations Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS: Ending Inequalities and Getting on Track to End AIDS by 2030, adopted in June 2021, and the linked Sustainable Development Goals.
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Despite the increasing uptake of information and communication technologies (ICT) within healthcare services across developing countries, community healthcare workers (CHWs) have limited knowledge t...o fully utilise computerised clinical systems and mobile apps. The ‘Introduction to Information and Communication Technology and eHealth’ course was developed with the aim to provide CHWs in Malawi, Africa, with basic knowledge and computer skills to use digital solutions in healthcare delivery. The course was delivered using a traditional and a blended learning approach.
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Time has seen management for Cystic Fibrosis (CF) advance drastically, most recently in the development of the disease-modifying triple combination therapy ivacaftor/tezacaftor/elexacaftor. There is currently limited evidence regarding both the global epidemiology of CF ...hlight medbox">and access to this transformative therapy - and therefore where needs are not being met. Therefore, this study aims to define gaps in access to CF treatment. The results show that a significant CF patient burden exists in countries where disease-modifying drugs are unavailable, and final figures are likely underestimates. This analysis shows the potential to improve rates of diagnosis and treatment for CF, so a higher percentage of patients receive the most effective triple combination treatment.
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Maternal Child Nutrition. 2017;e12478
This paper analyzes individual level and household level determinants of anemia among children and women in Nepal ...x">and Pakistan. Applying multivariate modified Poisson models to recent national survey data, we find that the prevalence of anemia was significantly higher among women from the poorest households in Pakistan (adjusted prevalence ratio [95% CI]: 1.10 [1.04–1.17]), women lacking sanitation facilities in Nepal (1.22 [1.12–1.33]), and among undernourished women (BMI < 18.5 kg/m2) in both countries (Nepal: 1.10 [1.00–1.21] and Pakistan: 1.07 [1.02–1.13]). Similarly, children in both countries were more likely to be anemic if stunted (Nepal: 1.19 [1.09–1.30] and Pakistan: 1.10 [1.07–1.14]) and having an anemic mother (Nepal: 1.31 [1.20–1.42] and Pakistan: 1.21 [1.17–1.26]).
https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.12478
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Small island developing states (SIDS) are a set of islands and coastal states that share similar sustainable development challenges, as a result of their size, geography and vulnerability to climate... change. Thirty-nine WHO member states in four regions – the African Region, the Region of the Americas, the South-East Asian Region, and the Western Pacific region – are classified as SIDS. Whilst the individual countries differ in many respects, collectively they face unique social, economic and environmental challenges.
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Reproductive health needs are particularly acute in countries affected by armed conflict. Reliable information
on aid investment for reproductive health in these countries is essential for improvin...g the efficiency and effectiveness of
aid. The purpose of this study was to analyse official development assistance (ODA) for reproductive health activities in
conflict-affected countries from 2003 to 2006.
Methods and Findings: The Creditor Reporting Syst
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The COVID-19 pandemic is having a profound negative effect on the global economy and is occurring in the context of a rapidly changing climate. This year is expected to be the second hottest in recorded history. Weather forecasts for 2020 indicate a... high probability that extreme weather will adversely affect food production in many countries. This brief draws on historical evidence and demonstrates that reductions in national food availability caused by severe weather events tend to be considerably larger in magnitude when they occur during global economic downturns. The risks posed by this dual threat are particularly high for poorer countries that are net food importers. Taking actions to mitigate these adverse effects in the short-term, while building the resilience of agri-food systems to future shocks is critical for avoiding major contractions in food availability and associated risks of food insecurity.
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Ensuring mental health and well-being has become a worldwide imperative and an important target
of the Sustainable Development Goals.
But in all countri...es around the world, our response has been woefully insufficient, and we have made
little progress to advance mental health as a fundamental human right.
One in ten people are affected by a mental health condition, up to 200 million people have an
intellectual disability and an estimated 50 million people have dementia. Many persons with mental
health conditions, or psychosocial, intellectual, or cognitive disabilities lack access to quality mental
health services that respond to their needs and respect their rights and dignity.
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