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) simulators, 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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This recommendation is an update of one of the 49 recommendations that were published in the WHO recommendations on antenatal care for a positive pregnancy experience. ...light medbox">The recommendation was developed initially using the standardized operating procedures described in the WHO handbook for guideline development.
In summary, the process included: (i) identification of priority question and outcomes; (ii) retrieval of evidence; (iii) assessment and synthesis of the evidence; (iv) formulation of recommendation; and (v) planning for the implementation, dissemination, impact evaluation and updating of the recommendation. This recommendation was identified by the Executive Guideline Steering Group (GSG) as a high priority for updating in response to new evidence on this question.
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We need to be concerned about mental health in the context of climate change
Oral health is defined as the absence of disease and a status that ensures optimal functioning of the mouth and its tissues in a manner preserving the...an> highest level of function and self-esteem. Oral health enables an individual to eat, speak and socialise having no active disease, discomfort or discouragement thus contributing to the general well-being. Good oral health is an essential component of general health and a right of every person1. Poor oral health has a negative impact on general health, work productivity, educational performance and adversely affects growth and development.
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Recent systematic reviews and meta-analysis of the impact of chemical-based mollusciciding (King et al., 2015, Sokolow et al., 2016) have concluded that regular mollusciciding is likely to contribute significantly towards elimination of schistosomia...sis in high-risk areas. The WHO roadmap’s new focus on “transmission control, wherever possible” (WHO, 2012a) reinforces the need to promote intermediate-host snail control to prevent schistosomiasis transmission.
This operational manual is intended to facilitate the reintroduction of practices and protocols for use of molluscicides in the field in schistosomiasis control programmes. It is complemented by guidelines on the laboratory and field testing of the efficacy of molluscicides for schistosomiasis control (WHO, 2017 [in preparation]).
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A resource for pesticide registrars and regulators.
The WHO urged governments to restrict access to highly toxic pesticides used for self-poisoning . Other effective interventions include education, youth intervention programs and follow-up of peop...le at risk—and better data. Only 80 out of 183 WHO member states reported high-quality vital registration data in 2016
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his Inter Action Review report for the COVID-19 outbreak in Mauritius documents and assesses the country’s capacity to respond to the outbreak an...d identifies the best practices, strengths, gaps and challenges of the national response. Areas requiring improvements or sustained actions have been identified across the 9 strategic pillars of World Health Organization (WHO)’s COVID-19 Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan and an additional pillar for the country’s response beyond health. On an overall, the review aims to enhance and sustain the national response with a particular focus on strengthening the health systems.
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There is a broad consensus nowadays that the Earth is warming up as a result of greenhouse gas emissions caused by anthropogenic activities. It is also clear that current trends in the fields of ene...rgy, development and population growth will lead to continuous and ever more dramatic climate change. This is bound to affect the fundamental prerequisites for maintaining good health: clean air and water, sufficient food and adequate housing. The planet will warm up gradually, but the consequences of the extreme weather conditions such as frequent
storms, floods, droughts and heat-waves will have sudden onset and acute repercussions. It is widely accepted that climate change will have an impact on the spread of infectious diseases in Europe, which is likely to bring about new public health risks in the majority of cases. Transmission of infectious diseases depends on a number of factors, including climate and environmental elements. Foodborne and waterborne diseases, for instance, are associated with high temperatures. Disease-transmitting vectors (e.g. mosquitoes, sandflies and ticks) are highly sensitive to climate conditions, including temperature and humidity; their geographical distribution will widen as climate conditions change, potentially allowing them to spread into regions where they are not currently able to live.
The primary purpose of this manual on climate change and infectious diseases is to raise the awareness and the level of knowledge of health workers at national, regional and local levels in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia on the health risks associated with climate change and infectious diseases. This manual was devel-
oped as part of the WHO Regional Office for Europe project, Protecting health from climate change: a seven–country initiative, implemented with financial support from the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety.
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“2022 was an eventful year for the WHO Country Office in Ghana,” says Dr Francis Kasolo, WHO Representative to Ghana.
In 2022, WHO Ghana collaborated with partners to deliver interventions in support of ...box">the Government of Ghana's health sector agenda to ensure healthy lives for all towards achieving Universal Health Coverage. This 2022 annual report highlights some of the achievements that were chalked in our efforts to help promote the health and wellbeing of Ghanaians
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First Global Patient Safety Challenge Clean Care is Safer Care
The WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care provide health-care workers (HCWs), hospital administrators and health authorities with a thorough review of evidence on hand hygiene i...n health care and specific recommendations to improve practices and reduce transmission of pathogenic microorganisms to patients and HCWs. The present Guidelines are intended to be implemented in any situation in which health care is delivered either to a patient or to a specific group in a population. Therefore, this concept applies to all settings where health care is permanently or occasionally performed, such as home care by birth attendants.
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2nd edition. The interagency field handbook on malaria control was developed to set out effective malaria control responses in humanitarian emergencies, particularly during the acute phase when reli...ance on international humanitarian assistance is greatest. This second edition represents a thorough updating and revision of the first edition. The structure remains similar, but includes an additional chapter on humanitarian coordination. All chapters have been revised to reflect changes in best practices, improvements in technologies, availability of new tools, and changes in WHO recommendations.
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This guidance document is designed to ensure that the process of iteratively managing the health risks of climate change is integrated into the ove...rall National Adaptation Planning (NAP) process, including through assessing risks; identifying, prioritizing, and implementing adaptation options; and monitoring and evaluating the adaptation process.
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This report presents, for the first time, a global assessment of the extent to which health care facilities provide essential water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services. Drawing on data from 54 l...ow- and middle-income countries, the report concludes that 38% lack access to even rudimentary levels of water, 19% lack sanitation and 35% do not have water and soap for handwashing. When a higher level of service is factored in, the situation deteriorates significantly. A number of areas require urgent action and WHO will work with UNICEF, Governments and other partners to develop a global plan to address the most pressing needs and ensure that all health care facilities have WASH services.
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WHO and UNICEF have established recommendations for breastfeeding practices. Although every mother decides how to feed her child, this decision is strongly influenced by economic, environmental, social and political factors. The Global Breastfeeding... Scorecard analyzes indicators on how countries protect, promote and support breastfeeding through funding or policies.
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This guidance document sets out a methodology to identify and track financing to the WASH sector in a coherent and consistent manner across several countries. It is designed to help countries track financing to ...dbox">the WASH sector on a regular and comparable basis and analyse this information to support evidence-based policy-making based on useful indicators.
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People younger than 20 years comprise 35% of the global population and 40% of the global population of least-developed nations. The number of child...ren - neonates, infants, children, and adolescents up to 19 years of age - who need pediatric palliative care (PPC) each year may be as high as 21 million. Another study found that almost 2.5 million children die each year with serious health related suffering and that more than 98% of these children are in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) (3). While estimates differ, there is no doubt that there is an enormous need for prevention and relief of suffering among children - for PPC.
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2016-2018 Early implementation,
This report presents 2015 data on the consumption of systemic antibiotics from 65 countries and areas, contributing to our understanding of how antibiotics are used in these countries. In addition, ...bute-to-highlight medbox">the report documents early efforts of the World Health Organization (WHO) and participating countries to monitor antimicrobial consumption, describes the WHO global methodology for data collection, and highlights the challenges and future steps in monitoring antimicrobial consumption.
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This document contains a series of desk reviews for the eight ENGAGE-TB priority countries supported by the Global Fund (DRC, Kenya, Indonesia, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan and Tanzania). ...The document provides a situation assessment and gap analysis about the state of community based TB activities in these countries. The focus on these eight countries was justified by the high prevalence of TB and the very high number of missed/unreported cases.
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Version 1.1. The WHO protocol has been adapted to resource-limited settings and builds on existing methodologies from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), ...ibute-to-highlight medbox">the Global PPS project from University of Antwerp, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Medicines Utilisation Research in Africa (MURIA).
Point Prevalence Surveys collects information on prescribing practices of antibiotics and other information relevant to treatment and management of infectious diseases in hospitalized patients, and complements surveillance of antimicrobial consumption.
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This new guideline on non-clinical interventions to reduce unnecessary caesarean sections incorporates the views, fears and beliefs of both women and health professionals about caesarean sections. It also considers ...t medbox">the complex dynamics and limitations of health systems and organizations and relationships between women, health professionals and organization of health care services.
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