One of the many gender inequities in the health and care workforce that COVID-19 has exposed is around the fit and design of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). The rapid onset and scale of COVID-19 led to shortages of PPE in most countries, causing preventable infection and mortality among healthc...are workers and others on the front lines. Even though most health workers are women, manufacturing specifications for medical PPE are usually drawn up based on the male body and there have been many reports of PPE not designed for women's bodies. WGH undertook a global research project to document the challenges women health workers have faced.
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A One Health Response. A Briefing Note
MEDBOX Issue Brief no. 19: World TB Day: Invest to end TB. Save Lives
Letter to the Editor / Carta al Editor
This document contains the main points of the zero maternal deaths from obstetric emergencies initiative.
WHO/Europe has launched a new guide, providing support to countries on how to apply behavioural and cultural insights (BCI) for health. It presents a simple step-wise approach, complemented by a rich collection of detailed considerations, tools and exercises. The guide is the first of its kind, spec...ifically developed for use by public health professionals developing policies, services and communications informed by BCI across health topics.
Some of the most persistent public health challenges involve human behaviour. Using a BCI lens means that health policies, services and communications can be tailored to the needs and circumstances of people and communities, and thereby help combat these challenges. The new Tailoring Health Programmes (THP) guide describes how this can be done.
Building on several topic-specific guides that focused on applying BCI to routine and influenza vaccination and tackling antimicrobial resistance, as well as external evaluations and a rigorous peer-review process, this guide is the result of over a decade of work by WHO/Europe. The THP approach has already been adopted in over 20 countries and has received positive feedback from public health agencies.
“This guide is the culmination of a decade of work involving many colleagues at country, regional and global levels. The guide is our “BCI bible”, guiding our work with and in countries to help tackle persistent health challenges,” said Katrine Bach Habersaat, Regional Advisor for BCI at WHO/Europe.
Karina Godoy, Senior Analyst and National Focal Point for Behavioural Insights at the Public Health Agency of Sweden, who is employing the approach described in the guide across several health projects, comments: “The THP guide is easy to use and at the same time provides detailed guidance and inspiration where needed. We have decided to translate the document into Swedish and use the approach widely”.
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The article focuses on "The State of the World’s Children 2023" report published by UNICEF. It highlights the critical role of vaccines in saving lives and the challenges in global immunization efforts, especially for marginalized and underserved children. The report emphasizes the impact of COVID...-19 on routine immunization, leaving millions of children unprotected from preventable diseases. It calls for urgent measures to restore and improve vaccination coverage, ensure equity in vaccine access, strengthen primary healthcare systems, and build trust in vaccines. The report also advocates for innovations and sustainable funding to achieve immunization for every child.
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Mpox continues to affect people around the world. A new framework released today by WHO will guide health authorities, communities and other stakeholders in preventing and controlling mpox outbreaks, eliminating human-to-human transmission of the disease, and reducing spillover of the virus from ani...mals to humans.
Mpox is a viral illness caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV). It can cause a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes and fever. Most people fully recover, but some get very sick. The virus transmits from person to person through close, including sexual, contact. It also has animal reservoirs in east, central and west Africa, where spillovers from animals to humans can occasionally occur, sparking further outbreaks.
There are two different clades of the virus: clade I and clade II. Clade I outbreaks are deadlier than clade II outbreaks.
A major emergence of mpox linked to clade II began in 2017, and since 2022, has spread to all regions of the world. Between July 2022 and May 2023, the outbreak was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. While that outbreak has largely subsided, cases and deaths continue to be reported today, illustrating that low-level transmission continues around the world.
Currently, there is also a major outbreak of clade I virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where cases have been on the rise for decades. Since the beginning of the year, over 6500 cases and 345 deaths have been reported in the DRC. Almost half of these are among children under the age of 15 years.
The Strategic framework for enhancing prevention and control of mpox (2024–2027) provides a roadmap for health authorities, communities, and stakeholders worldwide to control mpox outbreaks in every context, advance mpox research and access to countermeasures, and to minimize zoonotic transmission.
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Este plan está basado en las demandas y necesidades del Gobierno de Colombia al Sistema de las Naciones Unidas (SNU), bajo el liderazgo de la Oficina de la Coordinadora Residente, para complementar los esfuerzos nacionales de la respuesta a la COVID-19. Asimismo, se encuentra alineado con los princ...ipios establecidos en el Marco de Cooperación de las Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo Sostenible UNSDCF 2020-2023.
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El presente protocolo de vacunación contra la COVID-19 para personas que padecen obesidad tipo 3 es de aplicación en las Instituciones Prestadoras de Servicios de Salud del Ministerio de Salud, a través de las Direcciones de Redes Integradas de Servicios de Salud y de los Gobiernos Regionales, a ...través de las Direcciones Regionales de Salud o Gerencias Regionales de Salud, EsSalud, Sanidad de las fuerzas armadas y policiales y las entidades privadas.
En el documento encontrarás información referida al flujo de atención (admisión, triaje, punto de vacunación, monitoreo y observación), consideraciones generales y específicas, entre otros.
Esta publicación pertenece al compendio Protocolos de vacunación contra la COVID-19
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El presente documento tiene un alcance nacional, y es de aplicación en Instituciones Prestadoras de Servicios de Salud del Ministerio de Salud, Seguro Social de Salud, establecimientos penitenciarios, organizaciones no gubernamentales y entidades privadas que atienden personas viviendo con VIH.
En... el documento encontrarás información referida a los flujos de atención (en admisión, en punto de vacunación), consideraciones generales y específicas, entre otros.
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El presente protocolo es de aplicación en las Instituciones Prestadoras de Servicios de Salud del Ministerio de Salud, a través de las Direcciones de Redes Integradas de Servicios de Salud y de los gobiernos regionales, a través de las Direcciones Regionales de Salud o Gerencias Regionales de Sal...ud , EsSalud, Sanidad de las Fuerzas Armadas y Policiales y las entidades privadas. En el documento encontrarás información referida al flujo de atención (admisión, triaje, punto de vacunación, monitoreo y observación), consideraciones generales y específicas, entre otros.
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Guidelines for the Vaccination Scheme against
COVID 19: Booster Dose Health Personnel
Guidelines for the Vaccination Plan against COVID-19 in children 5 to 11 years, 11 months, 29 days with COVID-19 Vaccine Coronovac / Sinovac
Active Community Policy Strategy - Containment, mitigation and recovery plan on post-confinement in response to COVID-19
Guidelines for vaccination against COVID-19 for international travellers and aid workers (25 June 2021)