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 countrie...s and implementing partners.
3. To assess the 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 WHO continuously reviews available data on SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern. For this version, the global epidemiological
situation of the COVID-19 pandemic as of 21 January 2022 – at a time when the Omicron VOC had been identified in 171
countries...span> across all six WHO Regions and was rapidly replacing Delta worldwide – was considered Omicron has a substantial growth advantage, higher secondary attack rates and a higher observed reproduction number than Delta.
There is now significant evidence that immune evasion contributes to the rapid spread of Omicron. Other factors may be a shorter
serial interval (by about 0.8 to 1.2 days compared to Delta) and potential increased intrinsic transmission fitness . There is
growing evidence that with Omicron, there is lower vaccine effectiveness (VE) against infection and symptomatic disease soon after vaccination compared to Delta. There is also evidence of accelerated waning of VE over time of the primary series against infection and symptomatic disease for the studied vaccines. Further studies are required to better understand the drivers of transmission and declining incidence in various settings. These factors include the intrinsic transmission fitness properties of the virus, degree of immune evasion, vaccination coverage and level of vaccine-derived and post-infection immunity, levels of social mixing and degree of application of public health and social measures (PHSM).
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Each year, rabies causes approximately 59,000 deaths worldwide. Despite evidence that control of dog rabies through animal vaccination programs and elimination of stray dogs can reduce the incidence of human rabies, dog rabies remains common in many countr...ies and exposure to rabid dogs is still the cause of over 90% of human exposures to rabies and of 99% of human rabies deaths worldwide. CDC experts in the Poxvirus and Rabies Branch conduct an annual assessment of individual countries’ rabies status worldwide which considers the presence of wildlife rabies, canine rabies variant (dog rabies), and non-rabies lyssaviruses.
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For more than 100 years, the clearest route to elimination of dog-mediated rabies has been via mass vaccination of the animal hosts. It’s worked in plenty of countries. Still, in others, like India, which grapples with a third of the world’s rab...ies burden, large populations of free-roaming, hard-to-track, often hard-to-reach dogs have made elimination an elusive goal.
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Cervical cancer continues to be a significant public health problem and a major cause of premature mortality among women, disproportionately affecting the socioeconomically disadvantaged population in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In the... absence of implementing the known evidence-based, cost-effective interventions, the number of deaths per year is projected to reach approximately 416 000 globally in 2035. It was estimated in 2020 that 32% of incident cervical cancer cases and 34% of cervical cancer deaths in the world occurred in the 11 Member States of the WHO South-East Asia (SEA) Region. In 2020, 190 874 new cases and 116 015 deaths were estimated due to cervical cancer, which is the third commonest cancer in the Region
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Website last accessed in 12.03.23
CDC’s Lauren Greenberg writes about building rabies diagnostic capacity in the effort to control rabies in countries that are most affected by the disease.
Today, patient harm due to unsafe care is a large and growing global public health challenge and is one of the
leading causes of death and disability worldwide. Most of this patient harm is avoidable. As countries strive to
achieve universal healt...h coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals, the beneficial effects of improved
access to health services can be undermined by unsafe care. Patient safety incidents can cause death and
disability, and suffering for victims and their families. The financial and economic costs of safety lapses are high.
There is often reduced public confidence and trust in local health systems when such incidents are publicized.
Health workers involved in serious incidents involving death or serious harm to a patient can also suffer lasting
psychological harm and deep-seated feelings of guilt and self-criticism.
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Website last accessed on 18.03.2023
GARC provides tools and training to build in-country skills and knowledge on essential elements of rabies control programmes, enabling countries to strengthen their efforts to eliminate rabies in a systematic ...way. Our most comprehensive in-country capacity building has been in the Philippines (at the country level as well as in the provinces of Ilocos Norte and Sorsogon) and Indonesia.
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The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic exacerbated pre-existing inequalities in the treatment and care of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). This report examines the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on access to NCD medicines, and the policies and strategies implemented by ...o-highlight medbox">countries and health systems to anticipate and mitigate stresses across NCD medicine supply chains. The full range of upstream and downstream impacts are investigated, including: manufacturing; procurement, importation and last mile delivery; patient-level effects through affordability and availability; and the effects on NCD medicine availability by category of disease. The report culminates in recommended actions and interventions for key stakeholders in the NCD pharmaceutical supply chain, including governments, regulatory authorities, manufacturers and the private sector; as well as directions for future research for improving access and supply chain access resilience.
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Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) as a serious public health threat was globally acknowledged by WHO in 2015, through the launch of the Global Action Plan (GAP). With a limited number of new antibiotics in the developmental pipeline, many countries are... in the process of establishing strategies for antimicrobial stewardship (AMS). Within each country, different healthcare challenges have
contributed to AMR. This has also shaped individual AMS strategies and policies. In South Africa (SA), there is a high burden of infectious diseases, mainly of bacterial origin. In addition, SA also has the highest number of people living with
human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) globally. According to the 2019 statistics, there are approximately 7.97 million people living with HIV in SA. Together with this, SA has the fourth largest tuberculosis population globally.
Other important challenges include poverty, malnutrition, a high burden of non-communicable diseases, and a dire shortage of trained healthcare professionals (e.g. clinicians, pharmacists, and nurses).
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Website last accessed on 31.03.2023
Chikungunya was first identified in Tanzania in 1952. Since 2004, there has been a rapid spread of the chikungunya virus, which has been detected in over 60 countries.
The Operational guide: use of referral laboratories for the analysis of foodborne hazards in the Pacific aims to strengthen the food analysis capacity of Pacific Island countries and areas by identifying national and reference laboratories capable o...f testing for priority foodborne hazards. The Pacific Island countries and areas are often vulnerable to food safety incidents and emergencies due to their geographical distribution and dependence on food imports. The guide outlines key considerations for selecting referral laboratories and submitting samples to them, enabling continuous improvement of food safety systems and providing safe food for all. The target audiences are health and food safety authorities.
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Websites last accessed on 04.04.2023
Chagas disease, also known as the “kissing disease,” is considered one of the Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), which are diseases that have been forgotten by developed countries because they usually pl...ague lower-income countries.
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This report describes the activities of the WHO European Centre for Primary Health Care in 2022.The Centre accelerated face-to-face country support after the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic to support countries in engaging in analysis and diagnosis, d...eveloping strategies and policies, building capacity and tracking implementation progress and impact. The Centre delivered intensive support in the countries of the Universal Health Coverage Partnership. The Centre continued to develop policy guidance, publish good practices, have capacity-building activities and policy dialogues and solidified its signature product Let’s Talk Primary Health Care talk show platform. The highlight of 2022 was the launch of two WHO Primary Health Care Demonstration Platforms to facilitate cross-country experience exchange.
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Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), or sleeping sickness, is an endemic disease in 36 sub-Saharan African countries, typically occurring in underdeveloped areas, where
health systems face significant difficulties of diverse natures.
The recurrence of severe climate events combined with economic, social, and institutional fragilities leave El Salvador in an utterly critical humanitarian situation and highly vulnerable. Located in a disaster-prone subregion, El Salvador is among the 20 ...countries at the highest risk of disasters worldwide. The successive hydrometeorological hazards that impacted El Salvador over the past two years include tropical storms Amanda and Cristóbal and hurricanes Eta, Iota, and,
more recently, Julia. These storms profoundly affected the lives and livelihoods of almost 900 000 people and significantly disrupted health services, especially at the first level of care. In addition, the country’s exposure to earthquakes, floods, and droughts is also constant. Infrastructural and institutional limitations to deal with emergencies and
low capacity to respond to adverse events are an additional challenge, which leaves the population—particularly the most vulnerable—at even higher risk.
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This document outlines PAHO’s regional priorities for the year 2023 to sustain and scale up health emergency and humanitarian assistance in the Americas, with a focus on five priority countries currently facing a prolonged humanitarian crisis and ...recovering from recent acute emergencies: Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of). These goals align with and build on the World Health Organization’s Global Health Emergency Appeal for 2023, its principles, priorities, and strategies.
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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 thes...e essential medicines. Enhancing access to controlled 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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Geneva, 22 May 2023 – Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance today published a roadmap* outlining critical actions needed to ensure supply of oral cholera vaccine (OCV) is able to meet growing demand from countries. Released against a backdrop of a recent wav...e of cholera outbreaks around the world, the roadmap forecasts the short-, mid- and long-term outlook for global cholera vaccine supply. Developed in consultation with a range of key Alliance partners, including WHO, UNICEF, the Global Taskforce for Cholera Control (GTFCC), and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), it describes how these organizations, manufacturers and countries can work together towards ensuring global OCV supply can support largescale preventive vaccination by 2026.
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Due to high routine vaccination coverage, overall counts of diphtheria case have significantly declined in the Western Pacific Region recently. However, diphtheria is still prevalent in several countries and areas of the Region and remains a public ...health issue due to its high case fatality rate.
This Field Guide for Preparedness and Response to Diphtheria Outbreaks in the Western Pacific Region is a reference resource for Member States to develop national guidelines adapted to their local context. Countries may also use this Guide to facilitate outbreak preparedness and public health responses to reduce morbidity and mortality due to diphtheria.
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