Many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are undergoing an epidemiological transition. With an improvement in socioeconomic conditions and an aging population, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), like cardiac arrhythmias, are expected to increase i...n these countries. However, there are limited studies on the epidemiology and management of cardiac arrhythmias in LMICs. This review will highlight the unique challenges and opportunities that these countries face when managing cardiac arrhythmias.
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Ukrainian decentralization reform has increased and democratized local government responsibility for health care at the level of local government closest to communities and has increased regional an...d local government responsibility for public health. Decentralization affects health system reform in three important areas: health financing, individual health services and public health.
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The WHO Living guideline: Drugs to prevent COVID-19 contains the Organization’s most up-to-date recommendations for ...hlight medbox">the use of drugs to prevent COVID-19. The latest version of this living guideline is available in pdf format (via the ‘Download’ button) and via an online platform.
Guidelines regarding the use of drugs to treat (rather than prevent) COVID-19 are included in a separate WHO document, Therapeutics and COVID-19: living guideline, that can via an online platform and in pdf format (or click ‘PDF’ in top right corner of online platform). Guidelines regarding the clinical management of COVID-19 patients are included in a further document, COVID-19 Clinical management: Living guideline, that can be accessed via an online platform and in pdf format (or click ‘PDF’ in top right corner of online platform).
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Public Health is the science field dedicated to promoting health and well-being, and preventing disease within the human population to ultimately i...ncrease the quality of our livelihood and life span. Public Health does not focus on individual patients or diseases, but rather a given population and health system. The discipline is community-centered in its interventions and seeks to improve the health status of whole populations...
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There are many calls for improved integration between
primary care and public health, but also sizeable obstacles to achieving
this, such as differences in the ways ...ight medbox">the two sectors are organised and
financed, as well as differences in education, culture and approach.
This article, based on a new Observatory policy brief, describes the
types of interventions that come into consideration, the principles
that should be followed, and the factors that can facilitate successful
collaboration. While there is no universal template that can be followed
by all countries, improved integration promises to yield substantial
benefits to patients and wider populations.
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The disaster and Red Cross Red Crescent response to date
9 March 2019: Tropical Cyclone Idai forms over Northern Mozambique Channel. CVM preparedness and early warning actions underway
13 March 2019: IFRC Surge Capacity is deployed to Maputo
14... March 2019: 342,562 Swiss francs allocated from the IFRC’s Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) to meet the immediate shelter, WASH and health needs of 1,500 households
15 March 2019: Tropical Cyclone Idai makes landfall in Beira,
Mozambique.
17 March 2019: IFRC Surge Capacity arrival in Beira with CVM to conduct preliminary assessments.
19 March 2019: IFRC issues an Emergency Appeal for 10 million Swiss francs for 75,000 people for 12 months.
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The Urban Health Equity Assessment and Response Tool (Urban HEART) is a user-friendly guide for policy- and decision-makers at national and local l...evels to: identify and analyse inequities in health between people living in various parts of cities, or belonging to different socioeconomic groups within and across cities; facilitate decisions on viable and effective strategies, interventions and actions that should be used to reduce inter- and intra-city health inequities.
Also available in French and Spanish: https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/79060
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22 December 2020
The COVID-19 vaccine safety guidance manual has been developed upon recommendation and guidance of GACVS members, as well as by experts incorporating current and available information critical to all stakeholders when COVID-19 vac...cines will be introduced.
For ease of use, the manual is available in a compiled form and in several separate modules that can be consulted individually. For each module, specific training material is also available to facilitate implementation.
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The toolkit provides practical guidance and tools that can support efforts, including planning and implementation activities, to create dementia-inclusive societies.
The toolkit is divided into t...wo parts. Part I contains background information and a conceptual framework for creating dementia-inclusive societies. Part II includes four practical modules, each featuring a series of practical steps and exercises. The four modules focus on: starting a new dementia-friendly initiative (DFI), integrating dementia into an existing initiative, monitoring and evaluation a DFI, and scaling a DFI. The modules can be used together or separately and offer guidance that can be adapted to suit local needs and settings.
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A Guide to the Application of the WHO Multimodal Hand HygieneImprovement Strategy and the “My Five Moments ...dbox">for Hand Hygiene”Αpproach
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The aim of the operational framework is to ensure 1) accurate collection, handling, shipment and storage of specimens collected in countries implementing HIV drug resistance surveillance; and 2) ...an class="attribute-to-highlight medbox">the availability of quality-assured HIV genotyping laboratory services producing comparable and reliable results at the national, regional and global levels.
This publication updates the WHO HIVResNet HIV drug resistance laboratory operational framework published in 2017 and reflects technical and strategic developments over the past three years.
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The Multi-professional Patient Safety Curriculum Guide (2011) was developed to assist in the teaching of patient safety in universities and schools in the... fields of dentistry, medicine, midwifery, nursing and pharmacy. It also supports the on-going training of all health care professionals.
The Curriculum Guide is comprised of two parts. Part A is a teachers’ guide designed to introduce patient safety concepts to educators. It relates to building capacity for patient safety education, programme planning and design of the courses. Part B provides all-inclusive, ready-to-teach, topic-based patient safety courses that can be used as a whole, or on a per topic basis. There are 11 patient safety topics, each designed to feature a variety of ideas and methods for patient safety learning. Universities are encouraged to start with Part A which provides comprehensive advice on how to introduce and build patient safety courses.
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The active participation and engagement of health and care workers (HCWs) in health emergency preparedness, readiness and response is crucial to support risk communication, community engagement and infodemic management (RCCE-IM) interven...tions during emergencies. HCWs hold unique positions in society – repeatedly being identified among the main influencers of people’s behaviours: they are one of the most trusted sources of health information and advice in communities and role models for the acceptance and uptake of protective measures during health emergencies. On the frontline, HCWs have valuable insights and knowledge that can be harnessed to support health emergencies across the entire emergency cycle. Between October and December 2023, the WHO Regional Office for Europe interviewed key informants on strategies and experiences to meaningfully engage HCWs during emergencies
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Group psychological help for adults impaired by distress in communities exposed to adversity
With this manual, the World Health Organization (WHO) is responding to requests from colleagues around <...span class="attribute-to-highlight medbox">the world for a group version of the manual Problem Management Plus (PM+), which was developed for adults impaired by distress in communities who are exposed to adversity. Aspects of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) have been changed to make them feasible in communities that do not have many specialists. To ensure maximum use, the intervention is developed in such a way that it can help people with depression, anxiety and stress, whether or not exposure to adversity has caused these problems. It can be applied to improve aspects of mental health and psychosocial well-being no matter how severe people’s problems are.
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For centuries, indigenous peoples around the world have used their traditional knowledge to prepare for, cope with and survive disasters. Their met...hods and practices originated within their communities and have been maintained and passed down over generations. Until recently, policy makers have largely ignored this vast body of knowledge, in favor of ‘Western’ science and technologybased methods of disaster risk reduction and response. Today, however, many of these traditional practices are considered important and necessary contributions to the conservation of biodiversity and environmental sustainability. Yet at the same time, this knowledge is under constant threat of being eroded or lost, making these communities more vulnerable...
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This policy brief has been developed in response to the contemporary challenge of antibiotic resistance (ABR). ABR poses a formidable threat to global health and sustainable development. It is now increasingly recognized that ...ibute-to-highlight medbox">the systematic neglect of cultural factors is one of the biggest obstacles to achieving better health outcomes and better standards of living worldwide. Using a cultural contexts of health approach, the policy brief explores the centrality of culture to the challenge of ABR. The brief examines how the prescription and use of antibacterial medicines, the transmission of resistance, and the regulation and funding of research are influenced by cultural, social and commercial, as well as biological and technological factors. The brief moves beyond the ready equation of culture with individual behaviours and demonstrates how culture serve as an enabler of health and provide new possibilities for change.
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The new WHO Guidelines on Sanitation and Health summarize the evidence on the effectiveness of a range of sanitation interventions and provide a co...mprehensive framework for health-protecting sanitation, covering policy and governance measures, implementation of sanitation technologies, systems and behavioural interventions, risk-based management, and monitoring approaches. Critically, the guidelines articulate the role of the health sector in maximizing the health impact of sanitation interventions.
The guidelines also identify gaps in the evidence-base to guide future research efforts to improve the effectiveness of sanitation interventions.
(French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic in production)
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This document should be used in conjunction with the WHO checklist for influenza preparedness planning published by the World Health Organization ...in 2005. Available in English; Chinese; French
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This Global Plan builds on the previous edition, which laid out priority actions for 2018-2022, informed by global commitments member states endorsed at t...he 2018 United Nations High-Level Meeting (UNHLM) on TB. The resource needs estimates from this Global Plan include resources needed for implementing TB care and prevention and R&D into new tools. This Global Plan has already informed the Global Fund Investment Case and the 2022 G20 deliberations on TB. It will serve as a key document for inspiring and aligning global advocacy efforts, such as for the upcoming UNHLM on TB in 2023.
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Women and children, especially pregnant girls and women, infants and young children and postpartum women, are populations that are extremely vulnerable in emergencies. Breastfeeding provides children with hydration, comfort, connection, high quality nutrition and protection against ...ibute-to-highlight medbox">disease, shielding them from the worst of emergency conditions. This ability has been described as empowering and healing by some breastfeeding women.
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