The message contained in this publication is clear: countries need a
public health system that can respond to the deliberate release of
chemical and biological agents. Regrettable though this mess
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                                        age may
be, the use of poison gas in the war between Iraq and the Islamic
Republic of Iran in the 1980s, the recent anthrax incidents in the United
States, and the attack with sarin nerve agent, six years earlier, on the
Tokyo underground, illustrate why it is necessary to prepare.
Russian and Japanese version available:
                                    
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                                4th edition
The WHO Laboratory Biosafety Manual (LBM) has been in broad use at all levels of clinical and public health laboratories, and other biomedical sectors globally, serving as a de facto global standard that presents best practices and sets trends in biosafety.
LBM encouraged countries t
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                                        o accept and implement basic concepts in biological safety and to develop national codes of practice for the safe handling of biological agents in laboratories within their geographical borders.
This fourth edition of the manual builds on the risk assessment framework introduced in the third edition. A thorough, evidence-based and transparent assessment of the risks allows safety measures to be balanced with the actual risk of working with biological agents on a case-by-case basis.
This novel evidence- and risk-based approach will allow optimised resource use and sustainable laboratory biosafety and biosecurity policies and practices that are relevant to their individual circumstances and priorities, enabling equitable access to clinical and public health laboratory tests and biomedical research opportunities without compromising safety.
                                    
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                                Antimicrobial agents play an indispensable role in animal health and welfare management. At the same time, the need for prudent use is obvious to ensure good food safety outcomes and to manage the potential risk of antimicrobial resistance. The emer
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                                        gence of multi-resistant bacteria is posing challenges to health professionals and communities around the world for both human and animal health. These bacteria are not destroyed by the common antimicrobial agents and so pose a risk to people, particularly children, the elderly and those with poorly functioning immune systems, as well as to animals.
Throughout the years, the dairy sector has been very much aware of the need for responsible use and has, in many countries, implemented adequate measures throughout the dairy supply chain.
                                    
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                                The intent of these guidelines is to develop a holistic, coordinated, proactive and technology driven strategy for management of biological disasters through a culture of prevention, mitigation and preparedness to  generate  a  prompt  and  effectiv
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                                        e  response  in  the  event  of  an  emergency.  The  document  contains comprehensive  guidelines  for  preparedness  activities,  biosafety  and  biosecurity  measures,  capacity development, specialised health care and laboratory facilities, strengthening of the existing legislative/
regulatory framework, mental health support, response, rehabilitation and recovery, etc. It specifically lays down the approach for implementation of the guidelines by the central ministries/departments, states, districts and other stakeholders, in a time bound manner.
                                    
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                                The potential for terrorist use of chemical agents is a noted concern highlighted by the Tokyo sarin gas attacks of 1995. The events of September 11, 2001, increased congressional attention towards reducing the vulnerability of the United States to 
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                                        such unconventional attacks. The 
possibility that terrorist groups might obtain insecure chemical weapons led to increased scrutiny of declared Libyan chemical weapon stockpiles following the fall of the Qadhafi regime. Experts have expressed similar concerns regarding the security and use of Syrian chemical weapons, 
reportedly including stocks of nerve (sarin, VX) and blister (mustard gas) agents. 
                                    
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                                Of the 50 antibiotics in the pipeline, 32 target WHO priority pathogens but the majority have only limited benefits when compared to existing antibiotics. Two of these are active against the multi-drug resistant Gram-negative bacteria, which are spreading rapidly and require urgent solutions. 
Gr
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                                        am-negative bacteria, such as Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli, can cause severe and often deadly infections that pose a particular threat for people with weak or not yet fully developed immune systems, including newborns, ageing populations, people undergoing surgery and cancer treatment.
The report highlights a worrying gap in activity against the highly resistant NDM-1 (New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase 1), with only three antibiotics in the pipeline. NDM-1 makes bacteria resistant to a broad range of antibiotics, including those from the carbapenem family, which today are the last line of defence against antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections.
                                    
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                                For biological agents, the publication covers 11 bacteria,
fungi and viruses listed by states parties to the Biological
Weapons Convention in dec
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                                        larations of past offensive
research and development programmes, or considered of
special concern for possible use in terrorism. All of these
agents can cause natural disease in humans, though with
markedly different frequency.
                                    
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                                This Guide contains information, guidelines, diagrams and other materials addressed to medical practitioners who are engaged in the treatment of casualties of chemical weapons. It is made available to the public for information purposes, but is not intended to be used by the public. All decisions re
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                                        garding patient care must be made with a healthcare provider and consider the unique characteristics of each patient.
                                    
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                                This document provides information for WHO Member States, particularly low-income and middle-income countries, to strengthen preparedness and response plans with regard to the social and mental health consequences of biological and chemical attacks.
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                                This document provides additional guidance for the responsible and prudent use of antimicrobials in food-producing animals, and should be read in conjunction with the Recommended International Code of Practice for Control of the Use of Veterinary Drugs CAC/RCP 38-1993. Its objectives are to minimize
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                                         the potential adverse impact on public health resulting from the use of antimicrobial agents in food-producing animals, in particular the development of antimicrobial resistance.
                                    
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                                This  document provides  additional  guidance  for  the  responsible  and  prudent  use  of  antimicrobials  in  food-producing animals, and should be read in conjunction with the Recommended International Code of Practice for  Control  of  the  Use  of  Veterinary  Drugs  CAC/RCP  38-1993. Its  obj
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                                        ectives  are  to  minimize  the  potential adverse impact on public health resulting from the use of antimicrobial agents in food-producing animals, in particular  the  development  of  antimicrobial  resistance.  It  is  also  important  to  provide  for  the  safe  and effective  use  of  veterinary  antimicrobial  drugs  in  veterinary  medicine  by  maintaining  their  efficacy.  This document  defines  the  respective  responsibilities  of  authorities  and  groups  involved  in  the  authorization, production,  control,  distribution  and  use  of  veterinary  antimicrobials  such  as  the  national  regulatory authorities,  the   veterinary  pharmaceutical   industry,  veterinarians,   distributors  and  producers  of  food-producing animals.
                                    
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                                The GHS Index is intended to be a key resource in the face of increasing risks of high-consequence and globally catastrophic biological events and in light of major gaps in international financing for preparedness. These risks are magnified by a rap
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                                        idly changing and interconnected world; increasing political instability; urbanization; climate change; and rapid technology advances that make it easier, cheaper, and faster to create and engineer pathogens.
Key findings from the study of 195 countries: 
•	Out of a possible 100 points, the average GHS Index score across 195 countries was 40.2.
•	The majority of high- and middle-income countries do not score above 50.
•	Action is urgently needed to improve countries’ readiness for high-consequence infectious disease outbreaks.
                                    
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                                This course aims to ensure that all participants recognize possible deliberate events with chemical or biological agents and know the different response types this will require compared to other eme
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                                        rgencies.
This course targets WHO staff and emergency responders in various sectors in member states who may find themselves responding to a deliberate event. It is the first part of a more extensive training program on deliberate events involving chemical and biological hazards.
                                    
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                                Guidelines for the registration of microbial, botanical and semiochemical pest control agents for plant protection and public health uses.
These guidelines are intended to guide pesticide regulatory authorities in the registration of microbial, bot
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                                        anical, and semiochemical pest control agents for plant protection and public health uses.
                                    
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                                This course describes the health effects of war, weapons and strategies of violent conflict. Beginning with weapons of mass destruction it then moves on to other weapons and strategies of war such as the use of landmines and mass rape. The course concludes with a number of lessons which give an hist
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                                        orical and practical analysis of the response of health professional groups to war and militarisation.
                                    
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                                Since the start of the pandemic, the region has been hit by multiple natural and biological disasters. At the same time, climate change has continued to warm the world, exacerbating the impacts of many of these disasters. The *Asia-Pacific Disaster 
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                                        Report 2021, *also launched today, shows that the pandemic, combined with the persistent reality of climate change, has reshaped and expanded the disaster “riskscape” in Asia and the Pacific.
                                    
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                                A fact sheet from the National Academies and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on human pathogens, biotoxins and agricultural threats
                                                            
                         
                     
                                                        
                        
                        
                            
                            
                                
                                Textes du Codex concernant la résistance aux antimicrobiens d’origine alimentaire
Textos del Codex sobre la resistencia a los antimicrobianos transmitida por los alimentos
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major global public health concern and a food safety issue. When pathogens become r
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                                        esistant to antimicrobial agents they can pose a greater human health risk as a result of potential treatment failure, loss of treatment options and increased likelihood and severity of disease
                                    
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