Nosocomial or health-facility-acquired infections are a serious issue, representing one of the most significant causes of morbidity and mortality in healthcare systems and consuming many scarce resources, especially in developing countries. Although much has been done, particularly in the hospital s...etting, to reduce the risk of these infections, the problem persists and demands innovative and cost-efficient solutions.
Although the care provided in most primary health care facilities is predominantly ambulatory with few or no inpatient beds, infection prevention is still important to minimize or eliminate the risks of facility-acquired infections and assure quality patient care.
Health facilities and hospitals should have written infection control procedures and guidelines in place and should also be monitoring that these procedures are adhered to in both inpatient and ambulatory care settings.
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This paper explores the angles and opportunities of digital health, with a look
at digital innovation and its potential to support patients with circulatory diseases.
In reviewing developments in the field, current applications as well as gaps, the paper aims to support policymakers in leveraging ...technology for better circulatory health and to capture the roles that various sectors have in making
digital health a tool for everyone.
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Extreme heat events (EHEs) are a leading cause of weather-related injury and death in the United States, and under a changing climate, these meteorological episodes are predicted to increase in both frequency and intensity. Prolonged heat exposure from EHEs places an increased strain on the heart an...d may lead to heat-related illness if the cardiovascular system fails to properly thermoregulate internal body temperature. Every individual is susceptible to heat-related illness, however, those with reduced cardiovascular function and pre-existing cardiovascular diseases are at a greater risk for morbidity and mortality during EHEs. This document gives an overview of our current understanding of heat exposure and its impact on cardiovascular health outcomes, an overview of the medications that may exacerbate heat-related cardiovascular illness, and asummary of the interaction between extreme heat and air pollutants, and their collective impact on cardiovascular health. Additionally, this document summarizes epidemiologic evidence and identifies gaps in the extant peer-reviewed literature on the effectiveness of strategies and interventions to protect against heat-related cardiovascular disease and death. This information is intended to aid health departments and other health professionals in understanding and responding to the impacts of heat exposure on cardiovascular health.
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The Emergency Ministerial meeting on Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) with Health Ministers agreeing on a range of priority actions to end the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. The scale of the ongoing outbreak is unprecedented with reports of over 750 cases and 445 deaths in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia... since March 2014.
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NEUROLOGY ATLAS presents for the first time, the most
comprehensive collection and compilation of information on
neurological resources across 109 countries. The results confirm
that the available resources including services for neurological
disorders are markedly insufficient; in addition, the...re are large
inequities across regions and income groups of countries.
Urgent action is required to enhance the resources available
to address the increasing burden of neurological disorders.
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Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) October 4, 2019 / 68(39);851–854
Blueprint for EECA countries, first edition
The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is an evidence-based treaty that reaffirms the right of all people to the highest standard of health and was developed in response to the globalization of the tobacco epidemic. Member States of the WHO South-East Asia Region have made... attempts to implement the demand and supply reduction strategies for tobacco control as recommended by the treaty. While recognizing the need to accelerate implementation of the WHO FCTC in the Region, this document has been developed to support the Member States in implementing the treaty using a ‘PRACTICAL’ Approach which pertains to identified demand and supply reduction strategies under the treaty.
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The Pharmaceutical Forum of the Americas (PFA) has previously published guidelines and organised campaigns for community pharmacists on the prevention, detection and control of arbovirus infections in 2018 with a grant from the FIP Foundation for Pharmacy Education and Research. Building on that exp...ertise, FIP joined efforts with the PFA and is now publishing its first-ever handbook to support pharmacists in the
area of vector-borne diseases. As the integration of the regional forums in FIP advances, such collaborative projects are tangible results of an increasingly regionally informed and regionally targeted work by FIP.
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Addressing comorbidity between mental disorders and major noncommunicable diseases (Russian Version)
The WHO country office for Ghana, began the year 2019 with a 4-day staff retreat at the Busua Beach Resort in the Western Region from 04 to 08 March 2019. The theme for the retreat was ‘Impacting the Health and Lives of the people of Ghana through the Triple Billion Goal”. The staff outlined pri...orities and strategies to strengthen WHO’s contribution to the national health agenda during the year. Working in collaboration with the Ministry of Health/Ghana Health Service and other allied health institutions and stakeholders, the WHO country office, provided support aimed at achieving its
mission which is attaining the highest level of health by the people in the country though its six operational areas which are (i) Communicable Diseases (ii) Non-Communicable Diseases, (iii) Promoting Health through the Life Course (iv), Health Systems, (v) Preparedness, Surveillance and Response (vi) Corporate services and enabling functions.
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Strengthening global health security to protect the world against future epidemics and pandemics requires well-tested and decentralized capacities for the local detection and rapid containment of outbreaks of infectious disease. For such capacities to translate into effective response actions, ind...ividuals and teams must be well connected and coordinated, despite differences in the size, geography, technical focus or constituency of their parent institution.
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The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends the use of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) and intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy (IPTp) as a cost-effective intervention for the prevention of malaria during pregnancy in endemic areas. This study was conducted to investigate: (1) the exten...t of use of both IPTp and ITNs, and (2) conduct multinomial regression to identify factors affecting the optimal usage of IPTp and ITNs among women with a recent pregnancy in Senegal.
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This publication outlines public health aspects of alcohol use and harm in WHO South East Asia Region Countries. It summarizes Global Regional and country specific data and also discusses aspects of alcohol control that are important in the context of the Region. The possible future trend of alcohol... use in the Region is also analysed and current and future barriers to effective alcohol control in countries of the Region are discussed.
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Infectious diseases are constantly in transition. New diseases develop, known dis-eases become widespread or reemerge, and occasionally a disease is eradicated.Infectious diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis, and cholera are significant causes ofillness and death in many parts of the world. Health car...e personnel are on thefront lines, helping to protect their clients from infectious diseases and treatingthem when infections occur. During the course of their work, health care person-nel perform clinical procedures or other activities that can expose both them andtheir clients to potentially infectious microorganisms. Many of their clients aresick and thus may be more susceptible to infections or may have infections thatcan be transmitted to others. Fortunately, all staff working at health care facilities can perform simple proce-dures to minimize risk—to themselves and clients—and reduce the spread ofinfections. These practices can be integrated at minimal cost into the routineworkday at clinics and hospitals around the world. This reference booklet isspecifically designed for use at all levels of the health care system, from thelargest hospitals to the smallest dispensaries or health posts, in settings whereresources are scarce. This booklet, which was first published in 1999, has now been updated. Whilemost practices remain the same, there have been a few important changes—forexample, in recommendations related to hand hygiene and standard precautions.Nonetheless, this booklet continues to present practical recommendations forsimple and relatively low-cost procedures that can be implemented anywhere,with basic supplies and little to no high-technology equipment.
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Download these technical notes directly from the website: These four-page illustrated notes, originally prepared in 2011 and updated in 2013, provide practical, evidence-based recommendations in responding to immediate and medium-term water, sanitation and hygiene needs of populations affected by e...mergencies.
The notes are relevant to a wide range or emergency situations, including both natural and conflict-induced disasters. They are suitable for field technicians, engineers and hygiene promotors, as well as staff from agency headquarters.
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The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended a universal antiretroviral therapy (ART) for all HIVinfected children before the age of two since 2010, but this implies an early identification of these infants. We described the Prevention of Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission (PMTCT) cascade, the ...staffing and the quality of infrastructures in pediatric HIV care facilities, in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
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