Since the Alma Ata Declaration in 1978, community health volunteers (CHVs) have been at the forefront, providing health services, especially to underserved communities, in low-income countries. However, consolidation of CHVs position within formal health systems has proved to be complex and continue...s to challenge countries, as they devise strategies to strengthen primary healthcare. Malawi’s community health strategy, launched in 2017, is a novel attempt to harmonise the multiple health
service structures at the community level and strengthen service delivery through a team-based approach. The core community health team (CHT) consists of health surveillance assistants (HSAs), clinicians, environmental health officers and CHVs. This paper reviews Malawi’s strategy, with particular focus on the interface between HSAs, volunteers in community-based programmes and
the community health team. Our analysis identified key challenges that may impede the strategy’s implementation:
(1) inadequate training, imbalance of skill sets within CHTs and unclear job descriptions for CHVs; (2) proposed community-level interventions require expansion of pre-existing roles for most CHT members; and (3) district authorities may face challenges meeting financial obligations and filling community-level positions. For effective implementation, attention and further deliberation is needed on the appropriate forms of CHV support, CHT composition with possibilities of co-opting trained CHVs
from existing volunteer programmes into CHTs, review of CHT competencies and workload, strengthening coordination and communication across all community actors, and financing mechanisms. Policy support through the development of an addendum to the strategy, outlining opportunities for task-shifting between CHT members, CHVs’ expected duties and interactions with paid CHT personnel is recommended.
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National Tuberculosis Control Program; Mycobacterial Disease Control National AIDS/STD Program
The SAARC Member States have more than an estimated 2.0 million TB cases accounting for close to one-third of the total cases of TB in the world. India alone had almost one-fifth of the global disease burden due to TB. India, Pakistan and Bangladesh followed by Afghanistan are the major contributors... of disease burden of TB in the SAARC Region. They are countries that have a dubious distinction of being on the list of 22 TB High Disease Countries in the world.
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National Tuberclosis and
Leprosy Programme (NTLP)
National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Conrol Programme
This operational guidance provides a structured approach to support countries in sustaining priority services for HIV, viral hepatitis and sexually transmitted infections in the context of reduced external funding. The guidance is intended for national governments, public health programmes, communit...y-led organizations, civil society, technical partners and donors working to safeguard priority services, support phased adaptation, protect health outcomes and preserve hard-won gains.
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The threat posed by antimicrobial resistance (AMR) to public health as well as global health security has been reiterated in umerous World Health Assembly (WHA) resolutions. AMR is also prioritized under the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA), and India is one of the contributing countries. The Mi...nistry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW) identified AMR as one of the top 10 priorities for the ministry’s collaborative work with WHO. The National Health Policy 2017 identifies antimicrobial resistance as a problem and calls for effective action to address it. An international conference on AMR – “Combating Antimicrobial Resistance: A
Public Health Challenge and Priority”, was jointly organized by the Government of India and World Health Organization (WHO) in February 2016, which was attended by more than 350 participants. The Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, and the Hon’ble Union Minister for Health, Shri J.P. Nadda have reiterated government’s commitment to tackle AMR.
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Defending Rights
Breaking Barriers
Reaching People with HIV Services
Global Aids Update 2019
Myanmar, as a country going through rapid socio-political transition and institutional development also suffers with a high burden of infectious disease. An ongoing challenge has been to effectively reach its 51 million population, most of whom battle tuberculosis, acute respiratory infections, diar...rhoea and malaria including amongst under-five children.
Limited research data on the occurrence of resistant organisms in the nation have, makes it hard to estimate the exact antimicrobial resistance (AMR) scenario. Limited peer reviewed evidence indicates significant divergence from the average resistance trends in APAC region. Nevertheless, several key steps by Government of Myanmar have been instrumental in paving the way for the country to join other nations in the South East Asia Region to speed up its plan on addressing the AMR crisis. Combating antimicrobial resistance would, however, require highest political commitment, multi-sectoral coordination, sustained investment and technical assistance.
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AMR is one of the Key priority of the global health security agenda action package, as well as it is one of the commitments of Ministry of Public Health Afghanistan to combat AMR. In Afghanistan because of war and some other political issues the borders of the country are not well secured and well c...ontrolled therefore control of smuggling of medicine is a big challenge in front of the rational use of medicine. Lack of knowledge (professionals and public), poor economic state, conflict of war, presence of remote areas and etc…. are the other main challenges for this to won the battle of combating AMR.
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Results of the first national survey, 2013–2014
The objectives of NAP are aligned with the global action plan based on national needs and priorities. The emphasis is on One Health approach with all sectors especially human health, animal health and environment contributing towards minimizing the emergence and impact of AMR in Jordan.
PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0185526 September 28, 2017
Global Health and Tropical Medicine, GHTM, Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, IHMT, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, UNL, Lisboa, Portugal
Addressing comorbidities and risk factors for tuberculosis (TB) is a crucial component of the World Health Organization (WHO)’s End TB Strategy. This WHO operational handbook on tuberculosis. Module 6: tuberculosis and comorbidities aims to support countries in scaling up people-centred care, base...d on the latest WHO recommendations on TB and key comorbidities, and drawing upon additional evidence, best practices and inputs from various experts and stakeholders obtained during WHO processes. It is intended for use by people working in ministries of health, particularly TB programmes and the relevant departments or programmes responsible for comorbidities and health-related risk factors for TB such as HIV, diabetes, undernutrition, substance use, and tobacco use, as well as programmes addressing mental health and lung health. This operational handbook is a living document and will include a separate section for each of the key TB comorbidities or health-related risk factors. The third edition includes guidance for HIV-associated TB, mental health conditions and diabetes, which are three conditions strongly associated with TB and which result in higher mortality, poorer TB treatment outcomes and negatively impact health-related quality of life. The operational handbook aims to facilitate early detection, proper assessment and adequate management of people affected by TB and comorbidities. Full implementation of this guidance is expected to have a significant impact on TB treatment outcomes and health-related quality of life for people affected by TB.
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Global Plan to end TB 2016-2020
Each year since 2007, G-FINDER has provided policy-makers, donors, researchers and industry with a comprehensive analysis of global investment into research and development of new products to
prevent, diagnose, control or cure neglected diseases in low- and middle-income countries, making it the go...ld standard in tracking and reporting global funding for neglected disease R&D. This year’s report, the sixteenth overall, focuses on investments made in participants’ 2022 financial year (‘FY2022’) and, for the first time, adds comprehensive coverage of the product pipeline in each disease area.
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The Global vector control response 2017–2030 (GVCR) provides a new strategy to strengthen vector control worldwide through increased capacity, improved surveillance, better coordination and integrated action across sectors and diseases.
In May 2017, the World Health Assembly adopted resolutio...n WHA 70.16, which calls on Member States to develop or adapt national vector control strategies and operational plans to align with this strategy.
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Edición General: Dirección Nacional de Normatización - MSP
Este manual ha sido desarrollado por profesionales de las instituciones del Sistema Nacional de Salud (SNS)
y especialistas expertos en la materia, bajo la coordinación de la Dirección Nacional de Normatización del
Ministerio de S...alud Pública (MSP) y la colaboración de la Organización Panamericana de la Salud (OPS).
Contempla lineamientos técnicos, operacionales y administrativos, con la finalidad de garantizar la atención
integral, oportuna y de calidad a los usuarios de los establecimientos del SNS, dando prioridad a la preven-
ción, detección, diagnóstico y tratamiento para el control de la TB.
Los autores han declarado no tener conflicto de interés y han procurado ofrecer información completa y
actualizada; sin embargo, en vista de los posibles cambios en las ciencias médicas, se recomienda revisar el
prospecto de cada medicamento que se planea administrar, para cerciorarse de que no se hayan producido
cambios en las dosis sugeridas o en las contraindicaciones para su administración. Esta recomendación cobra
especial importancia en el caso de medicamentos nuevos o de uso infrecuente
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Specific measures are being taken within the National Tuberculosis Control Programme (NTP) to address the MDR TB problem through appropriate management of patients and strategies to prevent the propagation and dissemination of MDR TB.
The term "Programmatic Management of Drug Resistant TB" (PMD...T) refers to programme based MDR TB diagnosis, management and treatment. This guideline promotes full integration of basic TB control and PMDT activities under the NTP, so that patients with TB are evaluated for drug resistance and are placed on the appropriate treatment regimen and properly managed from the outset of treatment, or as early as possible. The guidelines also integrate the identification and treatment of more severe forms of drug resistance, such as extensively drug resistant TB (XDR TB).
At the end, the guideline introduces new standards for registering, monitoring and reporting outcomes of multidrug resistant TB cases.
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The consolidated guidelines are expected to provide the basis and rationale for the development of national guidelines for LTBI management, adapted to the national and local epidemiology of TB, the availability of resources, the health infrastructure and other national and local determinants. The gu...idelines are to be used primarily in national TB and HIV control programmes, or their equivalents in ministries of health, and for other policy-makers working on TB and HIV and infectious diseases. They are also appropriate for officials in other line ministries with work in the areas of health.
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