Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global public health crisis that resulted in 1.14 million deaths in 2021. According to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation estimates, 96 416 of these deaths occurred in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region. All 22 countr...ies/territories in the Eastern Mediterranean Region are enrolled in the global AMR
surveillance system, and 17 countries/territories reported data in 2024 (for the year 2023). The total number of isolates reported to the system increased sixfold between 2017 and 2022, but the proportion of blood isolates is relatively very low. Most of the data come from public sector laboratories or hospitals, although the private sector has increased its participation in some countries/territories recently. Three pathogens account for three quarters of all the reported pathogens – Escherichia coli
(26%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (23%), and Staphylococcus aureus (22%).
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This report presents the most current data on four specific forms of violence – violent discipline and exposure to domestic abuse during early childhood; violence at school; violent deaths among adolescents; and sexual violence in childhood and adolescence. The statistics reveal that children expe...rience violence across all stages of childhood, in diverse settings, and often at the hands of the trusted individuals with whom they interact daily. The report concludes with specific national actions and strategies that UNICEF has embraced to prevent and respond to violence against children.
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The WHO Toolkit for the care and support of people affected by complications associated with Zika virus has been developed to serve as a model guide, with the goal of enhancing country preparedness for Zika virus outbreaks. The toolkit is intended to provide a systems approach involving public heal...th planners and managers so that the necessary infrastructure and resources can be identified and incorporated as needed, as well as technical and practical guidance for health care professionals and community workers.
The toolkit includes three manuals to provide countries with tools to effectively recognize people affected by Zika virus and deliver comprehensive care and support:
Manual for public health planners and managers
Manual for health care professionals
Manual for community workers
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Socioeconomic status is associated with differences in risk factors for cardiovascular disease incidence and outcomes, including mortality. However, it is unclear whether the associations between cardiovascular disease and common measures of socioeconomic status—wealth and education—differ among... high-income, middle-income, and low-income countries, and, if so, why these differences exist. We explored the association between education and household wealth and cardiovascular disease and mortality to assess which marker is the stronger predictor of outcomes, and examined whether any differences in cardiovascular disease by socioeconomic status parallel differences in risk factor levels or differences in management.
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The standards of care cover the routine care and management of complications occurring for women and their babies during labour, childbirth and the early postnatal period, including those of small babies during the first week of life. They define priorities for improving the quality of maternal and ...newborn care for use by planners, managers and health care providers
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This report presents further analysis of the 2015 Nepal Health Facility Survey. Data analysis is based on the Donabedian framework for assessing quality of care in health services, which divides the indicators into three groups: structure, process, and outcome. The World Health Organization Service ...Availability and Readiness Assessment (SARA) indicator guideline was used to assess facility service readiness, service quality and client satisfaction with maternal health services. The study performed both bivariate and multivariate regression analysis to examine the association of maternal health service readiness and quality indicators with client satisfaction.
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Technical guidance.
This technical guidance aims to inform policy and practice development specifically related to improving the health of older refugees and migrants within the European Union and the larger WHO European Region. Both ageing and migration are in themselves complex multidimensional p...rocesses shaped by a range of factors at the micro, meso and macro levels over the life-course of the individual, but also with intertwined trajectories. Relevant areas for policy-making include healthy ageing over the life-course, supportive environments, people-centred health and long-term care services, and strengthening the evidence base and research
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RESULTS: Between 76 and 97% of the PHCS offered RMCAH services before the lockdown. Except in antenatal, delivery and adolescent care, there was a decline of between 2 and 6% in all the services during the lockdown and up to 10% decline after the lockdown with variation across and within States. Dur...ing the lockdown. Full-service delivery was reported by 75.2% whereas 24.8% delivered partial services. There was a significant reduction in clients' utilization of the services during the lockdown, and the difference between States before the pandemic, during, and after the lockdown. Reported difficulties during the lockdown included stock-out of drugs (25.7%), stock-out of contraceptives (25.1%), harassment by the law enforcement agents (76.9%), and transportation difficulties (55.8%). Only 2% of the PHCs reported the availability of gowns, 18% had gloves, 90.1% had hand sanitizers, and a temperature checker was available in 94.1%. Slightly above 10% identified clients with symptoms of COVID-19.
CONCLUSIONS: The large proportion of PHCs who provided RMCAH services despite the lockdown demonstrates resilience. Considering the several difficulties reported, and the limited provision of primary protective equipment more effort by the government and non-governmental agencies is recommended to strengthen delivery of sexual and reproductive health in primary health centres in Nigeria during the pandemic.
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The classification of digital health interventions (DHIs) categorizes the different ways in which digital and mobile technologies are being used to support health system needs. Historically, the diverse communities working in digital health—including government stakeholders, technologists, clinic...ians, implementers, network operators, researchers, donors— have lacked a mutually understandable language with which to assess and articulate functionality. A shared and standardized vocabulary was recognized as necessary to identify gaps and duplication, evaluate effectiveness, and facilitate alignment across different digital health implementations. Targeted primarily at public health audiences, this Classification framework aims to promote an accessible and bridging language for health program planners to articulate functionalities of digital health implementations.
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The purpose of this guide is to offer recommendations for improving the implementation of non‑pharmacological public health measures during the COVID-19 response and compliance with these measures by population groups in situations of vulnerability. This requires determining the main barriers to i...mplementing these measures so that we can identify the groups and territories most affected during the different phases of the pandemic. With this objective in mind––and within the framework of an equity, human rights, and diversity approach––, policies, strategies, and interventions to accompany the implementation and flexibilization of the measures are recommended to ensure that no one is left behind.
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Lancet Public health 2022 January 6, 2022 https://doi.org/10.1016/ S2468-2667(21)00249-8
Growth in the number of individuals living with dementia underscores the need for public health planning efforts and policy to address the needs of this group. Country-level estimates can be used to inform nati...onal planning efforts and decisions. Multifaceted approaches, including scaling up interventions to address modifiable risk factors and investing in research on biological mechanisms, will be key in addressing the expected increases in the number of individuals affected by dementia.
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R4D conducted a thorough desk review and qualitative fiscal space analysis, 19 interviews about financing for the three diseases and the extent of alignment between public financial management systems and health policy objectives, and a validation workshop with government officials.
Tanzania’...s disease response faces a triple transition challenge: replacing donor funding, closing the resource gap that would exist even with donor funding, and more efficiently delivering on disease response objectives.
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This report considers how to integrate health into urban planning, investments, and policy decisions, so as to support the implementation and achievement of the goals and objectives of the New Urban Agenda.
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease that usually affects the lungs, though it can affect any organ in the body. It can develop when bacteria spread through droplets in the air. TB can be fatal, but in many cases, TB is preventable and treatable. This report examines the human rights impact of... the prevalence of Tuberculosis (TB) and Multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) among the Indigenous San peoples of Namibia. Combining political economy and root-cause methodology, the report explores the socioeconomic factors that make the San vulnerable to TB and limit their access to adequate health services.
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The Republic of the Union of Myanmar is at a historic moment, with a new civilian government assuming power in 2016. The country graduated to lower-middle-income status in 2015, and has made significant progress in reducing poverty, improving food security and addressing malnutrition.
The remai...ning challenges to food and nutrition security and achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 2 targets include continued population displacements resulting from conflict, vulnerability to extreme weather events, poverty, limited social protection coverage, high malnutrition and persistent gender inequalities.
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An international field study by African and German theologicans and health workers.
This regional summary draws on the WHO Global oral health status report (2), published in 2022, which provides a comprehensive overview of the global oral disease burden, the global health importance of oral health and the impact of oral diseases over the life course.
The summary focuses on the ...oral health status in the Western Pacific Region and is split into four sections: (a) oral diseases are global and regional health problems; (b) the burden of the main oral diseases; (c) key challenges and opportunities towards oral health for all in the Western Pacific Region; and (d) road map towards UHC for oral health 2030. This regional summary is based on the 27 Member States in the Region.
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Antibiotics and other antimicrobial agents are invaluable life savers, particularly in resource-limited countries where infectious diseases are abundant. Both uncomplicated and severe infections are potentially curable as long as the aetiological agents are susceptible to the ...antimicrobial drugs. The rapid rate with which antimicrobial agents are becoming ineffective due to resistance acquired as a result of unchecked overuse and misuse threatens to undo the benefit of controlling infections. The evidence for resistant microorganisms, many times to more than a single antimicrobial agent, has been observed globally. In Tanzania, there is evidence in the form of few scattered studies conducted in different parts of the country in a multitude of settings including health care facilities, the community, domesticated animals and wild animals
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A National Service Programme for All Children with Special Needs and their Families
In Myanmar, we estimate that at least 40% of children require ECI services for short to longer periods of time. At present, 35.1% of Myanmar children are moderately to severely stunted; all of these children are l...ikely to have one or more developmental delays. In addition, at least 5% to 12% of the nation’s children will be identified to have disabilities, chronic diseases or atypical behaviours.
Over time, approximately 70% of the children who will be served will improve in their development, attain expected levels of development for their age, and will consolidate their gains within one to two years. Other children, approximately 30%, will have lifelong disabilities or other conditions, and ECI services usually greatly improve their development and help them to achieve their full potential.
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