The report provides an overview of the disaster risk reduction and management in Nepal, a country under threat of multiple natural hazards: earthquakes, floods, landslides, fires, storms, the epidemics, and others. It presents background information on the country, its disaster profile, its legal an...d institutional framework, the country's achievements in regards to the Hyogo Framework for Action, and looks at the challenges and future steps in the area of disaster management in Nepal.
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n light of the potential risk posed by SARS-CoV-2 variants, in January 2021 WHO organized an ad hoc consultation to discuss the development of an R&D agenda in response to existing and emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants.
The key objectives were to identify the critical research questions related to var...iants and agree on a research approach to address them. Six breakout groups covered a range of specific issues related to COVID-19 variants: Epidemiology and mathematical modelling; evolutionary biology; animal models; assays and diagnostics; clinical management and therapeutics; and vaccines.
This report is a summary of presentations and panel discussions.
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The WHO report on health preparedness for El Niño 2015-2016 describes the impact of this weather phenomenon on global public health. Strong El Niño events lead to extreme weather conditions, including droughts, floods, and storms, which increase the risk of diseases such as cholera, malaria, and d...engue fever. Particularly affected regions include Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America, where water and food shortages and disease outbreaks are becoming more frequent.
The WHO supports countries through risk assessments, emergency plans, and disease surveillance to prevent outbreaks. Recommended measures include early warning systems, health preparedness in vulnerable areas, and better coordination between health and meteorological services to minimize the negative effects of El Niño on public health.
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Vitamin A deficiency is a risk factor for blindness and for mortality from measles and diarrhoea in children aged 6–59 months. We aimed to estimate trends in the prevalence of vitamin A defi ciency between 1991 and 2013 and its mortality burden in low-income and middle-income countries.
This guidance has been developed in line with the WHO corporate risk management framework, the WHO business continuity and contingency plans, as well as the Inter-Agency Emergency Response Preparedness Framework. It is based on a common organiza-tional approach and procedures for managing including ...emergency response across all hazards and at each level of the Organization. It relates WHO’s responsibilities (1) under the International Health Regulations (2005) and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, and other international treaties; (2) as the United Nations’ lead agency for health and the health cluster; and (3) as a member of the United Nations or Humanitarian Country Teams
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Prevention, Assessment and Management
Press Release for the Working Group I contribution to the Sixth Assessment Report, Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis
Available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanisch
Technical specifications series for submission to WHO prequalification: diagnostic assessment;TSS-3
Cholera is a major health risk in many parts of the world, affecting millions of people every year. Since mid-2021, the world has been facing an acute upsurge of the 7th cholera pandemic, which is characterized by the number, size and concurrence of multiple outbreaks, the spread to areas that had b...een free of cholera for decades and alarmingly high mortality rates. The mortality associated with these outbreaks is of particular concern as many countries have reported higher case fatality ratios (CFR) than in previous years
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The MSF qualification scheme is concerned with the pharmaceutical quality assessment for drugs. This procedure is applicable to products for international supply, i.e. products supplied through the MSF procurement centres. This qualification procedure is not applicable for local purchase, i.e. purch...ase of drugs within the project countries. For quality assurance principles and assessment of drugs for local purchase refer to the guideline for local pharmaceutical market assessment.
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HEARTS provides a set of locally adaptable tools for strengthening the
management of CVD in primary health care.
HEARTS is designed to enhance implementation of WHO PEN by providing:
• operational guidance on further integrating CVD management
• technical guidance on evaluating the impact of... CVD care on patient outcomes.
For countries not using WHO PEN, CVD management can still be integrated into
primary health care. The process of implementing HEARTS will vary, depending
on country context, and may require a significant reorienting and strengthening
of the health system. At some sites, existing CVD management services may be
reoriented toward a risk-based approach, while other sites may adopt a public
health approach, strengthening management of particular risk factors such as
hypertension. Whether or not introducing CVD management into primary care is a
new intervention, successful implementation will require engagement with national and local health planners, managers, service providers, and other stakeholders.
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The interventions summarized in this guide are intended to lower the risk of delivery and post-partum complications for both the mother and the newborn, particularly the risk of postpartum haemorrhage and infections, and improve the immediate care of premature babies. The recommendations are also in...tended to minimize the exposure of health care providersto blood and bodily fluids that could transmit Ebola
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Emerging evidence and experience to inform risk management in a warming world
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) Biosafety and Biosecurity Initiative was launched by the Africa CDC in April 2019 with the aim of strengthening the African Union (AU) Member States’ biosafety and biosecurity systems and enabling them to comply with national and i...nternational requirements for biosafety and biosecurity including the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005), the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC), and United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1540 and the multi-country Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA). The World Health Organization (WHO) Joint External Evaluation (JEE) and the Global Health Security Index report confirmed the known capacity gaps in biosafety and biosecurity among Africa Union Member (AU).
The regional consultations by Africa CDC conducted between 2019-2021 highlighted the deficiency or limited availability of standardized and regionally recognized training programs in the continent, limiting biosafety and biosecurity capacity building efforts in the region. In response, Africa CDC working with AU Member States developed a home grown, implementable and accessible professional training and certification program that is both recognized and endorsed by AU Member States. The Regional Training and Certification Program for Biosafety and Biosecurity Professionals, for African Biosafety and Biosecurity Professionals (RTCP-BBP) has four (4) areas of specialization, namely
Selection, Installation, Maintenance and Certification of Biological Safety Cabinets
Biorisk Management
Design and Maintenance of Facilities Handling High Risk Pathogens (Biocontainment Engineering)
Biological Waste management
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Children in Kabwe are especially at risk because they are more likely to ingest lead dust when playing in the soil, their brains and bodies are still developing, and they absorb four to five times as much lead as adults. The consequences for children who are exposed to high levels of lead and are no...t treated include reading and learning barriers or disabilities; behavioral problems; impaired growth; anemia; brain, liver, kidney, nerve, and stomach damage; coma and convulsions; and death. After prolonged exposure, the effects are irreversible. Lead also increases the risk of miscarriage and can be transmitted through both the placenta and breastmilk.
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The winter season is approaching fast, while older people (OP) and people with disabilities (PwD) have already been living in the harsh environment of a full-scale war for eight months, with their basic needs and human rights at risk of being neglected and violated for eight years of ongoing war.
T...he recent brutal attacks on the critical infrastructure facilities such as power plants and power substations in eight regions of Ukraine, including Kyiv, show the alarming prediction that this winter is going to be challenging for the affected areas, especially for the vulnerable people residing there
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The Countdown country profile presents in one place the best and latest evidence to enable an assessment of a country’s progress in improving reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health (RMNCH)
The pandemic has emphasized the high risk of avoidable harm to patients, health workers, and the general public, and has identified a range of safety gaps across all core components of health systems at all levels.
The rapid review ‘Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for patient safety’ ex...plores impacts that the COVID-19 pandemic did have on patient safety in terms of risks and avoidable harm, specifically in terms of diagnostic, treatment and care management related issues as well as highlights the main patterns of these implications within the broader health system context.
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Aerosol pollutants are known to raise the risk of development of non-communicable respiratory diseases (NCRDs) such as asthma, chronic bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and allergic rhinitis. Sub-Saharan Africa’s rapid pace of urbanization, economic expansion, and population growt...h raise concerns of increasing incidence of NCRDs. This research characterizes the state of research on pollution and NCRDs in the 46 countries of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This research systematically reviewed the literature on studies of asthma; chronic bronchitis; allergic rhinitis; and air pollutants such as particulate matter, ozone, NOx, and sulfuric oxide.
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Thematic Report– 3 April 2020
ACAPS Risk Analysis: COVID19
info@acaps.org