PLOS Glob Public Health 4(12): e0004035. https://doi. org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0004035.
A new formulation of praziquantel, arpraziquantel (arPZQ), has been developed for preschool-
aged children (PSAC) to fill the treatment gap for this age group in schistosomiasis control and
elimination program...s. There is now a priority to ensure that the drug reaches all at-risk PSAC
in endemic areas, including hard-to-reach areas and populations. This study aimed to deter-
mine schistosomiasis treatment-related contextual factors among fishermen and island popu-
lations in Homa Bay County, Kenya, and to identify a suitable platform to deliver arPZQ.
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Diabetes is a significant public health issue that affects approximately one in 10 adults globally, with type 2 diabetes accounting for 90–95% of cases. This chronic condition causes considerable morbidity and mortality and is growing in impact, with cases projected to rise from 537 million in 202...1 to 784 million by 2045.1 As cases rise, it is imperative to ensure the healthcare workforce is prepared to care for affected individuals. However, there is a growing global shortage of healthcare workers, which was estimated, pre pandemic, to reach 15 million by 2030.2 Therefore, all of the healthcare workforce will need to be utilised to their fullest potential in order to address the growing global burden of diabetes. Pharmacists will continue to be essential in this endeavour.
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In where under-five mortality is high and vitamin A deficiency is a public health problem, two high-dose supplements of vitamin A per year, spaced four to six months apart, can strengthen children’s immune systems and improve their chances of survival.
During much of early childhood – from... 6 months to 5years of age – two high doses of vitamin A every year can prevent blindness and hearing loss, boost children’s immunity against diseases like measles and diarrhoea and provide critical protection against death. Like all forms of malnutrition, vitamin A deficiency is a marker of inequality. In countries where diets are lacking in vitamin A and infections and deaths are prevalent, supplementation programmes give vulnerable children a better chance to survive, develop and thrive.
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A Situational Assessment and Five-YearAction Plan for the Africa CDC Strengthening Regional Public Health Institutions and Capacity for Surveillance and Response Program
PlosOne https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0161576; Zoonotic diseases have varying public health burden and socio-economic impact across time and geographical settings making their prioritization for prevention and control important at the national level. We conducted systematic prioritization of ...zoonotic diseases and developed a ranked list of these diseases that would guide allocation of resources to enhance their surveillance, prevention, and control.
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Cholera remains an issue of major public health importance in Kenya. Kenya has in recent years experienced outbreaks affecting different parts of the country
Human rabies remains a significant public health problem in Africa with outbreaks reported in most countries. In Nigeria–the most populous country in Africa–rabies causes a significant public health burden partly due to perennial obstacles to implementing a national prevention and control progra...m.
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Psychological first aid (PFA) is a method of helping people in distress so they feel calm and supported to cope better with their challenges. It is a way of assisting someone to manage their situation and make informed decisions. The basis of psychological first aid is caring about the person in dis...tress and showing empathy. It involves paying attention to reactions, active listening and, if needed, practical assistance, such as problem solving, help to access basic needs or referring to further options for assistance. PFA helps normalize worry and other emotions, PFA also promotes healthy coping and provides feelings of safety, calming, and hope. These guidelines can be used by Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies to set up and run different kind of remote services for the public during the time of a COVID-19 response. It should be noted that the target group for the guidelines are adults.
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Non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPI) are public health measures that aim to prevent and/or control SARS-CoV-2 transmission in the community. As long as there is no effective and safe vaccine to protect those at risk of severe COVID-19, NPI are the most effective public health interventions against... COVID-19. These ECDC guidelines detail available options for NPI in various epidemiologic scenarios, assess the evidence for their effectiveness and address implementation issues, including potential barriers and facilitators.
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This guideline is for:
• health and care practitioners
• health and care staff involved in planning and delivering services
• commissioners.
The recommendations bring together:
• existing national and international guidance and policies
• advice from specialists working in the NHS fr...om across the UK. These include people with
expertise and experience of treating patients for the specific health conditions covered by the
guidance during the current COVID-19 pandemic.
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USAID/KENYA Evaluation Services and Program Support (ESPS)
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has a solid track record of supporting health and development initiatives in Kenya. AIDS, Population, and Health Integrated Assistance (APHIA) is the agency’s flagship hea...lth initiative in the country. APHIA is currently in its third iteration, APHIAPlus, which began in January 2011 and is slated to end in December 2015. APHIAPlus was designed to contribute to Result 3 (“Increased use of quality health services, products, and information”) and Result 4 (“Social determinants of health”) of USAID/Kenya’s implementation framework. The main technical areas of focus are HIV/AIDS; malaria; family planning (FP); tuberculosis (TB); maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH); and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH).
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The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the inadequacy of investments in public health, the persistence of profound economic and social inequalities and the fragility of many key global systems and approaches.
In response to the first cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) reported on the continent, many African Union Member States implemented large-scale public health and social measures (PHSM) rapidly. These measures were aimed at reducing transmission and the number of new cases being reported, p...rotecting the most vulnerable populations, and allowing time for countries to ramp up critical healthcare and diagnostic services. While these quick actions bought time for Member States, the negative socio-economic impacts are being felt widely, and countries are now exploring how best to ease these measures back while still managing the outbreak.
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Senegal’s substantial and sustained progress against malaria is an inspiring public health success story, and a source of potential lessons for other countries on the path to elimination. This case study describes three major success factors—(1) outstanding leadership and partner engagement, (2)... the achievement and maintenance of high intervention coverage levels, and (3) a thriving data culture—and explores several exciting new opportunities to consolidate and expand upon Senegal’s two decades of impact.
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There is growing pressure on PEPFAR, the U.S. global HIV program, to increase its planning for sustainability, including through domestic resource mobilization and, ultimately, transitioning financing at
least in part to recipient countries. While this is connected to a broader push in global healt...h and development, driven by a constrained financing environment and desire to promote more countryownership of programs and services, there are specific questions facing PEPFAR’s future. A National Academy report from 2017, for example, recommended that PEPFAR look toward phasing down its spending and supporting countries in their transition from bilateral aid to domestic financing for HIV. At a
Senate hearing last year, PEPFAR was asked how it was working to increase domestic resources and under what conditions would it need less resources to accomplish its goals. Recent challenges in securing a five-year reauthorization of the program have only served to heighten the focus on
sustainability and domestic resource mobilization. How PEPFAR does this, however, remains an ongoing question.
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This report challenges policy-makers and political leaders to tackle fossil fuel production and consumption as a health control issue, in the same way that smoking has been reduced and regulated. Fossil fuel combustion is a major source of toxic air pollution that kills 7 million people every year, ...almost the same as the number of deaths caused by tobacco smoking.
In 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) recognised air pollution as a major health risk factor. There is widespread public discussion about the effects of fossil fuel combustion and emissions on climate change… but what about the effect on our health? Climate change poses a threat not only to the health of the planet, but also to humans.
The case studies evaluated in this report offer examples of mechanisms that can be used to restrict the production and consumption of unhealthy commodities, so that the health, air pollution and climate communities can learn from one another, using shared approaches and language. These case studies show that the connection with health is a strong argument to support sustainable change.
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The coronavirus outbreak that began in 2019 (COVID-19) threatens to reverse years of hard-won gains in preventing and treating HIV. Fragile health systems are further stressed as health workers navigate an increased client load and demands at work while also being concerned for their own health and ...that of their families. Health facilities have been redesigned to care for patients with COVID-19, posing challenges to other services. Governments and civil society organizations have redirected scarce resources and shifted programming priorities to respond to the pandemic. Several countries have reported intermittent declines in HIV testing and diagnosis, antenatal care visits, collection of antiretroviral medicines (ARVs) by people living with HIV, and attendance at clinic appointments. Community-based education and support programmes have had to rapidly adapt to restrictions on movement and public gatherings. Children, adolescents, and women have experienced multiple deprivations due to the adverse impact of the pandemic.
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The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (DCHA/OFDA) requested Food and Nutrition Technical Assistance II Project (FANTA-2) assistance to review Community-Based Management of ...Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) in four West African countries—Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger—to help identify DCHA/OFDA 2010 and 2011 program priorities, including where DCHA/OFDA investment should be directed to support CMAM. The goal was to review CMAM program implementation and its integration into national health systems to provide DCHA/OFDA a status report for each country; draw lessons learned; and make recommendations on challenges, promising practices, gaps, and priority areas for DCHA/OFDA support during 2010 and 2011. The review was intended for DCHA/OFDA program planning purposes and also potentially as an advocacy tool to guide other donors in planning CMAM support in the region. After all four countries have been reviewed, FANTA-2 will develop a synthesis report. The current document presents a summary report on CMAM in Burkina Faso only.
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FANTA provided technical support to Haiti’s Ministry of Public Health and Population for the development of national guidelines and an accompanying flipchart, which provide practical solutions to nutrition problems for people living with HIV, as well as guidance on nutritionally managing the sympt...oms of HIV, the side effects of antiretroviral drugs, and opportunistic infections. The guidelines provide recommendations for well-balanced diets for people living with HIV, along with instructions for quality nutrition counseling of adolescents and adults living with HIV, HIV-positive pregnant and lactating women, and caregivers of children exposed to HIV. The guidelines also address food insecurity in HIV-affected households.
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The World Health Organization (WHO)6, the Civil Society Action Committee and the Lancet Migration global collaboration are amongst many organisations that have advised governments against returning irregular migrants during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The expulsion of i...rregular migrants to under-prepared countries puts migrants and communities at risk, and is against the principles of solidarity and public health that should inspire action during these challenging times. It also puts at risk the staff who implement these policies. Detention, overcrowded conditions and lack of hygiene all render irregular migrants more vulnerable to the impact of COVID-19. Irregular laborers, agricultura land food workers, cleaners and caregivers are all essential in the response to the pandemic, there fore the temporary or longer term regularisation of migrants to facilitate their access to health, social services and employment should be considered as a humane, practical and self-interested alternative to forcible return.
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