The WHO Quality Toolkit: Navigating tools to improve the quality of health services helps easy identification and access to a wide range of WHO published materials to improve the quality of health services. These tools support the actions described in the Quality health services: a planning guide, w...hich outlines a structured, systems-based approach to improving quality of health services. Whether you work at the facility, sub-national or national level, or in specific communities, you will find resources within the Quality Toolkit to help you carry out essential tasks to improve quality of care
more
In this era, grand challenges lies in biodiversity loss, climate change, and global noncommunicable diseases signify that planet and humanity are in crisis. Scholarly evidence from human and animal kingdom suggest that there is an optimism in planetary health which can provide a unique and novel con...cept where efforts toward survival and remediation can be made. With accurate navigation, the current challenges can be mitigated leading to a new reality, one in which the core value is the well‐being of all. This paper discusses the drivers of planetary health and the role of community health workers (CHWs) in making health‐care system more resilient that can produce multiple benefits to community and overall planetary health. A web‐based international database such as Google, Google Scholar, SCOPUS/MEDLINE/PubMed, and JSTOR was searched relevant to a planetary health framework. The study findings suggest that CHWs can offer health care interventions through environmental health cobenefits across the spectrum of health effects of climate change cause and effects. These actions have been divided into four major categories (i. health care promotion and prevention, ii. health care strengthening, iii. advocacy, and iv. education and research) that CHWs perform through a variety of roles and functions they are engaged in protecting planetary health. CHWs contribute toward achieving sustainable development goals such as planetary health and focus on environment sustainability and well‐being of entire mankind.
more
To assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health and HIV expenditure, UNAIDS carried out a modelling study on fiscal space for health and HIV. From a sample of 28 countries, three countries—the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Jamaica, and Lesotho—were selected to capture health and HIV ...expenditure impacts across countries with especially marked differences in burdens of disease (including HIV prevalence), HIV donor dependency, level of economic development, and geographic location. While the three-country sample is too small to permit findings to be generalized to other countries, these analyses are useful for informing UNAIDS’ work to identify some policy positions to minimize the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the HIV response.
more
Many low-resource settings have a shortage of physicians and health workers. (1) In order to provide patient-centred continuous care more effectively, primary care systems can include team-based care strategies in their clinic workflows and protocols. Team-based care uses multidisciplinary teams (wh...ich may involve new staff, or the shifting of tasks among existing staff). Teams can include patients themselves, primary care physicians, and other allied health professionals, such as nurses, pharmacists, counsellors, social workers, nutritionists, community health workers, or others. Teams reduce the burden on physicians by utilizing the skills of trained health workers. Strong evidence shows that team-based care is effective in improving hypertension control among patients in a cost-effective way. (2) Some amount of task shifting/team-based care is already taking place in many settings; this module provides further guidance on how to maximize this approach for greater impact.
more
This is one of seven Medical Peace Work cases.
The global increase of healthcare-associated infections (HAI) presents a growing concern in healthcare worldwide. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the annual number of HAI exceeds 2.6million and produces the highest estimated amou...nt of disability-adjust-ed-life-years, surpassing all other reported communicable diseases in the European Union and European Economic Area. Multi-drug-resistant Gram-negative (MDR-GN) bacteria have become increasingly common as a cause for HAI, such as central line-as-sociated bloodstream infections, wound or surgical site infections and catheter-associated urinary tract infections
more
The harmonized training package for Point-of-use-fortification using micronutrient powders has been developed to guide in training frontline health workers. The micronutrient powders will be distributed at the health facilities where instructions on use will be provided by Health Care Providers. Com...munity Health Volunteers will educate, counsel, and mobilize caregivers at the community level to visit health facilities for nutrition assessment and provision of the micronutrient powders.
more
21 août 2020
Le présent document contient les orientations destinées aux décideurs et aux professionnels de la santé publique et de la santé de
l’enfant pour l’élaboration de politiques relatives au port du masque par les enfants dans le cadre de la pandémie de COVID-19.
Key messages
● Pre-crisis Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) Practices:
The Code has not been adequately implemented and enforced in Ukraine.
Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MCIS) data from 2012: Child ever breastfed (95.4%); early initiation of breastfeeding (EIBF) within 1... hr of birth (65.7%); children under 6 months exclusively breastfed (EBF)(19.7%); continued breastfeeding at 1 (37.9%) and 2 years of age (22%); children under 6 months predominantly breastfed (51.6%); children 0-23 months bottle fed (66.6%); introduction of solid, semi-solid or soft foods for children 6-8 months (43.2%).
more
Research and Reports in Tropical Medicine 2022:13 25–40.
Chagas disease (CD) is caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, and it is endemic in Central, South America, Mexico and the South of the United States. It is an important cause of early mortality and morbidity, and it is associated with po...verty and stigma. A third of the cases evolve into chronic cardiomyopathy and gastrointestinal disease. This review proposes strategies to address challenges faced by non-endemic countries
more
This report summarizes the World Health Organization’s (WHO) global work on water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) during 2022. It describes how the Organization continued to deliver its essential WASH programming as elaborated in its 2018–2025 strategy.
The Ministry of Health through the National AIDS Secretariat, has developed the Strategic Operational Plan for Condom Programming in Sierra Leone with a focus on reinvigorating condom use to ensure “uninterrupted access to male and female condoms and lubricants for Key Populations, young people an...d the general population.” Condom use in the country was estimated at 7 per cent and 23 per cent of women and men respectively who had sexual intercourse with non-regular partners. The primary goal of the strategic operational plan is to enhance access and utilization of male and female condoms, supporting national efforts to reduce the transmission of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV, and unintended pregnancies, for all sexually active individuals.
more
The portable diagnostic imaging technology covered by this document will serve not only the pressing demands for tuberculosis screening and triage but also other diseases. Therefore, the requirements, accessories, hardware and software packages listed in the following specifications are described in... detail in order to serve also other pathologies and conditions, like trauma and pneumonia.
Through the definition of "minimum technical requirements", this document is recommended to support decision-making regarding the selection, incorporation, allocation and use of portable X-ray systems and is intended for health care providers, managers of imaging departments, procurement and regulatory agencies, policymakers and planning officers in ministries of health, as well as biomedical engineering professionals, medical physicists, the private health sector, medical device industry and intergovernmental and international agencies.
more
Overview: Risk communication and community engagement are essential for any disease outbreak response. This is particularly critical during outbreaks of Ebola which may create fear in the public and frontline responders alike due to severe presentation of symptoms, misunderstanding of the causes of ...illness and high fatality rates. This document outlines some of the key considerations for risk communication and community engagement response to Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Ebola outbreaks have been associated with misinformation and false rumours. In the context of RCCE, rumours refer to unsubstantiated information, claims or beliefs about what is causing the disease or how it can be treated/cured. If not proactively addressed in culturally appropriate ways, misinformation and rumours can lead to the further rapid spread of the disease and unnecessary deaths, severe disease, suffering, and societal and economic loss.
The publication includes a 'Rumour Tracking Tool' (Annex II).
more
Für viele Städte ist eine klimafreundliche Mobilität eine Herausforderung, der sie sich zunehmend stellen. Viele Fragen stehen im Raum: wie sieht Mobilität und eine Stadt von morgen aus? Wie komme ich klima- und umweltfreundlich zur Schule und zur Arbeit? Was für eine Wende ist dafür nötig un...d wie könnte diese aussehen? Das Unterrichtsmaterial „Verkehr(t)!“ regt die Schüler*innen dazu an, das Verkehrsverhalten in ihrer Umwelt zu analysieren und ihre eigene Mobilität kritisch unter die Lupe zu nehmen. Sie erkunden, welche Bedeutung Verkehr für Umwelt und Klima hat und identifizieren Stellen, an denen Handeln möglich und notwendig ist.
more
Nature Medicine, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-021-01283-z