| | PSE in Health Webinar -the module 3 summary is in! | The summary and the slides from our presenters can be viewed here. You can also share your comments and ask further questions in the forum.
| 27/05/2021 19:05 | | | Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Webinar - the summary is now available | Besides the summary, you will find a comprehensive set of additional resources on AMR and on the SDC projects presented during the event here. Happy reading!
| 27/05/2021 19:03 | | | Geneva Health Forum | 16-18 November 2020 | Fully virtual | The GHF will be held in 10 days and will be fully virtual! With the overall goal of contributing to improve health and care access in the world, the Geneva Health Forum brings together key global health actors to discuss current global health challenges. With an average of over 1500 participants from all sectors (such as field actors, academics, and the private sector) the Geneva Health Forum gives a voice to actors from the field and bridges them with policy-makers present in Geneva. In order to help answer to current challenges, the Geneva Health Forum gives visibility to innovative, accessible and sustainable practices and tools that can allow for better access to health and care worldwide.
Please find all information, schedule and registration links on the GHF website.
| 05/11/2020 16:19 | | | Finding fit-for-purpose tools in the fight against chronic disease | Finding fit-for-purpose tools in the fight against chronic disease Humanitarians are increasingly aware that underlying non-communicable diseases compound the acute crises they are more focused on. The understanding that emergency response is no longer about emergencies alone triggered ICRC’s Innovation team to support a unique collaboration among their humanitarian partners, the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) and the private sector. This intervention receives support from SDC. Please read more in the this article.
| 05/11/2020 13:15 | | | The open-source software for health financing operations | The open-source software for health financing operations More than five million people are covered by health insurance schemes
run on openIMIS, a free and open source software developed with German and SDC
support. By bringing together information from multiple stakeholders –
beneficiaries, providers, and players – into a single digital platform,
openIMIS makes it possible to manage social health protection schemes at scale,
thereby enabling a gradual expansion in coverage in hitherto excluded
populations. By the end of 2020, SDC and BMZ are launching a catalytic fund in
order to allow new countries or institutions to adapt and implement OpenIMIS. Read more on this initiative in the this article. For more details: olivier.praz@eda.admin.ch | 03/11/2020 08:58 | | | Diagnostic testing for COVID-19 | Diagnostic testing for COVID-19 Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, laboratories have been using nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs), such as real time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) assays, to detect SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the disease. In many countries, access to this form of testing has been challenging. The search is on to develop reliable but less expensive and faster diagnostic tests that detect antigens specific for SARS-CoV-2 infection. But rapid antigen tests aren’t as sensitive as the gold standard RT-PCR technology that has been widely used until now and the WHO advises for careful test selection.
Both the Swiss international cooperation and the Swiss pharmaceutical sector have a long-standing experience and interest in supporting R&D, access and manufacturing of diagnostics. The Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) supported by the SDC is leading the global effort (ACT-A Dx Partnership) in the development of affordable COVID-19 diagnostics and local manufacturing capacity for and in LMICs.
| 24/09/2020 11:21 | | | Africa eradicates wild poliovirus | Africa eradicates wild poliovirus
Last week,
the Africa Regional Certification Commission certified the WHO African Region
as wild polio-free after four years without a case. With this historic
milestone, five of the six WHO regions – representing over 90% of the world’s
population – are now free of the wild poliovirus, moving the world closer to
achieving global polio eradication. Below is a brief summary of the main milestones
leading to this major achievement. In the 1900s, polio was one of the most feared childhood diseases
in industrialized nations and by the 1950s, an estimated 600’000 people were
paralysed each year around the world. Since 1954, the development and
widespread rollout of the polio vaccine across industrialized countries lead to
a steep drop in polio incidence but polio cases in Africa were increasing. In
1988 the WHO endorses a resolution to eradicate polio worldwide by the year
2000 and the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) was launched. In the
1990s, the GPEI made huge investments in training, immunization infrastructure
and equipment, disease surveillance, data management and high-level coordination
across Africa and in 2000, the number of annual wild poliovirus cases had
dropped to under 1000. The final march toward certification of eradication was
marked by huge setbacks as well as the introduction of many innovative
strategies and technologies. The announcement on the 25 August 2020 certifying
that the WHO African Region have eradicated wild polioviruses is a major public
health achievement leaving the devastating disease endemic in only two
countries worldwide. SDC has
contributed to this achievement by supporting the Global Polio Eradication
Initiative in Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo and Ethiopia between 2013 and
2016. This support helped achieving global standard polio surveillance in those
three countries. Moreover, SDC provided specific support in 2016 and 2017, through GPEI, to African countries for the elaboration of "transition plans" that aim at using expertise created through the polio programme for the management of other communicable diseases (ex: surveillance and immunization functions). Furthermore the Swiss core contributions to WHO and UNICEF continuously supports
the global efforts to tackle infectious diseases by building effective
surveillance and immunization systems worldwide. Global polio eradication initiative applauds WHO
African region for wild polio-free certification [WHO – 25 August 2020] Africa eradicates wild poliovirus [WHO – 25 August 2020] Polio Eradication-A Battle I fought with undiluted
passion, says Professor Oyewale Tomori, a major player who made this feat
possible [WHO – 25 August 2020] Africa kicks out wild polio campaign Timeline: Polio Eradication in the African
Region Photo copyright: WHO
| 02/09/2020 11:29 | | | COVID-19 highlights the need for safe, nutritious and affordable food | COVID-19 highlights the need for safe, nutritious and affordable food COVID-19 does not treat us equally. Undernourished people have weaker immune systems, and may be at greater risk of severe illness due to the virus. At the same time, poor metabolic health, including obesity and diabetes - conditions that disproportionately affect disadvantaged populations -, is strongly linked to worse COVID-19 outcomes, including risk of hospitalisation and death.
| 31/08/2020 12:56 | | | PMNCH compendium of COVID-19 related resources on women's, children's and adolescents' health | | 04/08/2020 07:12 | | | COVID-19 vaccines: where do we stand? | | 31/07/2020 08:24 | | | Advancing Universal Health Coverage - UHC 2030 | Advancing Universal Health Coverage - UHC 2030
In September 2019, at the United Nations
High-Level Meeting (UN HLM) «Universal Health Coverage: Moving Together to
Build a Healthier World», world leaders endorsed the most ambitious and
comprehensive political declaration on health history. In endorsing the
declaration, they recommitted to ensure that, by 2030, everyone in every
country can receive all the quality health services they need without suffering
financial hardship. Ahead of the HLM, diverse actors across the UHC
movement came together behind an ambitious set of ‘Key Asks’ for accelerating
achievement of UHC, plus gender equality as a foundational principle for UHC. Under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Switzerland has
committed itself to improving health for all at all ages. To this end, it is
aiming over the long term to achieve universal health coverage and a
coordinated approach to the social, economic, cultural and environmental
determinants of health. The SDC has defined Advancing Universal
Health Coverage as a key priority in its Health Strategic Guidance 2020-2030
which is currently being finalized. Monitoring progress on UHC and holding
governments accountable to take the necessary actions may require data that
is not be readily collected by national institutions when it comes to
political dimensions around rights, governance and equity. It will also involve
providing empirical assessments of the experiences of people, especially the
vulnerable, in accessing health services rather than taking at face value
policy documents which document what ought to be happening. To better understand this, UHC2030 is producing
a multi-stakeholder review called the State of UHC Commitment with hard
data about how governments are delivering on their commitment to UHC. You can share your observations, anecdotes
and materials that tell the real story of health care in your country. All
the stories and experiences will be compiled and used in a global synthesis
report, but also in individual country profiles, which anyone will be able to
use for national advocacy. Please find more information on the UHC2030
platform here and participate to the survey here. | 15/07/2020 19:18 | | | Launch of the AMR Action Fund | | 14/07/2020 15:05 | | | COVID-19 in Africa | | 06/07/2020 09:08 | | | COVID-19: Opportunities for a rise in local e-health solutions? | COVID-19: Opportunities for a rise in local e-health solutions?
Before the COVID-19 pandemic the e-health
innovations sector in Africa was led primarily by large technology companies and
budgets were largely absorbed by foreign solutions, notably in the market for
electronic medical records software. Local e-health ventures and start-ups were
often overlooked by health sector investors as they were considered to be small
and insubstantial. However, Disrupt Africa, which supports the nascent start-up
technology industry on the continent and publishes the annual “African Tech Start-ups
Funding Report” https://disrupt-africa.com/
has observed that investors are increasingly recognising the value of smaller,
local e-health sector entrepreneurs that have proven their skills in developing
innovative solutions to gaps in the local pandemic response. An article just
published by the Lancet Digital Health describes the opportunities presented by
COVID-19 as a “watershed moment for Africa’s COVID-19 technologies” https://www.thelancet.com/journals/landig/article/PIIS2589-7500(20)30146-1/fulltext
Local public and private solutions are
increasingly and successfully being deployed to disseminate COVID-19 messaging
in local languages and are proving to be pivotal in rapidly strengthening
outbreak communication, contact tracing, tracking essential technology and
commodities such as ventilators (see for example: https://www.covidguide.africa/ ).
Reports are emerging of a convergence of investment and wealth creation with
the rise in local pandemic e-solutions, as both businesses and foundations such
as the Ventures Platform Foundation https://venturesplatform.com/foundation
support the strengthening of capacities of African entrepreneurs and innovators
in leveraging technology to create sustainable solutions to the most urgent
problems on the continent. The Ventures Foundation, for example, set up an
innovation platform in Nigeria called #COVID19InnovationChallenge to which
health technology start-ups were invited to submit concepts to address COVID-19,
by focussing on heat mapping, preventative and informative bots, solutions to
assist with lifestyle adjustments and verified case reports. Of more than 500
applications, seven national start-ups have been granted funding and mentorship.
Further information on the successful concepts and ventures can be accessed
here: https://furtherafrica.com/2020/04/03/ventures-platform-selects-wellvis-health-infodemics-and-others-for-covid-19-innovation-challenge/ | 29/06/2020 09:16 | | | The Lancet: Global governance for COVID-19 vaccines | The Lancet: Global governance for COVID-19
vaccines
Enormous amounts of public
money and resources poured into vaccine research and development have
resulted in more than 150 COVID-19 vaccine candidates, ten of which are
now in clinical trials. Neither a nationalist nor a free-market-driven
approach will lead to equal access to vaccines. It is imperative that more
governments and pharmaceutical companies agree to shoulder the costs of
vaccine research and manufacturing, and to share data and technologies.
They need to commit to WHO allocation guidelines and cooperate globally to
distribute vaccines fairly to those at greatest risk. A pandemic vaccine
needs strong global governance behind it. Read the article
| 23/06/2020 12:46 | | | COVID-19: Lack of proactive pandemic planning at the expense of tackling other diseases | COVID-19: Lack of proactive pandemic planning at the expense of tackling other diseases
In her article published in the Lancet Microbe this month “COVID-19 diagnostics—not at the expense of other diseases“ Priya Venkatesan expresses concern that intense focus on COVID-19 might hinder the efforts and undo progress made in controlling other infectious diseases https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanmic/article/PIIS2666-5247(20)30041-0/fulltext. Of immediate concern at the grass-roots level is impact on care seeking and the article likens the current situation for many rural poor people with the rise in deaths due to other preventable diseases during the 2014–16 Ebola virus crisis in Liberia. Brown and Head write that https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanmic/article/PIIS2666-5247(20)30039-2/fulltext they have shown through the Research Investments in Global Health (RESIN) study that research funding is reactive - whereby investment follows disease outbreaks – evident, for example, with Ebola virus disease, Zika virus disease, and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). However, there is a need for more proactive planning and investment in research and development. As a consequence of the COVID-19 epidemic, WHO has published “A coordinated global research roadmap" https://www.who.int/blueprint/priority-diseases/key-action/Roadmap-version-FINAL-for-WEB.pdf?ua=1 and gathers the latest international multilingual scientific findings and knowledge on COVID-19, which it presents in the publically accessible Global Research Database, accessible here: https://search.bvsalud.org/global-literature-on-novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov/ . The global literature cited in the WHO COVID-19 database is updated daily from searches of bibliographic databases, hand searching, and the addition of other expert-referred scientific articles. Contact: Kate Molesworth, Swiss TPH kate.molesworth@swisstph.ch
| 11/06/2020 09:14 | | | The next phase of COVID-19: lifting lockdowns | | 09/06/2020 11:47 | | | New guidance documents for tackling the COVID-19 pandemic | New guidance documents for tackling the COVID-19 pandemic On 22 May WHO published its COVID‑19 Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan Operational Planning Guidelines to Support Country Preparedness and Response to COVID-19. It provides practical guidance for governments and national authorities (as well as the supporting UN country teams and other partners) to develop and update their national plans. Guidance is structured across the main pillars of COVID‑19 preparedness and response, namely: 1. Country‑level coordination, planning and monitoring; 2. Risk communication and community engagement; 3. Surveillance, rapid-response teams, and case investigation; 4. Points of entry, international travel and transport; 5. National laboratories; 6. Infection prevention and control; 7. Case management; 8. Operational support and logistics; 9. Maintaining essential health services and systems. The guide, which can be downloaded here: https://www.who.int/publications-detail/draft-operational-planning-guidance-for-un-country-teams provides new recommendations for action, including: maintaining essential health services and systems during outbreaks, and focused considerations for community transmission in low-capacity and humanitarian settings. At the same time as publishing the Operational Planning Guidelines, WHO also released its COVID‑19 Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan Monitoring and Evaluation Framework, which can be accessed here: https://www.who.int/publications-detail/monitoring-and-evaluation-framework The Framework aims to support countries to assess performance and provide information to support analysis of progress against their COVID‑19 Strategic Preparedness and Response Plans. It provides guidance on framework indicators aligned with the nine main pillars of COVID‑19 preparedness and response, articulated in the Operation Planning Guidelines. Contact: Kate Molesworth, Swiss TPH kate.molesworth@swisstph.ch
| 26/05/2020 11:48 | | | Global Initiatives launched in response to COVID-19 | Global Initiatives launched in response to COVID-19 During the G20 extraordinary Summit in March 2020, the World's leaders stated that combatting the COVID-19 pandemic calls for a transparent, robust, coordinated, large-scale and science-based global response. Since then, a number of different initiatives and coalitions have been launched to jointly develop R&D and access to vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics. The aim of a global approach is to ensure that all technologies will be simultaneously and promptly available in an equitable and efficient way that is affordable to all. As part of the Swiss global response to the Covid outbreak, SDC will supports the development of diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines. The Global Health Programme is currently in negotiation with the Wellcome Trust, FIND and the WHO for specific support Global Initiatives WHO: Global collaboration to accelerate new COVID-19 health technologies WHO: Access to COVID-19 Tools (act) Accelerator WHO: R&D Blueprint and COVID-19 COVID-19 Clinical Research Coalition Coronavirus (COVID-19): supporting global research and development CEPI: CEPI's response to COVID-19 GAVI: GAVI'S proposal for an advance market commitment for covid-19 vaccines UN: UN COVID-19 Supply Chain Task Force Global Coronavirus COVID-19 Clinical Trial Tracker Articles Global coalition to accelerate COVID-19 clinical research in resource-limited settings [The Lancet – 25 April 2020] COVID-19: time to plan for prompt universal access to diagnostics and treatments [The Lancet Global Health – 16 April 2020] A real-time dashboard of clinical trials for COVID-19 [The Lancet Digital Health – 24 April 2020] Once we have a vaccine, how will it be shared fairly around the world? [The Guardian – 25 April 2020] How can we develop a COVID-19 vaccine quickly? [Wellcome – 22 April 2020] COVID-19: how researchers around the world are racing to understand the virus and prevent future outbreaks [Wellcome – 29 April 2020] | 26/05/2020 08:25 | | | The impacts of COVID-19 on Humanitarian Crises | The impacts of COVID-19 on Humanitarian Crises COVID-19 represents a still greater threat to those in complex humanitarian contexts, where conflict, political instability, resource limitations, poor governance and stigmatization further reduce access to limited healthcare. Considering the diverse needs of people and adapting the response to make sure it is inclusive to different groups is more important than ever. This page also provides a list of articles related to the situation in countries facing humanitarian crisis.
Official communications and technical guidances COVID-19 and the Core Humanitarian Standard: How to meet our CHS commitments in the coronavirus pandemic [Core Humanitarian Standard – 14 April 2020] Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) technical guidance: Humanitarian operations, camps, and other fragile settings as well as refugees and migrants in non-humanitarian and non-camp settings [WHO – April 2020] Interim Guidance on Scaling-up COVID-19 Outbreak in Readiness and Response Operations in Camps and Camp-like Settings [jointly developed by IFRC, IOM, UNHCR and WHO – 17 March 2020] UN launches major humanitarian appeal to keep COVID-19 from 'circling back around the globe' [UN News – 25 March 2020] SDC Working Aid Covid-19 response for the Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) sector [SDC – 3 April 2020] [ici en français] [hier auf Deutsch]
COVID-19 and Humanitarian crisis [COVID-19 Humanitarian]
Scientific articles Responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in complex humanitarian crises [International Journal for Equity in Health – 21 March 2020] COVID-19 in Humanitarian Settings and Lessons Learned From Past Epidemics [Nature Medicine – 8 April 2020] Slum Health: Arresting COVID-19 and Improving Well-Being in Urban Informal Settlements. [Journal of Urban Health – 24 April 2020] The COVID-19 response for vulnerable people in places affected by conflict and humanitarian crises [The Lancet – 4 May 2020] Press Coronavirus aid must aim far beyond the short-term health response [The New Humanitarian – 11 May 2020] The Impact of COVID-19 on Humanitarian Crises [CSIS – 19 March 2020] Faced with COVID-19, the Humanitarian System Should Rethink its Business Model [Center for Global Development – 7 April 2020] This age of COVID-19 demands new emergency ethics [The New Humanitarian – 18 March 2020] COVID-19 in humanitarian crises: a double emergency [International Rescue Committee – 9 April 2020] Between COVID-19 and humanitarian crises: which one to choose? [CERAH] COVID-19 compromises social networks. What this means for people in humanitarian crises [The conversation – 29 March 2020] The COVID-19 excuse? How migration policies are hardening around the globe [The New Humanitarian – 17 April 2020] What are the opportunities COVID-19 creates for the humanitarian sector? [devex – 14 April 2020] How cities can support informal workers: COVID-19 and beyond [Wiego – 14 April 2020] COVID-19 cruelly highlights inequalities and threatens to deepen them [ILO – 30 March 2020] COVID-19: How to include marginalized and vulnerable people in risk communication and community engagement [IFRC, OCHA, WHO – 15 March 2020] Coronavirus emergency aid funding [The New Humanitarian – 23 April 2020] Articles about covid-19 situation in countries facing humanitarian crisis Coronavirus and aid: What we're watching, 14-20 May [The New Humanitarian] COVID-19 in Yemen, pandemic aid costings, and military executions: The Cheat Sheet [The New Humanitarian – 8 May 2020] Covid-19: Doctors warn of humanitarian catastrophe at Europe's largest refugee camp [BMJ – 17 March 2020] Northwest Syria will “struggle to cope in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic" [MSF – 14 April 2020] COVID-19 crisis 'unlike any we have dealt with', as new tragedy looms for Syria [UN – 2 April 2020] Somalia: One of the countries least prepared to cope with the Covid-19 virus [CARE – 17 April 2020] In Bangladesh, COVID-19 threatens to cause a humanitarian crisis [World Economic Forum – 6 April 2020] Coronavirus in the Rohingya camps: Five key issues to watch [The New Humanitarian – 15 May 2020] COVID-19: Middle East faces health crisis, socio-economic earthquake [ICRC – 16 April 2020] COVID-19 turns the clock back on the war in Ukraine, as needs grow [The New Humanitarian – 20 April 2020] Syria: Aid Restrictions Hinder Covid-19 Response [Human Rights Watch – 28 April 2020] Locked down in Libya: One refugee's reflections on conflict and COVID-19 [The New Humanitarian – 29 April 2020]
Photo: UNHCR/Samuel Otieno
| 19/05/2020 11:46 | | | Covid-19 Health Impacts on Migrants | Covid-19 Health Impacts on Migrants Migrants and refugees face similar health threats from COVID-19 as their host populations. However, because of their migratory movements, limited employment opportunities, poor living and working conditions, many have more health-related risks and vulnerabilities than the general population.
Photo: UNOCHA/Shahrokh Pazhman | 12/05/2020 11:16 | | | Implications of COVID-19 on sexual and reproductive health and rights | | 07/05/2020 08:49 | | | Severity of COVID-19 infection associated with NCDs co-morbidities | Severity of COVID-19 infection associated with NCDs co-morbidities
The most commonly reported non-communicable diseases that
have been shown to predict poor prognosis in patients with COVID-19 include
diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cerebrovascular disease, coronary artery disease
and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Yang et al’s “Prevalence of
comorbidities and its effects in patients infected with SARS-CoV-2: a
systematic review and meta-analysis” analysed seven studies including
1,576 infected patients to determine that the most prevalent comorbidities of
COVID-19 were hypertension (21.1%) and diabetes (9.7 %), followed by
cardiovascular disease (8.4%) and respiratory system disease (1.5%). Similarly,
Yang et al’s “Clinical course and outcomes of
critically ill patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia in Wuhan, China: a single-centered,
retrospective, observational study” showed
that among 32 non-survivors from a group of 52 intensive care patients, the
most distinctive pre-existing non-communicable comorbidities were
cerebrovascular diseases (22%) and diabetes (22%). The full report is accessible here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2213260020300795?via%3Dihub Severity of disease among patients with COVID-19
also has an association with NCD comorbidities. In a study of 1,099 confirmed cases
from 30 provinces in China, Guan et al report that compared with patients with
non-severe symptoms, the 173 patients with severe disease had a higher
prevalence of hypertension (13.4% vs 23.75%), diabetes (5.7% vs 16.2%), cardiovascular
disease (1.8% vs 5.8%), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (0.6% vs 3.5%)
and cerebrovascular disease (1.2% vs 2.3%). Guan et al’s article “Clinical
Characteristics of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in China” can be accessed here: https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMoa2002032. There is
emerging evidence that overweight and obesity alone impact negatively on the
severity of disease and hospital outcomes for people infected with COVID-19. In their article “Covid-19 in
Critically Ill Patients in the Seattle Region-Case Series” Bhatraju et al identified
patients from nine hospitals near Seattle, USA, who were admitted to intensive
care units with confirmed infection. Of 24 patients, with an average age of 64
years, only three patients were of
normal body mass index (BMI), seven were overweight, and 13 were obese.
Although the sample size is too small for meaningful statistical analyses, 85%
of the patients with obesity required mechanical ventilation and 62% of the
patients with obesity died. Mortality was much lover in patients without
obesity, 64% of whom required mechanical ventilation and 36% who died. The full
article can be accessed here: https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMoa2004500 Larger sets of data from in Shenzhen, China, and New York City, USA better
substantiate rising concerns over the poor outcomes of COVID-19 infection in
overweight and obese people. Qingxian et al. in their pre-print (an early
manuscript that has not been fully peer reviewed yet, for formal publication) Lancet
article “Obesity and COVID-19 severity in a designated hospital in Shenzhen,
China” accessible at: https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3556658, report more
statistically sound differences in disease course related to BMI among 383
patients.
Compared with patients of normal weight, overweight patients had an 86% higher
risk of developing severe pneumonia, and the risk of those that were obese with
142% higher. Among the 4,103 patients reported in Petrilli et al’s “Factors associated with hospitalization and critical
illness among 4,103 patients with COVID-19 disease in New York City”, high-level
obesity (with a BMI over 40) was the second strongest independent predictor of
hospitalization, after old age. The full British Medical Journal preprint
article can be accessed here: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.04.08.20057794 Although findings on the risks of COVID-19
infection among people with obesity and NCDs remain to be more substantially
supported by research, there are indicators that these avoidable conditions
predict more negative health outcomes. This further emphasises the importance
of addressing the trend of rising NCDs in low- and middle-come countries, with
nascent and fragile health systems.
Contact Kate Molesworth, Swiss TPH
kate.molesworth@swisstph.ch
| 30/04/2020 08:32 | | | Leave No One Behind, Inequalities and Social Protection in times of the Coronavirus COVID-19 | | 21/04/2020 21:32 | | | Economic impacts of COVID-19 | | 20/04/2020 11:54 | | | COVID-19 and Food Systems | COVID-19 and Food Systems
The
COVID-19 outbreak poses huge challenges for the global community.
While governments are currently focusing on health related responses,
this crisis will have big impacts on all areas of society. Please
have a look at the analysis made by the SDC Food Security and
Agriculture Network: a special page on COVID and food systems is looking
at the impacts, the challenges and the main actions required at in
developing countries. Read more >> | 14/04/2020 13:28 | | | Covid-19: in search for a vaccine | Covid-19: in search for a vaccine
About 35 companies and academic institutions are racing to develop a coronavirus vaccine. Moreover, new technologies combined with international cooperation are enabling faster responses to new disease outbreaks, shaving several years from traditional vaccine development timelines. A vaccine could be ready in 12 to 18 months.
| 09/04/2020 10:05 | | | Covid & mental health: how to deal with self-isolation? | | 06/04/2020 09:51 | | | Social distancing puts space between people | | 02/04/2020 15:51 | | | COVID-19: Too little too late? What next? | COVID-19: Too little too late? What next? WHO's website today (12 March, 2020) states that almost 125,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported from 118 countries. Furthermore, over the last two weeks the number of cases reported to WHO from outside China has increased almost 13-fold with a tripling in the number of countries with confirmed infections. Dr Tedros stated that in spite of WHO's repeated warnings, some countries are still not approaching the COVID-19 threat with an adequate level of political commitment to control it. He stated that commitment is needed to implement essential public health measures to avoid exacerbating the pandemic, which will place a greater burden on health systems that will require further austere measures to control. In terms of action, he called for nations to strike a fine balance between protecting health, preventing economic and social disruption, and respecting human rights, through a four-pronged strategy, encompassing: - Preparedness, especially in countries with zero, or a low number of cases;
- Detection to support prevention of transmission and early treatment;
- Reduction and suppression by isolating identified cases and quarantining their close contacts;
- Innovation and improvement of knowledge on this novel virus, together with sharing lessons learned.
The Director General's full opening remarks made yesterday at the Mission Briefing on COVID-19 can be accessed here: https://www.who.int/dg/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-opening-remarks-at-the-mission-briefing-on-covid-19---12-march-2020. The current Lancet Editorial "Too little too late?" (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30522-5/fulltext) comments on gap between the shock of European leaders at the extreme and rapidly unfolding impact of the COVID-19 outbreak in northern Italy with their lack of decisive action. As the window for global containment closes, health ministers are scrambling to implement measures to delay transmission after slow and inadequate measures to contain the epidemic. This is in contrast to the findings set out in the Report of the WHO-China Joint Mission on COVID-19 (https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/who-china-joint-mission-on-covid-19-final-report.pdf) which calls China's vigorous public health measures the most "ambitious, agile and aggressive disease containment effort in history". Although there have been severe effects on the nation's economy, China appears to have avoided a substantial number of cases and fatalities. In its report on the joint mission, WHO recommends that countries immediately activate the highest level of national response management protocols to ensure that the "all-of-government" and "all-of-society" approaches are taken to contain viral transmission. China's successful approach is considered to be the result of strong leadership in mobilising responses to the threats posed by the virus, combined with the compliance of the Chinese people with stringent public health policy. While there is a time lag in research on COVID-19, the current edition of the Lancet examines China's control measures during mass population movements for the holiday at the Lunar New Year and crystallises some lessons learned. The article by Chan et al, that can be accessed here https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2820%2930421-9, dissects government controls at the early stages of the pandemic, when five million people left Wuhan, the city at the epicentre of the epidemic, before the start of the travel ban imposed on Jan 23, 2020. The article takes the position that government policies enacted during the Chinese Lunar New Year holiday are likely to have contributed to reducing transmission by decreasing interpersonal contact and increasing physical distance between infected and non-infected individuals. Successful elements of government social distancing policies are regarded to include: encouragement of people staying at home; discouragement of mass gatherings; cancellation or postponement of large public events; closure of schools, universities, government offices, factories and public spaces such as libraries and museums. Furthermore, the temporary closures that are regarded to have reduced transmission from infected, but non-symptomatic individuals, took place within the cultural frame of an extended New Year holiday. Aligned with these social distancing measures, the government closed all cross-province bus routes and only limited segments of urban public transport systems remained operational. As a result of these policies in concert with public information and education campaigns, Chinese citizens complied in taking action to protect themselves by staying at home as far as possible, limiting social contacts, and wearing protective masks supplied through social marketing when they needed to move in public. It only remains for other governments to take up the lessons learned China's experience before the window of opportunity is fully closed.
Contact: Kate Molesworth, Swiss TPH
kate.molesworth@swisstph.ch | 12/03/2020 16:26 |
|