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Panel Calls W.H.O. Unfit to Handle a Crisis Like Ebola

Tue, 2015-07-07 09:00 — Kathy Gilbeaux

nytimes.com - by SOMINI SENGUPTA - July 7, 2015

UNITED NATIONS — More than a year after the Ebola epidemic began tearing through three of the world’s most fragile countries, the World Health Organization remains unfit to handle a public health emergency, an independent panel concluded in a blistering report issued Tuesday.

“W.H.O. does not currently possess the capacity or organizational culture to deliver a full emergency public health response,” the panel said in its report.

While the agency itself has acknowledged the need for change, the panel added, “it will need to be held accountable to ensure that this transformation is achieved.”

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CLICK HERE - WHO - Report of the Ebola Interim Assessment Panel

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Video - The Story of Ebola

Mon, 2015-07-06 18:35 — Kathy Gilbeaux

CLICK HERE - Global Health Media - The Story of Ebola - English

June 26, 2015

This animation—produced in collaboration with International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, UNICEF, and Yoni Goodman—brings to life key messages that help people see and understand how Ebola spreads and how to protect themselves and their communities.

CLICK HERE - About the film:

The story features a young girl whose grandfather dies from Ebola and puts the rest of her family at risk. The film makes visible the invisible Ebola germs to help people see and understand how Ebola spreads and how to protect themselves. Critical messages are woven through the story so that people better understand Ebola, see themselves within the context of an outbreak, and see how to act in ways that can keep themselves safe from the disease and protect their communities.

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Bush Meat Trade Roaring Again Despite Ebola Ban

Sun, 2015-07-05 21:58 — Kathy Gilbeaux

Despite a ban on bush meat, due to the threat of Ebola, Liberians are once again selling it in markets and along the sides of roads. Photo: Issa Davies/IRIN

irinnews.org - by Prince Collins - June 24, 2015

. . . the trade in bush meat, a known source of the Ebola virus, has picked up once again. . . .

. . . Monkeys, antelope, raccoons, rodents, bats, and a variety of other animals native to the forests of Liberia, are once again filling market stalls around the country. . . .

. . . As the official US government advice from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says, “human infections have been associated with hunting, butchering and processing of meat of infected animals.”

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UNICEF Recruits U-Reporters Across Liberia

Sun, 2015-07-05 14:59 — Kathy Gilbeaux

Posted by U-report Liberia on Monday, June 29, 2015

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Cuba ends mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis

Sat, 2015-07-04 11:14 — Maeryn Obley

Image: World health officials congratulate Cuban health leaders on elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

cnn.com - July 1st, 2015 - Jamie Gumbrecht

Cuba is the first country in the world to eliminate mother-to-child HIV transmission, the World Health Organization announced.

Officials said it shows that an end to the AIDS epidemic is possible, and they expect more countries to seek validation from the World Health Organization. The country was also the first to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of syphilis.

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Rural women’s groups in peacebuilding activities

Sat, 2015-07-04 11:10 — Maeryn Obley

Women at a VSLA meeting in Barkedu.

Image: Women at a VSLA meeting in Barkedu.

fao.org - June 25th, 2015

FAO’s integrated approach of reaching Ebola-hit farmers in Liberia’s Lofa County is bearing increased results not only in crop production, VSLA (village savings and loan associations) revitalization and education in Ebola prevention but the help is also uniting women in peacebuilding, palaver management as well as visiting sick members.

The women associations have transcended the normal call of duty to VSLA and business activities among members to also get involved in other “worthy communal undertakings.” They have expanded shared group engagements to include sympathizing with bereaved members and palaver resolution among aggrieved women.

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Three Ways the World’s Power Mix Is About To Change

Sat, 2015-07-04 10:59 — Maeryn Obley

weather.com - June 26th, 2015 - Brian Kahn

Big changes are afoot for the energy sector in the next 25 years. Coal and gas are headed out, and solar and wind are rushing to take their place on a multi-trillion dollar investment bonanza, according to a new report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance. The report scopes out the power generating landscape through 2040.

The main reason for the big shift in power generation isn’t likely to be because of a grand climate agreement, national policies or carbon pricing scheme, though. Instead, it comes down to cold, hard cash, with renewables offering more power-generating bang for the buck than fossil fuels. Here are the three big numbers.

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Liberia Investigating Animal Link After Ebola Re-Emerges

Thu, 2015-07-02 16:44 — Kathy Gilbeaux

reuters.com - By Alphonso Toweh and James Harding Giahyue - July 2, 2015

Liberia confirmed a third Ebola case on Thursday, nearly two months after it was declared Ebola free, and officials said they were investigating whether the disease had managed to lurk in animals before resurfacing.

Dr Moses Massaquoi, case management team leader for Liberia's Ebola task force, said the three villagers who had tested positive for the disease had shared a meal of dog meat, which is commonly eaten in Liberia.

"They come from the same time and have a history of having had dog meat together," he said.

The response team was investigating whether domestic animals might be carrying the virus, he said, referring also to mysterious deaths of hundreds of cattle in remote Lofa county.

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(ALSO SEE RELATED INFORMATION HERE)

AFP - YouTube video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKkuOZCN3Iw

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Study of Ebola Survivors Opens in Liberia

Thu, 2015-07-02 15:00 — Kathy Gilbeaux

Trial to examine long-term health effects of Ebola virus disease

nih.gov - June 17, 2015

The Liberia-U.S. clinical research partnership known as PREVAIL has launched a study of people in Liberia who have survived Ebola virus disease (EVD) within the past two years. The study investigators hope to better understand the long-term health consequences of EVD, determine if survivors develop immunity that will protect them from future Ebola infection, and assess whether previously EVD-infected individuals can transmit infection to close contacts and sexual partners. The study, sponsored by the Ministry of Health of Liberia and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, will take place at various sites in Liberia and is expected to enroll approximately 7,500 people, including 1,500 people of any age who survived EVD and 6,000 of their close contacts.

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