speel's blog

CIMA - the Center for International Media Assistance - has posted an interesting report on The Role of Cell Phones in Carrying News and Information.
It is ever more apparent that mobile real-time communication is becoming indispensable and edging out other forms of virtual electronic communication.

http://cima.ned.org/648/cell-phone-report-2.html

Who survives disasters, catastrophes and emergencies?

This lively and engaging book reads well and presents a surprising series of responses about fight or flight, paralysis, and resilience.

See author's site at http://www.amandaripley.com/

Mass privatisation and the post-communist mortality crisis:
a cross-national analysis

David Stuckler, Lawrence King, Martin McKee

A new study shows how the collapse of the Soviet Union led to higher death rates in many former communist countries. The study concludes that the rapid privatization of state-run companies was a major factor behind the surging death rates.

Read more about the study in the medical journal 'The Lancet' at
http://press.thelancet.com/privatisationfinal.pdf

Video: HHS Secretary-designate Daschle travels to community health care discussion

Tuesday, January 13, 2009 10:35am EST
Over the past few weeks, thousands of people in all fifty states have volunteered to participate in health care discussions in their communities. They invited their friends, neighbors and co-workers and met in cafes, living rooms and schools.

Daschle commends the resiliency of communities facing health care breakdowns.

Global Public Health 3.0 needs to be understood and adopted.

Until we all look beyond vertical disease-specific programming, funding will be inadequate and responses will be patchy. Public health groups are all submitting recommendations and requests to the incoming Administration. There is the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the growing TB problem, the Malaria situation to name just a few that are the focus of the article below.

MIT Computer Program Analyzes Environmental Changes, Could
Aid Malaria Prevention Efforts, Researchers Say

Access this story and related links online:
http://www.kaisernetwork.org/daily_reports/rep_index.cfm?DR_ID=56260

A computer program developed at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology could help in malaria prevention efforts by
identifying which environmental changes would be most effective
in controlling the spread of mosquito-borne diseases, VOA News
reports. The program -- based on four years of research in a
mosquito-endemic area of Niger -- compares conventional

New York Times January 9, 2009

Major Flu Strain Found Resistant to Leading Drug, Puzzling Scientists
By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

Virtually all the dominant strain of flu in the United States this season is resistant to the leading antiviral drug Tamiflu, and scientists and health officials are trying to figure out why.

The problem is not yet a public health crisis because this has been a below-average flu season so far, and because the Tamiflu-resistant strain, one of three circulating, is still susceptible to other drugs. But infectious disease specialists are worried nonetheless.