Global Health

Yemenis at a cholera treatment centre in the capital, Sana’a. Photograph: Mohammed Huwais/AFP/Getty Images

CLICK HERE - reliefweb - 1,000 children infected every day as Yemen cholera outbreak spikes

theguardian.com - by Karen McVeigh - March 26, 2019

Yemen is seeing a sharp spike in the number of suspected cholera cases this year, with 1,000 children a day infected in the last two weeks alone, agencies said.

More than 120,000 cases have been reported, with 234 deaths in the country, which has been at war for four years this month. Almost a third of the 124,493 cases documented between 1 January and 22 March were children under fifteen. Increasing rates of malnutrition among Yemen’s children have left them more prone to contracting and dying from the disease.

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

                                                           (CLICK ON IMAGE BELOW TO ENLARGE)

thelancet.com - March 16, 2019

The content of a reform for WHO came as somewhat of a surprise to many in the global health community. After Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in his inaugural speech, said “I do not believe in perpetual reform and I think WHO staff are reformed out”, WHO's Director-General unveiled the result of a 20-month-long consultation for reform. Aimed to be “the most wide-ranging reforms in the organisation's history”, according to the accompanying press release, this reform is a substantial top-heavy redesign of the internal structure of the WHO Secretariat.

Trolls used the vaccination debate to try to sow discord during the US election, researchers say. Photograph: Buenaventuramariano/Getty Images/iStockphoto

CLICK HERE - RESEARCH REPORT - American Public Health Association - Weaponized Health Communication: Twitter Bots and Russian Trolls Amplify the Vaccine Debate

newsweek.com - by Christina Maza - February 14, 2019

Russian propaganda may be responsible for the persistence of measles as conspiracy theories about vaccinations spread across the Internet, according to researchers.

The same Russian trolls who attempted to provoke racial tensions and influence the outcome of the 2016 presidential election were also responsible for spreading propaganda against vaccinations. Their efforts may have helped cause the measles outbreak that infected tens of thousands and killed dozens in Europe last year, researchers told Radio Free Europe.

who.int

The world is facing multiple health challenges. These range from outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases like measles and diphtheria, increasing reports of drug-resistant pathogens, growing rates of obesity and physical inactivity to the  health impacts of environmental pollution and climate change and multiple humanitarian crises.   

To address these and other threats, 2019 sees the start of the World Health Organization’s new 5-year strategic plan – the 13th General Programme of Work. This plan focuses on a triple billion target:  ensuring 1 billion more people benefit from access to universal health coverage, 1 billion more people are protected from health emergencies and 1 billion more people enjoy better health and well-being. Reaching this goal will require addressing the threats to health from a variety of angles. 

Here are 10 of the many issues that will demand attention from WHO and health partners in 2019.

1.  Air pollution and climate change

2.  Noncommunicable diseases

3.  Global influenza pandemic

4.  Fragile and vulnerable settings

5.  Antimicrobial resistance

6.  Ebola and other high-threat pathogens