Global Health Archives

Merchant Of Death: UK Nurse Lucy Letby Murders Seven Babies

August 22, 2023August 22, 2023 Healthtimes

Nurse Lucy Letby has been found guilty of murdering seven babies on a neonatal unit, making her the UK’s most prolific child serial killer in modern times. BBC The 33-year-old has also been convicted of trying to kill six other infants at the Countess of Chester Hospital between June 2015 and June 2016. Letby deliberately injected babies with air, force fed others milk and poisoned two of the infants with insulin. She refused to appear in the dock for the latest verdicts. They have been delivered by the jury over…

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WHO Declares An End To COVID-19 Global Health Emergency

May 5, 2023 Healthtimes

The World Health Organization announced on Friday that it was ending the emergency it declared for Covid-19 more than three years ago, a milestone in the fitful emergence from a pandemic that has killed millions of people around the world and upended daily life in previously unimaginable ways. “It is with great hope that I declare Covid-19 over as a global health emergency,” said the W.H.O. director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. But W.H.O. officials warned that the decision to lift the emergency does not signal an end to the pandemic,…

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Global Partners Announce “The Big Catch-up” Drive To Vaccinate Millions Of Children

April 25, 2023April 25, 2023 Michael Gwarisa

The pandemic saw essential immunization levels decrease in over 100 countries, leading to rising outbreaks of measles, diphtheria, polio and yellow fever. ‘The Big Catch-up’ is an extended effort to lift vaccination levels among children to at least pre-pandemic levels and endeavours to exceed those. Led by a broad range of national and global health partners, The Big Catch-up also aims to ensure stronger primary health care services for essential immunization in the future. WHO, UNICEF, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, along with Immunization…

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WHO releases the largest global collection of health inequality data

April 20, 2023 Healthtimes

Today, WHO is launching the Health Inequality Data Repository, the most comprehensive global collection of publicly available disaggregated data and evidence on population health and its determinants. The repository allows for tracking health inequalities across population groups and over time, by breaking down data according to group characteristics, ranging from education level to ethnicity. The data from the repository show that, in just a decade, the rich-poor gap in health service coverage among women, newborns and children in low- and middle-income countries has nearly halved. They also reveal that, in…

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WHO Predicts A 10 Million Global Shortage Of Healthcare Workers By 2030

April 4, 2023April 4, 2023 Michael Gwarisa

THE Fifth Global Forum on Human Resources for Health which kicked yesterday in Geneva, Switzerland, amplified calls for increased investment towards developing and recruiting more healthcare workers in the face of an impending global human resource catastrophe. By Michael Gwarisa According to World Health Organization (WHO) Director General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, severe disruptions to health systems have led to excess mortality and avoidable deaths in many countries, reversing previous improvements in healthy lives and well-being and the single largest cause of disrupted health services during the pandemic was the…

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1 in 6 people globally affected by infertility: WHO

April 4, 2023 Healthtimes

Large numbers of people are affected by infertility in their lifetime, according to a new report published today by WHO. Around 17.5% of the adult population – roughly 1 in 6 worldwide – experience infertility, showing the urgent need to increase access to affordable, high-quality fertility care for those in need. By Own Correspondent The new estimates show limited variation in the prevalence of infertility between regions. The rates are comparable for high-, middle- and low-income countries, indicating that this is a major health challenge globally. Lifetime prevalence was 17.8% in…

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WHO certifies Azerbaijan and Tajikistan as malaria-free

March 31, 2023 Michael Gwarisa

A total of 42 countries or territories have reached the malaria-free milestone The World Health Organization (WHO) has certified Azerbaijan and Tajikistan for achieving elimination of malaria in their territories. The certification follows a sustained, century-long effort to stamp out the disease by the two countries. “The people and governments of Azerbaijan and Tajikistan have worked long and hard to eliminate malaria,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Their accomplishment is further proof that, with the right resources and political commitment, eliminating malaria is possible. I hope that other…

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Massive efforts needed to reduce salt intake and protect lives

March 14, 2023 Healthtimes

A first-of-its-kind World Health Organization (WHO) Global report on sodium intake reduction shows that the world is off-track to achieve its global target of reducing sodium intake by 30% by 2025. Sodium, an essential nutrient, increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and premature death when eaten in excess. The main source of sodium is table salt (sodium chloride), but it is also contained in other condiments such as sodium glutamate. The report shows that only 5% of WHO Member States are protected by mandatory and comprehensive sodium reduction policies…

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Antimicrobial Resistance To NTDs Medicines On the Increase

January 31, 2023 Michael Gwarisa

THE World Health Organisation (WHO) is currently working on developing alternative or second-line treatments, or combination therapies of existing Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) medicines, following indications that some NTDs were developing resistance to the different antimicrobials used to treat Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), a new report has announced. By Michael Gwarisa The emergence of treatment failure has already been observed in kinetoplastids and in the causative organisms of leprosy among the bacterial NTDs. This development could hamper efforts in countries such as Zimbabwe where Leprosy has resurfaced and has reportedly…

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COVID-19 still a global health emergency, says WHO

January 30, 2023 Healthtimes

The verdict is in: The COVID-19 pandemic is still a global health emergency, the World Health Organization has concluded. But it might not be for much longer. The decision from the WHO — exactly three years after COVID-19 was first declared a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) — comes after a meeting of the COVID-19 emergency committee on January 27. WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus concurred with the committee’s advice that there is a continued risk posed by COVID-19. The news comes as countries increasingly deliberate how…

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