A real-time COVID-19 data dashboard, celebrities and athletes sharing information about COVID-19 and vaccine hesitancy, rapid response task teams and public communications campaigns have formed part of response strategies to help two major cities fight the pandemic. The Partnership for Healthy Cities – supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies, the World Health Organization and Vital Strategies— on […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization (WHO) Europe region sidestepped criticism of Denmark’s decision to permanently stop administering the AstraZeneca vaccine, saying the country’s low population numbers and low COVID-19 positivity rate of under 1% allowed for a lot of room to manoeuvre. Denmark’s low rate of infections gives the country manoeuvring room in terms of their […] Continue reading ->
It is “unacceptable” that millions of people diagnosed with diabetes do not have access to insulin because of financial hardship – 100 years after the lifesaving medication was discovered. World Health Organization Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was speaking at a Global Diabetes Summit that saw the launch of a new Global Diabetes Compact […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization on Wednesday urged governments in the Americas Region to take decisive action to slow a surge of COVID-19 cases after recording more than 1.3 million new cases and 37 000 deaths in just the past week. Describing the new rate of infections as “worrisome”, Carissa Etienne, director of the WHO’s regional […] Continue reading ->
The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is safe and protective in children as young as 12 with no serious side effects in adolescents who received the vaccination, the company said on Wednesday. Interim results of a recent clinical trial of some 2,260 adolescents ages 12-15 years old was published by the pharma company – although it has […] Continue reading ->
Germany has suspended the use of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine for people under the age of 60 amidst fresh concerns of unusual blood clot cases among some people receiving the vaccine, particularly women, and leading to the deaths of nine people in all. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Health Minister Jens Spahn made the announcement […] Continue reading ->
A first-ever clinical trial of a new, all-oral, treatment regime for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) has stopped enrolling patients after initial data provided positive results that the new treatment could potentially save thousands of lives, as well as improving peoples’ quality of life. Findings of the TB-PRACTECAL, Phase II/III clinical trial sponsored by Médecins Sans Frontières […] Continue reading ->
Syria needs $US 78-million to vaccinate 20% of its population against COVID-19 by the end of this year, and its pandemic response is being challenged by a worsening humanitarian crises in the country, including continued attacks on health care facilities. This is according to Akjemal Magtymova, the World Health Organisation (WHO) Representative in Syria, who […] Continue reading ->
JOHANNESBURG –The death of Tanzanian President and COVID-19 skeptic John Magufuli has drawn decidedly mixed emotions – as tributes poured in from both average Tanzanians, as well as other African heads of state and world leaders. But Tanzanian opposition forces said that the president’s mysterious death was a chance for a reboot on both Tanzania’s […] Continue reading ->
African governments, the private sector, and development partners need to invest more in health and health systems to intensify the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and any future disease outbreaks, according to health experts speaking at the African Health Agenda International Conference (AHAIC) on Tuesday. The experts agreed that a comprehensive, multi-sectoral approach is needed […] Continue reading ->