There has been a massive rise in diarrhoea, respiratory infections and skin conditions and in Gaza since Israel’s siege and bombing of the territory began in early October, disrupting supplies of clean water, sanitation, food, fuel and leaving thousands homeless. Since mid-October, over 33,551 cases of diarrhoea have been reported in the area, over half […] Continue reading ->
An effective pandemic agreement will need to include “accountability mechanisms” to ensure that countries implement the terms – and these will need to be independently monitored, according to new research published in BMJ. “Accountability mechanisms are used through a variety of methods across global treaties and governance mechanisms to varying degrees of effectiveness,” argue the […] Continue reading ->
  Heat is the deadliest of extreme weather events, and heat-related mortality could be 30 times higher than previously thought, killing 500,000 people annually between 2000 and 2019. Yet only half the world’s governments have heat warning services, less than a quarter (23%) of health ministries use meteorological information to monitor climate-sensitive health risks, and […] Continue reading ->
The world may soon have a new antibiotic to treat gonorrhoea after a successful phase 3 trial of an oral pill, zoliflodacin, that was led and sponsored by a non-profit organisation. The results were announced late Wednesday by the Global Antibiotic Research and Development Partnership (GARDP), which conducted the trial in collaboration with Innoviva Specialty […] Continue reading ->
 The world’s preparedness for the next pandemic is “perilously fragile”, with gaps that “leave us dangerously exposed to a future threat”, according to the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board (GPMB) in its 2023 annual report released on Monday. “We lack the solid foundations needed to ensure current efforts for preparedness can be brought together to build […] Continue reading ->