G20 Health Ministers Issue Detailed Declaration On Global Health Goals

22/10/2019 Elaine Ruth Fletcher

A G20 Health Ministers Declaration, issued after a two-day meeting of ministers in Okayama Japan, has endorsed rapid achievement of universal health coverage, a more effective support of healthy ageing, increased attention to health emergencies and their underlying causes such as poverty and weak health systems, and more forceful action on antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The […] Continue reading ->

Ebola Public Health Emergency Still In Force, Despite Decline In Cases

18/10/2019 Grace Ren & Elaine Ruth Fletcher

The World Health Organization is not yet ready to declare that the Ebola public health emergency in the Democratic Republic of Congo is over – despite significant recent declines in the pace of new infections. WHO Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Friday that he did not find it prudent to end the “Public […] Continue reading ->

We’re Learning More About Gaps In Epidemic Preparedness; Now We Must Act Rapidly To Close Them

18/10/2019 Amanda McClelland and Stella Chungong

In August, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) passed a milestone—surpassing 3,000 cases of Ebola since the outbreak began over a year ago. While the number of new infections has since slowed, there continue to be cases in hard to reach areas, posing challenges to response teams. The outbreak response has been complex, with […] Continue reading ->

Climate Change And Unsustainable Development Can Increase Risk Of Ebola Outbreaks

16/10/2019 Editorial team

The risk of future Ebola outbreaks could be greatly reduced by more aggressive climate mitigation measures along with rapid progress on the Sustainable Development Goals, according to a new paper published in Nature Communications. Led by researchers at University College London, the article is the first study to examine the potential effects of global warming […] Continue reading ->

1000th Ebola Survivor Returns Home As Operational & Security Challenges Hinder Response

04/10/2019 Grace Ren

The 1000th Ebola survivor of the current outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has just celebrated her return home. “Today, amid our unrelenting work to end this tenth outbreak of Ebola virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, we celebrate a bright spot, which is actually 1000 bright spots – […] Continue reading ->

Malta Looks For European Action On Medicines Price Transparency

02/10/2019 Elaine Ruth Fletcher

Bad Hofgastein, Austria – Malta is working with Italy and 8 other European countries to lay the groundwork for a formal European Union framework in which members could voluntarily share information about medicines prices, in order to advance more coherent pricing policies in regional markets, Malta’s Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister said on Wednesday. […] Continue reading ->

Antimicrobial Resistance Rising Fast In Livestock of Developing World

27/09/2019 Grace Ren

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is emerging fast in livestock in the developing world, with northeast India and northern China among the most worrisome “hotspots”, says a first-ever study mapping AMR in low and middle-income countries, published this week in Science. Parts of Turkey, Kenya, Brazil, Egypt, Vietnam and South Africa were also noted as areas of high […] Continue reading ->

Ebola On Decline; Vigilance Still Needed, Says WHO Director General

25/09/2019 Grace Ren & Elaine Ruth Fletcher

NEW YORK CITY – The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo appears to be finally “on the decline”, World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters Wednesday. Dr Tedros spoke after a meeting at UN Headquarters with new DRC Minister of Health Etembi Longodo and Alex Azar, US Secretary of Health […] Continue reading ->

Civil Society Takes Charge On Climate Action As Governments Waver

21/09/2019 Elaine Ruth Fletcher

NEW YORK CITY – Youth leaders from around the world clamored for more action on climate change Saturday at a first-ever United Nation’s Youth Climate Summit – even as the actual government commitments lined up for Monday’s formal meeting with heads of state appeared likely fall far short of making the dramatic changes that scientists […] Continue reading ->

New International President Takes Reins of MSF

16/09/2019 Editorial team

Trauma surgeon and veteran field worker, Christos Christou, has taken over the Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reins as International President, following his election by the organization’s International General Assembly last June. Christou, former president of the MSF Greece Board of Directors, will be faced with the leadership challenges of an organization that has grown from […] Continue reading ->