In 1918, when the notorious Spanish flu started to sweep through the world, there was very little physicians could do to help those infected. A century later, things have radically changed. This is partially due to a network of laboratories in dozens of countries that for the past 70 years have been collaborating to fight […] Continue reading ->
¨Loss and damage´ from climate change gains a formal place on the COP27 agenda, as conference gets underway, while the World Health Organization issues urgent appeal to world leaders to negotiate a treaty to phase out fossil fuels altogether. Sharm el Sheikh – In a historic first, the issue of ¨loss and damage¨ finance for […] Continue reading ->
Gavi, the global vaccine alliance, has undertaken to adapt its approach to procuring vaccines in order to support African vaccine manufacturing. In a plan released on Thursday, Gavi has committed to placing “a higher value on the benefits of diversification to supply security, with a focus on Africa”. The 10-point plan, developed in consultation with […] Continue reading ->
With more cholera outbreaks overstretching the world’s limited vaccine supply, WHO recommends temporarily suspending the standard two-dose regimen to vaccinate more people. Meanwhile, Africa aims to re-energize its COVID-19 vaccine rollout, despite steady decline in public turnout for vaccination. A shortage in the global supply of cholera vaccines has forced the World Health Organization to […] Continue reading ->
BERLIN – Nearly 20 years ago, Ricardo Baptista Leite began his work as a young medical doctor in an infectious disease ward in Portugal – an experience that changed his life. “I met patients who couldn’t make it to the hospital because they couldn’t afford public transportation,” he said. “I diagnosed patients infected with multi […] Continue reading ->
“The bottom line is that our food environment is deeply unhealthy. And unless we change that, millions of people will suffer from avoidable illness and die early from preventable death,” Dr Tom Frieden, CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, told the World Health Summit in Berlin. “Voluntary changes are much less likely to result in […] Continue reading ->
For “Nundy,” a mother of two living in South Africa’s Khayelitsha township, going to the doctor more than once a year is not an option. She would have to pay 50% of her total household income in a month in order to see a doctor, so she saves up all of her medical questions and […] Continue reading ->
BERLIN – If a new treaty that rewrites the global rules for pandemic response is really approved by the World Health Assembly by May 2024, as planned, that will still only be the beginning of the journey. The new international accord will still have to be ratified by a critical mass of WHO´s 194 member […] Continue reading ->
New evidence that exposure to air pollution can potentially contribute to obesity in women has emerged from a study by the University of Michigan “Women in their late 40s and early 50s exposed long-term to air pollution—specifically, higher levels of fine particles, nitrogen dioxide and ozone—saw increases in their body size and composition measures,” said […] Continue reading ->
BERLIN – The first World Health Summit co-sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) started off with a siren call to climate action – literally – as activists disrupted the ceremonial plenary attended by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz by repeatedly setting off fire alarms Outside the posh Hotel Berlin venue, activists plastered the doors with […] Continue reading ->