Politics & Policies
Member governments of the World Health Organization are increasingly talking about how to bring about “fair” pricing of medicines. And what’s clear is that it should not be based on how much you would pay to save your life, a senior WHO official said this week.
“More than 11 million people are alive today thanks to this man’s creation of PEPFAR, the US AIDS program that has been saving lives and preventing new HIV infections for over 10 years, with strong support from political leaders right, left, and center,” the musician captioned a photo of the activists on Instagram. “That progress is all at risk now with President Trump’s budget cuts, which will mean needless infections and lives lost.”
Tom Frieden, head of the CDC from 2009 to 2017, told graduating medical students that we face challenges from pathogens, and from politicians. “Einstein wrote, ‘Striving for social justice is the most valuable thing to do in life.’”
The Trump administration’s budget recommendation may take a “wrecking ball” to foreign aid but the development community needs to seize this opportunity to build a broader constituency, according to the chief executive officer of CARE USA.
Trump would cut the annual global health budget by about 26 percent, or around 2.2 billion in the 2018 fiscal year that begins October 1, decreasing it from about $8.7 billion in the current fiscal year budget to less than $6.5 billion. The program that would be hit hardest would be family planning.
Canada has scored well in a global study to assess how effectively countries use their healthcare systems to avoid preventable deaths, but the country still has plenty of room for improvement.
Applause, cheers, Ethiopian flags, mobile phones held high and a crush of well-wishers greeted Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus Tuesday evening after his election as WHO’s next Director-General.
Programs, Grants & Awards
UGA’s Global Health Institute begins search for Holbrook Endowed Professor in Global Health.
“When it comes to the issues of health, there are no walls dividing impoverished and the wealthy. Illness and disability know no borders. In today’s global environment, disease is no longer confined to one population, but has the potential to impact millions in disparate regions of the world in a very short period of time. That’s why the work of the Old Dominion University Center for Global Health is so vital.”
Research
Inhibition of programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) with atezolizumab can induce durable clinical benefit (DCB) in patients with metastatic urothelial cancers, including complete remissions in patients with chemotherapy refractory disease.
In high-income settings, the prevalence of tobacco use has been shown to be significantly higher in people living with HIV than among HIV-negative individuals of the same age and sex distribution. This at-risk pattern is one of the biggest threats to the number of years of life saved with antiretroviral therapy (ART).
A new study reports the identification and early validation of a drug for treating cryptosporidiosis, a diarrheal disease which is a major cause of childhood mortality in low and middle income countries.
Diseases & Disasters
The Indian health ministry has confirmed its first cases of the Zika virus, the World Health Organization has said, the latest nation to be affected by the mosquito-borne virus that sparked global concern.
A new study led by Colorado State University researchers found that Aedes aegypti, the primary mosquito that carries Zika virus, might also transmit chikungunya and dengue viruses with one bite.
Indian officials who were aware of the country’s first Zika case months ago, failed to alert the public.
With rising number of measles cases, Germany plans to fine parents who do not seek medical advice on vaccinating their children.
A new Ebola vaccine is on its way to the DRC to help fight a recent small outbreak.
Unrefrigerated vaccine and syringe reuse has led to the death of 15 children in South Sudan.
Technology
Alma Sana, an immunization advocacy group has won a share of the $1 million Global Healthcare innovation award for a baby’s bracelet that would be punched every time the child gets vaccinated.
LimbForge, a non-profit organization is training local doctors and humanitarian NGOs in Haiti to create low cost, culturally appropriate prosthetic limbs for using 3D printing technology.
Environmental Health
Kabwe is the world’s most toxic town, according to pollution experts, where mass lead poisoning has almost certainly damaged the brains and other organs of generations of children – and where children continue to be poisoned every day.
Paraguay has made the most progress in providing access to safe water to about 94% of its rural population (up from 51% in 2000).
According to a new WHO report, resource intensive tobacco farming is environmentally costly and its impact include soil degradation and non-biodegradable litter in the form of cigarette butts.
Equity & Disparities
According to a survey conducted by the Human Rights Watch group, people with disabilities and older people are more likely to be caught in the fighting in South Sudan.
The first class of 24 students from 12 countries graduated from the University of Global Health Equity (UGHE) in Kigali (Rwanda) this year.
A new study of the mortality data between 2000 and 2013 after the roll out of universal health coverage in Brazil, reveals greater decreases in mortality rates among blacks and mixed race Brazilians.
An Indian TV soap that tackles domestic violence, acid attacks and abortion of female fetuses has become the most watched TV show with nearly 400 million viewers.
Maternal, Neonatal & Children’s Health
The murder of a 3 year old girl in South Africa has put the spotlight back on the high child and adolescent homicide rates in the country.
UNICEF warns that the number of suspected cholera cases in Yemen might reach up to 130,000 in the next two weeks.
According to a new study that analysed the death rates among twins in sub-Saharan Africa, nearly one in five children born as a twin die before they turn five years old.
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