Amid Global Cholera Surge, Gavi Launches New Testing Programme

10/04/2024 Zuzanna Stawiska

A new programme aiming at providing 1.2 million rapid cholera diagnostic tests has been launched in 14 African and Asian countries. “Routine use of diagnostics will bolster cholera surveillance in impacted countries, and must be leveraged to better target vaccination efforts, which play a critical role in multisectoral cholera prevention and control programmes,” said Aurélia […] Continue reading ->

Stigma Prevents Europeans Living with Hepatitis B and C From Telling Families and Getting Care

10/04/2024 Zuzanna Stawiska

Half the people living with hepatitis B or C struggle to tell others about their condition and a quarter had not told their families of their diagnosis, concluded a first-ever European study on the stigma related to the disease. Findings from the multi-country study, conducted by the World Hepatitis Alliance (WHA) and the European Centre […] Continue reading ->

Mike Ryan Announced as New WHO Deputy Director General

09/04/2024 Kerry Cullinan

The new Deputy Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) is Dr Mike Ryan, who will assume the position alongside his current post as the executive director of Health Emergencies, Preparedness and Response. Ryan, who succeeds Zsuzsanna Jakab, who retired in February, assumed the position on 1 April according to an internal staff communique […] Continue reading ->

Deaths from Viral Hepatitis Increase Globally With Limited Access to Diagnostics and Treatment

09/04/2024 Kerry Cullinan

There has been an increase in deaths from hepatitis B and C, the infectious viral liver diseases that kill as many people each year as tuberculosis – yet few people know that they are infected and get the treatment they need. This is according to the World Health Organization (WHO) 2024 Global Hepatitis Report – […] Continue reading ->

Ensuring Ethical AI Implementation: HealthAI Launches Global Community of Practice

09/04/2024 Maayan Hoffman

Artificial Intelligence (AI) can save lives – but “we need to get the regulations right,” according to Dr Ricardo Baptista Leite, CEO of HealthAI, the agency responsible for artificial intelligence in health. To address the urgent need for the robust regulation of AI in the healthcare sector, HealthAI has initiated a worldwide community of practice […] Continue reading ->

Sexual Violence During Conflicts is a ‘Major Challenge for Health Sector’

08/04/2024 Kerry Cullinan

The “weaponization of sexual violence” during conflicts is a major challenge facing the health sector, and it needs the serious attention of the international community, said World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreysus. Tedros broke down while recounting that his own cousins had been raped and his uncle had been killed during […] Continue reading ->

On World Health Day, WHO Director General Decries Gaza Hospital Destruction, Blaming Israel

07/04/2024 Elaine Ruth Fletcher

Speaking out on World Health Day, WHO Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus decried the destruction of Gaza’s Al-Shifa hospital and blamed Israel for the devastation, saying that the “atrocity” of the Hamas attacks on Israeli communities 7 October, did not justify “the horrific ongoing bombardment, seige and health system demolition by Israel in Gaza.” […] Continue reading ->

Mental Health Traumas in Conflict Zones Persist Long After Bombs Have Stopped Falling

07/04/2024 Elaine Ruth Fletcher

Victims of conflict face a double or triple whammy when trying to cope with mental health challenges. Even the most resilient may begin to experience symptoms of anxiety, anger and sleeplessness during wartime that last decades. And those with pre-existing conditions are forced to cope with the acute trauma provoked by experiences of death, destruction […] Continue reading ->

Microplastics Found in Arteries May Be Linked to Heart Attacks and Strokes

05/04/2024 Maayan Hoffman

Doctors and scientists are concerned about the impact of plastics, not only on the environment but on human health – and new research has found a potential link between microplastics and heart attacks and strokes. When plastics enter the environment, humans may inhale or ingest them. Moreover, just as plastics can take centuries to break […] Continue reading ->

Protect, Pay and Promote Women Health Workers

05/04/2024 Tabinda Sarosh & Amina Dorayi

Each woman in the health workforce is powerful, capable of transforming individual lives, communities, and nations when supported in her role. Women health workers deliver care to approximately five billion people, mostly as nurses, midwives, and community health workers. They contribute $3 trillion to global health annually, half in unpaid work. Despite constituting 70% of […] Continue reading ->