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Showing results for tags 'Global health'.
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News Article
Use of antibiotics in farming ‘endangering human immune system’
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The blanket use of antibiotics in farming has led to the emergence of bacteria that are more resistant to the human immune system, scientists have warned. The research suggests that the antimicrobial colistin, which was used for decades as a growth promoter on pig and chicken farms in China, resulted in the emergence of E. coli strains that are more likely to evade our immune system’s first line of defence. Although colistin is now banned as a livestock food additive in China and many other countries, the findings sound an alarm over a new and significant threat posed by the overuse of antibiotic drugs. “This is potentially much more dangerous than resistance to antibiotics,” said Prof Craig MacLean, who led the research at the University of Oxford. “It highlights the danger of indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture. We’ve accidentally ended up compromising our own immune system to get fatter chickens.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 25 April 2023 -
Content ArticleThe Global Taskforce on WASH in healthcare facilities aims to provide global strategic direction and coordination to the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF and to allow for information exchange and dialogue. The latest World Health Organization (WHO) data show that there are major global gaps in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services in health care facilities: half of health care facilities do not have basic hand hygiene services one in five facilities have no water services one in ten have no sanitation services. WHO and UNICEF convened a series of stakeholder ‘think-tanks’ to discuss barriers to progress, coinciding with the launch of the Global Report on WASH in health care facilities. The Global Taskforce on WASH evolved from these think-tanks, and this webpage includes a link to a synthesis of their work in 2022-23. The purpose of the task force is to: encourage and hold accountable national governments to achieve the objectives established by WHA 72/7 and SDG 3 and SDG 6 reinforce calls for strong health leadership (e.g. mobilising political leaders at global events including G7, G20, UNGA) work at country level to increase demand, financing and integration of WASH in health programming and reporting support greater collaboration with other initiatives (e.g. UHC, Child/maternal health, AMR, climate smart health systems, Hand Hygiene for All).
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Content ArticleThis report by the World Health Organization (WHO) identifies major global gaps in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services. It outlines that: one third of health care facilities do not have what is needed to clean hands where care is provided one in four facilities have no water services 10% have no sanitation services. This means that 1.8 billion people use facilities that lack basic water services and 800 million use facilities with no toilets. Across the world’s 47 least-developed countries, the problem is even greater, with half of health care facilities lacking basic water services. In addition, the extent of the problem remains hidden because major gaps in data persist, especially on environmental cleaning. The report describes the global and national responses to the 2019 World Health Assembly resolution on WASH in health care facilities. More than 70% of countries have conducted related situation analyses, 86% have updated and are implementing standards and 60% are working to incrementally improve infrastructure and operation and maintenance of WASH services. Case studies from 30 countries demonstrate that progress is being propelled by strong national leadership and coordination, use of data to direct resources and action, and the mutual benefits of empowering health workers and communities to develop solutions together. The report includes four recommendations to all countries and partners to accelerate investments and improvements in WASH services in health care facilities: Implement costed national roadmaps with appropriate financing. Monitor and regularly review progress in improving WASH services, practices and the enabling environment. Develop capacities of the health workforce to sustain WASH services and promote and practice good hygiene. Integrate WASH into regular health sector planning, budgeting and programming to deliver quality services, including Covid-19 response and recovery efforts.
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Content Article
The Hand Hygiene Acceleration Framework Tool (HHAFT) tracks the process that a government has undergone to develop and implement a plan of action for hand hygiene improvement, and assesses the quality of that plan. It helps identify barriers, opportunities and priority actions for accelerating progress towards hand hygiene and drive investment to these plans. This webpage includes a dashboard that captures data from different countries. Use of this common framework allows for cross-country learning and exchange, and helps direct and coordinate global action. -
Content ArticleThe world is on the cusp of an ominous development: bacteria are building resistance to existing antibiotics faster than new antibiotics are entering the market. An ever-widening cavity is opening up. This 'antibiotic gap', as experts call this development, marks the beginning of a new era in medicine. For the first time in recent history, we have to come to terms with the fact that not all bacterial infections are treatable anymore - with implications for all areas of medicine, from surgery to oncology. The World Health Organization has been using the term "silent pandemic" since the fall of 2021 because, unlike Covid, antibiotic resistance is creeping into our society unnoticed - but it is shaking up our healthcare system just as overarchingly. Silent Pandemic shows how countries, scientists and private initiatives around the world are networking and forming alliances, and what strategies and measures they are using to counter the advance of antibiotic resistance.
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Content ArticleOn Saturday 17 September 2022, the fourth annual World Patient Safety Day took place, established as a day to call for global solidarity and concerted action to improve patient safety. Medication safety was chosen as the focused for World Patient Safety Day 2022 due to the substantial burden of medication-related harm at all levels of care. In this report, the World Health Organization (WHO) provides an overview of activities in the countries that observed World Patient Safety Day 2022 to make this event.
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News Article
Top scientists warn ‘the next pandemic is coming and we’re not ready’
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The UK is not ready for the next global pandemic because public services are being dismantled and key research is being defunded, experts have claimed. More than three years after the global outbreak of coronavirus, top scientists have warned that the UK is no better prepared for a pandemic than it was in 2020. They say another epidemic on the scale of Covid-19 is inevitable, but that disinvestment in infection-monitoring services, dismantling of key infrastructure, and the state of the NHS mean the country is “losing ground”. Sir John Bell, a leading immunologist and a member of the UK’s Covid vaccine taskforce during the pandemic, said it was too easy to dismiss Covid-19 as a “once in a generation crisis”. Writing in The Independent, he warned that it is “a question of when, not if, another pandemic strikes”, adding that the nation needs to adopt an “always on” approach that includes building a more resilient healthcare system, carrying out better surveillance, and identifying future threats. Read full story Source: The Independent, 18 April 2023 -
Content ArticleMinisters, high-level representatives and distinguished experts from all over the world gathered in Montreux on 23 and 24 February 2023 for the 5th Global Ministerial Summit on Patient Safety. They discussed achievements, challenges, priorities and necessary points of action. The summit marked another key milestone for global developments in patient safety. The Ministers and other participants reaffirmed that patient harm in health care is an urgent public health issue, pertinent to countries of all income settings and geographies and therefore a shared global challenge. Patient safety is essential for the achievement of universal health coverage and global health security. Read the Montreux Charter on Patient Safety launched at the Summit.
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Content ArticleThe number of patients who die from post-surgical complications in low- and middle-income countries is shockingly high. In Africa alone, more than 600,000 people die each year after surgery, mostly from causes that are relatively easy to treat. This blog by Pierre Barker, Chief Scientific Officer at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) looks at a method for reducing post-surgical death called the '5Rs for rescue': Risk stratification Recognise deterioration Respond Reassess Reflect/Redesign He describes how the IHI will test how to support the reliable implementation of the '5Rs for Rescue', which aims to reduce mortality by 25%.
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Content ArticleA shortage of nurses across the world, including in countries that provide nurses for international recruitment, has created a global health emergency, according to the latest report from the International Council of Nurses. The report, Recover to Rebuild: Investing in the Nursing Workforce for Health System Effectiveness, lays out the devastating impact that the Covid-19 pandemic has had on nurses around the world. It urges that investment in a well-supported global nursing workforce is needed if health systems around the world are to recover and be rebuilt effectively. It also warned against reliance on the “quick fix” of international recruitment instead of investing in nursing education, as this was contributing to staff shortages even in countries with a long tradition of educating nurses to work in higher income countries. The report, co-authored by the organisation's chief executive, Howard Catton, and nursing workforce policy expert Professor James Buchan, includes the findings of workforce surveys from more than 25 countries, including the UK, as well as other research.
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Content ArticleIn January 2023, Newmarket Strategy and BD, a global medical technology company, were part of a delegation of UK health leaders travelling to the global healthcare conference Arab Health in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The purpose of the visit was to learn more about Connected Medication Management (CMM) and the role it can play in solving some of the most pressing challenges faced by health systems today. Connected Medication Management is a technology-driven approach to medication management that uses digital and automation technologies. It aims to optimise medication use by reducing medication errors to improve patient safety, whilst delivering productivity gains for the NHS. It also frees up nursing and other clinical staff to provide more patient care.
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Content ArticleThe Beryl Institute is seeking feedback on its proposed new global experience measure. The aim is to create a simple, clear experience measure set that ensures global accessibility and applicability, and supports tangible action. This survey aims to help the steering group assess the value and importance of their proposed set of questions. They would like to hear the perspectives of: patient, family members and care partners healthcare/experience leaders The survey should take less than five minutes to complete.
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Event
The Global Patient Experience Event
Patient Safety Learning posted an event in Community Calendar
untilELEVATE PX is a gathering bringing together the voices of the global community committed to transforming the human experience in healthcare. ELEVATE PX is a dynamic, interactive event connecting the community for learning, support and the sharing of ideas to positively impact the experience in healthcare organisations around the world. Hear inspiring patient, family and leadership perspectives. All keynotes will be live-streamed for virtual participants. Further information and registration -
News Article
UK life expectancy growing at slower rate than rest of G7, research shows
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Life expectancy in the UK has grown at a slower rate than comparable countries over the past seven decades, according to researchers, who say this is the result of widening inequality. The UK lags behind all other countries in the group of G7 advanced economies except the US, according to a new analysis of global life expectancy rankings published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. While life expectancy has increased in absolute terms, similar countries have experienced larger increases, they wrote. In the 1950s, the UK had one of the longest life expectancies in the world, ranking seventh globally behind countries such as Denmark, Norway and Sweden, but in 2021 the UK was ranked 29th. The researchers said this was partly due to income inequality, which rose considerably in the UK during and after the 1980s. Prof Martin McKee, of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said: “That rise also saw an increase in the variation in life expectancy between different social groups. One reason why the overall increase in life expectancy has been so sluggish in the UK is that in recent years it has fallen for poorer groups". Read full story Source: The Guardian, 16 March 2023 -
Content ArticleResearchers writing in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine say that while UK life expectancy has increased in absolute terms over recent decades, other, similar countries are experiencing larger increases. In 1952, when Queen Elizabeth II came to the throne, the UK had one of the longest life expectancies in the world, ranking seventh globally behind countries such as Norway, Sweden and Denmark. In 2021 the UK was ranked 29th. The researchers show the rankings of the G7 countries at each decade from 1950 to 2020. The G7 is a collection of countries with advanced economies (UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the U.S.) that represent about half of global economic output.
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Content Article
Patient Safety 5th Global Ministerial Summit 2023
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in WHO
The World Health Organization's 5th Global Ministerial Summit took place on the 23 and 24 February and was an opportunity for experts from across the world to send clear messages to ministers globally, and for ministers to respond with their pledges about what they were going to do to improve patient safety. Watch the opening and read the outcomes and documents from the Summit, -
News Article
More than half of humans on track to be overweight or obese by 2035
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
More than half of the world’s population will be overweight or obese by 2035 unless governments take decisive action to curb the growing epidemic of excess weight, a report has warned. About 2.6 billion people globally – 38% of the world population – are already overweight or obese. But on current trends that is expected to rise to more than 4 billion people (51%) in 12 years’ time, according to research by the World Obesity Federation. Without widespread use of tactics such as taxes and limits on the promotion of unhealthy food, the number of people who are clinically obese will increase from one in seven today to one in four by 2035. If that happens, almost 2 billion people worldwide would be living with obesity. Evidence shows that obesity increases someone’s risk of cancer, heart disease and other diseases. Prof Louise Baur, the federation’s president, said the stark findings were “a clear warning that by failing to address obesity today, we risk serious repercussions in the future. “It is particularly worrying to see obesity rates rising fastest among children and adolescents.” Countries need to take “ambitious and coordinated action” as part of a “robust international response” to tackle the growing health and economic crisis that obesity involves, the federation believes. “Governments and policymakers around the world need to do all they can to avoid passing health, social and economic costs on to the younger generation,” Baur added. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 2 March 2023 -
News Article
Mental health of young adults severely impacted by pandemic
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A new study has found that the pandemic has severely affected people’s mental health and relationships all over the world, particularly for young adults. The third annual mental state of the world report (MSW) commissioned by Sapien Labs, a non-profit research organisation, conducted a global survey to better understand the state of mental health. The research compiled responses from over 400,000 participants across 64 countries, asking respondents about their family relationships, friendships and overall mental wellbeing. The survey found that there has been little recovery in declining mental health during the pandemic, which the group measures by a score called “mental health quotient”. It had found that average score had declined by 33 points – on a 300-point scale – over the past two years and still showed no signs of recovery, remaining at the same level as 2021. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 1 March 2023 -
Content ArticleThis Mental State of the World report from Sapien Labs provides insight into the mental wellbeing of populations around the globe in 2022 across 64 countries in the Core Anglosphere, continental Europe, Latin America, the Arab world, South and South East Asia and Africa based on responses to the Mental Health Quotient (MHQ) assessment in English, Spanish, French, Arabic, Portuguese (European and Brazilian), German, Swahili and Hindi. The assessment provides an aggregate metric of mental wellbeing (the MHQ) as well as multiple dimensional views.
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Content ArticleIn this blog, TranspariMED Founder Till Bruckner reviews The Truth Pill: The Myth of Drug Regulation in India, a new book that looks at problems with the medications regulatory system in India. The book's authors, Dinesh S. Thakur and Prashant Reddy T, draw on in-depth legal and regulatory analyses, numerous case studies and responses to hundreds of Freedom of Information requests to document glaring gaps in India’s legal framework and severe shortcomings in regulatory oversight and enforcement.
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News Article
‘Alarming setbacks’ in mortality rates among pregnant women, research shows
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Progress to cut the number of women dying in pregnancy or childbirth has stalled or even reversed in recent years, with a death recorded every two minutes, the United Nations has said. Years of gains had begun to plateau even before the pandemic and there had been “alarming setbacks for women’s health,” according to a new report from several UN agencies, including the World Health Organization (WHO). Maternal mortality rates had fallen widely in the first 15 years of the century, but since 2016, they had only dropped in two UN regions: Australia and New Zealand, and in Central and Southern Asia. The rate went up in Europe and North America by 17% and in Latin America and the Caribbean by 15%. Elsewhere it stagnated. Read full story (paywalled) Source: The Telegraph, 23 February 2023 -
Content Article
Every day in 2020, approximately 800 women died from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth - meaning that a woman dies around every two minutes. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.1 is to reduce maternal mortality to less than 70 maternal deaths per 100 000 live births by 2030. This report presents internationally comparable global, regional and country-level estimates and trends for maternal mortality between 2000 and 2020. -
Content Article
WHO: Introducing the Patient Safety Friendly Hospital Initiative
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in WHO
The Patient Safety Friendly Hospital Initiative (PSFHI) aims to address the burden of unsafe care in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. It helps institutions in countries of the Region to launch comprehensive patient safety programmes, with assistance from the World Health Organization (WHO). -
Content ArticleAgainst the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic, ensuring the safety of health and social care services remains a serious, ongoing challenge. This report examines how patient safety governance mechanisms in Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) countries have withstood the test of Covid-19. It provides recommendations for further improving patient safety governance and strengthening health system resilience in OECD countries. This working paper was produced by the OECD for the 5th Global Ministerial Summit on Patient Safety, held in Montreux, Switzerland in February 2023.
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News ArticleAbout 2 million people die a year as a result of a core group of fungi, and the WHO is concerned we are unprepared for the future. In October, the World Health Organization released its fungal priority pathogens list, the first global effort to create a mycological “most wanted” list of the 19 fungi most dangerous to humans . “Despite posing a growing threat to human health, fungal infections receive very little attention and resources globally,” the report said. “This all makes it impossible to estimate the exact burden of fungal infections, and consequently difficult to galvanise policy and programmatic action.” Fungi are the most populous life form on the planet, with an estimated 12 million species existing worldwide. Only a fraction of these species infect humans, but they are responsible for roughly a billion infections each year. “Most of those are superficial things like athlete’s foot, that no one’s particularly bothered about, but there is a core group that causes life-threatening infections, and particularly in susceptible populations such as the very old or young, and those with immune systems that don’t work properly,” says Mark Ramsdale, an associate professor of mycology at the MRC Centre for Medical Mycology in Exeter. About 1.5 million people die a year as a result of these infections, says Ramsdale – although that may be an underestimation, because fungi predominantly infect people who already have major health problems. “The primary cause of death will probably be leukaemia or heart transplant, or whatever,” he says. “But the thing that actually kills the patient is a fungal infection, so there is a strong element of underreporting going on.” Underestimating them would be a mistake. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 10 February 2023
