Context Despite important progress in therapy and prevention, HIV and viral hepatitis are still a major health threat in the WHO European Region. In response, the World Health Organization (WHO) has released action plans with specific targets to eliminate and control these diseases, which are being translated…
Context Being prepared for pandemics is one of the most important tasks of public health actors globally. Diseases like Lassa fever, Ebola virus disease and other endemic diseases in West Africa have highlighted the crucial importance of a good understanding of the One Health concept combined with a people-centred…
Context Health care facilities around the world are increasingly threatened by the spread of health care-associated infections and antibiotic resistance, which greatly endanger the safety of patients and place an additional burden on national health care systems. In Guinea in particular, the health system is challenged by numerous socio-economic…
Context Namibia faces a number of public health challenges that threaten the health security of the country. Public health systems need to be able to respond to various, often simultaneously occurring health threats and emergencies. To function well, a single focal point that coordinates the public health activities of…
Context The production of high-quality evidence is vital for public health protection, as it helps to identify public health threats on a timely basis and inform evidence-based policy-making. However, in order to generate such evidence countries require substantial health research capacities to analyse the burden of disease, identify potential…
Context Vaccinations constitute a powerful public health measure for preventing millions of deaths every year. Effective immunisation programmes are crucial for resilient and sustainable health-care systems and global health security. National Immunization Technical Advisory Groups (NITAGs) provide sustainable, evidence-based, country-specific recommendations to ministries of health to support them in their…
Context Madagascar is facing significant institutional and structural challenges in its public health system, due to limited resources and capacities, contributing to the burden of disease in the country. With the numerous epidemics and pandemics caused by polio, plague and, in recent times, COVID-19, the current infrastructure and workforce are…
Context The emergence of COVID-19 revealed once more the delicate balance of the wildlife-human interface and the threat that zoonoses pose for global health. Early detection and effective risk communication systems can alert public health authorities in time to mitigate potential risks when pathogens jump from animals to humans. In…
Context The One Health approach acknowledges the interdependence and systematic linkages between the health of humans, animals and ecosystems and has gained significant recognition in recent years as an approach for tackling issues at the human-animal-environment interface. While evidence on the benefits of applying the One Health approach is accumulating,…