Sierra Leone becomes 10th country to join global Quality of Care Network

The quality of care network aims to accelerate reductions in maternal and child deaths

FREETOWN, June 13 2018 -  Sierra Leone has become the latest country to join the Global Quality of Care Network, which aims to ensure that every pregnant woman, newborn and child can receive quality healthcare, and to halve maternal and newborn deaths in targeted health facilities within five years.

Yobe declares end of cholera, commends WHO’s leadership and coordination 

Dr Kawuwa declaring end of cholera outbreak in Yobe

Damaturu, 13 June 2018 - With more than 14 days since the last reported case of cholera, Yobe State Ministry of Health has declared  that the outbreak is over on 12 June 2018. The cholera outbreak initially reported in Gashua town of Bade local government area (LGA) with subsequent spread to Karasuwa, Jakusko, Yusufari and Bursari LGAs, abated with a case fatality ratio of 3.7% in 404 cases. 

Scale-up measures to reduce adverse events and increase immunization uptake in Nigeria

Health workers administering vaccine to an eligible child

Abuja, 13 June, 2018 - As the women queue up with their children, a team of health workers noticed that a young mother was hesitant to present her child during the last immunization exercise. As one of the health workers reaches out to administer the vaccine to the child, the mother, visibly shaken, yelled “Look at what you did to my child”, showing a scar from an incision on her son’s arm.  

The Central African Republic prepares for Ebola response

La République centrafricaine se prépare pour barrer la route à Ebola | Photo: WHO/P. Lorgerie
Bangui “The Central African Republic has made a good start in preparing for a possible Ebola outbreak,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), at the end of a short visit to the country. “But we must remain vigilant, and consolidate the work started.”

Zimbabwe launches School Health Policy

Ministers of Health and Child Care and Primary and Secondary Education jointly launch the policy

6 June 2018. Today Zimbabwe launched the School Health Policy as a strategic means to promote positive health determinants while preventing and mitigating health risks among learners.

At one-month mark in Ebola outbreak, the focus shifts to remote areas

At one-month mark in Ebola outbreak, the focus shifts to remote areas
One month into the response to an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the focus has moved from urban areas to some of the most remote places on earth.  The shift comes after a series of unprecedented actions that have led to cautious optimism about the effectiveness of the response.

Adamawa cholera outbreak: Active search for cases in communities avert further spread 

WHO teams in house-to-house search of suspected cases of cholera in Mubi North and South LGAs, Adamawa state
“Initially, I thought it was nothing to worry about until I visited the toilet for the third watery stool this morning,” says Rukayat Mohammed. “Suddenly, I realized that I was I losing strength. As my family was about to prepare some food for me, a team of healthcare workers arrived my household as if someone directed them. They asked if anyone was vomiting or passed two or three watery stools today. Of course, I said yes and before I knew it, an ambulance arrived and conveyed me to a cholera treatment centre at the Mubi General hospital. 

Ebola treatments approved for compassionate use in current outbreak

Ebola treatments approved for compassionate use in current outbreak
On 4 June, an ethics committee in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) approved the use of five investigational therapeutics to treat Ebola, under the framework of compassionate use/expanded access. This is the first time such treatments are available in the midst of an Ebola outbreak.

WHO consults on Uganda's health priorities in reference to WHO's 13th General Program of Work (2019-2023)

WHO Uganda Representative Dr Yonas T Woldemariam presents the 13 GPW to the Ministry Top Management committee

The World Health Organization (WHO) Country Office in Uganda convened a prioritization meeting with the Ministry of Health (MoH) Top Management Committee (TMC) to discuss the alignment of WHO's 13th General Program of Work (GPW) with Uganda's Health Sector Development Plan (HSDP) and other health priorities.  In this special seating, the GPW prioritization agenda was incorporated as part of the special session of the TMC monthly meeting.