This email provides a weekly summary of collected resources that are relevant to BHC's activities. BHC is currently engaged in four cities: Da Nang, Vietnam; Indore, India; Kathmandu, Nepal; and Makassar, Indonesia.
The full content can be found at the individual links below or upon request. If there are resources you would like to share with the BHC team, please send them to Lauren Azmon at lauren_azmon@jsi.com.
New Resource Bin Content
Title: Tracking SARS-CoV-2 variants Source: WHO Publication Date: 31 May 2021 Summary and content relevant to BHC:
The established nomenclature systems for naming and tracking SARS-CoV-2 genetic lineages by GISAID, Nextstrain and Pango are currently and will remain in use by scientists and in scientific research. To assist with public discussions of variants, WHO convened a group of scientists from the WHO Virus Evolution Working Group, the WHO COVID-19 reference laboratory network, representatives from GISAID, Nextstrain, Pango and additional experts in virological, microbial nomenclature and communication from several countries and agencies to consider easy-to-pronounce and non-stigmatising labels for VOI and VOC. At the present time, this expert group convened by WHO has recommended using labeled using letters of the Greek Alphabet, i.e., Alpha, Beta, Gamma, which will be easier and more practical to discussed by non-scientific audiences.
Title: Spatial, temporal, and demographic patterns in prevalence of smoking tobacco use and attributable disease burden in 204 countries and territories, 1990–2019: a systematic analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 Source: The Lancet Author: GBD 2019 Tobacco Collaborators Publication Date: 27 May, 2021 Summary and content relevant to BHC:
Smoking prevalence has fallen in the last 4 decades—but the number of smokers worldwide has increased to 1.1 billion, propelled by population growth, according to a new Lancet article. Some of the big takeaways are: 1) Current smokers consumed 7.41 trillion “cigarette-equivalents” of tobacco in 2019. 2)Smoking prevalence dropped 27.5% among males and 37.7% among females from 1990–2019. 3)There were 7.69 million smoking deaths in 2019 (from ischemic heart disease, COPD, cancers, and stroke). 4) 1 in 3 tobacco smokers live in China. Countries have a clear and urgent opportunity to pass strong, evidence-based policies to accelerate reductions in the prevalence of smoking and reap massive health benefits for their citizens.
Title: Menstrual Hygiene Day: WASH's role in menstrual hygiene management Source: Devex Author: Rebecca Root Publication Date: 28 May 2021 Summary and content relevant to BHC:
The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a spotlight on the fact that billions of people lack access to clean drinking water and sanitation services — critical to prevent and contain diseases. This article is part of a series that explores the many ways in which water, sanitation and hygiene efforts intersect with other development challenges, specifically in low- and middle-income countries. Advocates say the WASH sector plays a critical role in ensuring women, girls, and people worldwide can engage in safe and dignified menstruation.
Title: Opinion: We need to curb the rising risk of fake medical products Source: Devex Author: Richard Amalvy, Moustafa Mijiyawa, Greg Perry, Dr. Michel Sidibé Publication Date: 28 May 2021 Summary and content relevant to BHC:
COVID-19 has amplified the need for African countries to invest in the regulation of medicines and medical products. The African Medicines Agency will be an essential instrument in this fight. In 2017, the WHO released a report documenting the 1500 reports of cases of substandard or falsified products they received since 2013. Of these, antimalarials and antibiotics are the most commonly reported. Most of the reports (42%) come from the WHO African Region, 21% from the WHO Region of the Americas, and 21% from the WHO European Region. Only 8% of reports of substandard or falsified products to WHO came from the WHO Western Pacific Region, 6% from the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region, and just 2% from the WHO South-East Asia Region.
BHC is a five-year cooperative agreement funded by the United States Agency for International Development under Agreement No. AID-OAA-A-17-00028, beginning September 30, 2017. BHC is implemented by JSI Research & Training Institute, Inc. (JSI) with partners International Organization for Migration, Thrive Networks Global, and Urban Institute, and with support from Engaging Inquiry, LLC.
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