WHO & Regionals [to 11 April 2015]
:: WHO responds to urgent health needs in Yemen
April 2015 — WHO is responding to increasing shortages in medicines and medical supplies in Yemen as a result of the ongoing conflict. Health facilities in affected governorates are reporting critical shortages in trauma and surgical medicines and supplies for the treatment of injured patients, and shortages are also reported in medicines for chronic diseases.

:: Building a global emergency workforce ready to go
8 April 2015 — WHO’s new registration system will help build a global roster of foreign medical response teams ready to deploy for emergencies. The Global Foreign Medical Teams Registry sets minimum standards for international health workers and allows teams to clearly outline their services and skills. This new system helped ensure a fast and efficient international response to the cyclone in Vanuatu and help create better coordination between aid providers and recipients.
More on the Global Foreign Medical Teams Registry

:: Guidance for immunization programmes in the African Region in the context of Ebola
WHO information note
Publication date: updated 30 March 2015 Number of pages: 3 Languages: English
WHO reference number: WHO/IVB/14.08.rev2
Overview
The specific purpose of this document is to assist countries to:
– Maintain and/or restart immunization services.
– Continue to disseminate educational and social mobilization messages and contribute to Ebola surveillance.
– Provide guidance on infection prevention and control during vaccination.
As the situation evolves, this guidance will be revised if necessary.

:: WHO – Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on Immunization
The next SAGE meeting will take place in Geneva from 14 – 16 April 2015.
Draft agenda (as of 8 April 2015) pdf, 345kb

:: The Weekly Epidemiological Record (WER) 10 April 2015, vol. 90, 15 (pp. 149–160) includes:
– Progress towards measles elimination, Philippines, 1998–2014

:: Global Alert and Response (GAR) – Disease Outbreak News (DONs)
– 9 April 2015 – Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) – Saudi Arabia

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:: WHO Regional Offices
WHO African Region AFRO
:: Dr Moeti: Strong health systems critical in addressing health threats in the African Region
Brazzaville, 8 April 2015 – The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti has called on the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Republic of Congo to advocate with their national governments to strengthen health systems to be able to address the health challenges facing the African Region. She briefed the diplomats about the on-going Ebola epidemic in West Africa, current and emerging health threats in the WHO African Region, progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and the strategic priorities for WHO’s work in the Region for 2015-2020…

WHO Region of the Americas PAHO
:: Caesarean sections should only be performed when medically necessary (04/10/2015)
:: Peruvian chef Gastón Acurio joins PAHO/WHO campaign to prevent foodborne diseases (04/07/2015)
:: Unsafe foods cause over 200 illnesses (04/06/2015)

WHO South-East Asia Region SEARO
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WHO European Region EURO
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WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region EMRO
:: Sudan receives 2 million doses of measles vaccines in response to the outbreak  8 April 2015
:: WHO deplores deaths of health care workers in Yemen  6 April 2015
:: Lack of funding and vaccines challenges measles outbreak response in Sudan  6 April 2015

WHO Western Pacific Region
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