Birth defects registries expanding in Latin America
This article was originally published by PAHO here. Twelve Latin American countries already monitor children who are born with congenital birth defects in order to better understand why and how often they occur, and how the survival and quality of life of these children can be improved. Birth defects are the second leading cause of … Continued
Reinvigorated Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative Helps Promote Exclusive Breastfeeding in Malawi
This article was originally published by Health Policy Plus (HP+) here. The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI), led by WHO and UNICEF, aims to give newborns the best start in life by promoting exclusive breastfeeding from birth to six months. In Malawi, great strides were made after the initiative was first introduced in the country, with … Continued
Vaccines: 2018 immunization coverage estimates
New data from WHO and UNICEF reveals that 20 million children worldwide – more than 1 in 10 – missed out on life-saving vaccines such as measles, diphtheria and tetanus in 2018. Most of these children, over 40 per cent, live in 16 countries that are fragile or affected by conflict. These latest estimates of … Continued
Maldives eliminates mother-to-child transmission of HIV, Syphilis
This article was originally published on WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia’s website here. Maldives has eliminated mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis, joining first few countries in the world to ensure a generation free of these deadly diseases, World Health Organization said today. “This commendable achievement has been made possible by strong political commitment, … Continued
Breastfeeding: Banking on breast milk
This article was originally published on LiveMint here. On 4 April, Shilpa Bharadwaj was admitted to a government hospital in Sanagneri Gate, Jaipur, as soon as she experienced the first twinge of labour pain. Later that day, she delivered a healthy boy. Twelve hours later, she died of complications. Her family, wracked with grief, had … Continued
AMR: Design Tomorrow’s Solutions for Antimicrobial Stewardship
This article originally appeared on the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health website here. Innovate4AMR invites student teams from around the world to design innovative solutions for antimicrobial stewardship in resource-limited, healthcare settings. The global online competition seeks to engage student teams to propose strategies to tackle the underuse, overuse and misuse of antibiotics, … Continued
This JHU team is developing tools to assess newborn health
This news item originally appeared in Technically Baltimore here. A team from Johns Hopkins’ Center for Bioengineering Innovation and Design (CBID) will be among the finalists presenting prototypes in D.C. as part of an event putting a spotlight on the role of hardware in social innovation. The NeMo Asssessment System, which has been in development … Continued
With Help From UNICEF and Partners, Chad Eliminates MNT
Wonderful news for newborns and mothers in Chad, and everyone who cares about them: Maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT) has been declared eliminated in Chad. On behalf of the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Jean-Bosco Ndihokubwayo, WHO Representative in Chad, presented the official certificate of merit to Chad’s Minister of Public Health, Mahamet Aziz Saleh, … Continued
Kenya’s first human milk bank finally ready to save babies’ lives
Had Alice Onyango given birth at another time, things would have been different. She would have had to express milk from her aching engorged breasts – the milk that her preterm baby had no energy to suckle – and pour it down the drain. But the mother of three gave birth last week at Pumwani … Continued
Pneumonia: how the world’s biggest killer of children became a neglected disease
When two-year old Sienna Wilson suddenly developed a fever in the middle of the night the first thing her parents, Kate and David, suspected was malaria. When the doctor arrived in the morning he agreed. He began treating her accordingly. Hours later, unconscious and in a critical condition, Sienna was airlifted to a private hospital … Continued