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WHO follows up the health consequences in the Region
In light of current events in the Region, and the implications of the reactions of some governments to the popular movements aimed at securing basic human rights, first and foremost the right to health and protection, WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean once again emphasizes the importance of taking urgent measures to stop the escalation of violence against civilians and to facilitate immediate humanitarian relief in all the areas of tension.
Based on its professional and ethical responsibility, WHO calls on all Member States to cooperate in confronting the exceptional circumstances that some countries of the Region are passing through, and to overcome the challenges faced by the people, through solidarity which involves all civil society institutions, in order to provide security, protection and health care, and to form national rescue teams to accompany the political effort which it is hoped will stop the violence and provide stability with respect for rights and freedoms and ensure the safety of citizens. The Emergency and Humanitarian Action unit of the Regional Office has been charged with the responsibility of coordinating efforts in the above respect.
WHO, represented by its Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, renews its readiness to provide all necessary medical aid and relief to civilian victims, in cooperation with humanitarian organizations, in countries of the Region whose medical care facilities have been affected. This includes ambulance services and mobile medical teams, in cooperation with national entities that are able to reach the field.
WHO takes this opportunity to commend the role played by Egypt in alleviating the consequences of the current situation on the borders and the role of the Egyptian army in establishing a field hospital on the Egyptian/Libyan border to provide emergency relief to the victims of violence. It further commends the role of the Ministries of Health in Egypt and Tunisia and the Red Crescent Societies, reiterating its willingness to provide all possible support to these humanitarian initiatives.
In the context of its responsibilities in the field of health work and humanitarian relief, and in referring to recorded deaths and injuries in a number of countries in the Region, particularly in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, which significantly exceeds the rates that would normally be expected rates in such circumstances, in addition to the destruction of health care facilities in the country, WHO calls on Ministries of Health in the Region to assume their responsibilities, and the faith entrusted in them, out of respect for treaties and international charters and resolutions of the World Health Organization on the protection of civilians, and protecting health facilities and personnel, and to provide aid to all victims equally, regardless of political affiliation and religion. The Organization calls on Member States to exercise self-restraint in dealing with these events, and not to overstep the bounds in the use of violence as this constitutes a threat and violates internationally agreed upon human rights, and first and foremost the right to life and the right to health.
WHO provides urgent health and relief supplies to Libyans
The World Health Organization, through its Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, continues its efforts to provide humanitarian relief and health support to people affected by the current intensifying events in a number of countries of the Region, especially the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya.
WHO reiterates the importance of urgent action to contain the catastrophic situation in most of the Libyan cities, and to avoid the emergence of potential pandemics due to the severe lack of food items and clean drinking-water, in addition to the setback in routine immunization services against the killer childhood diseases in the tense areas. WHO warns that the nutritional and health situation may jeopardize the country’s health security. Violence against protesters threatens their fundamental right to life.
The Regional Office has taken major steps to ensure the provision of essential medicines and basic medical requirements to the affected areas through a humanitarian corridor. Currently a WHO field team is coordinating relief action in collaboration with health development partners in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and on the border areas.
In this regard, a preliminary assessment of the health situation in five Libyan cities has been made in collaboration with other health partners. It covered the availability of health workers, and the health care facilities that can provide routine and first aid services. The assessment demonstrated an urgent need for medical teams of different specialties, including bone surgery, eye surgery and cardiac surgery, in addition to anaesthesia specialists and radiologists. This is attributed mainly to the departure of expatriate physicians who left the country because of the current events. The assessment also showed that the structure of the two main hospitals in Benghazi and Al-Bayda’, like other health facilities in other cities, suffered damage.
WHO, in collaboration with the Arab Medical Union, continues to provide medical assistance. Around 100 physicians from different specialties are currently working to compensate the shortage in health services, and to provide care for the injured and to patients affected by the lack of health services.
WHO urges all Member States and other concerned parties to take part in providing the essential requirements to immediately equip and operationalize the medical teams in order to guarantee the availability of preventive and medical care in the Libyan cities which are passing through these difficult circumstances. Partners can contact the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean which has established a list of priorities.
WHO is also working through its offices in Egypt, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and Tunisia and in collaboration with other humanitarian organizations to assess the situation and needs inside the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and on the border areas, and provide health care for nationals of these and other countries who have had to leave. WHO confirms its readiness to provide humanitarian and health supplies to the Libyans affected by the events. In this regard, it calls upon all governments, civil society and individuals to participate in the relief efforts to support people in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and to work closely with the Regional Office to respond to their calls for assistance and alleviate their suffering.
World Tuberculosis Day 2011
World Tuberculosis Day this year brings up new and more ambitious goals on the fight against tuberculosis. Reaching all tuberculosis patients and providing all of them with care services, achieving zero death for tuberculosis and HIV co-infected patients, providing all people with mutidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) with accurate diagnosis and effective treatment, and setting a new tuberculosis research agenda are the most important goals that draw the map to transform global efforts from fighting to eliminating tuberculosis.
“The Eastern Mediterranean Region has made appreciable progress in expanding tuberculosis care. The regional case detection rate is 63% and the treatment success rate is around 88%,” Dr Hussein A. Gezairy, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean said today, the eve of World Tuberculosis Day. This year World Tuberculosis Day is being commemorated worldwide under the theme On the move against tuberculosis–transforming the fight towards elimination.
“Yet, this is not enough when more than 110 000 people are dying because of tuberculosis every year in countries of the Region,” the Regional Director added. “This World Tuberculosis Day demands that we not only sustain the existing gains we have made but also focus more on addressing the remaining 37% of cases that go undiagnosed and that receive no care.” He called on policy- and decision-makers to make tuberculosis care a priority.
Tuberculosis, a preventable, curable and centuries-old disease is still present and results in the deaths of thousands of people every year. If no action is taken, it is estimated that at least 8 million people will die of tuberculosis unnecessarily between now and 2015 across the world.
Since the initiation of DOTS, the basic package that underpins the global Stop TB Strategy, almost a decade ago, considerable progress has been achieved. However, there is an urgent need to move faster, focusing efforts on increased access to quality tuberculosis care services, especially in countries with high burden of tuberculosis and for the marginalized and the poor in those countries.
Moving to the elimination phase means detecting and treating cases of tuberculosis correctly and without delay.
According to studies and research, all tuberculosis patients should be tested for HIV and all people receiving HIV care services should be screened for tuberculosis. A safe and effective vaccine, which is so highly needed, has yet to emerge and requires more investment from the development community and other donors.
Almost all countries worldwide are celebrating World Tuberculosis Day. National tuberculosis programmes, nongovernmental organizations and other civil society forces are celebrating the day on 24 March. Events differ from one country to another, but all are highlighting the following key messages.
It’s time to break the barriers to a world free of tuberculosis.
Tuberculosis programmes around the world save millions of lives every year, but we need to move faster. If we fail to step up action today, about 40 million people will become ill with tuberculosis and at least 8 million will die unnecessarily between now and 2015. Tuberculosis is an ancient disease, but today it is curable. In the 21st century, no one should die from tuberculosis.
It’s time for an ambitious new research agenda.
Recent research has brought us new rapid diagnostics, which are coming to market this year. More research will take us to the next critical step: a simple point-of-care test that can be used in any basic health care setting and requires little technical knowledge. New drugs for MDR-TB are on the horizon. A stronger investment will make them available as soon as possible. We will not eliminate tuberculosis without a vaccine that is safe and effective in preventing the disease in people of all ages, but vaccine research is vastly underfunded. Funders need to step up their contribution to tuberculosis research today to achieve zero tuberculosis deaths tomorrow.
It’s time for public health programmes to reach all tuberculosis patients.
A third of people with tuberculosis are not reached with accurate diagnosis and appropriate care. Civil society, all health care providers—including those in the private sector—and businesses need to team up to drive universal access to tuberculosis care. It is a goal that also requires modernizing laboratories, ensuring reliable access to high-quality medicines and taking action to mobilize additional resources.
It’s time for ambitious new goals on MDR-TB treatment.
We know what is needed to scale up MDR-TB treatment: strong commitment by governments, a reliable supply of high-quality drugs, an engaged health workforce and engaged communities. We can reach the goals of the Global Plan to Stop TB 2011–2015 and push beyond them. By 2015, all people with MDR-TB should receive accurate diagnosis and effective treatment.
It’s time to move rapidly towards zero deaths from tuberculosis and HIV co-infection.
Our goals are clear. By 2015, half as many people should die from HIV-associated tuberculosis. 100% of tuberculosis patients should be tested for HIV and 100% of people in HIV care services should be screened for tuberculosis. All people living with HIV should be receiving preventive treatment or anti-tuberculosis drugs as appropriate. 2011 is the time for a massive scale-up to realize universal access to tuberculosis and HIV services.
