Health and Safety Technical Support Project Report

The African Women's Development Fund's Health and Safety Technical Support Project provided food and health safety technical support to 11 small - medium sized women's rights organisations in Ghana engaged in food production and processing activities.The training programme offers useful and practical help to women food producers and processors to ensure a safe and healthy environment at work, in line with the International Labour Organization's Safe Work mandate, which aims to create worldwide awareness of the dimensions and consequences of work-related accidents, injuries and diseases

A review of dairy production and utilization in Ghana and Benin

Abstract High dairy production and utilization have proven very effective in improving food and nutrition security in society, especially among the rural poor. This review sought to find out the status of dairy production and utilization in Ghana and Benin, the challenges, and the way forward. The review discovered low dairy production in both countries which meets only about 19% (Ghana) and 20% (Benin) of dairy demand. This low self-sufficiency compels both countries to depend heavily on imported dairy products to meet consumers’ dairy needs. However, dairy consumption in both countries is still abysmally low (Ghana = 9 kg/person/year, Benin = 8 kg/person/year). Cow milk is the most regarded and consumed animal milk in both states and is consumed both raw and processed. Local dairy products include “wagashi” (local soft cheese), yoghurt and “brukina”/“dèguè” (fermented milk-millet beverage). Some of the challenges found include low patronage of dairy farming, low-performing breeds, safety issues, inadequate sustainable pro-dairy policies, water and pasture/forage shortages, inadequate infrastructure, poor education, unorganized local sector and climate change. However, adopting effective pro-dairy policies, effective safety and quality regulations, smart dairy farming and processing and exploring other dairy options like goat, sheep, and donkey milk is key to improving dairy production and utilization in both countries and beyond

The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension Nutrition Network’s Contribution to the Arizona Economy in 2014

6 pp.The Arizona Nutrition Network (AzNN) is a public/private partnership engaged in a statewide effort to encourage healthy eating, increase physical activity, and achieve appropriate caloric balance for healthy body weights. The AzNN programmatic activities target people in low-income households that receive or are eligible to receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. An integral partner in this statewide effort is the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension Nutrition Network (UANN), one of several local implementing agencies (LIAs) that conduct Supplemental Nutrition Assistance – Education (SNAP-Ed) programming throughout the state. The UANN receives funding from the AzNN to deliver nutrition and physical activity education programs to Arizona communities and implement policy, systems, and environmental approaches for obesity prevention

Evidence-based health informatics as the foundation for the COVID-19 response: a joint call for action

Background: As a major public health crisis, the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic demonstrates the urgent need for safe, effective, and evidence-based implementations of digital health. The urgency stems from the frequent tendency to focus attention on seemingly high promising digital health interventions despite being poorly validated in times of crisis. Aim: In this paper, we describe a joint call for action to use and leverage evidence- based health informatics as the foundation for the COVID-19 response and public health interventions. Tangible examples are provided for how the working groups and special interest groups of the International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA) are helping to build an evidence-based response to this crisis. Methods: Leaders of working and special interest groups of the IMIA, a total of 26 groups, were contacted via e-mail to provide a summary of the scientific-based efforts taken to combat COVID-19 pandemic and participate in the discussion toward the creation of this manuscript. A total of 13 groups participated in this manuscript. Results: Various efforts were exerted by members of IMIA including (1) developing evidence-based guidelines for the design and deployment of digital health solutions during COVID-19; (2) surveying clinical informaticians internationally about key digital solutions deployed to combat COVID-19 and the challenges faced when implementing and using them; and (3) offering necessary resources for clinicians about the use of digital tools in clinical practice, education, and research during COVID-19. Discussion: Rigor and evidence need to be taken into consideration when designing, implementing, and using digital tools to combat COVID-19 to avoid delays and unforeseen negative consequences. It is paramount to employ a multidisciplinary approach for the development and implementation of digital health tools that have been rapidly deployed in response to the pandemic bearing in mind human factors, ethics, data privacy, and the diversity of context at the local, national, and international levels. The training and capacity building of front-line workers is crucial and must be linked to a clear strategy for evaluation of ongoing experiences