Global partnerships to strengthen the evidence base for nursing

There is a growing emphasis on building the evidence base as governments, health systems, practitioners, and consumers, nationally and globally, search for ways to improve health care outcomes and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of health services. Nurses and midwives constitute the largest group of health service providers in the majority of health systems around the globe. The WHO Global Advisory Group on Nursing and Midwifery recommended that WHO should form strategic alliances with partners to identify uniform core indicators and build a solid body of evidence to inform national health policies, particularly in the area of cost-effective nursing and midwifery services such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. Creating an international digital library has the potential to make a significant impact on global health

The global network of WHO collaborating centres for nursing and midwifery development: a policy approach to health for all through nursing and midwifery excellence

Em resposta às complexidades dos serviços de saúde em um contexto de diferentes culturas, eventos mundiais, avanços tecnológicos médicos, desastres naturais e provocados pelo homem, a Organização Mundial da Saúde reconheceu a necessidade de contar com recursos externos para auxiliá-la na consecução de suas metas. Em consonância com as políticas da OMS que consideram que a pesquisa no campo da saúde avança na medida em que auxilia, coordena e utiliza as atividades das instituições já existentes, os Centros Colaboradores da OMS foram criados para apoiá-la em suas áreas de especialidade nos níveis local, nacional e internacional. Dos 1000 Centros Colaboradores existentes em todo o mundo, representando as diversas áreas da saúde, 36, em 19 países diferentes, dedicam-se à enfermagem e obstetrícia, nas áreas de educação, pesquisa e políticas. Esses 36 Centros congregam forças através da Rede Global de Centros Colaboradores da OMS para o Desenvolvimento da Enfermagem e Obstetrícia. Desde seu surgimento, em 1987, a Rede Global tem se tornado uma força significativa de liderança internacional. Sua esfera de influência, tecnologias de comunicação e habilidade no desenvolvimento de projetos colaborativos permitem que tenha um impacto representativo na saúde mundial.En respuesta a las complejidades de los servicios de salud en un contexto de diferentes culturas, eventos mundiales, avances tecnológicos médicos, desastres naturales y provocados por el hombre, la Organización Mundial de la Salud ha reconocido la necesidad de tener recursos externos para ayudar en la realización de sus metas. En consonancia con las políticas de la OMS que consideran que la investigación en el campo de la salud avanza en la medida que auxilia, coordina y utiliza las actividades de las instituciones ya existentes, los Centros Colaboradores de la OMS fueron creados para apoyar la OMS en sus áreas de especialidad en los niveles local, nacional e internacional. De los 1000 Centros Colaboradores existentes en todo el mundo, representando las diversas áreas de salud, 36, en 19 países diferentes, son dedicados a la enfermería y partería, en las áreas de educación, investigación y políticas. Los 36 Centros congregan fuerzas a través de la Red Global de Centros Colaboradores de la OMS para el Desarrollo de la Enfermería y Partería. Desde su creación, en 1987, la Red Global ha se tornado una fuerza significativa de liderazgo internacional. Su esfera de influencia, tecnologías de comunicación y habilidad en el desarrollo de proyectos colaborativos, permiten que tenga un impacto representativo en la salud mundial.In response to the complexities of health services delivery within the context of cultures, world events, medical technologies, and natural and manmade disasters, WHO recognized the need for external resources to assist it to meet its goals. In line with WHO's policy that research in the field of health is best advanced by assisting, coordinating and utilizing the activities of existing institutions, WHO Collaborating Centres were developed to support WHO with external expertise at the local, country and international levels. Of the 1,000 Collaborating Centres worldwide representing all the major health disciplines, 36, in 19 different countries, are dedicated to nursing and midwifery services, education, research and policy. These 36 Centres have joined forces as the Global Network of WHO Collaborating Centres for Nursing and Midwifery Development. Since its inception in 1987, the Global Network has developed into a significant force in international nursing leadership. Its far-reaching sphere of influence, its communications technology and its ability to develop collaborative projects, enable it to have a significant impact on the health of the people of the world

East Mediterr Health J

As a follow up of a short communication that the Eastern Mediterranean Health journal published in December 2011, this article reports on highlights and conclusions from scientific abstracts, methodology workshops and plenary sessions that were presented as part of the Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network (EMPHNET) conference held from 6 to 9 December 2011 in Sharm Al Sheikh, Egypt.CC999999/Intramural CDC HHS/United States2017-06-27T00:00:00Z22571098PMC5485914vault:2362

Women, Vulnerability, and Humanitarian Emergencies

The catastrophic dimensions of humanitarian emergencies are increasingly understood and more visible to states and international institutions. There is greater appreciation for the social, economic and political effects that follow in the short to long term from the devastating consequences of humanitarian emergencies. There is also recognition of the gendered dimensions of humanitarian emergencies in policy and institutional contexts. It is generally acknowledged that women are overrepresented in the refugee and internally displaced communities that typically result from many humanitarian crises. Women bear acute care responsibilities in most societies and also disproportionately bear familial and communal care responsibilities in communities affected by disaster, war and natural emergencies. Given their disparate social and legal status in many jurisdictions, women may have less access to capital, social goods, and other legal means to protect themselves when crises arise. Across jurisdictions, women possess differential legal capacity to contract, face systematic discrimination in their access to employment, receive differential payment once employed, and cannot own or transfer property. These myriad and interlocking discriminations and the need to combat them are articulated in the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. While tacit acknowledgement of this reality increasingly permeates academic and political discourses, the depth of the descriptive often fails to capture and fully grasp the extent of gender harms and gender insecurity. Moreover, as experts and policymakers calculate how best national and international communities should respond to such emergencies, women are frequently substantively and procedurally sidelined. This follows from the dual effects of a dearth of women decision makers in the relevant high-level fora and the failure of these bodies to meaningfully imagine and include solutions to the particular issues affecting women in communities and societies emerging from emergencies. As other scholars have noted, disaster-related research suffers from considerable prejudices, revealing an asymmetrical distribution of gender themes, an absence of data on women\u27s lives and a male bias in identifying the channels from which information is sought. With that background, this Article offers some preliminary assessment of the intersection of women\u27s experiences with situations of humanitarian crisis, probing the causality and patterns that have been identified across a range of interdisciplinary scholarly research and policy-oriented analyses. It advances understanding by a survey of three important but frequently marginalized issues, namely vulnerability, masculinities, and security in situations of crisis. The goal is, in part, to give greater traction to a feminist analysis of women\u27s experiences in situations of extreme crisis. Some preliminary observations are made to help frame the way in which legal and policy solutions are articulated in such crisis contexts

The impact of the law in the prevention of FGM : legal analysis

none4siFemale genital mutilation or cutting (FGM/C), as a topic, has evolved over the last eighty years, from being almost unheard of outside practicing countries [1], to a subject about which, there is now greater awareness. However, many misconceptions prevail. We support the idea that everyone needs to know basic facts about FGM/C, that all health care providers should be involved in avoiding new cases and trained to provide care for existing ones, and that beyond these consensual aspects, there are areas of doubt and lack of evidence which scientists and policy makers need to identify, understand and address. In this area of “expertise”, the present issue of RH contains abstracts from presentations and e-posters from a conference which took place in Geneva in March 2017 titled “Management and prevention of female genital mutilation/cutting: sharing data and experiences, improving collaboration”.noneFarina P; Leye E; Ortensi LE; Pecorella CFarina P; Leye E; Ortensi LE; Pecorella

Causes and differentials of childhood mortality in Iraq

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Limited information is available in Iraq regarding the causes of under-five mortality. The vital registration system is deficient in its coverage, particularly from rural areas where access to health services is limited and most deaths occur at home, i.e. outside the health system, and hence the cause of death goes unreported. Knowledge of patterns and trends in causes of under-five mortality is essential for decision-makers in assessing programmatic needs, prioritizing interventions, and monitoring progress. The aim of this study was to identify causes of under-five children deaths using a simplified verbal autopsy questionnaire.</p> <p>The objective was to define the leading symptoms and cause of death among Iraqi children from all regions of Iraq during 1994–1999.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>To determine the cause structure of child deaths, a simplified verbal autopsy questionnaire was used in interviews conducted in the Iraqi Child & Maternal Mortality Survey (ICMMS) 1999 national sample. All the mothers/caregivers of the deceased children were asked open-ended questions about the symptoms within the two weeks preceding death; they could mention more than one symptom.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The leading cause of death among under-five children was found to be childhood illnesses in 81.2%, followed by sudden death in 8.9% and accidents in 3.3%. Among under-five children dying of illnesses, cough and difficulty in breathing were the main symptoms preceding death in 34.0%, followed by diarrhea in 24.4%. Among neonates the leading cause was cough/and or difficulty in breathing in 42.3%, followed by sudden death in 11.9%, congenital abnormalities in 10.3% and prematurity in 10.2%. Diarrhea was the leading cause of death among infants in 49.8%, followed by cough and/or difficulty in breathing in 26.6%. Among children 12–59 months diarrhea was the leading cause of death in 43.4%, followed by accidents, injuries, and poisoning in 19.3%, then cough/difficulty in breathing in 14.8%.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In Iraq Under-five child mortality is one of the highest in the Middle East region; deaths during the neonatal period accounted for more than half of under-five children deaths highlighting an urgent need to introduce health interventions to improve essential neonatal care. Priority needs to be given to the prevention, early and effective treatment of neonatal conditions, diarrheal diseases, acute respiratory infections, and accidents. This study points to the need for further standardized assessments of under-5 mortality in Iraq.</p

Guinea worm wrap-up

Guinea worm race: 2015 : will Chad be the last endemic country?Because it did not sustain adequate surveillance during the pre-certification period after it interrupted transmission in 2000, Chad may now become the last country to interrupt transmission of the disease (Figure 1). As of the end of July, Chad had reported 7 cases of Guinea worm disease (0% contained) and 387 infected dogs (70 % contained) so far in 2015: 231/283 (82%) dogs contained in 89 villages under active surveillance and 38/104 (37%) in 33 villages not under active surveillance (Figure 2). This is a reduction of 22% from the 9 human cases (56% contained) reported during the same period of 2014, and an increase of 322% from the 87 infected dogs (33% contained) reported for the same period of 2014. All 7 cases were 20 years old or less; 2 of them were female. The line-listing of this year\ue2\u20ac\u2122s cases is given in Table 1

Doctoral education, advanced practice and research: An analysis by nurse leaders from countries within the six WHO regions

Doctoral education, advanced practice and research are key elements that have shaped the advancement of nursing. Their impact is augmented when they are integrated and synergistic. To date, no publications have examined these elements holistically or through an international lens. Like a three-legged stool they are inter-reliant and interdependent. Research is integral to doctoral education and influential in informing best practice. This significance and originality of this discussion paper stem from an analysis of these three topics, their history, current status and associated challenges. It is undertaken by renowned leaders in 11 countries within the six World Health Organisation (WHO) regions: South Africa, Egypt, Finland, United Kingdom, Brazil, Canada, United States, India, Thailand, Australia, and the Republic of Korea. The first two authors used a purposive approach to identify nine recognized nurse leaders in each of the six WHO regions. These individuals have presented and published papers on one or more of the three topics. They have led, or currently lead, large strategic organisations in their countries or elsewhere. All these accomplished scholars agreed to collect relevant data and contribute to the analysis as co-authors. Doctoral education has played a pivotal role in advancing nurse scholarship. Many Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) prepared nurses become faculty who go on to educate and guide future nurse researchers. They generate the evidence base for nursing practice, which contributes to improved health outcomes. In this paper, the development of nursing doctoral programmes is examined. Furthermore, PhDs and professional doctorates, including the Doctor of Nursing Practice, are discussed, and trends, challenges and recommendations are presented. The increasing number of advanced practice nurses worldwide contributes to better health outcomes. Nonetheless, this paper shows that the role remains absent or underdeveloped in many countries. Moreover, role ambiguity and role confusion are commonplace and heterogeneity in definitions and titles, and regulatory and legislatorial inconsistencies limit the role's acceptance and adoption. Globally, nursing research studies continue to increase in number and quality, and nurse researchers are becoming partners and leaders in interdisciplinary investigations. Nonetheless, this paper highlights poor investment in nursing research and a lack of reliable data on the number and amount of funding obtained by nurse researchers. The recommendations offered in this paper aim to address the challenges identified. They have significant implications for policy makers, government legislators and nurse leaders.</p