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BY GILLES VAN CUSTEM On June 5, 1981 a short report of five cases of pneumocystis pneumonia in young homosexual men in Los Angeles marked the discovery of Aids, the first pandemic of the 20th century caused by a completely new virus, HIV. Since then HIV has killed 33 million and infected 76 million people. […]
The post HIV 40 years on: Action points to end Aids as a health threat appeared first on The Zimbabwe Independent.
The president also stressed the importance of keeping the economy open after months of stifling movement restrictions.
He urged citizens not to drop their guard and continue adhering to the health rules, such as wearing face masks and respecting curfew times.
South Africa has recorded just over 800,000 coronavirus infections - more than a third of the cases reported across the African continent - and over 20,000 deaths.
AFP
Building on efforts to ensure equitable access to healthcare, Governor JB Pritzker signed legislation that provides a path to reopen the Westlake Hospital in Cook County. Senate Bill 168 will expand medical resources and services in the western suburbs, investing in communities that have traditionally had less access to quality care. “Healthcare is a right, … Continued
The post Gov. Pritzker Signs Legislation to Allow the Permanent Reopening of Westlake Hospital. appeared first on Chicago Defender.
As HIV Awareness month begins, we honor those who have succumbed by celebrating the legacy they left behind.
NNPA NEWSWIRE — On National Healthcare Decisions Day, I want to share the importance of compassionate death in the Black community, including hospice care. Hospice is a set of services designed to treat symptoms and side effects, improve quality of life, support families and address spiritual needs. It occurs during the last 6 months of life, after treatment of the life-limiting disease has stopped.
The post OP-ED: Hospice Is About Living, Not Dying first appeared on BlackPressUSA.
America is in a state of flux, driven by innovations, immigrants and cities where ideas fight, with the fittest surviving.
An estimated 12 million people - nearly a fifth of the population - may have contracted coronavirus, the health ministry says.
The health ministry said it would continue assessing whether people are adhering to the necessary COVID-19 health protocols and determine whether tighter restrictions should be implemented
Before the Covid-19 pandemic hit the country, Ms Atieno, who lives in Nyalenda slums in Kisumu County, could easily access her antiretroviral therapy drugs (ARVs).
She is among hundreds of people living with HIV who are avoiding visiting local health facilities to collect their drugs for fear of contracting Covid-19.
Ms Jane Oriedo, a resident of Nyalenda, confirms that there are HIV patients in the slum who fear visiting health facilities.
At the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, however, 33,000 HIV patients in 61 facilities in Kisumu were supplied with ARVs to last them months.
To mitigate the decline in patients visiting facilities, the National Network of People Living with HIV has started an initiative to distribute the ARVs to those who cannot access them in public facilities.
Jamaica on Monday recorded a major drop in new cases of COVID-19.\tThe Health Ministry is reporting that the country recorded 27 new infections in the last 24 hours.\tThis has moved the tally to 48,081, with 22,555 of the cases being active.\tOf the...
[Seychelles News Agency] HIV/AIDS cases in Seychelles are becoming more common among the youth, said a top health official on Tuesday at a workshop to coincide with the World AIDS Day commemorated every year on December 1.
New numbers on the global AIDS epidemic show some big successes, such as fewer deaths and new infections.
But there are also some tragic failures: Only half the children with HIV, the virus that causes the disease, are getting treatment.
Progress against HIV also is being hurt by another infectious disease – the new coronavirus.
Four years ago, the United Nations set goals for limiting HIV infections and improving treatment by the end of 2020, and all will be missed because the coronavirus pandemic is hurting access to care, the report concludes.
“We were already off track for the 2020 targets, but COVID-19 is threatening to blow us completely of course,” said UNAIDS’ executive director, Winnie Byanyima.
She said that in many countries the resources employed to fight HIV are now fighting COVID instead, so the UNAIDS is urging policymakers to find a way to fight both diseases at the same time.
Byanyima highlighted that coronavirus has hit many countries and trillions of financial resources have been enrolled to tackle the economic losses.
‘‘So if the world can marshal resources of that kind, we can solve the problem of AIDS,’‘ she said.
She added the need for equality and a strong political will to cure AIDS.
Here are highlights from the new AIDS report:
INFECTIONS
About 1.7 million new HIV infections occurred in 2019 – down 23% since 2010 but far short of the 75% reduction goal.
Eastern and southern Africa have greatly curbed new infections, but they’re rising elsewhere – by about 20% since 2010 in Latin America, the Middle East and north Africa, and 72% in eastern Europe and central Asia.
In sub-Saharan Africa, girls and young women make up 10% of the population but account for 25% of new HIV infections.
In many cases, pregnant women aren’t getting tested or don’t stay on drugs that can prevent spreading the virus to their babies.
TREATMENT
Worldwide, 38 million people have HIV and 81% of them are aware of it.
About 25.4 million are on treatment, triple the number since 2010.
Roughly 67% of adults with the virus are getting treatment.
But only 53% of children and teens are, meaning 840,000 of them are missing out on life-saving drugs.
DEATHS
There were 690,000 AIDS-related deaths in 2019.
That’s down 39% from 2010 but short of the target of under 500,000 by the end of this year.
Children accounted for 95,000 of those deaths.
COVID-19′S IMPACT
In many countries health workers testing for and caring for people with HIV have switched to fighting COVID-19; supplies of medicines and condoms have been disrupted because of lockdowns; and many health clinics have closed.
Dr. Anton Pozniak, head of the AIDS conference and an HIV specialist at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London, said many HIV patients have delayed seeking care out of fear of getting the coronavirus.
Some are even afraid to have medicines delivered to their homes because “they don’t want the stigma of parcels and drugs arriving” that might reveal their HIV status, he said.
A six-month interruption
Opinion - Bernard Nyaga Njogu is the Head of Sales at Scope Markets Kenya, a non-dealing Online Foreign Exchange Broker licensed and regulated by the Capital Markets Authority (CMA).
[ANGOP] Luanda -- Angolan health authorities announced Monday the registration, in the last 24 hours, of 108 new infections, 20 patients recovered and three deaths.
Evelyn Gibson Lowery was an American civil rights activist and leader who founded SCLC/Women’s Organizational Movement for Equality Now, Inc. (W.O.M.E.N), the sister organization of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.
Lowery was born in Memphis, Tennessee on February 16, 1925, and was the daughter of activists Rev. Dr. Harry and Evelyn Gibson who provided her with the inspiration to dedicate her life to fighting for human rights at both the national and international levels.
She married Rev. Joseph Lowery in 1950, the President Emeritus of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) who also worked alongside Martin Luther King Jr. during the Civil Rights Movement.
In 1979, seeing a special need for women and families, Lowery founded SCLC/Women’s Organizational Movement for Equality Now, Inc. (W.O.M.E.N.), the sister organization of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.
In 2004, Lowery was honored at the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame at the Martin Luther King Jr.
The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), which serves as the world’s largest, non-profit public health organization addressing the HIV/AIDS epidemic, recently announced that former Missouri City executive, Anthony J. Snipes, has joined AHF as a part of its southern bureau leadership team.
In his role as Regional Director for Texas, Snipes will continue his service to the community by representing AHF’s mission and core values on the local and statewide basis, while enhancing relationships with current and new community partners.
“After my recent retirement from governmental service, this opportunity allows me to continue my life of service to this community, and working with others in the state, to address this public health issue that is disproportionately impacting marginalized populations in Texas and abroad, while also staying in the Greater Houston area to see my two kids graduate from high school in Missouri City, Texas.”
Before joining AHF, Snipes most recently served as the City Manager for Missouri City, Texas, but he has also held many positions as a municipal executive in different capacities for Dayton, Ohio; Fort Worth, Texas; and Austin, Texas.
“We are especially excited to welcome Mr. Snipes to the AHF family not only because of his long track record of excellence in municipal service, but also because of his community service and involvement in strategic locations throughout the State of Texas including Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin, and the Greater Houston area,” said Michael Kahane, Southern Bureau Chief at AHF.
(Trinidad Guardian) Trinidad has recorded an additional COVID-19 related death bringing the toll to 135.
The article Trinidad COVID deaths at 135 appeared first on Stabroek News.
PARIS, France (AFP) —Global infections from the novel coronavirus have topped 10 million as the rate of new cases surges, particularly in the United States and Latin America, according to an AFP tally on Sunday.
One million new infections were recorded in only six days, according to the count based on official sources, just as countries start to unwind punishing lockdowns that have devastated their economies and thrown millions out of work.
The United States, the hardest-hit country, has surpassed 2.5 million cases alone, as efforts to reopen the world's economic powerhouse were set back by a jump in new infections in big states such as Florida.
In Florida, Republican Governor Ron DeSantis conceded there has been an “explosion” in new cases as the “Sunshine State” notched a record 9,585 cases in 24 hours.
The country set a daily record Saturday with 18,500 new cases and 385 deaths.
LONDON — As many as 60 countries might be stalled at the first shots of their coronavirus vaccinations because nearly all deliveries through the global program are blocked until as late as June. The COVAX initiative is designed to provide vaccines to countries lacking the clout to negotiate on their own for scarce supplies. In
On Monday, the country recorded 59 new infections, the highest single-day spike.
HOUSTON – (May 18, 2020) – As healthcare systems handle the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the risk of misdiagnosing a patient increases.
Health safety experts at Baylor College of Medicine and Press Ganey Associates LLC in Boston identify eight types of diagnostic errors anticipated due to the pandemic and highlight strategies to minimize them.
“Testing for COVID-19 has been a problem, but we have also seen new issues emerge such as reports of patients not seeking help due to fear of the pandemic, with delayed diagnosis of heart attacks, stroke diagnoses and typical emergencies.”
“In this challenging time, it is essential to understand the types of diagnostic errors that can occur and build highly reliable systems to help support our clinicians and prevent harm to patients,” said Dr. Tejal Gandhi, the chief safety and transformation officer at Press Ganey.
By studying rapidly evolving literature and news for emerging diagnosis issues, Singh and Gandhi developed names for the eight types of diagnostic errors in an effort to help clinicians, other healthcare personnel and the public identify them:
Classic: A delayed COVID-19 diagnosis due to lack of accessible tests or tests that read A COVID-19 patient misdiagnosed as non-COVID when they present uncharacteristic symptoms such as nausea and diarrhea, especially if they lack respiratory symptoms.
