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Covid-19 pandemic: WHO's new rules for managing the last phase
The world is slowly emerging from a pandemic, the Covid-19 pandemic, that kept it trapped in its grip for two whole years. Everyone has seen their lives changed by this disease, even without being directly infected by it.
More than three years after the outbreak, the WHO has decided to launch the fourth strategic plan for pandemic management, the aim of which is above all to prevent further contagions in areas of the world particularly at risk.
As the international state of emergency launched at the beginning of 2020 is coming to an end, the world's highest health body expresses five fundamental points in order not to return to the situation we were in until recently.
Covid-19 pandemic: WHO's new rules for managing the last phase
The world is slowly emerging from a pandemic, the Covid-19 pandemic, that kept it trapped in its grip for two whole years. Everyone has seen their lives changed by this disease, even without being directly infected by it. More than three years after the outbreak, the WHO has decided to launch the fourth strategic plan for pandemic management, the aim of which is above all to prevent further contagions in areas of the world particularly at risk. As the international state of emergency launched at the beginning of 2020 is coming to an end, the world's highest health body expresses five fundamental points in order not to return to the situation we were in until recently.
Covid-19, some critical issues persist
The director general of the WHO, Tedros Ghebreyesus, spoke about the current state of spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. These are his words, reported by Sky: 'A return to normal in the majority of countries' but, at the same time, 'the persistence of some critical issues regarding the evolution of the virus that make it difficult to predict the future dynamics of virus transmission or its seasonality'.
Soon the end of the state of emergency
On 30 January 2020, a state of international emergency was declared due to the spread of the pandemic. Now, the whole world is waiting for the organisation's committee to decree the end of the emergency, which should happen soon. Now, the next step of the WHO is a five-point plan to take the world from a state of emergency to a state of long-term pandemic management.
Fourth strategic plan ready
To try to manage everything as best as possible, the WHO has just launched the fourth global strategic plan for Covid-19 preparedness, readiness and response. These guidelines will be valid for the period 2023-2025.
The five points of the WHO plan
The WHO is trying to teach all countries how to manage the pandemic now that the state of emergency will be lifted. So, in a normal phase, what has to be done is to have a certain type of habits and behaviour that will prevent the proliferation of further outbreaks. The pillars on which this plan is based are: collaborative surveillance, community protection, safe and flexible care, access to countermeasures, and emergency coordination.
Never forget the importance of vaccines
Experts, however, point out that vaccines are what got the world out of the actual pandemic, and this still remains the biggest and best method of prevention against Covid-19.
The words of the director of WHO
The previous plan, launched in 2022, had two clear objectives: to reduce the circulation of Sars-CoV-2 and to diagnose and treat Covid-19 to reduce mortality. To this plan is now added the 'support countries during the transition from an emergency response to a phase of control, management and prevention of Covid-19 over the long term', says Ghebreyesus as reported by Sky.
Treatments for Long Covid are a priority
According to data collected by the WHO, about 6% of infected people are still experiencing symptoms of the so-called 'long covid', after-effects of the disease that can manifest themselves in different ways, but mainly with severe fatigue and a few more seasonal infections. The treatment of people suffering from these symptoms is one of the key points of the new plan launched by the WHO.
Don't let your guard down
The WHO number one concluded his report with an exhortation to all countries worldwide not to let their guard down against Covid-19 and to 'maintain sufficient capacity, operational readiness and flexibility during Covid-19 waves'.
health
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An international analysis has shown how humour, used as a real hospital therapy, alleviates symptoms of anxiety, stress and depression in long-term chronic patients such as children who have just undergone surgery or even elderly people in nursing homes. The research was conducted internationally and published in the journal 'Brain and Behavior'.
Basically, it was a review of the existing literature (quantitative, qualitative and mixed studies). Thus, in addition to existing papers, as many as 29 articles were included, involving 2964 participants, conducted in nine different countries, such as the United States, Australia, Italy, Turkey, South Korea, Iran, Israel, China and Germany.
The majority of patients, the study authors suggest, stated that humour therapy had positive effects in reducing anxiety and depression, compared to a small number of subjects who found this approach to be insignificant.
eat well
25/04/2024
The vitamin B complex is a collective name for the B vitamins. They are water-soluble vitamins, necessary for the proper functioning of the metabolism.
The B vitamins are essential for providing us with the energy we need to carry out our daily activities, as well as for protecting our skin, hair and teeth, and for the prevention of certain diseases, from cardiovascular to neurological to skin diseases.
The 8 B vitamins include vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamin B5, vitamin B6, vitamin B8, vitamin B9 and vitamin B12.
What are the main sources of vitamin B? Let's find out together. (Source: humanitas.co.uk)