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WHO’s
Support to MoH in Influenza A(H1N1) Pandemic Preparedness
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 Hon. Nimal Siripala De Silva, Minister of Healthcare and Nutrition
received a total stock of 315,000 doses of Oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and 2000
N-95 masks from Dr Firdosi Rustom Mehta, Actg WHO Representative to
Sri Lanka as WHO’s solidarity for support
to the MoH in Novel Influenza A(H1N1) pandemic preparedness.
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Humanitarian
Situation in North Sri Lanka
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There has been an increase of
some 40,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) over the past few days,
bringing the total to over 150,000 IDPs in the IDP camps in Vavuniya,
Jaffna, Mannar and Trincomalee. The Ministry of Healthcare and Nutrition
has mobilized more resources, staff and equipment to assist the displaced
in collaboration with partners. The Government of Sri Lanka
has appointed the Competent Authority to coordinate all administration
and implementation of all relief work in relation to displaced civilians.
The UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Mr. John Holmes, announced the
allocation of a further US$ 10 million dollars from the UN Central
Emergency Response Fund (CERF).
More
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Current level of Influenza Pandemic Alert Raised from
Phase 4 to 5
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“Have your say in Health” - The National Colloquium on Contemporary
Health Issues in Sri
Lanka
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 World Health Organization (WHO)
Country Office in Sri Lanka
supported “Panos South East Asia”, “Panos Institute Sri Lanka” and “The
Island” to organize The National Colloquium on Contemporary Health Issues
in Sri Lanka titled
“Have Your Say in Health” which was held on Friday 29th August 2008 at Sri
Lanka Foundation Institute, Colombo
07.
Secretary, Ministry of Healthcare and Nutrition (MOH) was the chief
guest and key ministry officials like Deputy Director General (Education,
Training &Research), Deputy Director General (Public Health Services)
and Director Medial Supplies
Division participated in the event. The involvement and participation
of the interested persons from
relevant directorates of health ministry, university academics, main
stream media organizations, other health related government ministries and
departments, civil society groups, professional bodies like College of
Community Physicians Sri Lanka and technical staff from WHO was the outstanding feature in this
National Colloquium.
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Hon Nimal Siripala de Silva elected
Chairman of the Executive Board
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 Hon Nimal Siripala de Silva,
Minister of Healthcare and Nutrition, was elected as the Chairman of the
WHO Executive Board at its 122nd Session in May 2008 and will
hold office for one year.
The Executive Board is composed of 34 members designated by the respective Member
States, and representing the six Regions of the WHO. The World Health
Assembly which is the supreme decision making body, attended by delegations
from all 193 Member States of the WHO, formally elects the members of the
Executive Board. The Members of the Executive Board are elected for three
year terms.
The Executive Board meets twice a
year. The main Board meeting, at
which the agenda for the forthcoming Health Assembly is agreed upon and
resolutions for submission to the Assembly are prepared, is held in
January.
More
Information…
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Seminar
on unusual occurrence of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) in North Central
Province of Sri Lanka
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The Epidemiology Unit of
the Ministry of Healthcare and Nutrition, in association with the WHO Sri
Lanka, organized a visit of a team of international experts to investigate
the unusual occurrence of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) in the North Central
Province of Sri Lanka. National and international experts met in Colombo during a
seminar held on 7th and 8th May to review all
available information with a view to providing technical assistance for
developing a pragmatic and feasible research proposal to address prevention
issues.
Many invaluable studies
have been done so far in the country by various renowned experts to try to
elucidate the causative factor. These have generated many hypotheses. In
order to conclusively prove the etiology of this disease, it was absolutely
essential that a team involving scientists and medical professionals would
be established.
It is
expected that the research team, with the input of the panel of experts
from around the globe, will achieve the objective of finding a rational
solution to this public health problem, in order to save people in these
affected areas from further disaster.
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WHO and the Ministry of Health launch
the ‘National Report on Violence and Health in Sri Lanka’
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 WHO and
the Ministry of Healthcare and Nutrition have launched on the 4th April
2008 the ‘National Report on Violence and Health in Sri Lanka’. This report
provides a foundation for understanding various types of violence and the
roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders in its prevention,
identification, investigation, assessment, and treatment. This is the first
national report ever published on this important problem in Sri Lanka.
It is expected that this
document will serve as a valuable resource for building knowledge,
promoting effective practices, and enhancing community collaboration. This
analyses available data to understand violence in the local context and its
impact on the country. It attempts to assess the magnitude of the problem
and describes different aspects of violence on the island.
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Celebration of the World Health Day on
“Protecting Health from Climate Change”
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 The
World Health Day is celebrated on the 7th of April annually by WHO worldwide and is considered an opportunity to focus
on key public health issues of national and international importance. This
year was special because it marked the WHO 60th Anniversary. The 2008 WHO
theme was “Protecting Health from Climate Change”, focusing on the need to
protect health from the adverse effects of climate change.
More Information…
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WHO Sri Lanka
organizes the 3rd Partners Round Table on Mental Health
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 WHO
held on the 3rd of April 2008 the 3rd Partners Round
Table on Mental Health under the theme ‘Sustainability of Mental Health
Services Development in Sri
Lanka’. After the first and the second conference of this
sort on the adoption of the mental health policy and the progress after one
year, this year’s focus was on sustaining the newly established mental
health services in the future. Participants in the seminar were
representatives of the Ministry of Healthcare and Nutrition,
representatives of the donor community, NGOs working on mental health in Sri Lanka
and WHO staff.
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Leptospirosis
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 Leptospirosis
is an endemic disease in Sri
Lanka. The temperate climate, seasonal
rainfall, humidity and other ecological factors have contributed to the
maintenance of the disease in the country. Clustering of cases and
occurrence of outbreaks in relation to rainfall and paddy field cultivation
has been observed in many parts of the country.
During the last decade, there
has been an increase in the reported number of Leptospirosis cases…
More Information…
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