Category Archives: healthcare

WHO pushes back on claims as COVID-19 remakes Ramadan | CIDRAP

The WHO pushes back on accusations that it didn’t warn countries early enough.

Source: WHO pushes back on claims as COVID-19 remakes Ramadan | CIDRAP

In an escalation of the tensions, the Taiwan health officials publicized an email it sent the WHO on Dec 31—about the same time ProMED Mail, media outlets, and infectious disease blogs carried reports of a mysterious pneumonia cluster in Wuhan. In the email, Taiwanese officials sought more information about the event.

Mike Ryan, MD, head of the WHO’s health emergencies program…said on Jan 1, the WHO asked China for more information, according to International Health Regulation protocols that require countries to respond within 24 to 48 hours. He said the WHO sent its first Tweet about the outbreak on Jan 4, and on Jan 5 it communicated detailed information to its focal point system, which includes Taiwan. Also on Jan 5, it posted its first public outbreak notice on the Wuhan cluster.

Opinion | The Infection That’s Silently Killing Coronavirus Patients – The New York Times

There is a way we could identify more patients who have Covid pneumonia sooner and treat them more effectively — and it would not require waiting for a coronavirus test at a hospital or doctor’s office. It requires detecting silent hypoxia early through a common medical device that can be purchased without a prescription at most pharmacies: a pulse oximeter. Pulse oximetry is no more complicated than using a thermometer. These small devices turn on with one button and are placed on a fingertip. In a few seconds, two numbers are displayed: oxygen saturation and pulse rate. Pulse oximeters are extremely reliable in detecting oxygenation problems and elevated heart rates. Pulse oximeters helped save the lives of two emergency physicians I know, alerting them early on to the need for treatment. When they noticed their oxygen levels declining, both went to the hospital and recovered (though one waited longer and required more treatment). Detection of hypoxia, early treatment and close monitoring apparently also worked for Boris Johnson, the British prime minister. Widespread pulse oximetry screening for Covid pneumonia — whether people check themselves on home devices or go to clinic

Inoreader – ‘No way food safety not compromised’: US regulation rollbacks during Covid-19 criticised

The US government is accelerating controversial regulatory rollbacks to speed up production at meat plants, as companies express growing alarm at the impact of Covid-19 on their operations. Last week Smithfield shut down one of the largest pork plants in the country after hundreds of employees contracted the coronavirus. The plant in South Dakota – whose output represents 4–5% of US pork production – is reported to be the largest single-source coronavirus hotspot in the US, with more than 600 cases. In response, the company said it was “critical” for the meat industry to “continue to operate unabated”.

Source: Inoreader – ‘No way food safety not compromised’: US regulation rollbacks during Covid-19 criticised

Impossible for UK to meet Covid-19 testing targets, scientists say | Politics | The Guardian

The World Health Organization has repeatedly urged governments to pursue testing and tracing, and some countries, including Singapore and South Korea, have successfully used this approach to contain their outbreaks, while Germany has also continued to carry out contact tracing. The UK abandoned population testing and contact tracing in early March, when case numbers began to rise steeply, but the health secretary, Matt Hancock, said on Friday that contact tracing would be reintroduced, including through a proposed NHS smartphone app. Experts say the ability to rely on this approach to safely exit the lockdown will depend critically on widespread population testing beyond the level needed for diagnosing patients in hospital.

Source: Impossible for UK to meet Covid-19 testing targets, scientists say | Politics | The Guardian

Wuhan Virology Lab Deputy Director Again Slams Coronavirus Conspiracies

Wuhan Virology Lab Deputy Director Again Slams Coronavirus Conspiracies – Shi Zhengli disputes unsubstantiated claims of a link between the high-security research facility at the Wuhan Virology Institute and the deadly virus

Source: Wuhan Virology Lab Deputy Director Again Slams Coronavirus Conspiracies

Coronavirus Advice From Abroad: 7 Lessons America’s… — ProPublica

To help you and your aides think about this decision over the next few weeks, we’ve interviewed experts and frontline officials from Italy, Germany, Spain, Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea. While they differ on the details, their views formed a startlingly united consensus of what’s needed: Massive, ongoing testing to detect where the disease is spreading, a real-time ability to trace contacts of those infected and isolate them, a willingness of people to wear masks in crowded public spaces, reserves of personal protective equipment (PPE) and other equipment for hospital workers to handle any surge in cases, and reliable, easily administered blood tests to find out the number of people who have been infected. If they work well, such tests could eventually be used to identify people with immunity who could work at higher-risk jobs.

Source: Coronavirus Advice From Abroad: 7 Lessons America’s… — ProPublica

Thousands of Americans backed by rightwing donors gear up for protests | US news | The Guardian – willing to kill and kill more – sedition.

The two groups behind the “operation gridlock” rally in Michigan on Wednesday have ties to the Republican party and the Trump administration. The Michigan Freedom Fund, which said it was a co-host of the rally, has received more than $500,000 from the DeVos family, regular donors to rightwing groups. The other host, the Michigan Conservative Coalition, was founded by Matt Maddock, now a Republican member of the state house of representatives. The MCC also operates under the name Michigan Trump Republicans, and in January held an event featuring several members of the Trump campaign.

Source: Thousands of Americans backed by rightwing donors gear up for protests | US news | The Guardian

Federalism has become another casualty of Trump and the coronavirus | Andrew Gawthorpe | Opinion | The Guardian

The particular way that Trump exercises power has also contributed to the reaction of governors from both parties. Trump has made clear that he will dole out federal largesse according to political loyalty, even preventing Colorado’s Democratic-led government from purchasing ventilators on the open market and later sending a hundred units “at the request” of the state’s Republican senator, who is facing a tough re-election battle. The message is clear: Democratic governors need to help themselves, because Trump sure won’t. And Republican governors need to stick close to a president who sees himself as his party’s feudal patron rather than the leader of the entire nation. The result has been an inversion of what the Founders intended, with some states slavishly following federal dictate in flagrant disregard of local needs, and others hung out to dry as a national crisis looms and Washington does little to shepherd a national response. Democratic governors cannot rely on the president to protect the lives of their citizens, and Republican governors find themselves acting more as the lackeys of a monarch than representatives of the interests of their states. Taken together, these de

Source: Federalism has become another casualty of Trump and the coronavirus | Andrew Gawthorpe | Opinion | The Guardian