Archive for category: Health

Information and stories on health topics.

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Top 10 Causes of Death in Guyana

Causes of Death in GuyanaIn Guyana, the life expectancy is anywhere from 64 to 69 years-old. However, the probability of death occurring before the age of 60 is much higher due to a number of health issues affecting the people of Guyana every day. The World Health Organization and The Pan American Health Organization have made substantial progress in lowering fatality rates caused by communicable disease and have since shifted focus to more chronic conditions. These are the top 10 causes of death in Guyana as listed by the HealthData.

10 Causes of Death in Guyana

  1. Ischemic/ Coronary heart disease (CHD) – CHD is characterized by narrowed arteries that disrupt the flow of blood and oxygen to the heart leading to heart attacks. This disease is caused by poor health habits such as drinking, smoking and inactivity. In Guyana, coronary diseases make up 32 percent of all deaths. To combat this issue, The Public Health Ministry of Guyana, The Canadian High Commission and Guyana Program for Advanced Cardiac Care are using PSAs to educate the population.
  2. Cerebrovascular disease (Stroke) – Strokes are attacks on the brain because oxygen and nutrients can’t reach the brain, which leads to the death of brain cells. The most common way to prevent a stroke is by adopting healthy dietary habits such as not smoking, exercising regularly and eating a predominantly vegetarian diet. A stroke doesn’t always result in death, but it can still cause a number of physical problems that require the availability of rehabilitation treatments.
  3. Diabetes Mellitus – In 2017, there were 52,400 cases of diabetes in Guyana, putting the prevalence of this disease at about 11.3 percent. Those most affected by diabetes are individuals between the ages of 45 and over. One strategy that has been taken to reduce the number of patients getting diabetes is the introduction of a tax on sugary beverages.
  4. Lower Respiratory Infection – According to The Guyana Budget & Policy Institute, respiratory infections make up for 31 percent of all child deaths between the ages of 0-1 in Guyana. Lower respiratory infections like pneumonia and bronchiolitis are the result of poor living conditions such as lack of hygiene, inaccessibility of clean water or sanitation as well as contact with unvaccinated individuals, which is common in Guyana.
  5. Self-harm/Suicide – Guyana has the third highest suicide rate in the world. In Guyana, the rate is 29 suicides per 100,000 deaths. It is also the second leading cause of death for youths between the ages of 15 and 24. Organizations like The National Suicide Prevention Plan and The Suicide Hotline are making efforts to improve mental health services, opening lines of communication and raising awareness about related factors such as alcohol abuse and mental health issues that can lead to suicidal thoughts.
  6. Hypertensive Heart Diseases – These are conditions that are caused most often by high blood pressure and include conditions such as heart failure, coronary artery disease and thickening of the heart muscle. According to an assessment study in Charleston, Guyana, hypertension is the major cause of death for individuals 45-64 years old. In the study, it was shown that 7 of the 22 subjects, who were between the ages of 27 and 78, had high blood pressure readings and benefited from receiving medication. Certain cases of hypertension can be greatly reduced through long-term efforts. Creating awareness through education such as seminars and workshops and making more heart-healthy foods can contribute to the reduction of these conditions.
  7. HIV/AIDS – In 2016, it was reported that 8,500 people were living with HIV. Almost 100 of those infected were children who had contracted it from their mother. To combat this, Guyana has received more financial support, which allowed for the development of treatment sites and more resources for Voluntary Counselling and Testing clinics. As a result, the availability of antiretroviral drugs had increased to 83.5 percent in 2008, and the prevalence of HIV/AIDS had decreased to 1.1 percent in 2011.
  8. Chronic Kidney Disease – This is on the list as one of the causes of death in Guyana because of associated costs. Screening and identification are insufficient to detect chronic kidney disease. As such, many Guyanese people end up being checked into emergency rooms for kidney failure. The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation is able to provide transplants at no cost to patients, but patients have to pay the cost of cross-matching tests to find a suitable donor. These tests are currently done in the U.S. and cost least $1 million. In order to avoid kidney failure, it has been recommended to drink sufficient amounts of water and avoid the consumption of large amounts of alcohol.
  9. Road Injuries – According to World Health Rankings, road injuries have accounted for 2.05 percent of all deaths in Guyana. Furthermore, survivors of road accidents are left disabled and, therefore, can’t work, which creates financial instability. The estimated cost of care for accident victims is $100 million. Identified major factors include unlit roads, inexistence of sidewalks and bad driving habits.
  10. Interpersonal Violence – Guyanese people are encouraged to learn how to protect themselves and to seek help from authorities, especially since the police force has undergone a number of reforms such as modernization and more detailed instructions on how to deal with violence. The highest form of violence in Guyana is domestic violence towards women. The First Lady revealed that domestic partner violence has risen from 74.8 percent to 89 percent in just 6 years. As a result, she is increasing efforts to conduct research to find and address the root cause of this violence. She is also calling to educate and empower women in regions of Guyana where domestic violence is high. She is planning to enact The U.K. National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security to accomplish these goals.

Despite the efforts made to decrease communicable diseases, there still remains a number of conditions that are in need of attention since they continue to claim the lives of many Guyanese people. The goal, therefore, is to achieve higher life expectancy through the elimination of these non-communicable diseases as well as education and awareness of health risks due to violence, mental health issues, unsafe road conditions and preventable illness.

– Stephanie Singh
Photo: Flickr

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How the World Health Organization Ensures a Healthier Future

World Health Organization
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a worldwide company first launched in April of 1948. WHO was established as a specialized agency of the United Nations, created to focus on improving the health of our society.

Now employing more than 7000 people in 150 countries around the world, WHO strives to ensure that everyone has access to the most basic needs everyone deserves. The World Health Organization focuses on several important areas, including noncommunicable and communicable diseases, health systems and promoting health through the life course.

Smallpox and Polio

The WHO’s campaigns against two deadly diseases of smallpox and polio were extremely notable. Thanks to the WHO’s multimillion-dollar vaccination campaign, the smallpox vaccine became available around the world in 1967. The campaign was successful, and by 1980, the world was free from the disease.

In 1988, the World Health Organization once again created a vaccine campaign, but this time for polio. Polio was once a disease that affected people all over the world, but thanks to the efforts of the WHO, it is now confined to South Asia and Africa.

The Eliminate Yellow Fever Epidemics Campaign

In April of 2018, WHO announced it would be collaborating with several organizations — including Gavi the Vaccine Alliance, UNICEF and many others — to vaccinate close to one billion people in Africa against yellow fever. The hope is to have reached this goal by 2026.

This campaign is called the Eliminate Yellow Fever Epidemics, and was launched by Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who stated, “With one injection we can protect a person for life against this dangerous pathogen.” This is just one of many comprehensive strategies created by this organization to combat the outbreak of deadly diseases across the globe.

The World Health Organization, along with Gavi The Vaccine Alliance and many other organizations, have made an incredible amount of vaccines available all over the world. They have collaborated to provide vaccines for things such as tuberculosis, measles and hepatitis b.

Partnerships of Improvement

January of 2018 also sparked a new collaboration between WHO and U.N. Environment. This new agreement will increase joint action between the two organizations in the effort to increase action on topics such as air pollution, water quality and food and nutrition issues.

These organizations have recognized that the environments in developing countries cause hundreds of thousands of deaths per year, because of pollution and contaminated drinking water. With these two major organizations working closely to implement new programs, the hope is to tackle these major issues and see growth each year. The two organizations will meet annually to discuss strategies and plans for reaching these goals.

Changing Lives, Eliminating Disease

For 70 years, the World Health Organization has been a leader in strategic planning and implementation of new programs around the globe. Hundreds of thousands of people in developing countries contract diseases and suffer from malnourishment each year, but WHO is working with leaders all over the world to ensure everyone is able to access lifesaving vaccines, clean water and shelter.

Working in over 150 countries around the world and raising millions of dollars each year, the World Health Organization strives to end diseases globally, and provide support to countries in need. With the support of world leader and donor countries, the WHO is changing the outcome of countless lives.

– Allisa Rumreich
Photo: Flickr

Air Pollution in Iran

Air Pollution in Iran
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 9 out of 10 people breathe in high levels of pollutants resulting in the deaths of 7 million people each year. These diseases include cancer, heart disease, lung disease and strokes. The regions with the highest rates of air pollution are commonly found in Asia and Africa; however, cities in America, Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean also have levels that WHO finds unhealthy.

For regions with high rates of air pollution, the issue often lies with energy production such as the of burning coal and other industrial activities. These methods lead to increased air pollution because, on average, developing countries don’t possess the technology and resources to combat polluting waste. Iran is one such country that is experiencing this very problem.

Dust Storms in the Khuzestan Province

At the start of 2018, Iran made headlines for having the worst dust storm yet where elementary schools in 15 cities were shut down in the province of Khuzestan alone. Ahvaz, the largest city of southwestern Iran, was one of the 15. Known for its post-secondary education and role in commerce and industry, Ahvaz pollution levels were approximately 53 times higher than the moderate standard that WHO considers safe. As a result of the large dust storm, people of this province were forced to stay indoors, without power or running water at times, and 806 people were taken to the emergency wards, of whom 39 were hospitalized and nine were taken into intensive care.

This year’s dust storm isn’t the first to occur in the Khuzestan province. According to a study on the dust storms in southwestern Iran, one of the highest occurrences of dust storms was in 2009 with the respective number of days being 48 days during colder climates and 122 days during warmer climates. Because of the reoccurring dust storms, the number of protests has increased.

In January, the people of Ahvaz gathered in front of the City Council to bring awareness of the effects air pollution is having on them such as the loss of domestic products and increased health care costs. For example, the World Bank reports that diseases caused by air pollution cost $260 million in Iran causing damage to Iran’s economy by as much as 0.023 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP).

Fueling their grievances further and contributing to the economic decline of Iran are changes in the regions’ climate and depleting water sources. Stronger winds are carrying the toxic dust and contaminating the water, which additionally aggravates health issues and thereby increases the medical costs for treatments.

Air Pollution in Tehran

In Tehran, air pollution is also causing grievances. Tehran is located at higher altitudes with the Alborz Mountain Range surrounding it and, therefore, comes in contact with the majority of the air pollution in Iran. The air pollution is also attributed to temperature inversions that prevent common pollutants like carbon dioxide and sulfur from being broken down in the atmosphere and the high use of vehicles stocked with archaic technology that continue to move around Tehran. Other major causes of air pollution in Iran include come from refineries and power plants, industries, household sources, and gas terminals.

In Tehran, the annual economic health costs associated with air pollution are about $2.6 billion. In order to combat air pollution, Tehran Municipality has shut down 8 businesses and heavily restricted the use of older trucks and buses. They also encourage the production of vehicles with more updated technology to reduce air pollution, which will replace some of the 3,400 old buses that crowd the streets today.

As a result of such actions, air pollution in Iran is seeing results. For example, the amount of black carbon (a major air pollutant) present was decreased by 50 percent, which reduces the toxicity of the air pollution affecting the population. In recent years, Iran has adopted higher fuel quality standards, is working to improve the management of the methods of congestion in locations with major activity and has encouraged the use of hybrid and electric vehicles as well as the use of bicycles.

The Clean Air Law in Iran

The Clean Air Law, adopted in July of 2017, continues implementing methods of reducing air pollution in Iran. For example, the law introduces heavier punishments and fines for any industries or individuals that do not adhere to the pollution limits. They also plan to divide the city of Tehran into three zones and charge people for crossing into the zones (like a toll system) as a way of deterring people from using personal cars, which will help decrease the particles present.

In efforts to decrease the number of children being admitted into hospitals for an air pollution-related condition, there have been talks of starting the school year earlier so that students would be on vacation during the period of the worst pollution in winter or introducing a one month vacation during that time. The Ministry of Agriculture has also acknowledged the importance of anti-desertification in reducing the pollution from dust storms and will be working annually on the 300,000 hectares of land that have caused the worst of the storms.

A Brighter Future

By taking these steps forward in reducing air pollution, Iran is working to prevent the premature deaths that result from noncommunicable diseases due to air pollution every year. It also reduces the cost of treatment and time off needed since fewer individuals would need to miss work to be attended to and could, therefore, become more financially stable. This allows the country to distribute financial efforts and alleviate another poverty stressor.

In general, the management of pollution can improve the quality of life for individuals and enhance competitiveness for the country through job creation, better energy efficiency, improved transport and sustainable urban and rural development. It also combats climate change thereby contributing to the alleviation of poverty by providing jobs and creating a healthier population.

– Stephanie Singh
Photo: Flickr

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Hope is on the Horizon for Improving Healthcare in Romania

Improving Healthcare in Romania
According to the Euro Health Consumer index, Romania has ranked last in the EU for the past two years regarding healthcare. The country has one of the EU’s highest poverty rates at 19.8 percent; nearly double the EU’s overall poverty rate. Because of the physical and mental restrictions sickness places on a community, healthcare is a basic necessity for lifting people out of poverty. Despite the country’s bleak rankings, improving healthcare in Romania is becoming a reality as foreign assistance and determined locals work toward developing a healthier population and fighting poverty.

Hardships Cause Doctors to Leave

Romania’s population of close to 20 million people has struggled through major changes and hardships over the past few decades. The country transferred from communist control into a constitutional republic and struggled through a financial crisis in 2008. The financial crisis rendered Romania a needy recipient of a $24 billion bailout given through the International Monetary Fund, the European Commission, the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Through these challenging times, many doctors began leaving Romania in search of higher-quality facilities, supplies, hours and pay. This loss of doctors and other medical professionals is sometimes referred to as a brain drain or a medical exodus. Since 2011, the number of family doctors in Romania decreased by 25 percent. Although thousands of doctors and nurses have left Romania, there is still hope on the horizon.

Efforts to Improve Healthcare

Through foreign aid and local perseverance, efforts are underway for improving healthcare in Romania. Several small hospitals in desperate need of infrastructural repairs and supplies are now undergoing renovation. For example, Victor Babes Infectious Diseases Hospital in the city of Timisoara is now undergoing major renovations to improve issues such as rusty furniture, peeling paint and a lack of basic supplies like curtains. Better-equipped medical facilities are also undergoing improvements. Ponderas Hospital in Bucharest is implementing two surgical robots that increase surgical maneuverability and reduce complications.

A centralization effort of improvements is also underway. Affidea and Hiperdia, two large diagnostic imaging companies with over 37 years of combined experience in Romania, merged in 2017. While some fear such a merger omits beneficial competition, others are hopeful that the merger will increase the quality and efficiency of healthcare in Romania. Affidea is active in at least 12 countries in Europe and has more than 5,000 employees.

Affidea’s manager for Romania, Radu Gorduza, declares the merger will bring a golden standard to Romania, which he hopes will inspire others in Romania’s healthcare system. He exhibits a very optimistic view of the situation, saying, “There is so much room for improvement here.” Plans are underway for major renovations and remodeling of waiting rooms to be more patient-friendly, as well as ensuring that employees have empathetic qualities and “soft skills.” Gorduza states that the merger will also improve Romania’s information technology infrastructure by providing remote access to imaging services through telemedicine.

The Implementation of Telemedicine

Telemedicine implementation is an important part of improving healthcare in Romania; half of Romania’s population lives in rural areas, but nearly all of the country’s hospitals are located in urban areas. Remote mountains and the Danube Delta present difficult terrain to travel for many people, and telemedicine is helping to connect doctors with people in these areas without necessitating travel. The EU funded the Romanian government with $19 million for implementing a telemedicine network for people in rural areas; the network was completed at the end of 2015.

Steps are also being taken to incentivize doctors and other medical professionals to stay in Romania rather than joining the exodus of thousands of others seeking better pay and working conditions elsewhere. The incentives include better benefits, higher salaries and reimbursement for participating in telemedicine.

Overall, while healthcare improvements are in the early stages of development in Romania due to the lasting effects of a communist dictatorship and a financial crisis, there are many reasons for Romanians and their allies to be optimistic about the future. Through foreign assistance and local participation, healthcare in Romania is slowly but steadily improving.

– Emme Leigh
Photo: Flickr

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Health Education in Myanmar

Health Education in Myanmar
Although Myanmar has significantly reduced its poverty from 48.2 percent in 2004 to 32.1 percent in 2015, poverty still inhabits about a third of the population. Furthermore, of the 15.8 million people living below the poverty line, 13.8 live in rural areas. This disproportionate distribution of the poor is correlated largely with the limited reach of health education in Myanmar. 

The Need for Health Education in Myanmar

Rural children’s growth, physically and cognitively, is often stunted by poor basic health education including that of HIV, malnutrition, and high infant mortality. Health issues are especially detrimental to the welfare of rural households as income is often based on agricultural jobs that are physically demanding. Poor health education which results in poor health, in turn, damages the labor market and the economy. The World Bank, in its assessment of Myanmar’s poverty, foresees increased growth especially in rural areas, and health education is one of their most important priorities as a part of its Country Partnership Framework program.

Myanmar has benefitted from successful collaborations from organizations within the international community.

  • The World Bank: Since 2015, about 5.4 million people have benefited from the World Bank’s support of better schools, and stipends have given 150,000 more children the opportunity to study. Development of more health clinics and corresponding services are reducing extreme poverty in Myanmar. Infectious diseases and child mortality rates are lowered by the strengthening of national health systems and education curriculum.
  • USAID: USAID along with Global Development Alliance partner P&G collaborated to educate people from central and eastern Myanmar on how to prevent diarrheal diseases which is common among poorly informed citizens. So far this year, these organizations have assisted about two million people in achieving an understanding of proper sanitation habits. Health education in Myanmar can lift communities out of a vulnerability to conflict and build more resilience to preventable diseases.
  • UNICEF encourages increased government investment from its natural resources to education and healthcare to alleviate Myanmar’s socio-economic issues. In the fiscal year 2012-2013, Myanmar’s government only spent 2.3 percent of its GDP on the social sector while surrounding Southeast Asian countries spent more than twice as much on education and healthcare. This neglect continues to result in malnourished, poor street children and high child labor.

Innovative Strategies to Increase Health Education in Rural Areas

Many poor villages in Myanmar are popular regions for human trafficking activity, and thousands of children without access to relevant medical information are victims of preventable diseases. About 260,000 people have HIV, many of whom are poor.

In response to the trafficking crisis and other health issues affecting young Myanmars, some innovative strategies are now in place.

  • The Mandalay Marionette Theatre utilizes face-to-face learning through puppet acts as an effective and innovative strategy to make health education accessible and memorable to children from rural backgrounds. While more affluent countries are exploring the educational uses of artificial intelligence and virtual reality, this puppet group advocates for its emotionally engaging productions. “When children experience an exciting event, they continue to talk about it when it’s over. It enforces a peer effect. They begin to ask each other, ‘Did you actually wash your hands and practice good hygiene?” says Dr. Shakuntala Banaji, a communication scholar at the London School of Economics, who recognizes the potency of puppet entertainment for education.
  • The Myanmar Red Cross, partnering with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, initiated an education program that uses television and film to cover different relevant health topics for remote communities. It has provided 40 villages with TVs, speakers, solar panels and more, to make media a reliable educational tool. This technology provides a positive system of change to understanding and implementing safer health habits. The educational videos cover many first aid topics. The ones in higher demand instruct people on how to maneuver commonplace perils such as snake bites and burns. These videos also combat many uninformed, indigenous beliefs. Malaria, a common threat in Mogok, was falsely understood to be a result of eating certain plants. A village administrator has learned otherwise from video sources and has informed the people of other effective preventative methods to protect themselves from the actual source of malaria, mosquitoes.
  • The ‘Mama Oo’ radio drama series of 2015-2016 is another creative means of stimulating change in attitudes regarding maternal and child health. An entertaining way of imparting more information on maternal and child health issues to the community, this radio show provided a convenient way through short episodes of understanding the eight key health messages approved by the Ministry of Health.

The current government prioritizes education as the core of its reform strategy with the ambition of lifting its country into the ranks of upper-middle-income countries by 2030. The different innovative strategies for disseminating important messages regarding good health is evidence of these efforts. Inclusive health education in Myanmar serves as one of the most important roots to tend to as the country climbs out of poverty.

– Alice Lieu
Photo: Flickr

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How Reusable Sanitary Pads Help Girls Stay in School

reusable sanitary padsIt is estimated that one in 10 girls in African countries miss school monthly due to a lack of supplies and education related to menstruation. The negative connotations of “becoming a woman” and the mystery surrounding these changes can not only create girls’ unhealthy perceptions of themselves and their bodies but can affect more concrete aspects of their lives, including their education.

Effects of Lack of Education on Menstruation

Many girls will skip school to avoid the potential embarrassment and shame associated with having one’s period show. Due to its monthly recurrence, many young women are unable to catch up on the material they have missed and will eventually drop out of school altogether.

In Uganda, 70 percent of girls leave school between the ages of 13 and 18. Low enrollment for both genders is common due to a variety of circumstances in many African countries.

However, with menstruation typically beginning around 13 years old and girls’ limited access to sexual health education and supplies, dropout rates increase for young women at a rate 10 percent higher than boys of the same age. Access to reproductive health education and cost effective menstruation supplies such as reusable sanitary pads can be powerful tools in keeping young women in school.

Benefits of Reusable Sanitary Pads

Disposable menstruation supplies are often too expensive for families to afford, forcing many young women to use unsanitary alternatives such as old clothes or to go without sanitary pads altogether. Reusable sanitary pads are a cheap, effective and empowering tool for young African women.

NGOs such as Girls2Women and Mums for Mums have assisted in teaching girls how to sew their own reusable sanitary pads for less than $1 from basic patterns and locally sourced materials that attach easily to undergarments with velcro. The Peace Corp has also been an important player in educating and empowering young women through Girls Leading Our World, or GLOW, camps.

Started in Romania in 1995, GLOW camps have since opened in over 60 countries around the world. Each camp is focused on empowering young women and combating local issues such as malaria and HIV/AIDS prevention, reproductive health, stress tolerance and healthy living through education and training.

Positive Effects of GLOW Camps

In African countries with GLOW camps, learning to make reusable sanitary pads often features in the education of the young women. In countries such as Tanzania and Uganda, the creation of reusable sanitary pads begun by GLOW camp educations has been picked up by local charities and community organizations, helping normalize menstruation for girls and boys in the community alike and ultimately keep more young women in school.  

By making the reusable sanitary pads themselves, girls are able to move forward in their lives with more knowledge and confidence in themselves and their bodies, and menstruation becomes less of an unknown force to be feared. The inclusion of parents, teachers and boys is also valuable to the program’s effectiveness and longevity as well as the confidence and empowerment of the young women.

In Uganda, the charity Mountains of Hope offers educational programs on reproductive health and teen pregnancy and training in making reusable sanitary pads. These include men and boys so as to better educate and support young women of the community.

With this vital education and training in making reusable sanitary pads, as well as other aspects of reproductive health, girls in many African countries are better able to pursue their education without compromising their wellbeing. Organizations such as the Peace Corp, Girls2Women and Mountains of Hope have created opportunities for communities to feel empowered and create change with their young women, giving them the chance to achieve the education all children deserve.

– Anna Lally
Photo: Flickr

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World Blood Donor Day and Blood Donations in Developing Countries

Blood Donations in Developing Countries
Every year since 2004, countries around the world have celebrated World Blood Donor Day on June 14 and this year plans to be no different. While the day this campaign falls on is the same, the theme varies each year. This year’s theme is blood donation as an act of solidarity and highlights the human values of respect, empathy and kindness. These three traits ultimately sustain the voluntary unpaid blood donation system present today.

Blood Donations

Blood donations in developing countries are essential to help support and uplift those in need. Up to 65 percent of blood transfusions are given to children under the age of five years old from blood donations in developing countries. In these low and middle-income countries, these blood transfusions are for those with pregnancy-related complications or severe childhood anemia.

Blood transfusions given to those in need help thousands live longer and have a higher quality of life. Although, blood transfusions are only useful if the blood is safe — it was estimated that 5-10 percent of HIV infections in the 1980s was due to unsafe blood transfusions. Globally, in 2006, up to four million had been infected with HIV due to unsafe transfusion of blood.

Keeping blood safe is therefore imperative to sustaining global health, yet “equitable access to safe blood still remains a major challenge in many countries,” said Doctor Edward Kelly, the director of service delivery and safety at the World Health Organization in a recent news release. “Providing safe and adequate supplies of blood and blood products should be an essential part of every country’s national health care policy and infrastructure.”

Ensuring Blood Safety

One of the main reasons many countries have unsafe blood donations is because these countries lack policies, procedures and/or resources for ensuring the safety of blood.

Only 46 percent of blood donations in developing countries screen blood for HIV. There are five steps that the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends to ensure blood safety in developing countries:

  • Establish a national blood system: Organize and coordinate blood transfusion services, have effective and ethical national blood policies and proper legislation and regulation. Doing these steps will provide safe blood and blood products to those in need in a timely manner.
  • Collect from low-risk, regular, voluntary unpaid donors: Collect blood from these type of donors to ensure the donation system is strengthened and able to provide better resources.
  • Quality-assured screening: Provide specific screening for all donated blood to see if there are transfusion-transmissible infections. By doing this action, these donations centers will be able to see if blood is safe or not.
  • Rational use of blood and blood products: Ration the blood/blood products to reduce unnecessary transfusions and the chance of transmitting possibly unsafe blood.
  • Implement a system: Implement an effective and quality system that includes proper management, manufacturing practices, documentation, training of staff and quality assessment.

Time to Donate

If just 1 percent of a country’s population donated blood, more of the people in need could have their basic health requirements met; the time is now to take steps to donate blood.

This year, the WHO calls for an increase in blood donations as numbers continue to rise of those in need. As June 14 draws closer, countries around the world must remember the call from the World Health Organization and this year’s World Blood Donor Day slogan: “Be there for someone else. Give Blood. Share Life.”

– Victoria Fowler
Photo: Flickr

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On a Better Note: The Rhythm of Music and Poverty

Music and Poverty
Robert Browning once said, “Who hears music, feels his solitude peopled at once.” For those living in poverty around the world, being surrounded by others in the same predicament often manifests in a collective loneliness. While the cadence of the day-to-day drones on, music’s tempo sets the pulse of nations. Music and poverty may dance in the shadows at times, but their connection lives beyond subtleties — it is a real and often necessary connection.

Medicine for the Soul

Just how powerful is music? According to eMedExpert, an online informational Web site dedicated to health and medicine, music can:

  • Boost immunity to disease
  • Benefit emotional intelligence, and turn negative thoughts to positive
  • Create stronger literacy skills
  • Increase productivity

The Fajara Cancer Centre in Nairobi, Kenya bears witness to the healing power of music. When Berklee College of Music graduate Cara Smith did research in East Africa for her degree in music therapy, cancer patient Aisha hadn’t spoken all week while undergoing treatments. The two sat down together and wrote a song, creating an avenue for Aisha to express herself despite the verbal challenges from personal trauma.

Inspired, Smith went on to create Umoja Community Music Therapy which now operates in more than 50 schools, hospitals and community centers in Uganda and Kenya.

Smith, along with fellow graduates Brooke Hatfield and Kristina Casale, have also seen former child soldiers climb out of depression and trauma to find joy, and young women become empowered through music. Smith points out the connection of music to East African culture and sees it as an open door ready to be pushed.

“El Sistema”

Passing away earlier this year, Jose Antonio Abreu left a legacy of the profound impact of music. As founder of a music program for Venezuelan children, Abreu understood the relationship between music and poverty. His program, known widely as “El Sistema” (the system), trained musicians across all social classes.

According to Abreu, the system fought poverty at its roots. He explained to 60 Minutes’ Bob Simon, “A child’s physical poverty is overcome by the spiritual richness that comes from music.”

El Sistema helped to create other musical movements in developing countries, such as those implemented by Children International (CI), an organization devoted to breaking the cycle of poverty on the world stage. With programs in the Dominican Republic since 2014 and Columbia since 2015, CI sees first-hand how the method puts an emphasis on peer-to-peer instruction, cultivating leadership and selflessness, and  keeps youth away from gangs and other destructive environments at the same time.

Then, there are the nonquantifiable effects of music. Juan David, a participant in the Columbian program, says “when I’m playing, I feel very peaceful and calm, because I leave my world behind.”

Power and Purpose

While a temporary escape from reality might be welcome, song may wield the power to affect real change in health and development outcomes through their musical passions. Case studies in Africa have shown the utility of songs in networking, fundraising and advocacy.

In 2008, U2’s lead singer and humanitarian, Bono, led his One Campaign, which united over 100 international artists, and put major pressure on G8 summit leaders to create change. More recently, in 2014, One’s Do Agric Campaign sent a message to African leaders to invest in agriculture.

The cornerstone song for that campaign, Cocoa na Chocolate, plainly stated: “like the seeds of light forever, let the Earth provide for her children.” The track, one of the biggest collaborations in Africa’s history, inspired a nation to take initiative and provide for itself.

Music, Poverty and Change

In Africa, songs have been written for political mobilization, as a tool for therapy, as a cry against social injustices and as a show of cultural solidarity.

Music and poverty seem to provide limited evidence of a direct cause/effect correlation (i.e., music decreasing levels of poverty), but music’s inherent emotional value strikes a subliminal chord almost universally. With iconic international musicians like U2 writing charity songs that encourage action, music disseminates information and raises awareness, while encouraging those in poverty that they are not alone.

In every song, there are notes of struggle, relatable and comforting; there are notes of dignity, reminding of a need for hope; there are notes of resistance, pressing people to find relief from stress and the motivation to change their condition.

-Daniel Staesser
Photo: Flickr

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The Effects of Poverty Are Widespread But Can Be Reduced

The Effects of Poverty

Poverty can have lasting impacts on both the people and communities in which it is present. The effects of poverty are often detrimental to both the health and education of people that are affected by it, and can lead to higher crime and mortality rates in neighborhoods and countries where the poverty level is high.

More than 10,000 children die every day because they live in poor housing. The effects of poverty on children are even more dangerous than for adults, because children are still developing. While in their developing stages, without access to healthy living conditions or secure access to food and water, children easily succumb to both disease and death. Living in a house that does not have adequate ventilation or proper heating can cause lasting damage to a child’s health, if they survive at all.

Poverty also affects education for people of all ages. Younger students will not be able to afford school supplies or clothes for school. As students get older, without a scholarship, secondary education and college are out of the question. Sometimes, even with a scholarship, they are not able to attend, because they have a family to support at home and need to work. Without adequate education, many people end up working for minimal pay, which keeps them impoverished for the duration of their lives and continues the cycle of poverty within the home.

The effects of poverty include high crime rates in affected communities. People without the proper resources to survive often resort to theft and violence in order to survive. Oftentimes, in high poverty areas there are also high unemployment rates, and because people are unable to obtain jobs, they resort to crime because they feel they have no other options.

The cycle of continued poverty also has a significant negative effect on the health of citizens. Substance abuse is often higher in areas with high poverty rates. This only continues to drive families deeper into poverty and continues the vicious cycle of poverty in the community. There are also more crippling accidents, because people in poverty tend to take jobs in unsafe working conditions to make money.

Poverty also has the power to divide society. The lower class is pitted against the higher class and vice-versa. This allows the gap between the two to become even larger without a chance to rectify the problem. In countries with large gaps between the two classes, the middle class is often small or nonexistent, which is an important stepping stone for people in a lower class to earn better wages. As that class disappears, the amount of impoverished citizens will continue to grow.

The effects of poverty are plentiful and widespread. The amount of crime, violence and death that run rampant in communities with high poverty rates are no coincidence, and are a direct result of the amount of poverty in that area. In order to diminish crime and violence in these areas, poverty has to be diminished first.

– Simone Williams

Photo: Flickr

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Five Countries with the Lowest Life Expectancy in the World

lowest life expectancy in the world
Out of the established 224 countries on the earth, these are the bottom five with the lowest life expectancy in the world. The countries listed below range from an average lifespan of 52.1 years to 50.6 years old.

Five Countries with the Lowest Life Expectancy in the World

  1. Swaziland
    Swaziland has the fifth-lowest life expectancy in the world at an average of 52.1 years. Swaziland is the only country on this list with men living, on average, longer than women. As of 2016, the top two reasons for deaths were HIV/AIDS and lower respiratory infections.However, Swaziland is one of the countries receiving help from USAID. One of the top priorities of USAID is fighting against HIV/AIDS by preventing sexual transmission, increasing the prevalence of male circumcision, improving institutions and training, lessening the impact of HIV/AIDS and decentralizing care and treatment. With USAID’s continued assistance and its partnerships within the African nation, there is a chance that the average lifespan in Swaziland can increase above 52.1 years.
  1. Gabon
    With an average lifespan of 52.1 years, Gabon is ranked number four for the lowest life expectancy in the world. Despite being rated so low, Gabon has a robust oil-dependent economy, making it a middle-income country.Due to this income status, it is ineligible for relief programs such as Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization. This ineligibility may be why HIV/AIDS and heart disease are the top two reasons for death in the country, contributing to the low life expectancy.
  1. Afghanistan
    The only country not in Africa, Afghanistan is ranked at number three with an average lifespan of 51.7 years. This ranking may increase over time through help from USAID.In Afghanistan, USAID is working to promote health and education, both critical factors in raising life expectancies. USAID and its partners are making substantial strides to improve the healthcare for Afghans. For example, in 2016, the organization began a project to help reduce malnutrition and increase access to safe water and sanitation.USAID is also working toward making essential health services available and improving the quality and quantity of medicines. These resources, once available to Afghans, grant the nation a high potential to no longer be one of the countries with the lowest life expectancy in the world.
  1. Guinea-Bissau
    The second-to-last country with the lowest life expectancy in the world is Guinea-Bissau, averaging about 51 years of life. Aid for Africa is working in Guinea-Bissau with programs that help improve health and education, create businesses and protect wildlife.Another program through Aid for Africa, called Tostan, works by using local languages and traditions to promote democracy, problem-solving, human rights, hygiene and health. Through this program, successful countries have become more prosperous as well as healthier. With the continued implementation of programs such as these, Guinea-Bissau could improve its quantity of life.
  1. Chad
    Chad has the lowest life expectancy in the world at an average lifespan of 50.6 years. The life expectancy in this nation is so low because it has one of the highest rates of maternal mortality and high infant mortality as well.USAID has several programs to help those living in Chad. USAID and the U.N. World Food Programme are working together to distribute food and make sure access to food is readily available all over the country.Starting in 2018, programs such as In-Kind Food Aid, Local and Regional Food Procurement, Cash Transfers for Food and Food Vouchers all will be funded to help citizens. With these various programs helping improve health and nutrition, sources are working with Chad to increase the average lifespan.

World life expectancy continues to increase on the whole, but these five countries are still lagging behind. In order to increase the longevity and potential of their citizens’ lives, they will require targeted aid and a focus on infrastructure and healthcare.

– Amber Duffus

Photo: Flickr