Ethiopia’s Tigray runs out of medical supplies amid health crisis: WHO
Geneva, SwitzerlandReuters Ethiopia’s Tigray region has run out of medical supplies such as vaccines, antibiotics and insulin, World Health Organization officials said on Friday, warning that many deaths were probably going unrecorded from preventable and treatable diseases. The conflict that has pitted Ethiopia’s army against forces from the country’s northern region of Tigray has killed […]
COVID wave looms in Europe as booster campaign makes slow start
Reuters A new COVID-19 wave appears to be brewing in Europe as cooler weather arrives, with public health experts warning that vaccine fatigue and confusion over types of available vaccines will likely limit booster uptake. Omicron subvariants BA.4/5 that dominated this summer are still behind the majority of infections, but newer Omicron subvariants are gaining […]
World hunger rising as UN agencies warn of “looming catastrophe”
London, UKReuters World hunger levels rose again last year after soaring in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Ukraine war and climate change threatening starvation and mass migration on an “unprecedented scale” this year, according to UN agencies. Up to 828 million people, or nearly 10 per cent of the world’s population, were […]
India releases 2020 death data ahead of WHO COVID mortality study it objects
New Delhi, IndiaReuters India registered about 475,000 more total deaths in 2020 than the previous year, government data released months ahead of schedule on Tuesday showed, as the World Health Organization readies its estimates of excess COVID-19 deaths whose methodology New Delhi has opposed. Some experts estimate India’s actual COVID death toll is as high […]
WHO says global rise in COVID cases is “tip of the iceberg”
Reuters Figures showing a global rise in COVID-19 cases could herald a much bigger problem as some countries also report a drop in testing rates, the WHO said on Tuesday, warning nations to remain vigilant against the virus. After more than a month of decline, COVID cases started to increase around the world last week, […]
Malaria deaths rise by 69,000 in 2020 due to COVID-19 disruptions, says WHO
Dakar, Senegal Reuters Healthcare disruptions linked to the coronavirus pandemic helped malaria kill 69,000 more people in 2020 than the previous year, but a worst-case scenario was averted, the World Health Organization said on Monday. In total over 627,000 people globally – most of them babies in the poorest parts of Africa – were killed […]
Updated: WHO flags Omicron risk, curbs tighten worldwide, Biden urges vaccination
Last updated: 6.30am, 30th November, 2021 (AEDT)Tokyo, Japan/Geneva, Switzerland Reuters The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday the Omicron coronavirus variant carried a very high risk of infection surges as more countries closed borders, casting a shadow over economic recovery from the two-year pandemic. Big airlines acted swiftly to protect their hubs by curbing passenger […]
World hunger, malnutrition soared last year mostly due to COVID-19 – UN agencies
London, UKReuters World hunger and malnutrition levels worsened dramatically last year, with most of the increase likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a multi-agency United Nations report published on Monday. After remaining virtually unchanged for five years, the number of undernourished people rose to around 768 million last year – equivalent to 10 […]
Myanmar COVID-19 outbreak hits health system shattered after coup
Reuters Breathless, fevered and without the extra oxygen that could help keep them alive, the new coronavirus patients at a hospital near Myanmar’s border with India highlight the threat to a health system near collapse since February’s coup. To help her tend the seven COVID-19 patients at Cikha hospital, day and night, chief nurse Lun […]
Two members of WHO delegation to Wuhan held back over health screening
Wuhan, China/Geneva, Switzerland Reuters Two members of a World Health Organization-led team that arrived on Thursday in China’s Wuhan city to investigate the origins of COVID-19 remained behind in Singapore after testing positive for coronavirus antibodies, the global body said. The team of 15 had all tested negative for the disease prior to leaving their […]