This blog is a part of #COVID19Africa Series Uganda typically experiences recurring disease outbreaks throughout the year is in a state of continuous alerts (1). The country has invested in the Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) system which has helped to mitigate numerous outbreaks. Despite our fairly advanced surveillance system, the threat of an […]
Category: BMJ Global Health
Ready or not? COVID-19 and epidemic preparedness in Nigeria
This blog is a part of #COVID19Africa Series Nigeria had been waiting for it, expecting it, anticipating it. But no one knew exactly as it came in. Only in hindsight would the country piece together the story of an Italian man who arrived by air in Lagos on March 24, infected with SARS-CoV-2. By four […]
Giving birth amid a pandemic in Belgium: the challenges faced by mothers and midwives
Many voices have arisen as the COVID-19 pandemic unfolds to draw attention on the numerous hidden repercussions of the crisis. The magnitude of those consequences will probably be clear only in the aftermath of the pandemic. But one thing is certain: both patients and healthcare workers have been deeply impacted. Since April 22, with […]
Elder Care during COVID-19 : Reflections from Shanghai
On January 23, 2020, Wuhan, a Chinese city with over 10 million people, was locked down due to COVID-19. Subsequently, all cities in China instituted the highest level emergency response. The response mandated home isolation, reduced unessential hospital visits, restricted social activities, and the use of personal protection equipment (e.g., face masks) outdoors. We […]
Domestic health financing for Covid-19 response in Africa
This blog is a part of #COVID19Africa Series The outbreak of Covid-19 imposes additional financing requirements to prevent, detect and respond in a timely and effective manner. Underfunding of health is a persistent problem in African countries, resulting in weak health systems and gaps in service delivery. Required funding to promote universal access to primary […]
COVID-19: Reimagining the political economy of planetary health
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic gives the new field of planetary health a unique chance to prove itself. Since the Rockefeller Foundation-Lancet Commission report’s release in 2015 (1), planetary health has been met by a mixture of both excitement and skepticism. Young scholars from diverse disciplines are energized by the idea of transdisciplinary collaboration for […]
Public Health Law in times of COVID-19 : perspective from India
About two months after the WHO declared COVID-19 as a pandemic, India dived into a 21 day lockdown. For the general public, daily life came to a halt ; but for our health care workers, it was time to suit up for the battle. With the responsibility of the health of 1.3 billion Indians […]
The forgotten first line: response to COVID-19 in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo
This blog is a part of #COVID19Africa Series. Click for French version The first line of care, the front line, is the patients’ first point of contact, the coordinator of care, the interface between the community and the health system, and is responsible for the health of a specific population. In much of sub-Sahara Africa and […]
COVID-19 puts the health system to test in Bababé, Mauritania
This blog is a part of #COVID19Africa Series. Click for French version Mauritania reported the first cases of COVID-19 on 13 March 2020. To date, the country has 6 confirmed cases: 4 imported cases from Europe, 1 case of community transmission in the capital Nouakchott, 1 imported case from Senegal in Kaédi, a town in Southern […]
First line response to COVID-19: community health centres and doctors’ offices in Guinea
This blog is a part of #COVID19Africa Series. Click for French version Guinea’s health sector is primarily public. The first line of healthcare consists of more than 410 public health facilities, some 100 private non-profit facilities, and many private for-profit doctors’ offices. Even before the first COVID-19 case was reported in Guinea on 12 March […]