Thursday, April 7, 2011

[EQ] Tackling antibiotic resistance from a food safety perspective in Europe

Tackling antibiotic resistance from a food safety perspective in Europe

World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe

Copenhagen Denmark, 2011

Available online PDF [88p.] at: http://bit.ly/i76Ykb

“…..Antibiotics have revolutionized the treatment of infectious diseases. But their use and misuse have resulted in the development and spread of antibiotic resistance. This is now a significant health problem: each year in the European Union alone, over 25 000 people die from infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Antibiotic resistance is also a food safety problem: antibiotic use in food animals –for treatment, disease prevention or growth promotion – allows resistant bacteria and resistance genes to spread from food animals to humans through the food-chain.

This publication explores the options for prevention and containment of antibiotic resistance in the food-chain through national coordination and international cooperation, including the regulation and reduction of antibiotic use in food animals, training and capacity building, surveillance of resistance trends and antibiotic usage, promotion of knowledge and research, and advocacy and communication to raise awareness of the issues.

This publication is primarily intended for policy-makers and authorities working in the public health, agriculture, food production and veterinary sectors, and offers them ways to take a holistic, intersectoral, multifaceted approach to this growing problem….”

Content:

Executive summary

A global threat

An important food safety problem

Urgent need for action

International cooperation to support national action

Introduction – antibiotic resistance as a global threat

Definitions

Challenge for human health

Why antibiotic resistance is increasing worldwide

Tackling antibiotic resistance

1. Antibiotic resistance in relation to food safety

Antibiotic use in food production

Antibiotic resistance as a food safety problem

2. Tackling antibiotic resistance in relation to food safety

Regulatory framework for antibiotic use in food animals

Reduced need for and prudent use of antibiotics in animal husbandry

Surveillance

Advocacy and communication

Training and capacity building

Knowledge gaps and research needs

3. Conclusions and action points

References

Annex 1. International partnerships on antibiotic resistance from a food safety perspective

Annex 2. Relevant international standards and guidelines.

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[EQ] Performance Measurement for Health System Improvement

Performance Measurement for Health System Improvement:

Experiences, Challenges and Prospects

The editors

Peter C. Smith is Professor of Health Policy in the Business School and Institute for Global Health at Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London.

Elias Mossialos is Professor of Health Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science, Co-Director of the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies and Director of LSE Health.

Irene Papanicolas is Research Associate and Brian Abel-Smith Scholar at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE Health).

Sheila Leatherman is Research Professor at the Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, and Visiting Professor at the London School of Economics and Political Science.

The Cambridge Health Economics, Policy and Management series

Available online at: http://bit.ly/g6aatG

“…..In a world where there is increasing demand for the performance of health providers to be measured, there is a need for a more strategic vision of the role that performance measurement can play in securing health system improvement.

This volume meets this need by presenting the opportunities and challenges associated with performance measurement in a framework that is clear and easy to understand. It examines the various levels at which health system performance is undertaken, the technical instruments and tools available, and the implications using these may have for those charged with the governance of the health system.

Technical material is presented in an accessible way and is illustrated with examples from all over the world. Performance Measurement for Health System Improvement is an authoritative and practical guide for policy makers, regulators, patient groups and researchers.

Provides a holistic approach to the performance measurement, covering technical and policy aspects; Draws on experience of health care systems from all over the world; Non-technical language makes it accessible to a wide readership, including policy makers and representative groups…..”

Content:

Performance Measurement for Health System Improvements (Prelims)

Part I Principles of performance measurement

Part II Dimensions of performance

Part III Analytical methodology for performance measurement

Part IV Performance measurement in specific domains

Part V Health policy and performance measurement

Part VI Conclusions

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[EQ] Policy briefs: Urgent action necessary to safeguard drug treatments - World Health Day 2011

Urgent action necessary to safeguard drug treatments

World Health Day 2011: policy briefs

World Health Organization- http://bit.ly/hl6rFO

Policy Package to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance

"……Today, WHO is publishing a policy package that sets out the measures governments and their national partners need to combat drug resistance.
The policy steps recommended by WHO include:

· develop and implement a comprehensive, financed national plan

· strengthen surveillance and laboratory capacity

· ensure uninterrupted access to essential medicines of assured quality

· regulate and promote rational use of medicines

· enhance infection prevention and control

· foster innovation and research and development for new tools.

The discovery and use of antimicrobial drugs to treat diseases such as leprosy, tuberculosis, gonorrhea and syphilis changed the course of medical and human history. Now, those discoveries and the generations of drugs that followed them are at risk, as high levels of drug resistance threaten their effectiveness.

Drug resistance is a natural biological phenomenon, through which microorganisms acquire resistance to the drugs meant to kill them. With each new generation, the microorganism carrying the resistant gene becomes ever more dominant until the drug is completely ineffective. Inappropriate use of infection-fighting drugs (underuse, overuse or misuse) causes resistance to emerge faster…." [ Press release 6 April 2011 | Geneva]

Policy Briefs:

· 1. Commit to a comprehensive, financed national plan with accountability and civil Society engagement

· 2. Strengthen surveillance and laboratory capacity

· 3. Ensure uninterrupted access to essential medicines of assured quality

· 4. Regulate and promote rational use of medicines, including in animal husbandry, and ensure proper patient care

· Reduce use of antimicrobials in food-producing animals

· 5. Enhance infection prevention and control

PAHO/WHO
World Health Day Celebration
"Combat Drug Resistance: No Action Today, No cure tomorrow"

When: Thursday, April 7, 9.30 am to 1 pm. http://bit.ly/fWqcG4

Where: Pan American Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) HQs

525 Twenty-third Street, NW Washington, DC 20037
Room B

Who: Welcoming Remarks (9:30 - 10:00)

· Video of Mirta Roses, Director, PAHO/WHO

· Jon Kim Andrus, Deputy Director, PAHO/WHO

· Anthony S. Fauci, Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH

· Claudia Palacios, News anchor, CNN

Round table:
Antimicrobial resistance, a hidden burden
(10:00 - 11:00)

Marcos Espinal, PAHO/WHO (Moderator)

· AMR Surveillance in Latin America Marcelo Galas, Ministry of Health, Argentina

· Prevention of AMR dissemination in health care settings Orlando Urroz, Caja Costarricense del Seguro Social, Costa Rica

· Challenges for care and impact of AMR in health care costs Susan Foster, APUA, USA

· Role of the microbiology laboratories in the detection of AMR, ASM Joseph Campos, Children's National Medial Center USA

· Impact of HIV drug resistance on treatment schemes and costs Omar Sued, PAHO/WHO

Round Table:
Antimicrobial utilization in the Framework of a comprehensive strategy for the Rational Use of Medicines
(11:00 12:00)

José Luis Di Fabio (PAHO/WHO) and Perla M. de Buschiazzo (Argentina)

· Main achievements in the rational use of medicines and the implementation of a comprehensive strategy - James Fitzgerald, PAHO/WHO

· The National Strategic Plan of Nicaragua Guillermo González, Presidency of Nicaragua

· Perspectives from Guatemala for the Rational Use of Medicines Ludwing Ovalle, Ministry of Health, Guatemala

· Perspectives from Chile for the strategy implementation María Teresa Valenzuela, ISP, Ministry of Health, Chile

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"Materials provided in this electronic list are provided "as is". Unless expressly stated otherwise, the findings
and interpretations included in the Materials are those of the authors and not necessarily of The Pan American
Health Organization PAHO/WHO or its country members".
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