Newsletter – February 2022

1. Editorial
2. EUPHA update
3. European Public Health Week
4. European Public Health Conference
5. EUPHA members update
6. European Journal of Public Health
7. Call for proposals, job opportunities
8. Interesting news
9. Upcoming courses and conferences
10. Interesting publications
11. European Commission news
12. European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control news
13. WHO news

1. Editorial

Amidst great turmoil in Ukraine we welcome you to our February newsletter. EUPHA put out a statement on 25 February with regards to the invasion. You can read the statement in the EUPHA update.

We are pleased to announce the 4th edition of our European Public Health Week and hope that many of you are planning to actively participate in this week (16-20 May). 

The European Public Health Conference 2022 is planned in Berlin, Germany from 9-12 November. Abstract submission will open tomorrow morning and we hope many of you will submit their work and research. 

Furthermore we have EUPHA updates, including the published articles in our EJPH and news from our members. And as always we provide updates from WHO Europe, the European Commission and ECDC. 

Wishing you pleasant reading, 

Iveta Nagyova, EUPHA president, and Dineke Zeegers Paget, EUPHA executive director

2. EUPHA update

Health is at stake in the Ukraine invasion

EUPHA unreservedly condemns the invasion of Ukraine by armed forces. As a public health organisation, it notes that the invasion poses important threats to health in the immediate future and the longer term.
EUPHA stands in solidarity with its member associations in countries that may also face future threats from external aggression, and especially those in the Baltic states.
Read the full statement here.

https://eupha.org/repository/advocacy/EU…

EHMA – EUPHA Statement on Strengthening EU’s competitiveness in health

EUPHA and EHMA welcome the study on ‘EU’S PATH TO COMPETITIVENESS: How Digital, Energy and Health can lead the Way Forward’ (I-Com), presented in a digital symposium on 11 January 2022 by the Institute of Competitiveness.
In this statement, our organisations highlight the points that need to be taken into account if we want these initiatives to succeed.

• A healthy and empowered health workforce
• Not just for but with European citizens
  
• Resilient and flexible health systems
• Recognition for social disparities
• Invest in governance

If your organisation wishes to support this statement, please send your logo to office@eupha.org
Read the statement

https://eupha.org/repository/EHMA%20and%…

Climate Change Litigation at the European Court of Human Rights

This is to inform and invite you to an on-line webinar on
21 March 2022, 2 – 4 pm GMT (London) / 3 – 5pm CET (Brussels)

Attendance is free but registration required via: https://bit.ly/3GS6rxG
More and more people are turning to national and international courts to challenge their governments’ inaction on global warming. The first applications have also arrived at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg (ECtHR). What hurdles do these applications have to overcome before the Court can pass judgments on the merits? What role can human rights play in the fight against global warming? Are national and international courts the right forums for such far-reaching decisions?
The online webinar will include a presentation by Professor Helen Keller, former Judge at the European Court of Human Rights and member of UN Human Rights Commission, with Professor Ole Pederson and Professor Kanstantsin Dzehtsiarou as discussants.
Organised by the Law & NCD and the International Law and Human Rights Units at the University of Liverpool, in collaboration with European Public Health Association Law and Public Health Section, the UK Faculty of Public Health, and other partners.
Further information: Ukpublichealth.ethics@gmail.com

https://bit.ly/3GS6rxG

Joint call to MEPs to protect the strength of the BECA report during plenary vote

In a joint letter initiated by the European Chronic Disease Alliance and supported by EUPHA, organisations express their continued support to the report of the special committee on “Strengthening Europe in the fight against cancer” and ask MEPs to adopt it without compromising its content.

https://alliancechronicdiseases.org/join…

3. European Public Health Week

The preparations for the European Public Health Week are in full swing. 
We’ll share the key messages and sub themes at the 1st of March.
If you want to stay up-to-date in the mean time, please
email euphacommunications@eupha.org with the subject “subscribe EUPHW”.

4. European Public Health Conference

15TH EUROPEAN PUBLIC HEALTH CONFERENCE, 9 – 12 NOVEMBER 2022

STRENGTHENING HEALTH SYSTEMS: IMPROVING POPULATION HEALTH AND BEING PREPARED FOR THE UNEXPECTED’.

WELCOME TO BERLIN 2022
The 15th EPH Conference in Berlin will be the first EPH Conference since Marseille 2019 to take place live and in person from 9 – 12 November. With the steady return to ‘normal’ life across Europe, we are increasingly confident that we can actually host an in person conference in Berlin in November. While the Omicron variant has led to a surge in infections across the continent, hospitalizations have not increased in line with cases, suggesting the worst of the virus might be over. As a result, many countries in Europe are ending their COVID-19 restrictions and Germany is likely to follow later this month. We will keep our fingers crossed this spring, summer and especially autumn that the situation improves further and we can return to a normal conference. We will review government guidelines relating to COVID-19 measures in the run-up to the event. We will make all delegates aware prior to coming of any measures that are in place. This could include social distancing, testing, or showing your vaccination status before entering the venue. Current measures in Berlin can be followed in detail on the websites of VisitBerlin and the State of Berlin.

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION IS OPEN
Abstract submission for the in person 15th EPH Conference 2022 is open until 1 May 2022, 18:00 CET. Abstracts are invited for workshops, oral presentations, pitch presentations and ePosters. All sessions will be 60 minutes. Do not miss the opportunity to be recognized for your hard work. Learn from each other and share your knowledge with others. More information here.

ABSTRACT MENTORING PROGRAMME
EPH Conference and EUPHAnxt offer an Abstract Mentoring Programme providing an opportunity for young and/or less experienced abstract submitters to receive feedback from experienced reviewers. The programme is targeted at researchers who have limited access to colleagues to ask for guidance and comments on their proposed abstracts. More information here.

REGISTRATION
Registration for the 15th EPH Conference opens 1 April 2022. Registration fees will be announced on our website.

THEME AND PROGRAMME
The theme of the in person 15th EPH Conference 2022 will be ‘Strengthening health systems: improving population health and being prepared for the unexpected’. In the past years, we have learned from the COVID-19 pandemic that infectious diseases know no boundaries. Although we have seen the successful development of vaccines, we have also seen with the spread of the Delta and Omicron variants around the globe that these vaccines have not yet been available to everyone. At the conference, we want to explore ways how the public health community can bring about better population health. How can Europe take a more active role in global health?  Europe must use its knowledge and influence to balance out market forces, expand regulatory oversight and create socially responsible systems for health, especially when it comes to the distribution of vaccines and essential medicines. More information here.

CONFERENCE VENUE
The 15th EPH Conference will be held in the hub27 Berlin, part of Messe Berlin. Hub27 is a modern, multifunctional conference centre with ample room for networking and meeting colleagues. It is easily accessed by U-Bahn and S-Bahn from all parts of Berlin. You can reach Berlin by train from everywhere in Europe. Long-distance high-speed trains arrive at and depart from the Hauptbahnhof. Flights to and from the new Berlin-Brandenburg International Airport (BER), 20 km from the city center.

5. EUPHA members update

Journal of Public Health Special Issue to mark the 50th Anniversary of the UK Faculty of Public Health: A call for papers

This year we celebrate 50 years of the UK Faculty of Public Health (formerly the Faculty of Community Medicine). The UK has a proud history of public health from 19th Century pioneers such as Edwin Chadwick and John Snow to modern leaders such as Richard Doll, Michael Marmot and many others. The Faculty of Public Health has been and is an important part of the public health landscape since its inception in 1972 as the standard setting body for public health specialists, and a source of knowledge and guidance around public health, and advocacy for public health nationally and globally.
Considering the current milestone, the Journal of Public Health is planning a special issue to reflect on the work of the FPH over the past 50 years, taking into account the past, present and future of public health in the UK and beyond. We invite public health scholars, practitioners, leaders and policy makers to contribute articles, commentaries and perspective pieces on topics of interest to the broad readership of the Journal. We welcome submissions on a wide variety of topics and encourage critical viewpoints and ideas on important public health topics.
The Journal of Public Health aims to play a key role in disseminating important research findings alongside acting as a global platform for public health discourse. We are therefore particularly interested in receiving articles which discuss the state of public health as a profession, learnings from the past and articles that identify key priorities for public health leaders in a post-pandemic world.
We encourage prospective authors to contact farhang.tahzib@gmail.com to discuss potential submissions. Submissions should be made through the journal’s online manuscript submission portal and should be formatted according to the author guidelines. We look forward to receiving your submissions.
Deadline for submissions is: 21 April 2022.

https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/oup/jph

6. European Journal of Public Health

EDITORIALS
Goodbye to the paper journal and welcome to our new open access format
Peter Allebeck, Dineke Zeegers Paget
Global public health challenges require stronger European collaboration
Rok Hrzic, Timo Clemens, Helmut Brand

COMMENTARIES
How gross methodological errors influence study results: Éduc’alcool response to Peake et al.: ‘Analysis of the accuracy and completeness of cardiovascular health information on alcohol industry-funded websites’
Hubert Sacy
Educ’ Alcool’s misinformation: more mixed messages about alcohol harms
Mark P Petticrew, May C I van Schalkwyk, Nason J Maani, Lewis K Peake

SOCIAL DETERMINANTS
How does social support shape the association between depressive symptoms and labour market participation: a four-way decomposition
Karin Veldman, Ronnie Pingel, Johan Hallqvist, Christopher G. Bean, Anne Hammarström
Parental mental health, socioeconomic position and the risk of asthma in children—a nationwide Danish register study
Signe Heuckendorff, Martin Nygård Johansen, Charlotte Overgaard, Søren Paaske Johnsen, Yvonne Kelly, Kirsten Fonager
Changes in mortality disparities by education in Russia from 1998 to 2017: evidence from indirect estimation
Vladimir M Shkolnikov, Evgeny M Andreev, Domantas Jasilionis
Racial disparity in excess mortality in Brazil during COVID-19 times
Maria Fatima Marinho, Ana Torrens, Renato Teixeira, Luisa Campos Caldeira Brant, Deborah Carvalho Malta, Bruno Ramos Nascimento, Antonio Luiz Pinho Ribeiro, Richard Delaney, Pedro do Carmo Baumgratz de Paula, Philip Setel, Jhames Matos Sampaio, Ana Maria Nogales-Vasconcelos

MENTAL HEALTH
Effectiveness of music therapy for autism spectrum disorder, dementia, depression, insomnia and schizophrenia: update of systematic reviews
Lucia Gassner, Monika Geretsegger, Julia Mayer-Ferbas
Family support modifies the effect of changes to same-sex marriage legislation on LGB mental health: evidence from a UK cohort study
Celine Teo, Nicholas Metheny, Antony Chum
Disparities in postpartum depression screening participation between immigrant and Danish-born women
Maria Marti-Castaner, Camila Hvidtfeldt, Sarah Fredsted Villadsen, Bjarne Laursen, Trine Pagh Pedersen, Marie Norredam
Met and unmet need for mental health care before and during the COVID-19 pandemic
Ann Kristin Skrindo Knudsen, Jens Christoffer Skogen, Kim Stene-Larsen, Kristin Gustavson, Anne Reneflot

WORK AND HEALTH
Association of perceived job security and chronic health conditions with retirement in older UK and US workers
Miriam Mutambudzi, Paul Flowers, Evangelia Demou
Association between work status and depression in informal caregivers: a collaborative modelling approach
Aoife O’Neill, Stephen Gallagher, Ailish Hannigan, Katie Robinson
Trajectories of working hours in later careers and their association with social and health-related factors: a follow-up study
Johanna Suur-Uski, Olli Pietiläinen, Ossi Rahkonen, Tea Lallukka
Trends in exposures to physically demanding working conditions in France in 2003, 2010 and 2017
Nathalie Havet, Alexis Penot
A shift in women’s health? Older workers’ self-reported health and employment settings during the COVID-19 pandemic
Jacques Wels, Natasia Hamarat

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
Cost-effectiveness of exercise referral schemes: a systematic review of health economic studies
Amber Werbrouck, Masja Schmidt, Koen Putman, Jan Seghers, Steven Simoens, Nick Verhaeghe, Lieven Annemans
Monitoring of physical activity promotion in children and adolescents in the EU: current status and future perspectives
Isabel Marzi, Antonina Tcymbal, Peter Gelius, Karim Abu-Omar, Anne K Reimers, Stephen Whiting, Kremlin Wickramasinghe
Daily sitting time and its association with non-communicable diseases and multimorbidity in Catalonia
Elisa Poses-Ferrer, Rosa Parisi, Angelina Gonzalez-Viana, Conxa Castell, Jorge Arias de la Torre, Andrew Jones, Vicky Serra-Sutton, Mireia Espallargues, Carmen Cabezas

SMOKING
Post-implementation perspectives on smokefree prison policy: a qualitative study with staff and people in custody
Ashley Brown, Danielle Mitchell, Kate Hunt
Effectiveness and feasibility of smoking counselling: a randomized controlled trial in an Italian emergency department
Luigi Mario Castello, Chiara Airoldi, Marco Baldrighi, Sara Bortoluzzi, Liborio Martino Cammarata, Livia Franchetti Pardo, Clara Ada Gardino, Anil Babu Payedimarri, Matteo Giorchino, Giovanni Pistone, Viviana Stampini, Gian Carlo Avanzi, Fabrizio Faggiano
Electronic cigarette use among adolescents in 17 European study sites: findings from the Global Youth Tobacco Survey
Yelena Tarasenko, Angela Ciobanu, Ranti Fayokun, Elizaveta Lebedeva, Alison Commar, Kristina Mauer-Stender

COVID-19
Multiple house occupancy is associated with mortality in hospitalized patients with COVID-19
Eilidh Bruce, Ben Carter, Terence J Quinn, Alessia Verduri, Oliver Pearson, Arturo Vilches-Moraga, Angeline Price, Aine McGovern, Louis Evans, Kathryn McCarthy, Jonathan Hewitt, Susan Moug, Phyo K Myint, COPE Study Team
Quantifying the impact of regional variations in COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations across Ireland
M Roe, P Wall, P Mallon, D Sundaram, J Kumawat, M Horgan
Community socioeconomic deprivation and SARS-CoV-2 infection risk: findings from Portugal
João Paulo M Magalhães, Ana Isabel Ribeiro, Constantino P Caetano, Rita Sá Machado
SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks on Danish mink farms and mitigating public health interventions
Torben Dall Schmidt, Timo Mitze
Comparing SARS-CoV-2 case rates between pupils, teachers and the general population: results from Germany
Clemens Koestner, Stephan Letzel, Viktoria Eggert, Till Beutel, Pavel Dietz

CORRIGENDUM
Corrigendum to: Are there ‘two sides’ to attacks on healthcare? Evidence from Palestine

Corrigendum to: SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks on Danish mink farms and mitigating public health interventions

ERRATUM
Erratum to: Does unemployment cause long-term mortality? Selection and causation after the 1992–96 deep Swedish recession
Denny Vågerö, Anthony M Garcy

EUROPEAN PUBLIC HEALTH NEWS
European Public Health News
Dineke Zeegers Paget

Thank you
Peter Allebeck, Diana Delnoij, Alastair Leyland, Walter Ricciardi, Róza Ádány

7. Call for proposals, job opportunities

EHMA is recruiting

The European Health Management Association is recruiting for the following positions:

• Director of Policy and Programme
• Finance and Administration officer
• Executive assistant

Deadline for submitting your application: 7^th March, 10.00 am.
More details here

8. Interesting news

Public Health and Care Research Leadership Programme

UMIO proudly partners with The Netherlands School of Public Health and Care Research (CaRe), Netherlands Institute for Health Sciences (NIHES) at Erasmus MC, and Cambridge Institute of Public Health (CIPH) at the University of Cambridge to offer a second edition of the Public Health and Care Research Leadership Programme, with the next cohort starting in July 2022.
Those interested in becoming a leading researcher in the public health and care research domain can send in their application until 15 March.

https://www.umio.nl/2022/01/28/public-he…

New website by Wemos provides overview and review of initiatives for access to medical products against Covid-19

Wemos | 9 February 2022
Wemos has launched a website that provides an up-to-date overview of international initiatives by public institutions to enhance access to medical products against Covid-19, such as vaccines, medicines and diagnostics. It presents their characteristics and reviews their potential to contribute to an equitable and effective response to the current and future pandemics, as well as the support they need to become successful. Among the assessed initiatives are COVAX, the TRIPS Waiver and the South African mRNA hub.

https://covid19response.org/

Work-related cancer in the centre of attention on World Cancer Day

Cancer is one of the biggest health concerns for European workplaces. According to the Roadmap on Carcinogens annually more than 100,000 people die because of work-related cancer.

EU-OSHA is committed to finding ways to better identify occupational cancer risk factors. For this, the fieldwork of the Workers’ exposure survey is carried out in September 2022 and first results are to be published in 2023.
On 7-8 March, a EU Presidency event will organise a conference to raise awareness on the prevention of risks resulting from exposure to carcinogenic substances in the workplace in VSEs, moderated by EU-OSHA.
Draft agenda

https://osha.europa.eu/en/highlights/wor…

Covid-19: WHO efforts to bring vaccine manufacturing to Africa are undermined by the drug industry, documents show

The BMJ | Investigation / 9 February 2022
The BMJ reveals that a foundation representing the vaccine maker BioNTech has been accused of seeking to undermine the World Health Organization’s initiative to bring covid vaccine manufacturing to the African continent.

https://www.bmj.com/content/376/bmj.o304

PHIRI Rapid Exchange Forum

PHIRI, the Population Health Information Research Infrastructure, organizes every two weeks a Rapid Exchange Forum (REF) on COVID-19 activities. In this one hour meeting, the participants belonging to European public health institutes, ministry of health or research and universities answer and discuss the experiences in their own countries on specific questions related to COVID-19 measures submitted until 24 hours prior the start of the meeting.
This allows a rapid exchange of information across countries to compare e.g. vaccination priorities, tests usage, mortality indicators and measures adopted for the containment of the pandemic and learn from other countries’ experiences.
On 28 February, the questions are the following:

• Was the ‘state-of-emergency’ activated in your country when the pandemic hit, or other emergency legislation set in place in order to set up a COVID-19 monitoring and surveillance system, including regulations for data access and linkage of data sources? Did your constitution already include such mechanisms before COVID-19?
• In terms of future preparedness strategies, as this state of emergency or emergency decrees are temporary, what will happen to your COVID-19 monitoring mechanism on the long run? Has a long-term strategy been developed to ensure the continuity of surveillance of COVID-19 and research?

You can access the minutes of those meetings and have a look at the above-mentioned questions on PHIRI’s website.https://www.healthinformationportal.eu/r…

Recommendations for a Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan inclusive of persons with disablities

European Disability Forum | Position paper | 22 February
This document gives key recommendations for inclusive cancer screening and treatment in the Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan.

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/hpf/documen…

Campaigning for Specialist Nurses (ESNO)

CARING4NURSES (esno.org)

Looking back at the Economics of Ageing Spotlight Series

Organiser: European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies
Listen to the podcast ‘Health in Europe’ from WHO Europe or watch the webinar recordings:

• Where do we find the money to fund health care for an ageing population? www.tinyurl.com/OBSageingrevenue
• Can the costs of caring for an ageing population be controlled? www.tinyurl.com/OBSageingexpenditure
• Is the politics of ageing creating conflict between generations?  
  www.tinyurl.com/OBSageingpolitics

9. Upcoming courses and conferences

10. Interesting publications

The dawn of digital public health in Europe: Implications for public health policy and practice

The Lancet Regional Health Europe | Viewpoint | 2 February 2022
As representatives of the European Public Health Association’s (EUPHA) Digital Health Section, authors reflect on the current state of digital public health (DPH), share their understanding at the European level, and determine how the application of DPH has developed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanep…

We need a public health approach to loneliness

The BMJ | Editorial | 9 February 2022
The public health and social measures implemented during the covid-19 pandemic highlight the importance of social capital to health and wellbeing. As many countries move into a new stage with the reduction and removal of many public health social measures, renewed energy is needed to rethink social and community connections in which “building back better” includes evidence based initiatives to deal with loneliness, especially among those most vulnerable.

https://www.bmj.com/content/376/bmj.o280

Gender and Social Inequalities in Awareness of Coronary Artery Disease in European Countries

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health | February 2022
This cross-sectional telephone survey of 2609 individuals from six European countries was conducted to gather information on perceptions of coronary artery disease, risk factors, preventive measures, knowledge of heart attack symptoms and ability to seek emergency medical care.

https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/3/1388

Health system resilience and health workforce capacities: comparing health system responses during the COVID-19 pandemic in six European countries

https://doi.org/10.1002/hpm.3446

Estimating the potential for global dissemination of pandemic pathogens using the global airline network and healthcare development indices

Nature | Article | 23 February 2022
This analysis represents an alternative approach to identify countries where increased within-country disease surveillance and pandemic preparedness may benefit global health.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-06932-y

COVID-19: talk of ‘vaccine hesitancy’ lets governments off the hook

Nature | Commentary | 22 February 2022
The most striking lesson from the pandemic is that preoccupation with vaccine hesitancy — whatever that term might mean to different people — centres too much of the responsibility for the success (or not) of a vaccination programme on individuals. It is mainly governments that have the power to make vaccines both accessible and acceptable.

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-00495-8

Human rights in pandemics: criminal and punitive approaches to COVID-19

The BMJ Global Health | Analysis | 19 February 2022
In the early years of the HIV epidemic, many countries passed laws criminalising HIV non-disclosure, exposure and/or transmission. These responses, intended to limit transmission and punish those viewed as ‘irresponsible’, have since been found to undermine effective HIV responses by driving people away from diagnosis and increasing stigma towards those living with HIV. With the emergence of COVID-19, human rights and public health advocates raised concerns that countries might again respond with criminal and punitive approaches.

https://gh.bmj.com/content/7/2/e008232

A framework for the promotion of ethical benefit sharing in health research

The BMJ Global Health | Practice | 10 February 2022
Whilst many research stakeholders may agree with the concept of benefit sharing, it can be difficult to operationalise benefit sharing within research programmes. Authors present a framework designed to assist with identifying benefit sharing opportunities in research programmes.

https://gh.bmj.com/content/7/2/e008096?rss=1

Recognising the elephant in the room: the commercial determinants of health

The BMJ Global Health | Commentary | 4 February 2022
As a recent review found, commercial determinants of health (CDoH) literature lacks precision, with CDoH definitions and/or conceptual frameworks only occasionally provided, portrayed as ‘assumed knowledge’, inconsistently applied and unrepresentative of broader literature. Additionally, CDoH are not well-articulated nor communicated, with analyses often narrowly formulated around specific industries, and yet to be included systematically within public health policy frameworks and interventions. Together, these represent ‘an elephant in the room’: the increasingly obvious but often ignored problem of the profound influence of commercial and corporate influences on human and planetary health.

https://gh.bmj.com/content/7/2/e007156?rss=1

Why the new normal might be the old normal—but worse

The BMJ | Editor’s choice | 17 February 2022
“One conclusion is that promises to build back better or build back fairer are empty, especially when the haste to end all restrictions, including abandoning covid surveillance is widely condemned as ill informed and reckless. […] Doctors and other health professionals are stronger than they think, with influence stretching from citizens to politicians. The challenge is to ensure that the “new normal” isn’t simply the “old normal” but with even more damaging consequences.”

https://www.bmj.com/content/376/bmj.o398

Effectiveness of contact tracing in the control of infectious diseases: a systematic review

The Lancet | Article | 15 February 2022
In conclusion, provider-initiated contact tracing can be an effective public health tool. However, the ability of authorities to make informed choices about its deployment might be limited by heterogenous approaches to contact tracing in studies, a scarcity of quantitative evidence on its effectiveness, and absence of specificity of tracing parameters most important for disease control.

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(22)00001-9/fulltext

The prevalence of loneliness across 113 countries: systematic review and meta-analysis

The BMJ | Research | 9 February 2022
This research aims to identify data availability, gaps, and patterns for population level prevalence of loneliness globally, to summarise prevalence estimates within World Health Organization regions when feasible through meta-analysis, and to examine temporal trends of loneliness in countries where data exist. In conclusion, loneliness should be incorporated into general health surveillance with broader geographical and age coverage, using standardised and validated measurement tools.

https://www.bmj.com/content/376/bmj-2021-067068

Covid-19: WHO efforts to bring vaccine manufacturing to Africa are undermined by the drug industry, documents show

The BMJ | Featured investigation | 9 February 2022

https://www.bmj.com/content/376/bmj.o304

Thousands of girls as young as 11 in England hiding signs of ‘deep distress’

The Guardian | 28 February 2022
“Girls are 33% more likely to experience poor mental health than those the same age as them before the pandemic while boys are 12% more likely to do so.”

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/feb/28/thousands-girls-as-young-as-11-england-hiding-signs-deep-distress

11. European Commission news

European Health Union: HERA launches first work plan with €1.3 billion for preparedness and response to health emergencies in 2022

The new European Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) presented its first annual work plan on 10 February, which will have a budget of €1.3 billion in 2022 to prevent, prepare for and rapidly respond to cross-border health emergencies. Following the adoption of the 2022 work plan by the HERA Board, HERA can now start implementing actions to strengthen preparedness and response capabilities within the EU, address vulnerabilities and strategic dependencies and contribute to reinforcing the global health emergency architecture.

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscor…

Speech by Commissioner Kyriakides at the Joint Conference of Foreign Ministers and Health Ministers

Commissioner Stella Kyriakides delivered a speech at the Joint Conference of Foreign Ministers and Health Ministers on 9 February, addressing different ways to further support low and middle income countries.

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscor…

Webinar on Climate change and Health: Addressing climate change impacts on health through national policies

16 March, 10.00 – 11.15 CET
Organised jointly by Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety,  Directorate-General for Climate Action, and European Environment Agency, this webinar presents examples of integration of health and climate into national governance structures, policy and action from Finland, France and Germany. It will also present the overview of the coverage of climate change impacts in national adaptation policies and national health strategies across the European countries.
Agenda

https://ecconf.webex.com/mw3300/mywebex/…

World Rare Disease Day: Statement by Commissioner Stella Kyriakides

Ahead of World Rare Disease Day on 28 February, Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides, made a statement highlighting the key role of a European Health Union and the work of the European Commission and the French Presidency on the response to rare diseases.
The EU action on rare diseases aims to improve the diagnosis, care and treatment of patients through the pooling of resources, and is facilitated by the 24 European Reference Networks.

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_22_1335

Press release on the EU participation to the small group of foreign ministers meeting to coordinate enhanced COVID-19 response

In the COVID-19 Global Action Meeting, convened by US Secretary of State Blinken and gathering the EU, represented by Commissioner Urpilainen, and other partner countries, participants discussed yesterday a ‘COVID-19 Global Action Plan’.

The objective is to help coordinate actions and mobilise resources in six priority areas in relation to the global COVID-19 response to bring an end to the pandemic by the end of 2022: get shots in arms, bolster supply chain resilience, address information gaps, support health care workers, ensure availability of treatments and testing where it is most needed and strengthen the global health security architecture.

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_22_1061

Joint Statement ahead of the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation

“This horrific practice […] has very serious negative consequences that affect the physical and mental health of women and girls, including infections, infertility and chronic pain. This practice puts the lives and wellbeing of thousands of women and girls at risk and in some cases it can even lead to their death.”

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_22_727

Remarks by Commissioner Kyriakides at the event ‘Ensuring Equal Access to All: Cancer in Women – Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan’

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/speech_22_747

Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan: New actions to increase access to cancer prevention, early detection, treatment and care

The Commission has launched four new EU Cancer Plan actions to support Member States in addressing inequalities, improving screening and vaccination against HPV, and supporting persons who have experienced cancer:

• The Cancer Inequalities Registry
• A cancer screening call for evidence to update the 2003 Council Recommendation on screening
• A Joint Action on HPV vaccination
• The EU Network of Youth Cancer Survivors

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_22_702

12. European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control news

Eurosurveillance – Volume 27, Issue 5, 03 February 2022

Rapid communication
A case of avian influenza A(H5N1) in England, January 2022
Research
A prospective multicentre screening study on multidrug-resistant organisms in intensive care units in the Dutch–German cross-border region, 2017 to 2018: the importance of healthcare structures
Co-circulation of SARS-CoV-2 Alpha and Gamma variants in Italy, February and March 2021
Review
Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 by children: a rapid review, 30 December 2019 to 10 August 2020

https://www.eurosurveillance.org/content…

Eurosurveillance – Volume 27, Issue 6, 10 February 2022

Rapid communication
Shorter serial intervals in SARS-CoV-2 cases with Omicron BA.1 variant compared with Delta variant, the Netherlands, 13 to 26 December 2021
Investigation of outbreak cases infected with the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.640 variant in a fully vaccinated elderly population, Normandy, France, November to December 2021
Research
Nationwide study on SARS-CoV-2 transmission within households from lockdown to reopening, Denmark, 27 February 2020 to 1 August 2020
Early chains of transmission of COVID-19 in France, January to March 2020
Epidemiological and clinical insights from SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR crossing threshold values, France, January to November 2020
Author’s correction
Author’s correction for Euro Surveill. 2022;27(3)

https://www.eurosurveillance.org/content…

Eurosurveillance – Volume 27, Issue 7, 17 February 2022

Rapid communication
Risk reduction of severe outcomes in vaccinated COVID-19 cases: an analysis of surveillance data from Estonia, Ireland, Luxembourg and Slovakia, January to November 2021
Surveillance
COVID-19 mortality, excess mortality, deaths per million and infection fatality ratio, Belgium, 9 March 2020 to 28 June 2020
Research
SARS-CoV-2 testing in patients with low COVID-19 suspicion at admission to a tertiary care hospital, Stockholm, Sweden, March to September 2020
Miscellaneous
Job vacancies at the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)

https://www.eurosurveillance.org/content…

13. WHO news

WHO/Europe statement on Ukraine

24 February 2022
“The right to health and access to services must always be protected, not least during times of crisis. Health workers, hospitals and other facilities must never be targets and must be allowed to continue to serve the health needs of communities. The protection of civilians is an obligation under international humanitarian law.”

https://www.euro.who.int/en/media-centre/sections/statements/2022/whoeurope-statement-on-ukraine-24-february-2022

Planning the health-care workforce: what new policy tools and resources are available?

How can countries best be supported to answer key policy questions relating to health and care workers? With just over a quarter of people in the WHO European Region living in rural or remote areas, how can strong, multidisciplinary teams be built to deliver primary health care based on local needs, as well as national priorities? Answers to these questions were provided at a WHO Healthy Settings webinar on 27 January 2022, which focused on new tools and resources available for planning the health workforce.

https://www.euro.who.int/en/about-us/net…

Food marketing exposure and power and their associations with food-related attitudes, beliefs and behaviours: a narrative review

This report presents the outcomes of a narrative review conducted to update an earlier descriptive review published by WHO in 2009 on the extent, nature and effects of food marketing. This review extends the findings of the 2009 WHO review by adding evidence and perspectives on more contemporary types of marketing, reflecting the growth in internet use and food marketing via digital and social media over the last decade. Read the report

https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/…

WHO launches fact sheet series on environmental health inequalities in Europe

To document and report on the magnitude of inequalities in environmental exposure within countries, WHO has launched the first 7 of a series of fact sheets on environmental health inequalities in relation to housing conditions and access to drinking-water and sanitation.

https://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topic…

New WHO report highlights scale of childhood cancer inequalities in the European Region

On International childhood Cancer day, WHO released a report that, for the first time, sets out the evidence on childhood cancer inequalities in the Region, and examines the patterns that emerge at national and regional levels of childhood cancer incidence, patient and caregiver experiences, and short- and long-term outcomes for patients.

https://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topic…

New WHO signature initiative shows raising alcohol taxes could save 130’000 lives per year

Across the Region, taxes on the sale of alcohol are lower than taxes on tobacco. To enhance the untapped power of health taxes, the WHO Regional Director for Europe’s Advisory Council on Innovation and Noncommunicable Diseases (NCD Advisory Council) has proposed a new signature initiative on taxation for countries to consider in their fiscal policies.

https://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topic…

How the marketing of formula milk influences our decisions on infant feeding

This report summarizes the findings of a multicountry study examining the impact of breast milk marketing on infant feeding decisions and practices, which was commissioned by WHO and UNICEF. The research study – the largest of its kind to date – draws on the experiences of over 8500 women and more than 300 health professionals across eight countries. Download the report

https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/…

New report on tuberculosis, HIV and viral hepatitis services for refugees and migrants across the WHO European Region 

A new WHO report finds out that international recommendations on effective services to treat tuberculosis (TB), HIV and viral hepatitis for refugees and migrants lack implementation across the WHO European Region, who are still disproportionately affected by those diseases.

https://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/communicable-diseases/pages/news/news/2022/2/new-report-on-tuberculosis,-hiv-and-viral-hepatitis-services-for-refugees-and-migrants-across-the-who-european-region

Report of the WHO global technical consultation on public health and social measures during health emergencies

The global technical consultation on public health and social measures (PHSM) during health emergencies took place from 31 August to 2 September 2021. The consultation focused on reviewing the existing evidence and learning from experiences with implementing PHSM during the COVID-19 pandemic and this reports summarises its key outcomes.

https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240043213

Caring for those who care: guide for the development and implementation of occupational health and safety programmes for health workers: executive summary

This guide provides an overview of the key elements of occupational health and safety programmes for health workers at national, subnational and facility levels, as well as advice for the development and implementation of such programmes. Full guide

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