A comparison of national essential medicines lists in the Americas
Objectives.
To compare national essential medicines lists (NEMLs) from countries in the Region of the Americas and to identify potential opportunities for improving those lists.
National policy actions on dementia in the Americas and Asia-Pacific: Consensus and challenges
Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) affect over 50 million persons globally, and the number is expected to rise. In response, health ministries are developing and implementing policies and programs to systemically address the needs of individuals and families affected by ADRD. While national plans of action on ADRD are advancing among European Member States of World Health Organization (WHO), those in the Asia-Pacific and Americas are lagging behind.
New challenges for health planning: Chile’s National Cancer Plan
This article describes the process of developing Chile’s National Cancer Plan. This process included an initial diagnostic stage in which various stakeholders were called on to provide different perspectives and proposals. Later, the compiled information was systematized and structured by the Ministry of Health in an action plan with detailed initiatives, objectives, and associated indicators. The Plan was developed along five strategic lines that guide all the proposed actions for the next ten years.
The adult mortality profile by cause of death in 10 Latin American countries (2000–2016)
Objective.
To investigate the adult mortality profile from eight causes of death in 10 Latin American countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay) from 2000 to 2016.
Methods.
The cause of death effect in adult mortality was calculated as the hypothetical gain in the average number of years lived in adulthood (15 to 60 years old), in a cause-deleted life table. Mortality information by cause, sex, and age group came from the World Health Organization.
Recommendations to strengthen primary health care in Brazil
Objective.
To formulate strategic recommendations to strengthen primary health care (PHC) in Brazil’s Unified Health System (SUS) based on expert consultation.
Comparative analysis of policies regulating clinical trials
The present article compares clinical trial regulations in Brazil, India, Canada, and the European Union with the aim of providing evidence for an evaluation of the Brazilian regulatory policy. For that, a document analysis approach was used, in four steps: preliminary exploratory analysis; descriptive study; categorization of information; contrasting contents. Noteworthy differences between the Brazilian regulatory framework as compared to the other regions studied include the existence of several laws and regulations in Brazil vs.
Determinants of sputum smear nonconversion in smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis patients in Suriname, 2010 – 2015
Objective.
To identify factors associated with sputum smear nonconversion in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) in Suriname.
Factors associated with mortality in persons co-infected with tuberculosis and HIV in Suriname: a retrospective cohort study
Objective.
To identify socio-demographic and clinical factors associated with mortality among persons with tuberculosis (TB) and TB/HIV co-infection in Suriname.
Methods.
This was a retrospective cohort study using data from the national TB and HIV databases for 2010 – 2015. The survival probability of TB and TB/HIV co-infected patients was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier estimates and the log-rank test. A Cox proportional hazard model was applied.
Factors associated with tuberculosis mortality in Paraguay, 2015-2016
Objective.
To describe the socio-demographic and clinical-epidemiological characteristics and to determine the factors associated with the mortality of people diagnosed with tuberculosis (TB) in Paraguay.
