Public health
Priority health concerns
Shortage of TB doctors leading to patient backlogs
Head doctors at hospitals around Myanmar are calling for more resources to be dedicated to the fight against tuberculosis, as a current shortfall in medical officers has left patients waiting on treatment. The calls were made at an annual national evaluation meeting in Yangon on December ...
Thailand issues malaria warning during peak tourist season
Thailand’s disease control department on December 8 issued a warning for malaria for those planning to take trips or camp out in the country’s forests during the current peak tourist season. “Malaria-carrying mosquitoes are commonly found in forests bordering Myanmar, particularly in Kanchanaburi province”, Dr Vichan ...
With HIV rates declining, drug treatment funding shrinks
Drug treatment programs are being cut back even as rates of abuse rise—with one organization describing the situation as a “crisis”—because most funding is tied to HIV prevention and the prevalence of the virus is decreasing, health experts said. “Virtually all civil society funding related ...
European Union, CARE support nutrition project in Northern provinces
The European Union and CARE Denmark are providing over 2 million euro to support food and nutrition security projects in Luang Namtha and Phongsaly provinces. The four-year project on promoting agricultural production to improve food and nutrition security through multi-sector coordination were signed by CARE ...
Cambodia seals health pacts with China
Cambodia and China signed agreements on December 6 to build capacity in Cambodia’s health services, expand technology and fight the spread of diseases. After the official signing of four agreements, Health Minister Mam Bun Heng said the Chinese help would include preventing the spread of threats ...
Experts wary of fish to fight dengue
The National Dengue Control Program, a department under the Health Ministry, remains skeptical in the implementation of a new dengue-prevention method, citing concerns about the program’s long-term sustainability.Despite a Malaria Consortium pilot project – which uses guppy fish to eat mosquito larvae to stem the ...
Adolescents with HIV struggle with drug regimens, stigma
Young people with HIV are facing unique challenges, according to a recent report from Doctors Without Borders Myanmar released ahead of World AIDS Day on December 1. Adolescents with HIV aged 10 to 19 are three times more likely to experience failure with first-line anti-retroviral treatment ...
Boom built on ‘slavery’
The use of debt bondage to trap workers in “modern day slavery” is widespread in many of Cambodia’s brick-making factories, indicates research by rights group Licadho, whose findings suggest the Kingdom’s recent building boom is built on the illegal practice. In a report released on ...
Suspected Zika case comes back negative
Myanmar continues to have had only one confirmed case of Zika virus after test results for dozens of suspected cases have all led to negatives. A six-year-old from Lanmadaw township was one of more than 50 patients exhibiting Zika-like symptoms who were tested by the ...
ADB loan targets health infrastructure
Myanmar is set to receive a portion of a US$117 million Asian Development Bank loan aimed at combating emerging infectious diseases. The Greater Mekong Subregion Health Security Project will target outbreaks in Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. The loan is meant to boost access to ...
