General studies and surveys on health in Burma

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Description: Health-related articles from 2008 to October 2016
Source/publisher: Various sources via "BurmaNet News"
Date of entry/update: 2012-04-17
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: English
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Description: HIV/Health-related articles from 2008 to October 2016
Source/publisher: Various sources via "BurmaNet News"
Date of entry/update: 2012-04-18
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: English
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Description: About 242,000 results (August 2017)
Source/publisher: Various sources via Youtube
Date of entry/update: 2017-08-20
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: English
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Description: Health Information for Travelers to Burma (Myanmar) .... Also Search for "Myanmar" or "Myanmar Health"
Source/publisher: Center for Disease Control and Information
Date of entry/update: 2010-10-22
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: English
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Description: "The general state of health care in Burma is poor. The military government spends anywhere from 0.5% to 3% of the country?s GDP on health care, consistently ranking among the lowest in the world. Although health care is nominally free, in reality, patients have to pay for medicine and treatment, even in public clinics and hospitals. Public hospitals lack many of the basic facilities and equipment... Contents: 1 HIV/AIDS... 2 Maternal and child health care... 3 Health education... 4 See also... 5 References... 6 External links.
Source/publisher: Wikipedia
Date of entry/update: 2012-08-12
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: English
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Source/publisher: MD Travel health
Date of entry/update: 2010-10-22
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: English
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Description: Articles and activity reports on Myanmar health
Source/publisher: Doctors Without Borders/M?decins Sans Fronti?res (MSF)
Date of entry/update: 2010-11-01
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: English
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Description: About this blog: This blog is jointly written by a group of Myanmar Public Health Professionals... Our objectives are: 1. To disseminate public health concepts and practices 2. To present contemporary international public health issues 3. To present and discuss public health problems of Myanmar..... Note This blog is written using Zawgyi-One (Burmese Unicode) font. You would be able to see the messages in Burmese without requiring font installation if you use Internet Explorer. Blog Archive..... * ââ€?¼ 2008 (115) o ââ€?¼ December (7) + Genetic Diseases and Inheritance Patterns (1) + Introduction to Genetic Inheritance + HIV / AIDS (3) + Adult ADHD + Hypertension + HIV / AIDS (2) + Rhesus Factor o ââ€?º November (9) + Healthy Diet + Essential Nutrients for Healthy living (2) + Melamine & Health Problems + HIV / AIDS (1) + Ischemic Heart Disease + Tropical Medicine + Emergency Contraception !!! + Methods of Contraception ... + When you eat recklessly, ... o ââ€?º October (16) + Allergic Rhinitis + Ringworm Infection + Scabies + Peptic Ulcer + United Nations? first Global Handwashing Day + Prohibition against import, processing, distributi... + Anorexia Nervosa + TELEVISION, COMPUTER VISION AND YOUR EYES + Prohibition against import, processing, distributi... + Premarital screening + Sunshine, Skin and Tomato + Fake Penicillin Injections in Market + Sinusitis + Treatment Of Meningitis + Essential Nutrients for Healthy Living (1) + Symptoms of Meningitis o ââ€?º September (23) + Notice for Melamine and Milk products + Quit Smoking + Smoking and Heart + Melamine found in sweets !!! + Dementia Syndrome (2) + Influenza + Influenza Prevention + Dementia Syndrome (1) + Unnoticed Causes Of Fatigue + Malnutrition + Attension Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (3) + Attension Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (2) + Medical Diseases of US + Attension Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) - ... + Calculate your BMI + Schizophrenia + Good Boy, Good Girl ... + Dental Caries o ââ€?º August (23) o ââ€?º July (4) o ââ€?º June (10) o ââ€?º May (2) o ââ€?º April (1) o ââ€?º March (3) o ââ€?º February (13) o ââ€?º January (4) * ââ€?º 2007 (50)
Source/publisher: Public Health in Myanmar
Date of entry/update: 2008-12-20
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: Burmese
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Description: Public health and other articles: Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in Myanmar; Progress, Plans and Challenges... Report on National TB Prevalence Survey 2009-2010, Myanmar... Guidelines for the clinical management of HIV infection in adults and adolescents in Myanmar... Guidelines for the clinical management of HIV infection in children in Myanmar... Guidelines for the clinical management of prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV in Myanmar... Review of the National Tuberculosis Programme, Myanmar, 7-15 November 2011... MARC advocacy fact sheet (English version)... MARC advocacy fact sheet (Myanmar version)... Strategic Framework for Artemisinin Resistance Containment in Myanmar (MARC) 2011 - 2015, April 2011... Report of the informal consultation on Myanmar Artemisinin Resistance Containment (MARC), Nay Pyi Taw, 4 - 5 April 2011
Source/publisher: World Health Organisation - Myanmar Country Office
Date of entry/update: 2012-11-02
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: English
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Description: OVERVIEW: - Country cooperation strategy - International travel and health PARTNERS: - Collaborating centres... OUTBREAKS AND CRISES: - Emergencies... - Disease outbreaks... MORTALITY AND BURDEN OF DISEASE: - Mortality profile... - HIV/AIDS treatment... - Malaria... - Tuberculosis... - TB prevalence and incidence... - HIV prevalence... - HIV/AIDS epidemiological fact sheet... HEALTH SERVICE COVERAGE: - Immunization profile... RISK FACTORS: - Chronic diseases... - Anaemia... - Child malnutrition... - Access to water, sanitation... - Alcohol, tobacco consumption... - Undernutrition and overweight... HEALTH SYSTEMS: - Health workforce... - Health financing.
Source/publisher: World Health Organisation
Date of entry/update: 2009-02-24
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: English
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Description: Links to NGO and UN agency pages
Source/publisher: The WWW Virtual Library: Public Health
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Websites/Multiple Documents
Language: English
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Individual Documents

Description: "Located on a strategic cross-roads in Asia, the borderlands of Burma (Myanmar)1 have witnessed extraordinary social and political upheaval during the past two decades. However, unlike in the adjoining states of China and Thailand, malaria morbidity and other health crises have remained at internationally high and often epidemic levels. It is a legacy that exemplifies much about the state failures of contemporary Burma. It is also a record of humanitarian malaise that, with too few exceptions, reflects the failure of key stakeholders in both Burma and the international community to prioritize health needs and conflict resolution in one of Asia’s poorest lands. Far too late, a notion of humanitarian crisis has developed that in 2006 witnessed briefings about Burma at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on the basis that, along with political impasse, the transmission of malaria, HIV and tuberculosis across international frontiers could pose a threat to regional peace and security.2 In reality, however, this is an analysis of humanitarian emergency that could have been made at any time in any of the preceding 20 years. In Burma, the humanitarian and political challenges have long been inextricably inter-linked. As the UNSC briefings highlight, any discussion about health issues in Burma is invariably tinged with controversy and, very often, doubt. There is a paucity of research in many health and socio-economic fields. But about the national significance of malaria, there can be no uncertainty. Data from every part of the country has long since pointed to the disease as Burma’s pre-eminent health challenge. Official statistics presently record malaria as the leading cause of both morbidity and mortality among the country’s ten priority diseases, with incidence rates of 11.1/1000 and 3.65/100,000 respectively.3 Plasmodium falciparum has been identified as the cause of around 80 per cent of the 600- 700,000 cases and 3,000 deaths reported annually.4 And a recent study estimated that Burma accounts for around 7 per cent of cases reported by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in the Southeast Asia region (including India), but 53.6 per cent of all malariarelated deaths.5 The difficulties, however, in addressing Burma’s malaria challenges go very much further. Malaria is acknowledged to be endemic in 284 of the country’s 324 townships, with over 70 per cent of the 54 million population at risk.6 But in vast areas of the countryside there is little access to basic health care, and it is estimated by the UN that only 25-40 per cent of malaria suspects currently seek treatment in the public sector.7 Indeed one UNICEF estimate in the early 1990s claimed that the real levels of malaria incidence could be up to seven times higher than WHO figures.8 Against this backdrop, multi-drug resistant malaria has become widespread, and essential combination drug treatments are frequently beyond the reach of the most at risk populations. As in all countries, the recorded incidence of malaria in Burma often reflects local pockets of emergency that can be attributed to particular environmental or socioeconomic factors. About 60 per cent of recorded cases, for example, are considered to be related to “forestry work”. 9 However mapping on a national scale reveals a much more disturbing reality, explaining why malaria has remained so endemic and with such high levels of morbidity.10 The areas of greatest risk exactly match the rugged horseshoe of highlands that surround the central Irrawaddy plains. In these areas, four characteristics stand out: they are borderlands adjoining the neighbouring states of Bangladesh, India, China, Laos and Thailand; they are heavily forested; they are inhabited by ethnic minority peoples; and they are the scenes of among the longest-running and most diverse insurgencies to be found anywhere in the world. The consequences of such frontier-land volatility have been profound, underpinning many of the health and political crises in the country. For decades, many different state and quasi-state actors have competed for authority in the borderlands. However during the era of Gen. Ne Win’s isolationist Burmese Way to Socialism (1962-88), public health care never extended to more than one third of the country.11 Meanwhile many of the borderlands remained under the de facto control of different armed opposition forces, including the Kachin Independence Organisation, Karen National Union, New Mon State Party and Shan State Progress Party. Each of these different authorities administered its own system of field clinics and health programmes. But whether in government or antigovernment areas, clinical diagnosis and appropriate treatment were frequently unavailable for most communities. Equally serious, there was no real coordination on public education nor on national and international responses to disease. Every kind of drug – both real and fake – entered Burma through blackmarkets that flourished along the frontiers with Thailand, China, India and Bangladesh. This proved especially damaging in the case of malaria. As research by the Shoklo Malaria Research Unit (SMRU) has demonstrated, conditions in Burma’s borderlands became very conducive to high levels of malaria infection and the spread of drug resistance.12 Throughout the Ne Win era, there remained little reliable data on humanitarian conditions in most regions of Burma. When media headlines occurred, it was only the lucrative trade in illicit opium and, from the mid-1980s, Karen refugees fleeing the fighting that alerted international attention to the endemic state of conflict in what had become one of the world’s most hermetic lands. Indeed so non-aligned had Burma become that in 1979 Ne Win even withdrew the country from the Non-Aligned Movement. But the seriousness of malaria incidence could never be disguised, and by 1988 the number of officially recorded malaria-related deaths had grown to over 4,000.13 It remained impossible, however, to put such statistics into any kind of national context. As any traveller in Burma’s borderlands could witness, malaria was the major cause of illness and death on far greater scale, evidenced by seasonal epidemics and the treatment of increasing numbers of refugees in neighbouring Thailand. A new landscape in both health needs and perspectives emerged following the 1988 collapse of Ne Win’s Burma Socialist Programme Party and the assumption of power by the present-day State Peace and Development Council ([SPDC] formerly State Law and Order Restoration Council [SLORC]). Three factors, especially, began to focus attention on the urgency and details of Burma’s health crises. The first was the accelerating departure of refugees and migrant workers into neighbouring countries. There can only be guesstimates about the exact scale of population movement since 1988 in what has become a constant state of cross-border human flow across some of the least regulated frontiers in Asia. But by the beginning of the 21st century, there were around 150,000 refugees (mainly ethnic Karen, Karenni and Mon) recorded in official camps in Thailand where there were also over one million migrant workers from Burma – both those described as “legal” and those “illegal”.14 In India, too, the refugee population is presently estimated as in excess of 50,000 (predominantly ethnic Chin), while during 1991-92 the Rakhine State border was the scene of one of the largest refugee exoduses in modern times when over 200,000 minority Muslims (known as Rohingyas) crossed into Bangladesh.15 In the following years, most of the Muslim refugee population was resettled back across the border under the auspices of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. However the conditions of socio-political volatility along the Bangladesh and Burma’s other borders have generally continued. Such intervention by UN agencies leads to the second important change after 1988: the growing engagement by international aid organisations in and around Burma. The refugee populations along the Thai and Bangladesh borders have remained a principal focus of international concern. However from the early 1990s the new military government of the SLORC-SPDC also began allowing international aid agencies access to many off-limits parts of Burma. As the first international analysts conducted research in a quarter of a century, they swiftly began providing data confirming what health workers in the country had always known but could rarely address: the close links between conflict, public health failures and humanitarian suffering. In the early 1990s, the scale of its discoveries led UNICEF to frame the concept of Burma’s “Silent Emergency”, considering an appeal for “humanitarian ceasefires” to deliver relief aid to conflict-affected parts of the country.16 UNICEF’s strategies for “corridors of peace” through the borderlands remained on the drawing boards. But with the impetus of international analysis, public health statistics in Burma began to show more accuracy. In 1992 the official infant mortality rate was doubled to 94 per 1,000 live births, while there were estimates that the figure in conflict areas of the Karen and Shan States could be as high as 200 to 300 per 1,000 live births.17 As the new health data showed, children under five were accounting for nearly half the deaths annually recorded in Burma, due largely to a few treatable or preventable illnesses including malaria, pneumonia, measles and water-born diseases.18 Confirmatory evidence of the health complexities in the field then accelerated from the mid-1990s with the increasing access of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) into Burma. Their arrival coincided with the spread of ceasefires between the SLORC-SPDC government and a growing number of armed ethnic opposition groups. For the first time in three decades, day-to-day fighting halted in many conflict-torn areas, especially in the borderlands with China. In a break with past isolation, by the end of the 20th century around 20 international NGOs were registered inside Burma working on health issues.19 Their dynamic mirrored a resurgence in energy by local community-based organisations, 5 many of which also have an emphasis on health. Indeed, by one estimate, the 1990s saw the fastest decade in NGO growth in Burma’s history.20 It is important to stress that, throughout this period, the countrywide picture was by no means stable or even. In particular, there were several borderland areas where armed conflicts still continued. But whether due to humanitarian concerns inside or outside of Burma, this increased international focus on health issues meant that many of the particular causes and localities of health emergency became better identified. In the case of malaria, the borderlands with Bangladesh, India and Thailand became recognised as particular epicentres for high levels of malaria incidence. This led to increasing collaboration between international organisations and public health authorities in both Burma and abroad. New approaches were very clearly needed. A noteworthy example was Medecins Sans Frontieres-Netherlands (MSF-N) which, following its 1992 entry into Burma, prioritized malaria-related morbidity among vulnerable populations in the Rakhine State borderlands, treating over 100,000 malaria patients annually by the turn of the century.21 During the same years, the SMRU continued its anti-malarial programmes along the Thai border together with NGOs and the Thai government, helping reduce the incidence of P. falciparum by over 90 per cent in the refugee camps and surrounding regions.22 Recognition of these unaddressed “gateway” dynamics in the incidence of disease proved the final factor in changing perceptions about the nature of humanitarian crises in Burma. Neither conflict nor malaria, however, was the main catalyst for concern but HIV/AIDS which, during the 1990s, became a major health challenge throughout the sub-Asian region. With an international frontier-line of 3,650 miles, it was always likely that the patterns of human flow to and from Burma would be critical. Many worst fears were soon realised. From the first HIV sentinel surveillance begun in 1992, the number of officially estimated cases of HIV infection rapidly increased in Burma to around 350,000 adults in 2004-5, with a national prevalence rate of 1.3 per cent.23 As with malaria, however, there continue to be many doubts about statistics, with nongovernmental groups claiming national prevalence rates of 2 per cent or even higher.24 But on all sides of the arguments, there is recognition that many socio-economic conditions exist in Burma for the virulent spread of the disease, including borderland conflicts, intravenous drug users, commercial sex workers, mine workers and large numbers of other migrants.25 As UNAIDS points out, the spread of HIV infection in Burma is “heterogenous varying widely by geographical location and by population sub group”. 26 Equally concerning, there has been an inter-linked upsurge in the spread of tuberculosis during the past decade, with 97,000 new cases detected each year and a worrying increase in multi-drug resistance.
Creator/author:
Source/publisher: Shoklo Malaria Research Unit
2006-12-28
Date of entry/update: 2022-01-26
Grouping: Individual Documents
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Format : pdf
Size: 167.73 KB
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Description: "The total death toll of influenza A (H1N1) pdm 09 reached 116 in Myanmar's regions and states as of Friday, according to figures released by the Ministry of Health and Sports on Saturday. The release from the Public Health Department under the ministry said a total of 578 people were infected by the H1N1 seasonal influenza from Jan. 1 to Oct. 18 this year. Most of the deaths were those who suffered from the seasonal influenza with underlying diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, and other immune-deficiency conditions. During the period, Yangon region registered highest mortality rate with 68 deaths. According to the statistics from the Central Epidemiology Unit under the department, 58 percent of the seasonal influenza infection cases cover the age group of 15-65 years old..."
Creator/author:
Source/publisher: "Xinhua" (China)
2019-10-19
Date of entry/update: 2019-10-26
Grouping: Individual Documents
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Description: "Epilepsy is a major public health problem: it is a chronic noncommunicable disease of the brain that affects more than 50 million people worldwide. Epilepsy accounts for 0.5% of the global burden of disease and is associated with stigma, physical and psychiatric comorbidity, and high economic costs. Nearly 80% of people living with epilepsy reside in low- and middle-income countries, and 75% do not receive the treatment they need. Over half of the people living with epilepsy worldwide are estimated to live in Asia. In comparison with Africa, Asia has more untreated patients, with greater treatment costs and possibly higher premature mortality. According to the WHO Atlas: country resources for neurological disorders (second edition), the median number of neurologists is extremely low in South-East Asia (0.1 per 100 000 population) and the Western Pacific (1.2) – far fewer than the ratio in Europe (6.6). In Myanmar, it is estimated that around 500 000 people live with epilepsy, a prevalence of 1.1 per 1000 population. An estimated 95% of people living with epilepsy do not receive the care required. The main reasons for this include the limited number of health care providers trained to provide care and support to people living with epilepsy, the limited access to anti-seizure medications, and a lack of awareness and health education about epilepsy. For more than 20 years, the WHO has led the global movement against epilepsy. Within the framework of the Global Campaign Against Epilepsy, WHO aims to bring epilepsy “out of the shadows”, encouraging countries to prioritize epilepsy in public health planning, as well as raise awareness of the disease among health care providers and the general public. The WHO Programme on reducing the epilepsy treatment gap seeks to achieve these goals in pilot locations in Myanmar, Ghana, Mozambique and Viet Nam, which can be used as a model for scale up in other countries. The Programme offers an innovative community-based model focused on expanding the skills of nonspecialist health care providers to diagnose, treat and follow up people living with epilepsy. Epilepsy is included as a priority condition in the WHO mental health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP). It’s evidence-based guidelines facilitate delivery of interventions by nonspecialist health care providers and is used in the WHO Programme on reducing the epilepsy treatment gap to strengthen care provided for people living with epilepsy and their families. The Programme also includes strengthening of health systems to increase sustainable access to anti-seizure medications, reinforcing referral systems, ensuring better monitoring of epilepsy in health information systems, and raising awareness to support people living with epilepsy and their families. The Myanmar Epilepsy Initiative was launched in 2013 in a phased approach. In 2013, the project was initiated in the two townships of Hlegu and Hmawbi and then subsequently scaled up to Lewe, Kawhmu and Thalyinin 2014; Nyaundon, Thaton and Kyaikhto in 2015; Sagaing and Taunggyi in 2016, and Nyaunglebin and Pantanaw in 2017. The project gradually expanded to 12 townships, from seven states/regions, covering 2.9 million people. In 2013 and 2014, situation analyses and baseline surveys were carried out in the first five project townships to better understand the existing needs and resources. The prevalence of epilepsy ranged from 0.83 to 1.9 per 1000 population in the surveyed townships, with an average prevalence of 1.4 per 1000 population that was used to estimate the number of people living with epilepsy in other townships for planning purposes..."
Creator/author: Dr. Thant Thaw Kaung
Source/publisher: World Health Organisation (WHO)
2017-01-01
Date of entry/update: 2019-06-13
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : pdf
Size: 2.38 MB
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Description: "The World Health Organization (WHO) Country Cooperation Strategy (CCS) 2014–2018 for Myanmar provides a coherent medium-term vision of WHO’s technical cooperation, and defines its strategic framework for working in and with the country. It aligns closely with the priorities of the National Health Policy, Strategies and Plans and is harmonized with efforts of the United Nations (UN) system for country development. The present CCS is built on the experience and achievements of the previous CCS 2008–2011 and takes into consideration the emerging country situation. It also follows the guidance of Twelfth General Programme of Work (GPW), which provides a six-year (2014–2019) vision for the Organization. GPWs set a global health agenda for all stakeholders and establish a strategic, results-based and accountable framework for WHO. The Twelfth GPW comprises five, as opposed to a previous 13, programmatic categories and one administrative category. Myanmar emerges from decades of isolation with much hope and support from the global and regional communities. The country has a high potential for rapid growth and development given its natural resources and youth representing nearly 40% of the population. Despite this, and consistent efforts for further development, Myanmar faces multiple constraints and risks that may limit its progress. For example, important disparities are apparent in access to benefits between rural areas, where about 70% of the population resides, and urban areas. In the health sector, constraints to improve the health status of the people include: access to basic health services; inequities and service availability; disparities in availability and affordability of essential medicines; adequate infrastructure and public expenditures; and trained health personnel. Myanmar has made progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): its infant mortality rate (IMR), under five morality rate (U5MR) and maternal mortality ratio (MMR) declined between 1988 and 2007. The U5MR declined steadily since then and if this trend continues, the country will achieve the MDG4 (reduce child mortality) target of 43.3 by 2015. However, the rate in rural areas is almost twice that of urban areas, and this will also need to be addressed. IMR is also in declining trend, but challenges remain to meet the MDG target of 28.3 by 2015. Meanwhile, immunization data are encouraging; Myanmar is free from wild poliovirus transmission and measles immunization coverage increased from 82% in 2008 to 88.0% in 2011. In November 2012, Myanmar introduced Haemophilus influenza type b (Hib) as a pentavalent vaccine (DPT+HepB+Hib) in the immunization programme. Based on these trends, the 2015 target of 90% coverage for DTP 3/ Penta3, free from wild poliovirus transmission is expected to be fulfilled. Reducing maternal morality under MDG5 represents a major challenge and will require significant efforts to meet the goal. About 88% of deliveries take place at home with maternal deaths overwhelmingly predominant in rural areas. On the positive side, the proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel increased from 51% in 2001 to 70.6% in 2010. MDG6 – combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases – has a major potential to be achieved by 2015. Myanmar already has achieved the goal of a 50% reduction in malaria morbidity and mortality since 2007, with use of insecticide-treated nets (ITN) more than doubling between 2004 and 2008. At the same time the tuberculosis (TB) death rate target has been achieved and the TB incidence target is on track. However, additional efforts are needed to meet the MDG target of halving the TB prevalence rate by 2015 as compared to 1990. The main challenges include finding the many undetected/unreached TB cases, scaling up multidrug-resistant (MDR) TB management and reducing the dual burden of TB and HIV/AIDS. With regard to HIV/AIDS, the epidemic is considered to have stabilized nationally since 2000, with hot spots of high HIV transmission identified at several locations. Continued focus is needed on mostatrisk groups to maintain initial positive achievements. Major challenges also exist to scale up HIV treatment, which now covers only about 1 in 3 of those in need. The strong Government commitment to comprehensive development, including the health sector, is seen in the Framework for Economic and Social Reform (FESR), which outlines key parameters of the reform process. FESR is an essential tool to realize both the short- and long-term policy agenda of the Government over the three-year period starting in 2013, i.e. focusing on both immediate actions as well as on issues that require in-depth analysis and/or consensus-building. In the health sector, the Government will focus on a number of innovative measures in health financing. Particular attention will be paid to allocating more resources to rural primary health care (PHC), infectious disease control and maternal and child health, in view of the acute need to improve health indicators in all these areas. At the ministerial level, ‘Myanmar Health Vision 2030’ was drawn up in 2000 to meet future health challenges. Supporting this ambitious, long-term health development plan, the Ministry of Health has formulated the National Health Plan (NHP) 2011–2016, which is aligned with the latest five-year National Development Plan, the Rural Health Development Plan, the Project for Upgrading Hospitals, and the National Plan for Promoting National Education. As such, the NHP is an integral part of the national economic and development blueprint. It takes account of the prevailing health problems in the country, the need to realize the health-related goals of the MDG, the significance of strengthening the health system and the growing importance of social, economic and environmental determinants of health. WHO has closely collaborated with all health stakeholders in Myanmar in the successive phases of the NHPs – its strategies and plans, resource mobilization, implementation and monitoring processes – and in providing technical advice for the development of the health sector in Myanmar. Poverty is the principal constraint to improving health status, compounded by factors affecting vulnerability, difficult-to-reach areas and conflict among ethnic groups. The Government has undertaken remarkable efforts to build understanding among these ethnic groups in order to establish a peaceful environment that fosters development. To address poverty, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) introduced the Human Development Index (HDI) in 1994, and provided a significant impact in building community capacity for self-reliance. In moving forward the socioeconomic growth of the country, official development assistance (ODA) plays a significant role in health sector programmes. The total ODA provided to Myanmar was US$ 109.5 million (US$22.6 million, 20.7% for health) in 2002, increasing in 2009 to US$ 390.7 million (US$ 61.2 million, 15.7% for health). The aid environment is expanding and reaching all development sectors. UN Country Team is also engaging in a common framework – UN Strategic Framework – to assist Myanmar. Now in its second cycle, the present UN Strategic Framework 2012–2016 addresses four priority issues: encourage inclusive growth, increase equitable access to quality social services, reduce vulnerability and promote good governance. WHO is the lead agency in health sector of the country, in which it actively collaborates in all development processes and capacity building of the health system. The CCS follows the guidance of the Twelfth General Programme of Work and regional orientations and priorities. During its elaboration, the social developments emerging from the national reform process and key health challenges confronting the country were carefully synthesized to feed into the strategic agendas and priorities. Close consideration was given to the contributions by other external partners in identifying challenges and gaps in health sector cooperation, as well as to lessons learnt from a review of WHO’s cooperation over the last CCS cycle. Special consideration was also given to accelerating achievement of the health-related MDG targets by 2015. The strategic priorities of the CCS 2014–2018 are: (1) Strengthening the health system. (2) Enhancing the achievement of communicable disease control targets. (3) Controlling the growth of the noncommunicable disease burden. (4) Promoting health throughout the life course. (5) Strengthening capacity for emergency risk management and surveillance systems for various health threats. The priority areas will be addressed through a coordinated programme of work that will seek to harness the potential strengths of stakeholders The first priority area is to enhance national capacity to strengthen the health system, including equity in health, increased access to services, and an adequate and sustainable health-care financing mechanism. The second priority area is to enhance the achievement of the communicable disease control targets and MDGs; the third priority area comprises controlling the growth of noncommunicable disease burden and minimizing the major risk factors prevalent in the environment. The fourth area aims to strengthen health system to improve the health conditions of women, children and adolescents and ensure accountability through reporting on progress towards reproductive and sexual health as part of achieving the MDGs. The fifth priority area is to prevent disease outbreaks through improved rapid response. For each of the strategic priorities, a set of main areas of focus and strategic approaches have been formulated. In addition to the five priority areas, WHO will continue its core functions as directed by its governing bodies and will actively cooperate with Myanmar on any other public health challenges. The impact of changes in budgets and staffing with required skills and competency in the WHO Country Office are expected to be moderate. The CCS will be implemented in close alignment and in harmonization with the national strategic agenda and the UN Strategic Framework. WHO will focus its efforts on achieving the targets identified by the health sector of the country..."
Creator/author: Professor Pe Thet Khin, Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh
Source/publisher: World Health Organisation (WHO)
2018-01-01
Date of entry/update: 2019-06-13
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : pdf
Size: 630.38 KB
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Description: "Heavy monsoon rains since early July 2018 have resulted in flooding...Four states and regions have been affected...More than 120,000 people have been displaced in up to 288 evacuation centres...Government is leading the response, with the Ministry of Health and Sports (MoHS) spearheading the health response...MoHS activated the Health Emergency Operations Centre which have been monitoring and coordinating among central, state, and township level health departments in order to ensure an effective health response to all affected population...In Mon State, 2 826 patients received medical care from respective local health departments, and with no cases of infectious diseases of public health concern reported as at 1 Aug 2018..."
Source/publisher: World Health Organisation (WHO)
2018-08-02
Date of entry/update: 2019-06-13
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : pdf
Size: 317.48 KB
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Description: "Emergency health sector preparedness and response meeting in MoHS led by Union Minister on 27 July 2018...Health sector coordination meeting led by Permanent secretary on 1 August 2018...Central Health Emergency Operations Center activated 24/7 until present...National Health Cluster meeting was held in MoHS, Naypyidaw, on 20 August 2018. Detailed flood-related actions and updates were shared by MoHS and health partners...Figures on population displacement are rapidly changing, cumulative total is 376 evacuation sites (51 sites remaining with 20 938 population)...It is critical to note that water levels in a total of 48 dams and reservoirs have exceeded full levels and are currently overflowing through their spillways5, while rainy season continues...Integrated allocation strategy (Myanmar Humanitarian Fund & UN Central Emergency Response Fund) for the flood response has been launched for all clusters and sectors...MoHS mobile clinics are implementing active surveillance for diseases under national surveillance (DUNS) through event-based reporting...Routine vaccination has been provided among the displaced population in Kayin State, and is planned in Bago Region..."
Source/publisher: World Health Organisation (WHO)
2018-08-23
Date of entry/update: 2019-06-13
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : pdf
Size: 365.4 KB
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Description: "For the past two months, 18-month-old Noor Bu Shar has been receiving supplementary feeding and treatment for Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) at the Maungdaw Action Contre La Faim Out-patient Therapeutic Programme (OTP) supported by UNICEF. At the time of her admission to the programme, Noor Bu Shar weighed only seven kilogrammes. Gradually, as a result of treatment, her weight and general condition improved according to her mother, Dil Kaayas. “She is more playful now and already her weight has increased by one kilogram,” said Dil Kaayas with a smile. In 2019, with funding support from the Government of Japan, the partnership between UNICEF and Action Contre la Faim is reaching 458 children under the age of five in the northern part of Rakhine State with treatment for SAM through the provision of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), health monitoring, nutrition assessments, psychosocial counselling and health education. In 2018, despite limited access in some conflict-affected areas, UNICEF and partners were able to reach 2,740 boys and girls under-five, who required treatment for Severe Acute Malnutrition like Noor Bu Shar, providing them with lifesaving therapeutic nutrition; and continued building local Government capacity in the Integrated Management of Acute Malnutrition (IMAM) and Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) as part of the essential health services package in Myanmar..."
Source/publisher: UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund)
2019-05-29
Date of entry/update: 2019-06-10
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: "Elliot Brennan examines Myanmar?s health system, its successes and challenges... In late July, panic swept Yangon and parts of Myanmar as news of an ?outbreak” of H1N1 erupted on social media. This followed a press conference where Myanmar?s Ministry of Health announced that two people had died from H1N1, commonly known as swine flu. A further 13 had been diagnosed with the illness in Yangon. Five hospitals were preparing to receive new patients. Other cases were detected in remote areas of Myanmar, including 10 cases in Matupi in Chin State, and others reported in Bago region, Ayeyarwady Region and Naypyidaw. Hitherto far from being an outbreak by the World Health Organisation?s definition of such, what the H1N1 cases really highlighted was how far Myanmar has come in health communication and cooperation..."
Creator/author: Elliot Brennan
Source/publisher: teacircleoxford
2017-08-30
Date of entry/update: 2017-09-02
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: "On the 30th anniversary of the foundation of the Shoklo Malaria Research Unit (SMRU), a seminar was held on 13-14 December 2016 in Mae Sot, Thailand, to examine the theme, "Health care in a changing national landscape", with a focus on malaria, maternal health and TB/HIV. At a time of critical change, the SMRU anniversary marked an opportune moment to reflect, and look forward, on important issues in national transition in Myanmar at the junction between health, science, economics and politics. Attended by over 200 participants, the meeting represented a diversity of national backgrounds, specialisms and interests. The proceedings were mainly in English, and simultaneous translations were provided in Burmese, Karen and Thai languages. Discussion was under Chatham House Rules, but it was agreed that a position paper would be produced afterwards to summarise the main issues and conclusions during the meeting. To facilitate debate, panels were held on six themes: the changing landscape, community perspective, medical perspective, funding mechanisms and performances, looking forward, and conclusions. The aim was to promote analyses and ideas that address a number of basic health issues in relation to malaria, maternal health and TB/HIV. Areas of concern included the present status of health delivery, disease trends, community participation, the effectiveness of health-funding strategies, and ensuring that health care reaches to all peoples. Most of Myanmar?s population still needs access to proper health care..."
Source/publisher: Shoklo Malaria Research Unit (SMRU) MAHIDOL - OXFORD TROPICAL MEDICINE RESEARCH UNIT
2017-03-00
Date of entry/update: 2017-04-18
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : pdf
Size: 101.94 KB
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Description: The Generals and Aung San Suu Kyi...New Government Moves Cautiously on Economic Reform...Building a New Peace Architecture...Rebuilding the Neglected Health Care System...Addressing Communal Conflict in Rakhine...Myanmar and the United States...Next Steps in U.S. Policy toward Myanmar..... "Five months after Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) swept to power in Myanmar in April following their stunning landslide victory in the November 2015 national elections, the new government is still very much in transition. Although the military that ran the country for 50 years did its best not to turn over the top slot to Aung San Suu Kyi, the country?s leading generals appear to be trying to prove they can play ball with the new largely civilian government. It will now be up to Aung San Suu Kyi to push forward the reforms that former president Thein Sein launched in 2011. The Myanmar she is leading today is a better place than it was six years ago when the military freed her from house arrest, launched peace talks with ethnic armed groups, and mounted tentative economic reforms. It is a much freer country that has expanded its foreign ties far beyond its one -time patron China, which the military junta heavily depended on for investment and military equipment. The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) between May 29 and June 4 organized a delegation to Myanmar to evaluate the country?s political and economic transition, the peace process with the country?s ethnic armed groups, the situation of Muslims in Rakhine State, the health care system, and role of the United States in supporting reform and development. CSIS?s Southeast Asia Program and the Global Health Policy Center jointly organized the trip, which included several senior congressional staff. The delegation visited Yangon, Naypyitaw, and Rakhine State, and met with senior Union government officials, parliamentarians, Rakhine State officials, internally displaced persons in camps near Sittwe, U.S. Embassy officials, international organizations, nongovernmental organizations, business representatives, journali sts, and scholars and activists. This report is a summary of the group?s observations and findings. It was obvious to the group that the new government still faces daunting tasks on the road to democracy and its success is by no means assured. One of its biggest challenges is trying to hammer out a peace deal with the country?s roughly two -dozen ethnic armed groups that have fought the central government since the 1950s. Another challenge is achieving harmony between the country?s majority Buddhists and minority Muslims, particularly in Rakhine State, and forging a nation from a patchwork of different ethnic and religious groups that never worked together before. The country?s majority Burman population is highly enthusiastic that Aung San Suu Kyi has assumed power, and most ordinary Burmans seem convinced that she can somehow magically fix the country?s longstanding challenges. Meanwhile, many among the ethnic minorities, who make up roughly a third of the population, are concerned that their grievances and interests will continue to be neglected under the new government. A third task is promoting inclusive economic growth in a country where most of the wealth was long controlled by a small military -backed elite and the infrastructure is woefully dilapidated and overextended. A fourth is reducing the outsized role of the military in controlling the government and the economy. Aung San Suu Kyi and her party are wildly popular, but because they have never run a government before, they are still figuring out how to craft and implement policies. All decisions seem to go to Aung San Suu Kyi, who assumed the newly created position of state counselor because her route to the presidency was blocked by the military -drafted 2008 constitution, which bars individuals with foreign family ties from the highest office. So far the newly minted leader tends to be a bit of a micromanager and not a great consulter, resulting in considerable gridlock across various government agencies. She also acts as her own spokesperson, which means the new government has been slow in effectively communicating and marketing its policies..."
Creator/author: Murray Hiebert, Audrey Jackson, Phuong Nguyen
Source/publisher: CSIS SOUTHEAST ASIA PROGRAM and CSIS GLOBAL HEALTH POLICY CENTER
2016-09-26
Date of entry/update: 2016-09-30
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: "Myanmar has an important opportunity to improve the health status and education outcomes of its people after decades of underspending and institutional neglect in the social sectors. Low access to health, education and social protection services has severely worsened human development outcomes, which ranked among the lowest in the region. Since 2011, there has been a sea change in public policy with rapidly rising social spending to expand access to services and protect families from poverty. The payoffs are immense ? in Myanmar, an additional year of schooling is estimated to be associated with 6.7 percent higher income (World Bank, 2014a), which will be compounded with better health and social protection. Although significant progress has been made recently, immense challenges and opportunities remain. Policies to close the gap in access to social services are fundamental to inclusive growth in Myanmar..."
Creator/author: Pyne, Hnin Hnin; Dutta, Puja Vasudeva; Sondergaard, Lars M.; Stevens, James A.; Thwin, Mar Mar; Kham, Nang Mo; Palu, Toomas; Patrinos, Harry Anthony; Arulpragasam, Jehan;
Source/publisher: World Bank
2016-02-24
Date of entry/update: 2016-03-13
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English, Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)
Format : pdf pdf
Size: 1.33 MB 1.62 MB
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Description: Abstract: "From 2011 to 2015, eight separate ceasefires were signed between the Myanmar government and armed groups across eastern Myanmar. Although sporadic fighting continues, this region of the country is receiving both humanitarian and development interventions. In other contexts, the transition from conflict to post conflict has been accompanied by a transition in donor funds from humanitarian to development programs. This funding transition can impact people?s health: analyses of these situations suggest that the nature of aid instruments, donor behavior and politics, and the government?s capacity and legitimacy are all determinants of health in transition periods. The transition in eastern Myanmar is made more complex by the existence of two parallel health systems—one run by the Ministry of Health and one run by a network of ethnic health authorities and community-based providers. Although both sides have indicated their willingnessto coordinate and collaborate on health interventions in a process called "convergence," the changing donor environment and gaps in funding could create additional barriers to equitable and universal health service delivery in Myanmar. This paper describes how the transition from humanitarian aid to development can impact health service delivery in Eastern Myanmar. The paper outlines how the transition creates challenges and opportunities for delivering healthcare, and it makes recommendations on how donors and implementing agencies can best navigate these challenges.".....Paper delivered at the International Conference on Burma/Myanmar Studies: Burma/Myanmar in Transition: Connectivity, Changes and Challenges: University Academic Service Centre (UNISERV), Chiang Mai University, Thailand, 24-­26 July 2015.
Creator/author: Tara Russell
Source/publisher: International Conference on Burma/Myanmar Studies: Burma/Myanmar in Transition: Connectivity, Changes and Challenges: University Academic Service Centre (UNISERV), Chiang Mai University, Thailand, 24-­26 July 2015
2015-08-19
Date of entry/update: 2015-08-19
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)
Format : pdf
Size: 224.8 KB
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Description: Common maladies and how to prevent them... Seeing is believing - Cataracts rob our sight, and the people of Myanmar are particularly at risk.... Are we overprescribing antibiotics?... Why our teeth matter... The dangers of giving birth in Myanmar... Stats and interviews making sense of the big picture... ?Mental health should always be part of public social welfare services?... World health check-up... Dengue: how to spot it, how to avoid it... Vital signs - What census results tell us about our nation?s health... Cheap drugs build drug resistance... VOXDOC: An apple a day? Good start ? but it?ll take more than that... Hospital Management Asia conference coming in September...Taking stock of traditional med... The first 1000 days - Conception to age two provides a once-in-a-lifetime ?window of opportunity? for mother-and-child nutrition...Where we all come from - Women worldwide talk about their experiences giving birth... Hospital Management Asia conference coming in September... Taking stock of traditional med... The first 1000 days Conception to age two provides a once-in-a-lifetime ?window of opportunity? for mother-and-child nutrition... Where we all come from Women worldwide talk about their experiences giving birth... Around 800 women die each day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth...?In every state and region? ...India?s street dentists filling gap for the poor...How the abortion taboo is killing women... World Health Organization 68th Health Assembly Geneva, Switzerland May 18-26, 2015.
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Times"
2015-06-22
Date of entry/update: 2015-07-08
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Source/publisher: World Health Organization
2013-03-15
Date of entry/update: 2015-06-24
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)
Format : pdf
Size: 4.91 MB
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Description: "...Since 1992, the National AIDS Programme has been carrying out the yearly HIV Sentinel Sero-surveillance (HSS) among selected sentinel groups on different (8) sentinel groups. In fact, HSS is the systematic and regular collection of information on the occurrence, distribution and trends of HIV infection and factors associated with the infection for use in Public Health Action. In concentrated epidemics, HSS is usually conducted among selected groups who may be at highest risk and are most critical to be targeted for interventions. In Myanmar, HSS is conducted among Pregnant Women attending the antenatal clinics (ANC), New Military Recruits, Blood Donors as low risk groups, and; Injecting Drug Users (IDU), Men who have Sex with Men (MSM), Female Sex Workers (FSW) and Male patients attending sexually transmitted infection (STI) clinic as high risk groups. The newly diagnosed TB patients became one of the sentinel groups in 2005..."
Source/publisher: Myanmar Ministry of Health - National AIDS Programme
2010-00-00
Date of entry/update: 2015-06-16
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: "This report summarizes the results of a large-scale, population-based health survey, which covered 64 townships, 6,620 households, and a target population of 456,786 people. The survey was jointly conducted by members of the Health Information System Working Group (HISWG). The survey results demonstrate that remote and conflict-affected regions of eastern Burma continue to face critical health challenges. Some health outcomes in the region have improved, though it is clear that significant challenges remain. Mortality rates among infants and children under 5 in eastern Burma are far higher than Burma?s official figures for the country as a whole and more closely resemble other areas where complex humanitarian disasters have unfolded, such as Somalia. The three main causes of death across all age groups are attributable to largely preventable diseases such as diarrhea, malaria, and acute respiratory infections. Ethnic and community-based health service providers are responding strategically to health needs at the community level, but increases in support are needed in order to expand their reach and to address the chronic health crisis in the region.....TABLEOF CONTENTS: Foreword by Dr. Cynthia Maung... Executive Summary... Context: Political background; Health in Burma... Ethnic and Community-Based Health Systems in Eastern Burma: Governance and leadership; Health service delivery; Health workforce; Health information systems... Methodology: Sampling; Instrument design and health outcomes measurement; Surveyor training and ethical approval; Data collection, compilation, and analysis; Limitations... Survey Areas... Survey Findings and Discussion: Demographics; Mortality; Maternal and child health; 1 Skilled birth attendants; Antenatal care; Family planning and contraceptive use; Maternal nutrition; Child nutrition; Childhood diarrhea; Breastfeeding practices; Malaria; Malaria prevalence; Malaria: cause-specific mortality; Malaria health seeking behavior; Malaria prevention; Access to Health Care; 1 Proximity to healthcare facilities; Health access and birth registration ; Human rights violations; Health and Human Rights... Conclusions... Recommendations... Appendices: Acronyms; Data for Shan State Development Foundation; Background; Methodology; Demographics; Maternal and child health; Malaria; Access to health care; Human rights violations; Primary Health Care Convergence Model; Survey questionnaire; Website links for references; ..."
Source/publisher: Health Information System Working Group
2015-02-00
Date of entry/update: 2015-03-10
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : pdf
Size: 5.03 MB
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Description: "...The burning question in Washington about Myanmar?s transition is: are things regressing, stalled, or moving forward? The short answer is all of the above. The Union of Myanmar is in the third year of a historic transition. Like other comparable transitions of countries emerging from decades of misrule and repression, the process is exceedingly complex and cannot be reduced to simple, categorical, or fixed characterizations. Change is fluid and nonlinear, spread across the multiple, interlocking sectors: health and development, human rights, constitutional change, electoral preparations, the search for peace, and economic reform and revitalization. A transition scorecard paints a mixed picture that is simultaneously positive, bewildering, and downright frustrating. Myanmar elicits a full range of emotions and interpretations. The current process unfolding calls for humility, patience, realism, and the long view. A rush to snap judgments is ill-advised. For better or worse, Myanmar is presently beset with turbulence and uncertainty...What follows is a summary of CSIS?s observations and thoughts on strengthening U.S. support for Myanmar?s transition. It attempts to synthesize, succinctly and fairly, what was learned through rich conversations with a multitude of individuals representing diverse interests and perspectives..."
Creator/author: J. Stephen Morrison, Murray Hiebert RADM Thomas Cullison (USN Ret.), Todd Summers, Sahil Angelo
Source/publisher: Center for Strategic & International Studies
2014-10-00
Date of entry/update: 2014-11-01
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : pdf
Size: 2.23 MB
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Description: "Non communicable diseases (NCDs) are the leading global cause of death and disability. Between and within countries, however, there is still a marked diversity in the causes and nature of this disease transition. In Myanmar, economic and political reforms, and the ways in which these intersect with health, have created a unique public health and development context with major ramifications for public health. Myanmar?s transition creates anl opportunity to learn from the public health and development mistakes made elsewhere, but signs are at present that the rush towards short term economic opportunities is taking precedence. This piece illustrates some of the local dynamics that drive NCDs in Myanmar, and potential entry points for the international community to help address Myanmar?s next major health challenge..."
Creator/author: Sam Byfield, Maeve Kennedy, Guest Contributors
Source/publisher: "New Mandala"
2013-10-29
Date of entry/update: 2014-07-14
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: "State of the World?s Minorities and Indigenous Peoples 2013" presents a global picture of the health inequalities experienced by minorities and indigenous communities. The report finds that minorities and indigenous peoples suffer more ill-health and receive poorer quality of care. - See more at: http://www.minorityrights.org/12071/state-of-the-worlds-minorities/state-of-the-worlds-minorities-and-indigenous-peoples-2013.html#sthash.4jaxgXrf.dpuf
Source/publisher: Minority Rights Group (MRG)
2013-09-24
Date of entry/update: 2013-10-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : pdf
Size: 153.11 KB
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Description: "Myanmar Times" special supplementary issue July 2012.... မြန်မာတိုင်း (မ်) အထူးထုတ် အချပ်ပို - ဇူလိုင် ၂၀၁၂
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Times"
2012-07-00
Date of entry/update: 2012-08-23
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: Burmese/ မြန်မာဘာသာ
Format : pdf
Size: 888.46 KB
Local URL:
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Description: "...Despite signs of political reform in Burma, the military retains a strong presence in regions of ethnic tension, and health and human rights abuses are certain to continue without adequate monitoring. Other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are complicit in their silence. Whether elements of the former military junta will eventually be brought to justice for crimes under international law remains to be seen. The government must begin to shift resources from the military back to the health of its people. As Aung San Suu Kyi completes her historic European visit this week, and the country opens to international investment, health and human rights must be protected for all of Burma?s people."
Source/publisher: "The Lancet"
2012-06-23
Date of entry/update: 2012-06-22
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: This is the VOA Special English Health Report. In the past year, Burma has opened its political system and reached cease-fire agreements with some ethnic militias. The government has also eased media restrictions. But many aid groups say their jobs have not gotten any easier. Health workers are warning about the spread of a form of drug-resistant malaria. The malaria is resistant to treatment with artemisinin. It was first seen several years ago in Cambodia.
Source/publisher: Voice of America (VOA)
2012-04-10
Date of entry/update: 2012-04-12
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: This link leads to a document containing the Table of Contents of the report, with links to the English, Burmese and Thai versions... Executive Summary: "Disinvestment in health, coupled with widespread poverty, corruption, and the dearth of skilled personnel have resulted in the collapse of Burma?s health system. Today, Burma?s health indicators by official figures are among the worst in the region. However, information collected by the Back Pack Health Workers Team (BPHWT) on the eastern frontiers of the country, facing decades of civil war and widespread human rights abuses, indicate a far greater public health catastrophe in areas where official figures are not collected. In these eastern areas of Burma, standard public health indicators such as population pyramids, infant mortality rates, child mortality rates, and maternal mortality ratios more closely resemble other countries facing widespread humanitarian disasters, such as Sierra Leone, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Niger, Angola, and Cambodia shortly after the ouster of the Khmer Rouge. The most common cause of death continues to be malaria, with over 12% of the population at any given time infected with Plasmodium falciparum, the most dangerous form of malaria. One out of every twelve women in this area may lose her life around the time of childbirth, deaths that are largely preventable. Malnutrition is unacceptably common, with over 15% of children at any time with evidence of at least mild malnutrition, rates far higher than their counterparts who have fled to refugee camps in Thailand. Knowledge of sanitation and safe drinking water use remains low. Human rights violations are very common in this population. Within the year prior, almost a third of households had suffered from forced labor, almost 10% forced displacement, and a quarter had had their food confiscated or destroyed. Approximately one out of every fifty households had suffered violence at the hands of soldiers, and one out of 140 households had a member injured by a landmine within the prior year alone. There also appear to be some regional variations in the patterns of human rights abuses. Internally displaced persons (IDPs) living in areas most solidly controlled by the SPDC and its allies, such as Karenni State and Pa?an District, faced more forced labor while those living in more contested areas, such as Nyaunglebin and Toungoo Districts, faced more forced relocation. Most other areas fall in between these two extremes. However, such patterns should be interpreted with caution, given that the BPHW survey was not designed to or powered to reliably detect these differences. Using epidemiologic tools, several human rights abuses were found to be closely tied to adverse health outcomes. Families forced to flee within the preceding twelve months were 2.4 times more likely to have a child (under age 5) die than those who had not been forcibly displaced. Households forced to flee also were 3.1 times as likely to have malnourished children compared to those in more stable situations. Food destruction and theft were also very closely tied to several adverse health consequences. Families which had suffered this abuse in the preceding twelve months were almost 50% more likely to suffer a death in the household. These households also were 4.6 times as likely to have a member suffer from a landmine injury, and 1.7 times as likely to have an adult member suffer from malaria, both likely tied to the need to forage in the jungle. Children of these households were 4.4 times as likely to suffer from malnutrition compared to households whose food supply had not been compromised. For the most common abuse, forced labor, families that had suffered from this within the past year were 60% more likely to have a member suffer from diarrhea (within the two weeks prior to the survey), and more than twice as likely to have a member suffer from night blindness (a measure of vitamin A deficiency and thus malnutrition) compared to families free from this abuse. Not only are many abuses linked statistically from field observations to adverse health consequences, they are yet another obstacle to accessing health care services already out of reach for the majority of IDP populations in the eastern conflict zones of Burma. This is especially clear with women?s reproductive health: forced displacement within the past year was associated with a 6.1 fold lower use of contraception. Given the high fertility rate of this population and the high prevalence of conditions such as malaria and malnutrition, the lack of access often is fatal, as reflected by the high maternal mortality ratio—as many as one in 12 women will die from pregnancy-related complications. This report is the first to measure basic public health indicators and quantify the extent of human rights abuses at the population level amongst IDP communities living in the eastern conflict zones of Burma. These results indicate that the poor health status of these IDP communities is intricately and inexorably linked to the human rights context in which health outcomes are observed. Without addressing factors which drive ill health and excess morbidity and mortality in these populations, such as widespread human rights abuses and inability to access healthcare services, a long-term, sustainable improvement in the public health of these areas cannot occur..."
Source/publisher: Back Pack Health Worker Team
2006-09-07
Date of entry/update: 2010-12-06
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English, Burmese, Thai
Format : pdf pdf pdf pdf pdf html
Size: 1.84 MB 890.97 KB 2.21 MB 1.38 MB 1.55 MB 9.35 KB
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Description: I. Background The foundation of Primary Health Care and its evolution The Thirtieth World Health Assembly in 1977 identified the attainment by all peoples of the world by the year 2000 of a level of health that would permit them to lead socially and economically productive lives as a main social target of governments, international organizations and communities. This was reaffirmed by the International Conference on Primary Health Care in 1978 held in Alma Ata, Kazakhstan in September, 1978.1 The declaration of Alma-Ata formally adopted primary health care as means for providing a comprehensive, universal, equitable and affordable healthcare service for all countries. It was unanimously adopted by all WHO member countries at the Primary Health Care Conference. The conference defined PHC as "essential health care made universally accessible to individuals and families in the community by means acceptable to them, through their full participation and at a cost that the community and the country can afford. The ideology behind Primary Health Care is based on the recognition that health promotion and protection are essential for sustained economic and social development and contribute to better quality of life. PHC is a cost-effective approach and its principles include social-justice, equity, human rights, and universal access to services, community involvement and priority to the most vulnerable and underprivileged.
Creator/author: Dr. Nyo Nyo Kyaing
Source/publisher: Department of Health, Ministry of Health via WHO SEAR
2008-00-00
Date of entry/update: 2010-11-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: JAPAN International Cooperation is leading the fight against three major diseases in Myanmar. The Myanmar Times? Khin Myat met with JICA project leader and tuberculosis specialist, Mr Kosuke Okada, and malaria expert Mr Masatoshi Nakamura to ask about their activities. 1. How much money is JICA spending annually to control these diseases? Our project period is from January 2005 to January 2010. We have been spending around ¥150 million per year on long- and short-term experts, international and domestic training, provision of equipment such as vehicles, lab equipment, microscopes, mosquito nets, lab test kits, local training and consumables.
Source/publisher: Myanmar Times (Volume 22, No. 425)
2008-06-00
Date of entry/update: 2010-11-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: RANGOON, Feb 25, 2010 (IPS) - When Aye Aye (not her real name) leaves her youngest son at home each night, she tells him that she has to work selling snacks. But what Aye actually sells is sex so that her 12-year-old son, a Grade 7 student, can finish his education.
Creator/author: Mon Mon Myat
Source/publisher: IPS
2010-02-25
Date of entry/update: 2010-11-02
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: Dire heath crisis in Burma is driven by disinvestment in health, protracted conflict and widespread abuses of human rights. The health of civilians in the conflict-affected zones of eastern Burma, particularly women and children, is among the worst in the world, says a new report released in Bangkok on Tuesday, Oct. 19. Having surveyed 21 townships in conflict zones, researchers discovered that over 40 percent of children below 5 years of age are acutely malnourished and one in seven of them will die before reaching this age.
Source/publisher: UNPO/ Burma
2010-10-21
Date of entry/update: 2010-10-22
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: In 2004 the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria (?Global Fund?) awarded program grants to Burma (Myanmar) totaling US$98.4 million over five years—recognizing the severity of Burma?s HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB) epidemics, and noting that malaria was the leading cause of morbidity and mortality, and the leading killer of children under five years old [1]. For those individuals working in health in Burma, these grants were welcome, indeed [2]. In that same year, Burma?s authoritarian military regime—the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC)—was accused of severe and ongoing human rights violations, and United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan appointed a Special Rapportuer on Human Rights, signaling a high level of concern about the junta?s governance. Given these occurrences, the Global Fund imposed additional safeguards on their Burma grants—including additional monitoring of activities and expenditures—and requested and received written guarantees from the junta to respect the fund?s safeguards and performance-based grant system.
Creator/author: Chris Beyrer*, Voravit Suwanvanichkij, Luke C. Mullany, Adam K. Richards, Nicole Franck, Aaron Samuels, Thomas J. Lee
Source/publisher: PLoS Medicine
2006-10-10
Date of entry/update: 2010-10-22
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Source/publisher: World Health Organisation (WHO)
Date of entry/update: 2009-02-04
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: "Decades of repressive military rule, civil war, corruption, bad governance, isolation, and widespread violations of human rights and international humanitarian law have rendered Burma?s health care system incapable of responding effectively to endemic and emerging infectious diseases. Burma?s major infectious diseases—malaria, HIV/AIDS, and tuberculosis (TB)—are severe health problems in many areas of the country. Malaria is the most common cause of morbidity and mortality due to infectious disease in Burma. Eighty-nine percent of the estimated population of 52 million lived in malarial risk areas in 1994, with about 80 percent of reported infections due to Plasmodium falciparum, the most dangerous form of the disease. Burma has one of the highest TB rates in the world, with nearly 97,000 new cases detected each year.4 Drug resistance to both TB and malaria is rising, as is the broad availability of counterfeit antimalarial drugs. In June 2007, a TB clinic operated by Médecins Sans Frontières?France in the Thai border town of Mae Sot reported it had confirmed two cases of extensively drugresistant TB in Burmese migrants who had previously received treatment in Burma. Meanwhile, HIV/AIDS, once contained to high-risk groups in Burma, has spread to the general population, which is defined as a prevalence of 1 percent among reproductive-age adults.5 Meanwhile, the Burmese government spends less than 3 percent of national expenditures on health, while the military, with a standing army of over 400,000 troops, consumes 40 percent.6 By comparison, many of Burma?s neighbors spend considerably more on health: Thailand (6.1%7), China (5.6 %8), India (6.1%9), Laos (3.2%10), Bangladesh (3.4%11), and Cambodia (12%12).....The report recommends that: • The Burmese government develop a national health care system in which care is distributed effectively, equitably, and transparently. • The Burmese government increase its spending on health and education to confront the country?s long-standing health problems, especially the rise of drug-resistant malaria and tuberculosis. • The Burmese government rescind guidelines issued last year by the country?s Ministry of National Planning and Economic Development because these guidelines have restricted such organizations as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) from providing relief in Burma. • The Burmese government allow ICRC to resume visits to prisoners without the requirement that ICRC doctors be accompanied by members of the Union Solidarity and Development Association or other organizations. • The Burmese government take immediate steps to halt the internal conflict and violations of international human rights and humanitarian law in eastern Burma that are creating an unprecedented number of internally displaced persons and facilitating the spread of infectious diseases in the region. • Foreign aid organizations and donors monitor and evaluate how aid to combat infectious diseases in Burma is affecting domestic expenditures on health and education. • Relevant national and local government agencies, United Nations agencies, NGOs establish a regional narcotics working group which would assess drug trends in the region and monitor the impact of poppy eradication programs on farming communities. • UN agencies, national and local governments, and international and local NGOs cooperate closely to facilitate greater information-sharing and collaboration among agencies and organizations working to lessen the burden of infectious diseases in Burma and its border regions. These institutions must develop a regional response to the growing problem of counterfeit antimalarial drugs."
Creator/author: Eric Stover, Voravit Suwanvanichkij, Andrew Moss, David Tuller, Thomas J. Lee, Emily Whichard, Rachel Shigekane, Chris Beyrer, David Scott Mathieson
Source/publisher: Human Rights Center, University of California, Berkeley; Center for Public Health and Human Rights, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
2007-07-00
Date of entry/update: 2007-06-29
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : pdf
Size: 5.15 MB
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Description: Situation of health; Access to Healthcare; Malnutrition; Access to Clean Water and Sanitation; Malaria; Tuberculosis; HIV/AIDS; Mental Health; Support for People with Disabilities; International Humanitarian Aid.
Source/publisher: Human Rights Documentation Unit of the NCGUB
2005-08-00
Date of entry/update: 2006-04-20
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : htm
Size: 143.27 KB
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Description: "...This report seeks to synthesize what is known about HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB and other disease threats including Avian influenza (H5N1 virus) in Burma; assess the regional health and security concerns associated with these epidemics; and to suggest policy options for responding to these threats in the context of tightening restrictions imposed by the junta..." ...I. Introduction [p. 9-13] II. SPDC Health Expenditures and Policies [p.14-18] III. Public Health Status [p.19-42] a. HIV/AIDS b. TB c. Malaria d. Other health threats: Avian Flu, Filaria, Cholera IV. SPDC Policies Towards the Three "Priority Diseases" [p. 43-45] and Humanitarian Assistance V. Health Threats and Regional Security Issues [p. 46-51] a. HIV b. TB c. Malaria VI. Policy and Program Options [p. 52-56] VII. References [p. 57-68] Appendix A: Official translation of guidelines Appendix B: Statement by Bureau of Public Affairs Appendix C: Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries Avian Flu notification.
Creator/author: Chris Beyrer, MD, MPH; Luke Mullany, PhD; Adam Richards, MD, MPH; Aaron Samuals, MHS; Voravit Suwanvanichkij, MD, MPH; om Lee, MD, MHS; Nicole Franck, MHS
Source/publisher: Center for Public Health and Human Rights, Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
2006-03-00
Date of entry/update: 2006-04-20
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English, Burmese, Chinese
Format : pdf pdf pdf
Size: 1.56 MB 82.86 KB 143.52 KB
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Description: Situation of Education: Partial Re-opening of Universities; Closure of Dagon and Rangoon Cultural University; No Housing for Students at Pa-an college; Technical Institute moved to remote areas and tuition too high for most students; Quality Higher Education Lost for a Generation of Students; Disparity Between Civilian and Military Education... Situation of Health: HIV/AIDS; SPDC Ministry of Health Data on HIV (also see chapter on Women); HIV Prevalence Rates Among Injecting Drug Users; Mental Health; Prisoners' Health; Health Related INGOs Working in Burma; Health Situation in Border/Conflict Areas; Health situation in relocation sites; Health situation for villagers in hiding villages; Health Situation in Toungoo District, Karen State; Epidemic Kills thousands in Maung Yawn; Villagers forced to pay for UNICEF provisions; Families forced to buy health care cards for mothers and children to support military fund; Bribes demanded to attend Nurse Training; Lack of medicine among SPDC soldiers; Shortage of Medicine and Importation of Counterfeit Medicine in Karenni State... Personal Account.
Source/publisher: Human Ri9ghts Documentation Unit of the NCGUB
2001-10-00
Date of entry/update: 2005-05-27
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : htm
Size: 47.47 KB
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Description: Government Spending on Health and Education... Situation of Education: Adult Illiteracy; High School Education; University Education; Disparity between Civilian and Military Education; Universities Supported by the Military; Access to IT Education; Troops Shut Down Two Universities Following Gang Fighting; Military University Closed and 2 Students Arrested Following Strikes... Situation of Health: Access to Health Care; Access to Clean Water and Sanitation; Malaria; Tuberculosis; HIV/AIDS; Mental Health; International Humanitarian Aid...Personal Account (on education)
Source/publisher: Human Rights Documentation Unit of the NCGUB
2003-10-00
Date of entry/update: 2005-05-27
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : htm
Size: 723 bytes
Local URL:
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Description: Government Spending on Health and Education; Situation of Education: Adult Illiteracy; High School Education; University Education; Disparity between Civilian and Military Education; Universities Supported by the Military; Access to IT Education; Updates on Education...Situation of Health: Access to Health Care; Malnutrition; Access to Clean Water and Sanitation; Malaria; Tuberculosis; HIV/AIDS; Mental Health; Support for People with Disabilities; International Humanitarian Aid...Personal Accounts: Personal Accounts Related to Heath - High cost of medical care in Mon State... Personal Accouts Related to Education - Excessive fees for primary education; The miserable conditions of Mandalay university students;
Source/publisher: Human Rights Documentaqtion Unit of the NCGUB
2004-11-00
Date of entry/update: 2005-05-27
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : htm
Size: 116.76 KB
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Description: The Online Burma Library contains two versions of this 1996 report -- in html with added URLs of references not available online in 1996 and a Word version, without these additions, which keeps, so far as possible, the format of the hard copy. "Censorship has long concealed a multitude of grave issues in Burma (Myanmar. After decades of governmental secrecy and isolation, Burma was dramatically thrust into world headlines during the short-lived democracy uprising in the summer of 1988. But, while international concern and pressure has since continued to mount over the country's long-standing political crisis, the health and humanitar­ian consequences of over 40 years of political malaise and ethnic con­flict have largely been neglected. Indeed, in many parts of the country, they remain totally unaddressed. There are many elements involved in addressing the health cri­sis which now besets Burma's peoples. A fundamental aspect, in ARTICLE 19's view, is for the rights to freedom of expression and information, together with the right to democratic participation, to be ensured. In a context of censorship and secrecy, individuals cannot make informed decisions on important matters affecting their health. Without freedom of academic research and the ability to disseminate research findings, there can be no informed public debate. Denial of research and information also makes effective health planning and provision less likely at the national level. Without local participation, founded on freedom of expression and access to information, the health needs of many sections of society are likely to remain unaddressed. Likewise, secrecy and censorship have a negative impact on the work of international humanitarian agencies..."
Creator/author: Martin Smith
Source/publisher: Article 19
1996-07-00
Date of entry/update: 2003-07-27
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : htm doc
Size: 1.07 MB 589 KB
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Description: "...Burma has one of the poorest health records and lowest standards of living in the developing world. Health and education are given incredibly low priorities in the national budget, and lip-service to these issues often take the place of substantial reforms or programs. Because of political considerations the root causes of problems in these arenas, such as the affects of landmines and forced labor on health and the effect of school closings and censorship on education, are not dealt with in meaningful ways. Low salaries and lack of transparent and effective supervision has made it easy for corruption to flourish among medical personnel and educators. Patients more often than not have to pay a bribe to be seen by a doctor, get a bed in a hospital, or receive essential medicine. Primary school students can pay to receive better grades or get private tutoring from their teachers. Higher education in Burma is particularly substandard with students, during those times that the universities are actually open, being given rush degrees in order to prevent any political opposition to the military regime to spring up on college campuses..."
Source/publisher: Human Rights Documentation Unit, NCGUB
2002-09-00
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : htm
Size: 70.47 KB
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