Diagnostics and Laboratory capacity are essential but often ignored pillars of both a responsive health system and effective global health security The Coronavirus pandemic has, more starkly than ever before, highlighted the critical importance of accurate, reliable and timely laboratory testing for diagnosis, patient care and management and understanding the scope of viral transmission, thereby protecting national, regional and global health security.
The pandemic has also impacted on health services, given the demands for treatment of COVID-19 patients with moderate and severe illness. This has resulted in negative effects on treatment of chronic conditions like diabetes and hypertension, HIV and others, as challenges with population access to health services have increased worldwide.

Cuba leads the world in vaccinating children as young as two against Covid
The Swedes have rejected it, Dr Fauci says the US may soon approve it, the Chinese have started, but the Cubans have already vaccinated almost all young children against Covid....

PAHO calls for countries to prioritize rapid tests for those with COVID-19 symptoms
With COVID-19 surging throughout the Americas and demand for diagnostics higher than ever, the Pan American Health Organization Director Carissa F. Etienne has called on countries to prioritize rapid antigen...

Study warns of high levels of depression and suicidal thoughts in health workers during pandemic
Washington, DC, January 13, 2022 (PAHO)- Health workers in 11 Latin American countries show elevated rates of depressive symptoms, suicidal thinking, and psychological distress, according to the results of a...

COVID-19 cases nearly double in the Americas
Washington D.C. 12 January 2022 (PAHO) – With COVID-19 infections accelerating in the Americas and the detection of the Omicron variant in at least 42 countries and territories in the...

Australia: Hundreds given false Covid results in Sydney lab error
A Sydney lab has told hundreds of people they did not have Covid when they in fact had tested positive, amid soaring infections in the area. The mistake, which took...

Legal to vaccinate
2 Caribbean jurists make case for mandatory jabs A case for mandatory vaccination has been legally made by two Caribbean jurists. Sir Dennis Byron and Prof Rosemarie Antoine submitted the...

Could mRNA make us superhuman?
Barely a year ago, Anna Blakney was working in a relatively inconspicuous, niche field of science in a lab in London. Few people outside of her scientific circles had heard...

WHO Notifies Jamaica/Bahamas About Potentially Substandard Covid-19 Test Kits
The World Health Organization, WHO has cautioned Jamaica to be on the lookout for substandard Covid-19 test kits following the importation of 100,000 kits from India. The 100,000 kits were...

Covid: Pfizer says antiviral pill 89% effective in high-risk cases
A pill to treat Covid developed by the US company Pfizer cuts the risk of hospitalisation or death by 89% in vulnerable adults, clinical trial results suggest. The drug –...

COVID-19 cases decline in the Americas but no room for complacency, PAHO warns
Countries must remain vigilant, accelerate equitable access to vaccines and continue public health measures until everyone is protected. Washington D.C. November 3, 2021 (PAHO) – While downward trends in cases...

Most countries of the Americas to reach COVID-19 vaccination target by end of year
Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Haiti, Guatemala, and Nicaragua lag behind. PAHO to accelerate vaccine delivery to countries most in need of supplies. Washington, D.C. October 12,...

Evaluation of the relative virulence of novel SARS-CoV-2 variants
Evaluation of the relative virulence of novel SARS-CoV-2 variants: a retrospective cohort study in Ontario, Canada Abstract Background: Between February and June 2021, the initial wild-type strains of SARS-CoV-2 were supplanted...

Joint COVAX Statement on the Equal Recognition of Vaccines
COVAX was built on the principle of equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines to protect the health of people all across the globe. That means protecting their lives and livelihoods, including...

PAHO Director reassures countries that COVID-19 vaccines are effective despite variants of concern
Washington, D.C., June 30, 2021 (PAHO) – Pan American Health Organization Director Carissa F. Etienne provided reassurance about the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines despite circulation in the Americas of new...

People hospitalized with COVID-19 now have one thing in common.
In Minnesota, the HealthPartners system has seen a “precipitous decline” in COVID-19 hospitalizations, says Dr. Mark Sannes, an infectious disease physician and senior medical director for the system, which operates...

Why so many Covid-19 variants are showing up now
Like any virus, SARS-CoV-2 has been mutating constantly since the beginning of the pandemic. Until November of 2020, though, that didn’t seem to matter. That’s when scientists in the United...

Vaccine Myth Busters: Dr Ramon Arscott M.D., Ph.D.
Vaccine Myth Busters Dr Ramon Arscott M.D., Ph.D. provides a detailed presentation addressing various fears and concerns regarding the Covid-19 vaccine. Understand your immune system, natural immunity, the importance of...

How effective is your mask?
What can you do to make your mask as effective as possible? As COVID-19 infections continue to rise in our Region, it is important to RECOMMIT to handwashing, social distancing...

Airborne Coronavirus Is a Threat, the C.D.C. Acknowledges
Federal health officials on Friday updated public guidance about how the coronavirus spreads, emphasizing that transmission occurs by inhaling very fine respiratory droplets and aerosolized particles, as well as through...

Single dose of Pfizer-BioNTech or Oxford-AstraZenca vaccine reduces infection rate by 65%, study finds
LONDON — A single dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca or Pfizer-BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine drastically reduces the risk of infection in adults of all ages, British researchers have found. Two studies released on...