Vitamin D deficiency is an important public problem worldwide because of its link to many diseases and poor health outcomes. However, there is limited data on the vitamin D status of African populations. We aimed to determine the prevalence and risk factors associated with vitamin D deficiency in Africa. To achieve this, we searched for, […]

[PRESS RELEASE] Brazzaville, 23 November 2020 – The World Health Organization (WHO) and partners launched an online platform today to promote the exchange of evidence and experience across countries in the African region. By working to foster evidence-informed decision-making in an endeavor to re-engineer health service delivery, the initiative is expected to drive countries’ health […]

Kenya has joined the global efforts in search of an effective vaccine for COVID-19 with the start of a trial evaluating a leading COVID-19 vaccine candidate ChAdOx1 nCoV-19. The trial team has vaccinated its first volunteers after receiving the necessary regulatory and ethical approvals, as well as the national ministry of health, and Kilifi county […]

Despite increased efforts at global, regional, and country level to promote gender equality, women continue to be under-represented in leadership positions across a range of sectors and geographic regions. In the health sector specifically, women comprise a substantial proportion of the global health workforce. However, women are over-represented in lower-paying, lower-status occupations and their representation […]

1. Je majaribio ya chanjo ya ChAdOx1 nCOV-19 ni nini? Majaribio haya yanalenga kutathmini ikiwa chanjo ya ChAdOx1 nCOV-19 ni salama, inafanya kazi na inapeana kinga dhidi ya COVID-19 kwa watu wazima wenye umri wa miaka 18 na zaidi 2. Majaribio ya chanjo hii yatachukuwa muda gani? Baada ya kuanza, majaribio yatafanyika kwa muda wa miezi 24. […]

1. What is the ChAdOx1 Vaccine Trial? This trial aims to assess whether the ChAdOx1 vaccine is safe, effective and provides immunity against COVID-19 in adults aged 18 years and above. 2. How long will the vaccine trial run? After starting, the trial will run for 24 months. 3. Why conduct the trial in Kenya? A vaccine which […]

Health systems face persistent everyday challenges related to health system inputs/hardware (e.g. technology, infrastructure, funding, human resource) and processes/software (e.g. knowledge, decision-making processes, values, norms, relationships). These routine challenges are compounded by periodic shocks (e.g. disease outbreaks, industrial actions, etc.) to health system, making it important for health systems to build “everyday resilience”. Everyday resilience […]

Difu Simo is a mental health awareness campaign in Kilifi County that is using art to create a space for dialogue between the world of biomedicine and traditional medicines with the aim of understanding mental illness from a community perspective and addressing stigma. Difu Simo is a Kigiriama phrase which means “Breaking Free”. The campaign […]

Although health worker strikes are experienced globally, their effects have been argued to be the worst in lower- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Strike actions range from merely halting work for a few hours, through curtailing of non-critical services to complete stoppage of work. Health worker strikers elicit significant ethical debates, because of their ability to […]

In a recently published policy brief, Dr. Edwine Barasa and Dr. Angela Kairu costed the case management of COVID-19 patients from a health system perspective. Key messages from the policy brief • Per patient COVID-19 case management costs in hospitals are substantial ranging from KES 21,359   per day for asymptomatic patients, KES 21,361 per day for patients with […]