Stories about Health from November, 2011
Ukraine: Update on Jailed Ex-PM Yulia Tymoshenko; Donetsk Protests
Foreign Notes cites journalist Viktoria Syumar's blog post [ru], which compares prison conditions of the jailed ex-PM Yulia Tymoshenko to those of Anders Breivik, and writes – here and here – about Tymoshenko's health problems. Also on Foreign Notes, a post on the dispersal of a protest by Chernobyl clean-up...
Bangladesh: Climate Change to Increase Hunger and Malnutrition
As governments gear up for COP17, which starts today, experts are warning that among climate change's greatest consequences in developing countries are the risks to the agriculture sector, including an increased risk of food insecurity. Bangladesh is among the top five most vulnerable countries.
Jamaica: Bad Medicine?
The Pharmaceutical Society of Jamaica and the government are at loggerheads following an interview in which the President of the association expressed concern about “the acute shortage of qualified pharmacists in the system”. She was sent on half-pay leave soon after. Active Voice says: “We await further developments with bated...
Ecuador: Preserving and Protecting Natural Medicines
Ecuador's indigenous communities hold traditional knowledge of natural medicines and therapeutic use of plants. This documentary by iosphera shows the importance of preserving this knowledge from biopiracy for the future of these communities. (via cinealoido)
Zambia: Should “Tujilijili” be Banned?
Zambian Economist asks his readers, “Should Tujilijili be banned?”: “Tujilijili is a strong alcohol sold in a sachet for about K1, 000 [Zambian Kwacha] per sachet. The alcoholic content is over 40 per cent, equivalent to whiskey and other known spirit brands like vodka and brandy.”
Puerto Rico: Who's Running the Medical School?
Gil the Jenius is calling for the firing of those who were allegedly responsible for the San Juan Bautista School of Medicine's recent loss of accreditation (which has since been reversed, pending probation), saying that leaving those involved in charge “would be very much like locking the door after the...
Côte d'Ivoire: Pregnancy and Lifestyle
Kingsuy blogging from Côte d'Ivoire writes in this post [fr]: “Fad or symbol of unconsciousness of some mothers? Either way, it is difficult to figure why so many young pregnant women are still drinking so much while attending “maquis” (local eatery); but many of them will still find a way to convince you...
Israel: Netanyahu Threatens to Replace Interns with Indian Doctors
After months of protests, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu suggested replacing medical interns with foreign labor contractors from India if an agreement can not be reached with them. Interns react online, with humor and sarcasm.
Trinidad & Tobago: A Father's Rights
Jumbie's Watch “adds his voice” to that of a Trinidadian father who was not allowed to stay in the hospital overnight with his sick son, saying of the powers-that-be: “They find ways of justifying any and everything without referencing policy and behaviour against some higher guiding principle, or logic.”
Haiti: Cholera Compensation or Opportunism?
Stanley Lucas has a few questions about a court case that is seeking to compensate Haitian cholera victims, saying: “At worst, it seems an opportunistic attempt to capitalize on a tragic situation for fund raising purposes. What is equally concerning is [the] approach to this challenge. Rather than offer the...
Greece: Giving Aid to Inmates of Elaionas Women's Prison
A team of bloggers [el] is cooperating with social workers at the Elaionas women's prison in Thebes, Greece, in order to give aid to imprisoned mothers and their children. The blog lists the team's actions, as well as inmates’ current needs, for anyone wishing to volunteer material aid.
Cuba: “Antunez'” Wife Tries To Reach Hospital
Pedazos de La Isla reports that “Yris Tamara Aguilera [wife of the dissident ‘Antunez’] was victim of a brutal beat down at the hands of the Cuban political police” and is in need of medical attention which may prove impossible thanks to the fact that “the dissident couple has their...
Cuba: Reports from Diaspora Bloggers
Pedazos de La Isla reports that “Antunez” has been released, babalu has what he laments is a “regular” report on “on Ladies in White being arrested by the Castro dictatorship for attempting to attend Sunday church services” and Uncommon Sense suggests that an independent journalist may have been arrested “because...
Cuba: Athlete Forgotten
“The [glorification of] the standing of our athletes in the medal count and categoris[ing] this ‘as an achievement of the revolution’” gets Ricardo Medina thinking about “Rauler Castellanos Moreno, a black youth from Pinar del Rio who, despite his victory [in the 2007 Special Olympics] now lives in inhuman conditions.”
Haiti: “Abandoned Population”
Dying in Haiti republishes the desperate pleas of a Catholic priest in Robillard, who says that “several of the family members of the cholera inpatients of [the area] have TB symptoms. The situation of Robilllard is definitely becoming chaotic. We cannot expose an entire population to some TB people.”
Cuba: “Antunez” Reportedly Critical
Pedazos de La Isla reports that “Yris Tamara Aguilera, wife of Jorge Luis Garcia ‘Antunez’ and active resistance member herself, has made declarations in regards to the health of her husband who was jailed two days ago during a non-violent sit-in.”
Trinidad & Tobago: Mauby Drink
Interested in making mauby? TriniGourmet.com posts her recipe, along with a few facts about mauby bark that you may not have known.
Haiti: Cholera Vaccine?
Dying in Haiti links to an article which suggests that it would cost 40 million dollars to vaccinate everyone in Haiti against cholera and says: “That seems like a good deal. We need to remember that the UN costs 60 million dollars per MONTH to keep them in Haiti. Which...
Cuba: Encounter with a Fumigator
“Many people in Cuba fail to understand the gap between social and private space,” writes Daisy Valera, whose run-in with an official fumigator left her with “the feeling of being overwhelmed and without rights, even within the four walls of where I live.”
India: Why The Infant Mortality Is High In West Bengal?
Anirban at Its A Miracle writes about the increasing rate of infant mortality in West Bengal and points to the inadequate healthcare system in the state.
Haiti: Where's the Running Water?
A multi-million dollar project to supply water to several marginal neighborhoods in Port-au-Prince was approved in 2006; 5 years later, there is still no running water. Haiti Grassroots Watch looked into it and this is what they found.
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