Dok Louise

A figure with two views of a map of a section of Port-au-Prince, Haiti with dots marking cases of cholera and treated and untreated water sources.

In Haiti, our team's newest research adds evidence to the link between gang violence & the 2022 cholera resurgence. In a collaboration with Haiti's Ministry of Health we investigated the outbreak:
www.ajtmh.org/view/journal...

$2.1 billion is the equivalent of 🌍 military expenditure every 8h

$2.1 billion is the price of 1 stealth bomber

$2.1 billion is 1/4 of what the tobacco industry spends on advertising & promotion every year.

It seems somebody switched the price tags on what is truly valuable in our world.

#WHA78

This could end virtually all trade with Haiti, if actually enforced. Very little comes or goes out of Port-au-Prince without some payments being made. Humanitarian access programs would also likely cease. Can't enter a community to disperse aid without negotiations.

Health workers responding to Ebola Outbreak in Uganda.

Uganda has declared the end of Ebola disease outbreak, less than three months after the virus was confirmed.

Robust, coordinated response by the government, supported by WHO and partners, was critical in stopping the outbreak.

📢 #PandemicAccord? YES!

💉 This agreement represents a commitment to equity and coordinated action to prepare, prevent, and respond to future pandemics.

🎆 Thank you, member states, for your unified support of multilateralism & global solidarity.

@panaction.bsky.social @helenclark001.bsky.social

Global pandemic treaty finalized, without U.S., in ‘a victory for multilateralism’ Three years in the making, the accord aims to increase equity and avoid errors of the COVID-19 pandemic

Not a ton of good news in public health these days. But this morning at 3am, governments around the globe reached consensus on a global pandemic treaty.
„The achievement of finding consensus in a world torn asunder by the Trump administration cannot be overstated“, Lawrence Gostin told me. 🧪

The book we all need !

WHO proposes a Billion Dollar Cut to its Budget for 2026-27 to US$4.2 billion, DG Signals Plans to Shed Jobs Citing $600 Million Hole This Year

Geneva Health Files Newsletter Edition #263 [The Files Flash]

genevahealthfiles.substack.com/p/who-propos...

#Angola has been experiencing a large #cholera outbreak since January 2025. To date, 8 000+ cases & 320+ deaths have been reported.

The outbreak is affecting much of the country with the highest number of cases reported from the region around Luanda.

🧵 Here's what is known so far: bit.ly/4hRi6z2

💔💔

US decision to end support for Gavi puts millions of children’s lives at risk It's estimated that more than 1.2 million children may die as a result of this political decision.

#USA: the decision to end support for Gavi puts millions of children’s lives at risk.

It's estimated that more than 1.2 million children may die as a result of this political decision.

www.doctorswithoutborders.org/latest/us-de...

Measles and you: virus, symptoms and white blood cells

Here's a measles infographic prepared using a range of sources and some feedback from the public. It aims to present measles symptoms and the levels of the virus and white blood cells in your blood over time. Here, I add the words to help…

Very well explained!

Job opening for Director of our amazing research unit in Gambia, West Africa. Feel free to message me if you have questions, or contact the recruiters. Details in link below. Closing 2nd May.
candidates.perrettlaver.com/vacancies/46...

Gunmen attack convoy evacuating medical staff after aid group in Haiti temporarily shutters hospital Doctors Without Borders says that four of its vehicles came under fire while they evacuated staff from a hospital in Haiti’s capital as gang violence surges.

Desperate situation in Haiti just keeps worsening 💔💔

apnews.com/article/hait...

MSF records one child died from measles each day in 2025 Afghanistan | MSF This is almost three times as many deaths as were witnessed during the same period last year.

#Afghanistan: One child has died from measles each day in Afghanistan in 2025, according to data we collected at three hospitals where we work.

See all the data and get the whole story about this alarming surge in cases: www.msf.org/msf-records-...

Vaccination as a cause of autism—myths and controversies Despite significant progress in the study of the epidemiology and genetics of autism, the etiology and patho-physiology of this condition is far from being elucidated and no curative treatment current...

Vaccines do not cause autism. If you need a quick reference to studies that disprove this relationship:

Commentary, how we got here: pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...

Meta-analysis synthesizing the results from studies on almost 1.3 million children: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

NIH centralizes peer review to improve efficiency and strengthen integrity The proposed approach is expected to save more than $65 million annually.

NIH just posted this news announcement.

"Today the National Institutes of Health is announcing plans to centralize peer review of all applications for grants, cooperative agreements and research and development contracts within the agency’s Center for Scientific Review (CSR)"

Flyways - Pacific, Central, Mississippi, and Atlantic for birds

H5N1 D1.1 isn't your grandpa's bird flu

Most human cases have been mild, but D1.1 hits harder—linked to:

Severely ill child (BC)
Death (Louisiana)
Hospitalization (CO, from WY)
Dairy herds & a worker (NV)

Wild birds spread D1.1 along their flyways
It's springtime again and birds are taking off 🧵

Funding cuts impact access to tuberculosis (TB) services for millions.

Early reports to WHO from the 30 highest #tuberculosis (TB)-burden countries confirm that funding cuts from foreign aid, particularly from USAID, are already dismantling essential TB services.

Without urgent action, these setbacks will reverse decades of progress to #EndTB 🔗 bit.ly/4kvsu2i

VOA article

🚨 At the #UNGA, the US just announced that it has “rejected and denounced” the Sustainable Development Goals (#SDGs) and Agenda 2030.

🛑And say they won't “reaffirm them” in any way.

🙋🏽‍♀️Why? In part because diversity, equity & inclusion "conflict with U.S. policies."

Read more 👇🏼

"Disease Outbreak News" is written in white on a blue background.

In February, officials in the Democratic Rep. of the Congo reported a cluster of unexplained deaths in a single village.

WHO teams, working alongside DRC health authorities, have ruled out Ebola & Marburg, shifting the focus to other possible causes.

🧵 Here is what is known so far:
bit.ly/4bptpwQ

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1) ... This report describes highly pathogenic avian influenza virus infection among two indoor cats living in homes of dairy workers.

I've seen some commentary on farmworkers "refusing to be tested" in response to this MMWR on H5N1. Resistance to public health measures and clinical care often reflects unmet need and/or structural barriers to participation. 1/
www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes...

Health as Peace Jean Jean Joseph lies on the cot, an arm draped over his forehead, shielding his eyes. The roof of the temporary medical ward is made of green plastic, casting everything in a sickly tint. His feet ar...

I wrote about structural violence, cholera, & health as peace for Harvard's ReVista. I didn't know how dramatically things would shift in the few weeks between writing &publishing. Posting today in honor of Paul Farmer-who taught me so much. M sonje w Polo
revista.drclas.harvard.edu/health-as-pe...

South Sudan: Racing to stop a cholera outbreak - South Sudan News and Press Release in English on South Sudan about Health, Protection and Human Rights, Epidemic and more; published on 31 Jan 2025 by MSF

An ongoing cholera outbreak in South Sudan has been difficult to control due to cuts in support for the country's health system. reliefweb.int/report/south...

#AidJobs: We are hiring, here is your chance to work with us.

International Secretary General: bit.ly/42VhaWN

Deputy Logistics Coordinator: bit.ly/4gIVDUf

Tembo Support Officer: bit.ly/4gJ9WIK

5 Nutritionists- bit.ly/3CVtzPW

Finance and Human Resources Manager: bit.ly/3QjZLzo

USAID and other assistance saves millions of lives. Ending it will be devastating. - The Boston Globe Eight percent of people on earth are considered “extremely poor,” existing on less than about $2 a day.

Cancelling or halting foreign assistance in the name of efficiency is going to have a devastating impact on the poorest people. I wrote this for the Globe -> www.bostonglobe.com/2025/02/18/m...

West Texas measles outbreak doubles to 48 cases in four counties Most of the measles cases are still among school-aged children in Gaines County, Texas health officials said Friday.

Hell of a day to kill the Epidemic Intelligence Service.