PAHO News -- May 1, 2003

PAHO News is also available on the Web!
http://www.csih.org/synergy/synergy.html

In this issue:
-PAHO 2004 TRAINING PROGRAM IN INTERNATIONAL HEALTH
-36 PERSONS ARE AFFECTED EACH MINUTE BY OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES IN THE
AMERICAS
-PRESIDENT OF URUGUAY INAUGURATES REGIONAL FORUM ON HEALTH AND
AGRICULTURE - BIOTERRORISM DISCUSSED
-6TH REGIONAL CONGRESS ON HEALTH SCIENCES INFORMATION
-SPECIAL ISSUE OF PAHO JOURNAL HIGHLIGHTS BLOOD SERVICES IN THE AMERICAS
~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

PAHO 2004 TRAINING PROGRAM IN INTERNATIONAL HEALTH

Young health professionals in the Americas (35 years old or less), who
have leadership skills as well as an intense interest in the
international dimensions of health, are invited to apply for the Pan
American Health Organization's 18th Training Program in International
Health (TPIH-2004). The training process will involve participants in a
work-study format at PAHO in Washington, D.C., for a period of 11 months
starting February 2, 2004.

Canadian candidates are invited to request their application form and a
complete information package via email to the following address:
[log in to unmask] The duly completed application, with all requested
documents, must be sent by mail to: María Victoria Palacio, CSIH-PAHO
Liaison Assistant, Canadian Society for International Health, One
Nicholas Street, Suite 1105, Ottawa, Ontario, K1N 7B7. The deadline for
receipt of applications is July 31, 2003.

Completing the application form requires time, knowledge and energy.
For more information, contact: Hélène Thibault at [log in to unmask] or
María Victoria Palacio at [log in to unmask]
~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

36 PERSONS ARE AFFECTED EACH MINUTE BY OCCUPATIONAL INJURIES IN THE
AMERICAS

The problem of safety and health in the workplace is global. Some 250
million work-related accidents occur every year throughout the world,
and 3,000 people die every day from work-related causes, according to
data from the International Labor Organization (ILO). In addition, some
160 million cases of occupational disease are recorded annually, along
with the 1.1 million fatal accidents in the same period. Deaths linked
to the workplace are higher than deaths from traffic accidents, wars and
violence. For the full article, visit:
http://www.paho.org/English/DD/PIN/pr030425.htm
~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

PRESIDENT OF URUGUAY INAUGURATES REGIONAL FORUM ON HEALTH AND
AGRICULTURE - BIOTERRORISM DISCUSSED

Health and agriculture Ministers from throughout the region met last
week at the Pan American Health Organization for the 13th Inter-American
Meeting on Health and Agriculture (RIMSA 13). This is the only regional
forum to promote collaboration and coordination among the health and
agriculture sectors in food security, foot-and-mouth disease
eradication, and control and prevention of zoonoses. The President of
Uruguay, Jorge Batlle, inaugurated the Forum.  "More and more we realize
that our destiny lies beyond our borders," he said.  For the full press
release, visit: http://www.paho.org/English/DD/PIN/pr030424.htm

One of the speakers at the forum was Dr. Lester Crawford, of the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration of the United States (FDA). He discussed
safety measures and necessary responses to possible attacks.  The health
and agriculture Ministers heard that deliberate contamination of food
with chemical or biological agents can occur at any point in the food
chain from the farm to the table, with dramatic potential impact for the
public health of populations.  For the full press release, visit:
http://www.paho.org/English/DD/PIN/pr030425a.htm
~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

6TH REGIONAL CONGRESS ON HEALTH SCIENCES INFORMATION

The 6th Regional Congress on Health Sciences Information (CRICS 6) will
be held May 7-9 in Puebla, Mexico. The congress, sponsored by
PAHO/BIREME together with the Secretaría de Salud of Mexico and the
Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública, CENIDS, will host information
professionals from over 37 countries.  The congress will allow them to
exchange knowledge and experiences and evaluate information technology
in the region. For more information, visit:
http://www.crics.info/en/homepage.htm
~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

SPECIAL ISSUE OF PAHO JOURNAL HIGHLIGHTS BLOOD SERVICES IN THE AMERICAS

How safe are the blood supplies and services at your neighborhood blood
bank? In the aftermath of a large-scale disaster, would your community
have sufficient blood supplies on hand to meet the public's emergency
needs? The current status of and recent achievements in the
availability, safety, and quality of blood services in the Region of the
Americas are the focus of a special issue of the Pan American Journal of
Public Health, produced by PAHO. For the past five years, one of the
principles of PAHO's technical cooperation has been support for its
member countries in improving the safety and quality of blood bank
operations and in developing strong national blood programs. While
noting that "great progress" has been made during this time, PAHO
Director Dr. Mirta Roses Periago cautions that "there are still many
challenges ahead in terms of achieving desired levels of safety and
availability of blood." For more information on the special issue,
visit: http://publications.paho.org/english/news.cfm?ID=89
~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

To unsubscribe from CANCHID send: unsubscribe CANCHID to: [log in to unmask]  -  for help see http://listserv.yorku.ca