WiRED International

This June WiRED International Director Gary Selnow, Ph.D., and WiRED Armenia Director Sebouh Baghdoyan spent a busy week visiting facilities and attending meetings in Armenia.

Twenty-three-year-old Ochieng Wilbertforce lives in Obunga, one of the world’s poorest slums in the northwest part of Kisumu, Kenya. One day a friend told him about WiRED International’s Community Health Information Center in Kisumu. Feeling curious, he visited the Center and began his education in health.

The Zika virus is no longer a phenomenon found just in America’s Southern Hemisphere. On June 15 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that 234 pregnant women in the continental United States have been infected with the Zika virus.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated June 14 as World Blood Donor Day. This year’s theme is “Blood connects us all.” The campaign presents video stories of those whose lives have been saved through blood donation and seeks to encourage blood donation, especially from young people who have never given blood.

According to the World Heart Federation, rheumatic heart disease (RHD) currently affects an estimated 15.6 million people, causing more than 233,000 deaths each year. RHD often begins with a strep throat which, when treated, can completely stop this preventable disease.

WiRED International is pleased to welcome Erin Baker, Ph.D., and Sameer Verma, Ph.D., to its Governing Board.

A recent Washington Post article cited a report stating that, for the first time, researchers have found a person carrying bacteria which is resistant to antibiotics of last resort. This is an alarming development that a top U.S. public health official says could mean “the end of the road” for antibiotics.

May 31 is World No Tobacco Day. The World Health Organization began this global observance in 1987 to highlight the health risks associated with tobacco use and to encourage governments to adopt effective policies to reduce tobacco use.

Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is the most common heart disease in children and young adults in developing countries. WiRED has updated its RHD module for students to describe this serious but completely preventable disease.

May is National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month and Clean Air Month, reminding us that we’re entering the season where many people become vulnerable to environmental conditions.