Monmouthshire joins WHO age-friendly communities network
This follows a council decision in January to pursue Age-Friendly County status, supported by a survey of residents aged 50 and over.
The survey gathered feedback to inform the council's efforts and highlighted areas for improvement and success.
Monmouthshire County Council's cabinet member for social care, safeguarding and accessible health services said: "This is a significant step in our journey to ensure that Monmouthshire is a county where our older adults can live comfortably, participate fully in civic life, and continue to contribute meaningfully.
"Building on our extensive consultation with older residents, we will continue to ensure that the voices of older people are at the centre of our efforts to create a more age-friendly county."
Monmouthshire's membership is the result of collaborative work with residents, businesses, third-sector organisations, and statutory partners.
Councillor Jackie Strong, Monmouthshire's older people's champion, said: "By becoming a member, we can learn from communities from around the world about their efforts to create age-friendly environments.
"I look forward to learning from these communities and sharing the work already happening in our communities every day."
The WHO network connects cities and communities around the world that are committed to supporting healthy ageing and improving quality of life for older adults.
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The Independent
11 hours ago
- The Independent
Takeaways from AP's report on problems in the worldwide campaign to eradicate polio
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Here are some takeaways from AP's report on what's happened in one of the most expensive efforts in all of public health. Documents show major problems on polio vaccination teams Internal WHO reports reviewing polio immunization in Afghanistan and Pakistan over the past decade — given to AP by current and former staffers — show that as early as 2017, local workers were alerting problems to senior managers. The documents flagged multiple cases of falsified vaccination records, health workers being replaced by untrained relatives and workers improperly administering vaccines. On numerous occasions, WHO officials noted, 'vaccinators did not know about vaccine management,' citing failure to keep doses properly cold. They also found sloppy or falsified reporting, with workers noting 'more used vaccine vials than were actually supplied.' According to an August 2017 report from Kandahar, Afghanistan, vaccination teams worked 'in a hurried manner,' reports said, with 'no plan for monitoring." A team in Nawzad, Afghanistan, covered just half of the intended area in 2017, with 250 households missed entirely. Village elders said no one visited for at least two years. Polio workers say problems have gone unaddressed Health officials in Afghanistan and Pakistan told AP their efforts to vaccinate children are often stymied by cultural barriers, misinformation about the vaccines, and poverty. Sughra Ayaz has traveled door to door in southeastern Pakistan for the past decade, pleading for children to be immunized. Some families demand basics such as food and water instead of vaccines. Others, without citing proof for their beliefs, repeat false rumors and say they think the oral vaccine doses are meant to sterilize their kids. Ayaz said that given the immense pressure for the campaign to succeed, some managers have instructed workers to falsely mark children as immunized 'In many places, our work is not done with honesty,' she said. 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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
The Guardian
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