Public Health Initiative Network - PHIN

Recent research on Nipah virus.
By: Victor Santo Diggs II

Nipah virus: New cases trigger alert, as scientists uncover how it disarms human defences

Nipah virus test vial filled with blood on a wire rack
Photo: iStock/Getty Images Plus
Health authorities across South and Southeast Asia are on high alert over renewed concerns about the Nipah virus, one of the world’s most lethal zoonotic pathogens, following reports of human cases in West Bengal, India.

With fatality rates previously reported between 40% and 75% and no approved vaccines or treatments for humans, Nipah is a major public health threat and is identified by organisations such as the World Health Organisation as a priority pathogen for medical countermeasures to respond to epidemics and pandemics.

As public health officials focus on containment and surveillance, research from Australian scientists is shining a light on how Nipah, and its viral relatives, are able to control the cells they infect in animals and humans, and how these processes may be stopped through new antiviral strategies.

Henipaviruses are a subset of closely-related viruses that includes Nipah virus and its Australian relative, the Hendra virus. These are among the deadliest viruses known to infect humans.

Both viruses spill over from bats into other animals and people, causing severe respiratory disease and inflammation of the brain with high case-fatality rates.

A bat hanging upside down.
Bats are a common link in the spread of the Nipah virus.
Since their emergence in the 1990s – Hendra in Brisbane in 1994 and Nipah in Malaysia in 1998.

Maternal health rate in Liberia of 2025

Liberia's maternal health remains a crisis, with high mortality rates (around 628-854 deaths per 100,000 live births recently reported), significantly above global goals, though showing some improvement from past years.

Key challenges include limited skilled care, postpartum hemorrhage, eclampsia, malnutrition, and a fragile system weakened by conflict and Ebola, despite efforts in rebuilding and training midwives. Access to care varies greatly by wealth and education, with poorer households and less educated women facing worse outcomes.
Key Statistics & Trends:

Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR):
854 per 100,000 live births (2022 LPHC data).
628 per 100,000 live births (2023 World Bank data, improved from 1,749 in 2000).
742 per 100,000 live births (UN figure from 2020/2024, showing progress but still high).
Challenges: Postpartum hemorrhage, eclampsia, limited access to quality care, and a shortage of trained staff are major issues.

Progress: Improvement seen in skilled birth attendance (around 84%), though still below regional averages.

Contributing Factors:
System Weakness: Devastated by civil war and further impacted by Ebola.
Socioeconomic Disparities: Poorer households and less educated mothers have significantly lower rates of skilled birth attendance and postnatal care.
Behavioral Factors: Women often lack awareness of risks and delay seeking care.
Efforts & Outlook:

Liberia is working on system rebuilding, including training traditional midwives (TMs) and using performance-based financing.

Despite progress, achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for maternal health remains challenging.
Liberia - Healthy Newborn Network
Liberia faces significant challenges in maternal and newborn health following civil war and the Ebola epidemic. With a maternal mortality ratio of approximately...

Source:
Healthy Newborn Network.

Public Health initiative network of Liberia
(PHINOL)

Season greetings to everyone

An intense workshop on Factors leading to Teen age pregnancy and recommendations to minimize it so that our girls children will prepare themselves to become future Leaders.
it was very interactive which led to many questions and answers sharing.

Presenter: Thelmas Lake.
Student of the University of Liberia Reading Public Health Major.

PHINOL has a Big vision 💪💪

We have a responsibility outside campus activities and we must change the narrative

Bravo to us for staging a successful seminar among high school students and the goal was meant.

Thanks so kindly to our illustrious presenters who enlightened the younger ones regarding health issues.

1. Timothy Cephas
2. Thelmas Lake
3. Eric Baihee Jr

The participants benefited a lot from your explore knowledged

Kudos to us again, PHINOL.💪💪

The population wellbeing is our most concerned
We have a primary role to play in the public: Preventing, prolonging and prolonging lives.

The health seminar was held successfully today a little over a hundred of participants from diverse institutions were present to achieve knowledge on a couple of topics including: hygiene and sanitation, Moral values and Teen age pregnancy and STI, STDs, HIV and AIDS.

Public Health initiative network of Liberia wants to acknowledge every partner for an immense effort to succeed in 2025.

Partnership and inclusive process is vital in our engagements and services.

Our facilitators did extremely well in making the seminar a success 🙏.

we look forward to working with the public.

I'm in the top 15% of Neto Zarzar Lighe Sr. fans. I earned 66 points on their weekly engagement list last week.

Mitigating circumstances surrounding health issues with school going kids.

We step in by spreading health education and awareness about: Pandemic, Epidemic, endemic and not down playing infectious disease that are very Contagious in our contemporary world.

Team PHINOL 💪

post #1

We started a tremendous work this morning by meeting our participating schools regarding the upcoming symposium and the momentum is welcoming

The public safety is our concern

PHINOL 💪💪

December 12, will be our symposium with 10 schools within the Soul Clinic belt, varieties of topics will be discussed