How do Vaccines Work?

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This page explains the body’s response to pathogens, how vaccines help, and herd immunity.

Germs are all around us, both in our environment and in our bodies. When a person is susceptible and they encounter a harmful organism, it can lead to disease and death.

The body has many ways of defending itself against pathogens (disease-causing organisms). Skin, mucus, and cilia (microscopic hairs that move debris away from the lungs) all work as physical barriers to prevent pathogens from entering the body in the first place.

When a pathogen does infect the body, our body’s defences, called the immune system, are triggered and the pathogen is attacked and destroyed or overcome.

Source: How do Vaccines Work?

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    An Approach for Monitoring and Evaluating Community Mitigation Strategies for COVID-19

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    This document describes the approach of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s approach to evaluating community mitigation strategies and provides overarching considerations to support state, territorial, or local health departments, tribal health organizations, or others in monitoring and evaluating COVID-19 community mitigation strategies, including a logic model, suggested monitoring and evaluation questions, and potential data sources.

    The approach considers outcomes that minimize COVID-19 morbidity and associated mortality, effects of community mitigation strategies on long-standing health disparities and social determinants of health, and how communities thrive socially, emotionally, and economically.

    Source: An Approach for Monitoring and Evaluating Community Mitigation Strategies for COVID-19

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      Adapting Evaluation Designs in Times of COVID-19 (Coronavirus): Four Questions to Guide Decisions

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      This is a framework organized around four questions to address the ethical, conceptual, and methodological challenges that are affecting programmatic evaluation work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

      The questions are:

      • Should you adapt your evaluation questions and scope?
      • Can you improve what remains feasible?
      • Can you find ways around what is infeasible?
      • Can you tap into alternative sources of evidence?

      Source: Adapting Evaluation Designs in Times of COVID-19 (Coronavirus): Four Questions to Guide Decisions

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        COVID-19 Testing and Tracing: Message Handbook

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        For any testing and tracing strategy to work, we have to motivate people to act.

        That’s why The Rockefeller Foundation launched the Testing & Tracing Message Handbook. This Handbook draws on insights from cognitive science, linguistics, focus groups and a nationally representative message-testing survey. It includes audience insights, tested language and science-based do’s and don’ts that public health officials can use to transform their communications.

        This Handbook will be a living document, updated with new research and tailored messages as facts on the ground change. We’ll also be working closely with public health practitioners, to understand what they need to put the recommendations into action.

        Source: COVID-19 Testing and Tracing: Message Handbook

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          COVID-19, Breastfeeding, Infant Feeding, and Breast Milk

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          This repository is compiled by the Johns Hopkins Center for Humanitarian Health and provides an overview of what peer-reviewed journal articles currently state on COVID-19, breastfeeding, infant feeding, and breast milk.

          As the pandemic is ongoing, more and more research results are published. With this service, the creators aim to provide the user with a snapshot of what is published with updates every two weeks.

          Source: COVID-19, Breastfeeding, Infant Feeding, and Breast Milk

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            COVID-19 Informative Comics: Don’t Forget to Wear Your Mask

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            This illustration indirectly reinforces the importance of wearing a mask before stepping out of the house. This illustration was designed by Angshuman Kashyap, a graphic designer from India that has created multiple illustrations to communicate effective information about COVID-19 prevention.

            Source: COVID-19 Informative Comics: Don’t Forget to Wear Your Mask

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              COVID-19 Informative Comics: Don’t Forget to Cover Your Nose

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              This illustration creatively reinforces the importance of wearing a face mask correctly. This illustration was designed by Angshuman Kashyap, a graphic designer from India that has created multiple illustrations to communicate effective information about COVID-19 prevention.

              Source: COVID-19 Informative Comics: Don’t Forget to Cover Your Nose

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