Longest ever recorded flu epidemic measured in 2015 The most notable infectious disease outbreak in 2015 was the flu epidemic in the winter of 2014-2015, which at 21 weeks was the longest ever recorded in the Netherlands.
First patient infected by tick-borne encephalitis virus For the first time, a person in the Netherlands has fallen ill after a bite from a tick carrying the tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBE virus).
Livestock farming affects pulmonary function in local residents COPD patients living near livestock farms suffer more complications.
Nicoline Tamsma re-elected as EuroHealthNet president Nicoline Tamsma has been elected to serve a new two-year term as EuroHealthNet president. EuroHealthNet is a European network organisation of public health and health promotion institutes.
Bacteria slightly more often resistant to last resort antibiotics Antimicrobial resistance is a global problem. In the Netherlands, some bacteria that can cause infections in people are more frequently resistant to antibiotics used as a last resort.
RIVM and German BfR enter cooperation agreement on animal protection and food safety The German Federal Institute of Risk Assessment (BfR) and the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, RIVM have signed a cooperation agreement, focused on developing new sci
Increase in number of additives in tobacco products A total of 673 different types of additives are used by manufacturers in their tobacco products (cigarettes, cigars and pipe tobacco) and the number of additives used per tobacco product type incre
Metals in tobacco harmful to health Growing tobacco plants acquire metals from soil, fertilisers, and industrial pollution. Smoking liberates some of these metals from tobacco into smoke to be inhaled by the smoker and bystanders.
Half of the Dutch participate in sport weekly In 2014, 53% of people between the ages of 12 and 80 in the Netherlands participate in some type of sport weekly.
Translation Dutch Health Care Performance Report 2014 available Every four years, RIVM assesses the quality, accessibility and affordability of the Dutch healthcare system.