Many studies, reviews, and recommendations have been issued over the years. All said the same thing: we need to prepare the world for a pandemic. COVID-19 had revealed the truth: the world was still not ready when the time came. We urgently need a dedicated global agency to deal with Covid-19 and future pandemics. It will maintain and strengthen sustainable public health capacities for emergencies. Health emergency preparedness is part of a larger vision of universal health care.
We know that before time preparation makes economic sense. And we’ve created tools and models for multi-sector cooperation. Learning from the pandemic and building on recent gains can drive further measures to increase health protection.
“WHO” Is The Global Agency That Would Deal with Covid-19 and Future Pandemics
We urgently need long-term health emergency preparedness for the next one. This is because COVID-19 will not be the world’s last health emergency.
The first cases of COVID-19 were found in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December. Since then, the World Health Organization (WHO) has played a key role in fighting the pandemic. The World Health Organization (WHO) highlights five areas in which it is leading the global response.
1. Busting Dangerous Myths and Providing Accurate Information
The internet is awash with pandemic info, some useful, some of it false or misinformation. WHO is producing exact, helpful guidelines that can help save lives in this infodemic.
This includes approximately 50 pieces of technical advice for the general public, health professionals, and nations.
To ensure that the response is as comprehensive, authoritative, and representative as possible, the health agency benefits from the expertise of a global network of health professionals and scientists, including epidemiologists, physicians, and virologists.
WHO established a team to ensure that information is accurate and useful. Moreover, daily situation reports, press briefings, and briefings with governments keep the world up to date on the most recent data, facts, and evidence.
2. Helping Countries In Their Preparation and Response
The WHO has released a COVID-19 Strategic Emergency response Plan. This outlines the main steps that countries must take.
The plan, which is updated as new information and data improve WHO’s understanding of the virus’s characteristics and response options, serves as a guide for developing country-specific plans.
The WHO’s six regional offices and 150 country offices work effectively with governments worldwide to plan their health systems for the ravages of COVID-19.
In Partnership with Collaborators, Who Founded The Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund To:
- Ascertain that patients receive the treatment they need, and that frontline staff receive critical supplies and details
- Accelerate vaccine research and development and treatment for those who need it
So far, more than $800 million has been pledged or received for the response from governments, the private sector, and individuals.
3. Ensuring That Vital Supplies Reach Frontline Healthcare Workers
The World Health Organization/Iraq has released the first batch of locally developed VTM in Iraq to help national laboratories maintain COVID-19 testing.
Personal protective equipment is needed to ensure that health workers, including themselves, can save lives. So far, WHO has shipped over two million pieces of personal protective equipment to 133 countries. In the coming weeks, another two million will be delivered. Also, they sent over a million diagnostic samples to 126 countries.
However, we need even more. So, WHO is working with the International Chamber of Commerce, the World Economic Forum, and other private-sector organizations to increase the production and distribution of vital medical supplies.
That launched a “UN COVID-19 Supply Chain Task Force” on April 8 to significantly increase the supply of essential protective equipment.
4. Health Worker Training and Mobilization
Via its Open WHO platform, the WHO aims to train millions of health workers. The Organization and its key partners are transferring life-saving knowledge to frontline personnel.
Additionally, users participate in a global, social learning network based on interactive, online courses and materials covering a broad range of topics. OpenWHO also acts as a platform for quick sharing of public health experts, as well as in-depth debate and input on pressing issues. More than 1.2 million people have registered in 43 languages so far.
Countries are also receiving support from experts deployed worldwide as part of the WHO’s Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN). During outbreaks, the network ensures that the appropriate technical expertise and skills are present where and when they are most needed.
These teams are highly qualified and self-sufficient. And they present in disaster or emergency regions.
5. The Search For A Vaccine
A vaccine against the coronavirus is underway to find, by UN Photo/Loey Felipe. Many countries’ laboratories are already conducting experiments that, it is hoped, will eventually lead to the improvement of a vaccine. So, to coordinate these efforts, the WHO gathered 400 of the world’s top researchers in February to identify research priorities.
To help discover an effective treatment, the agency launched the Solidarity Study. It is an international clinical trial involving 90 countries. The aim was to find out whether any existing drugs will slow the progression of the disease.
Furthermore, the WHO has developed testing protocols that are being used in over 40 countries in a concerted way to better understand the virus. And more than 130 scientists, funders, and manufacturers worldwide have signed a declaration committing to cooperate with WHO to speed up the development of a COVID-19 vaccine.
The World Health Organization (WHO) Wants To Create An International Treaty To Make The World More Resilient Covid-19 and Future Pandemics
- An extraordinary joint call is issued by 25 heads of government and international organizations.
- The new treaty will signal the need for high-level political action to protect the planet from future health emergencies.
World leaders said that the international community should work together towards a new international treaty for pandemic preparedness and response to create a more robust global health architecture that will protect future generations.
Other pandemics and major health emergencies will occur. According to the leaders’ article, no single government or multilateral agency can handle this challenge alone. It is not a matter of when it will happen, nor of whether it will happen. So, we must all work together to improve our ability to predict, prevent, track, assess, and respond to pandemics in a highly organized manner. COVID-19 and future pandemics will serve as a sobering reminder that nobody is safe until everybody is safe.
The most recent international treaty on pandemic preparedness and response will encourage a multi-sectoral, systemic approach to pandemic preparedness and readiness at the local, regional, and global levels.
This is an opportunity for the whole world to come together as a global community for long-term peaceful cooperation that extends beyond this crisis.
