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92-484: A public health emergency of international concern ( PHEIC / f eɪ k / FAYK ) is a formal declaration by the World Health Organization (WHO) of "an extraordinary event which is determined to constitute a public health risk to other States through the international spread of disease and to potentially require a coordinated international response", formulated when a situation arises that

184-494: A public health emergency of international concern, marking the second such declaration in the last two years due to the virus's transmission. The WHO's Constitution states that its objective "is the attainment by all people of the highest possible level of health". The WHO fulfils this objective through its functions as defined in its Constitution: As of 2012 , the WHO has defined its role in public health as follows: Since

276-639: A PHEIC would not give any added benefit. The advice against declaring a PHEIC in October 2018 and April 2019, despite the criteria for doing so appearing to be met on both occasions, has led to the transparency of the IHR EC coming into question. The language used in the statements for the Kivu Ebola epidemic has been noted to be different. In October 2018, the EC stated "a PHEIC should not be declared at this time". In

368-622: A PHEIC, the WHO Director-General is required to take into account factors that include the risk to human health and international spread as well as advice from an international committee of experts, the IHR Emergency Committee (EC), one of whom should be an expert nominated by the State within whose region the event arises. Rather than being a standing committee, the EC is created on an ad hoc basis. Until 2011,

460-593: A PHEIC, with six in favor and nine against. On 23 July 2022, the WHO director-general declared the outbreak a PHEIC. On 11 May 2023, the WHO ended the PHEIC declaration for Mpox, six days after doing so for COVID-19. On the date of the declaration, there were 17,186 cases reported globally, affecting 75 countries in all six WHO regions, with five deaths reported outside Africa and 72 deaths in African countries. The WHO had previously held an EC meeting on 23 June 2022 regarding

552-410: A PHEIC. On 5 May 2023, the WHO ended the PHEIC declaration for COVID-19. On the date of the declaration, there were 7,818 cases confirmed globally, affecting 19 countries in five of the six WHO regions. Previously, the WHO had held EC meetings on 22 and 23 January 2020 regarding the outbreak, but it was determined at that time that it was too early to declare a PHEIC, given the lack of necessary data and

644-502: A convention concerning the bubonic plague was signed by sixteen of the nineteen states attending the Venice conference. While Denmark , Sweden-Norway , and the US did not sign this convention, it was unanimously agreed that the work of the prior conferences should be codified for implementation. Subsequent conferences, from 1902 until the final one in 1938, widened the diseases of concern for

736-410: A focus on reporting of three main diseases: cholera , yellow fever and plague . Smallpox was a contagious disease during the 18th-20th century. It was endemic until mass vaccination, after which WHO certified Smallpox to be eradicated . This marked the first (and thus far only) human disease to be successfully eradicated. The revised International Health Regulations 2005 broadens this scope and

828-778: A forum for scientific or policy discussions related to health. Its official publication, the World Health Report , provides assessments of worldwide health topics. The WHO has played a leading role in several public health achievements, most notably the eradication of smallpox , the eradication of polio , and the development of an Ebola vaccine . Its current priorities include communicable diseases , such as HIV/AIDS , Ebola , malaria and tuberculosis ; non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and cancer ; healthy diet , nutrition, and food security ; occupational health ; and substance abuse . The agency advocates for universal health care coverage, engagement with

920-590: A global emergency. As of 17 August 2024, over 15,600 cases and 537 deaths have been reported in the current outbreak, with approximately 96% of cases occurring in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). 12 other African countries, some for the first time, have also reported cases. In 2018, an examination of the first four declarations (2009–2016) showed that the WHO was noted to be more effective in responding to international health emergencies, and that

1012-594: A global scale. The National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS) was established in 1990. Notifications are made to the States or Territory health authority and computerised, de-identified records are then supplied to the Department of Health and Ageing for collation, analysis and publication . The Australian national notifiable diseases list and case definitions are available online. Within Australia

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1104-470: A high risk of spread to the capital of North Kivu, Goma , a call for a PHEIC declaration was published on 10 July 2019 in The Washington Post by Daniel Lucey and Ron Klain (the former United States Ebola response coordinator ). Their declaration stated that "in the absence of a trajectory toward extinguishing the outbreak, the opposite path—severe escalation—remains possible. The risk of

1196-534: A list of diseases that are always notifiable . SARS , smallpox , wild type poliomyelitis , and any new subtype of human influenza are always a PHEIC and do not require an IHR decision to declare them as such. Large scale health emergencies that attract public attention do not necessarily fulfill the criteria to be a PHEIC. ECs were not convened for the cholera outbreak in Haiti , chemical weapons use in Syria , or

1288-540: A resolution on disability prevention and rehabilitation , with a focus on community-driven care. 1977 and 1978: The first list of essential medicines was drawn up, and a year later the ambitious goal of " Health For All " was declared. 1986: The WHO began its global programme on HIV/AIDS . Two years later preventing discrimination against patients was attended to and in 1996 the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)

1380-429: A resolution passed on the subject, Alger Hiss , the secretary general of the conference, recommended using a declaration to establish such an organization. Sze and other delegates lobbied and a declaration passed calling for an international conference on health. The use of the word "world", rather than "international", emphasized the truly global nature of what the organization was seeking to achieve. The constitution of

1472-508: A series of conferences that took place until 1938, about 87 years. The first conference, in Paris, was almost solely concerned with cholera , which would remain the disease of major concern for the ISC for most of the 19th century. With the cause , origin, and communicability of many epidemic diseases still uncertain and a matter of scientific argument, international agreement on appropriate measures

1564-459: A situation that is "serious, sudden, unusual, or unexpected", which may necessitate immediate international action. It can be seen as an "alarm system", a "call to action" and "last resort" measure. WHO Member States have 24 hours within which to report potential PHEIC events to the WHO. It does not have to be a member state that reports a potential outbreak, hence reports to the WHO may also be received informally, by non-governmental sources. Under

1656-399: Is "serious, sudden, unusual, or unexpected", which "carries implications for public health beyond the affected state's national border" and "may require immediate international action". Under the 2005 International Health Regulations (IHR), states have a legal duty to respond promptly to a PHEIC. The declaration is publicized by an IHR Emergency Committee (EC) of international experts, which

1748-737: Is a searchable database tool provided by the Public Health Agency of Canada . The first policies of mandatory notifiable disease originated a long time ago in France, while exact times are unclear we know that at the end of the 18th century Plague was a highly enforced notifiable disease. The current list of notifiable diseases is written in the Code de la santé publique Article D3113-6 and Article D3113-7 (last revision has been made in 2012), it contains 36 diseases : 34 infectious ones and 2 non-infectious disease directly linked to

1840-476: Is no longer limited to the notification of specific diseases. Whilst it does identify a number of specific diseases, it also defines a limited set of criteria to assist in deciding whether an event is notifiable to WHO. WHO states that "Notification is now based on the identification within a State Party’s territory of an "event that may constitute a public health emergency of international concern". This non-disease specific definition of notifiable events expands

1932-411: Is not only confined to infectious diseases, and may cover an emergency caused by exposure to a chemical agent or radioactive material. It can be seen as an "alarm system", a "call to action", and "last resort" measure. Multiple surveillance and response systems exist worldwide for the early detection and effective response to contain the spread of disease. Time delays occur for two main reasons. The first

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2024-644: Is notified and Defra will investigate. In the past, notifiable diseases in the United States varied according to the laws of individual states. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) also produced a list of nationally notifiable diseases that health officials should report to the CDC's National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS). A uniform criterion for reporting diseases to

2116-557: Is now on the verge of extinction, thanks to a Global Vaccination Drive. The World Health Organization (WHO) stated the eradication programme has saved millions from deadly disease. Between 1990 and 2010, WHO's help has contributed to a 40% decline in the number of deaths from tuberculosis, and since 2005, over 46 million people have been treated and an estimated 7 million lives saved through practices advocated by WHO. These include engaging national governments and their financing, early diagnosis, standardising treatment, monitoring of

2208-443: Is the delay between the first case and the confirmation of the outbreak by the healthcare system, allayed by good surveillance via data collection, evaluation, and organisation. The second is when there is a delay between the detection of the outbreak and widespread recognition and declaration of it as an international concern. The declaration is promulgated by an emergency committee (EC) made up of international experts operating under

2300-534: Is the largest intergovernmental health organization at the international level. The WHO's purpose is to achieve the highest possible level of health for all the world's people, defining health as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." The main functions of the World Health Organization include: to promote the control of epidemic and endemic diseases; to provide and improve

2392-534: The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry regulates the notification of infectious animal diseases. Notification is regulated under Brazilian Ministry of Health Ordinance number 1.271 of June 6, 2014. Diseases of concern to public health officials have been tracked in Canada since 1924. A subcommittee of the National Advisory Committee on Epidemiology was set up in 1987. At

2484-618: The Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan , for example. Further assessment is required for diseases that are prone to becoming pandemics , including, but not limited to cholera , pneumonic plague , yellow fever , and viral hemorrhagic fevers. A declaration of a PHEIC may appear as an economic burden to the state facing the epidemic. Incentives to declare an epidemic are lacking and the PHEIC may be seen as placing limitations on trade in countries that already are struggling. In order to declare

2576-485: The International Classification of Diseases (ICD). The agency's work began in earnest in 1951 after a significant infusion of financial and technical resources. The WHO's official mandate is to promote health and safety while helping the vulnerable worldwide. It provides technical assistance to countries, sets international health standards, collects data on global health issues, and serves as

2668-476: The Lancet commission on COVID-19 published a report, calling the response to the pandemic "a massive global failure on multiple levels". The WHO responded by noting "several key omissions and misinterpretations in the report, not least regarding the public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) and the speed and scope of WHO's actions." They stated that the report "offers the best opportunity to insist that

2760-658: The National standards for under 8s day care and childminding that state: " Office for Standards in Education should be notified of any food poisoning affecting two or more children looked after on the premises, any child having meningitis or the outbreak on the premises of any notifiable disease identified as such in the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 or because the notification requirement has been applied to them by regulations (the relevant regulations are

2852-671: The Public Health (Infectious Diseases) Regulations 1988 ). In the UK notification of diseases in animals is regulated by the Animal Health Act 1981 , as well as the Specified Diseases (Notification and Slaughter) Order 1992 (as amended) and Specified Diseases (Notification) Order 1996 (as amended) . The act states that a police constable should be notified, however in practice a Defra divisional veterinary manager

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2944-585: The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and smaller organizations. As of 2011 , it has been working to immunize young children and prevent the re-emergence of cases in countries declared "polio-free". In 2017, a study was conducted as to why Polio Vaccines may not be enough to eradicate the Virus & conduct new technology. Polio

3036-857: The USSR , called on the World Health Assembly to undertake a global initiative to eradicate smallpox, resulting in Resolution WHA11.54. 1965: The first report on diabetes mellitus and the creation of the International Agency for Research on Cancer . 1966: The WHO moved its headquarters from the Ariana wing at the Palace of Nations to a newly constructed headquarters elsewhere in Geneva. 1967: The WHO intensified

3128-1043: The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the World Bank . 1975: The WHO launched the Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical diseases (the TDR). Co-sponsored by UNICEF , UNDP, and the World Bank, it was established in response to a 1974 request from the WHA for an intensive effort to develop improved control of tropical diseases. The TDR's goals are, firstly, to support and coordinate international research into diagnosis, treatment and control of tropical diseases; and, secondly, to strengthen research capabilities within endemic countries. 1976: The WHA enacted

3220-512: The United States and the world . On 26 April 2009, more than one month after its first emergence, the initial PHEIC was declared when the H1N1 (or swine flu) pandemic was still in phase three . Within three hours on the same day, the WHO web site received almost two million visits, necessitating a dedicated web site for the swine influenza pandemic. At the time that H1N1 had been declared a PHEIC, it had occurred in only three countries. Therefore, it

3312-572: The World Health Assembly finished on 24 July 1948, having secured a budget of US$ 5 million (then £1,250,000 ) for the 1949 year. G. Brock Chisholm was appointed director-general of the WHO, having served as executive secretary and a founding member during the planning stages, while Andrija Štampar was the assembly's first president. Its first priorities were to control the spread of malaria , tuberculosis and sexually transmitted infections , and to improve maternal and child health , nutrition and environmental hygiene. Its first legislative act

3404-519: The outbreak of Ebola in Western Africa . Later, one review showed that a direct impact of this epidemic on America escalated a PHEIC declaration. It was the first PHEIC in a resource-poor setting. On 1 February 2016, the WHO declared its fourth PHEIC in response to clusters of microcephaly and Guillain–Barré syndrome in the Americas , which at the time were suspected to be associated with

3496-531: The 13 previously declined proposals for declaring a PHEIC, the resultant statements quoted "the conditions for a PHEIC are not currently met" and "does not constitute a PHEIC". In April 2019, they stated that "there is no added benefit to declaring a PHEIC at this stage", a notion that is not part of the PHEIC criteria laid down in the IHR. After confirmed cases of Ebola in neighbouring Uganda in June 2019, Tedros Adhanom ,

3588-429: The 2005 International Health Regulations (IHR), states have a legal duty to respond promptly to a PHEIC. PHEIC is defined as: an extraordinary event which is determined to constitute a public health risk to other States through the international spread of disease and to potentially require a coordinated international response. This definition designates a public health crisis of potentially global reach and implies

3680-620: The Health Organization of the League of Nations. After World War II , the United Nations absorbed all the other health organizations, to form the WHO. During the 1945 United Nations Conference on International Organization, Szeming Sze , a delegate from China, conferred with Norwegian and Brazilian delegates on creating an international health organization under the auspices of the new United Nations. After failing to get

3772-434: The IHR (2005), ways to detect, evaluate, notify, and report events were ascertained by all countries in order to avoid PHEICs. The response to public health risks also was decided. The IHR decision algorithm assists WHO Member States in deciding whether a potential PHEIC exists and whether the WHO should be notified. The WHO should be notified if any two of the four following questions are affirmed: The PHEIC criteria include

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3864-680: The IHR (2005), which was developed following the SARS outbreak of 2002–2003. Between 2009 and 2016, there were four PHEIC declarations. The fifth was the 2018–2020 Kivu Ebola epidemic , declared in July 2019 and ended in June 2020. The sixth was the COVID-19 pandemic , declared in January 2020 and ended in May 2023. The seventh was the 2022–2023 mpox outbreak , declared in July 2022 and ended in May 2023. Under

3956-686: The ISC, and included discussions of responses to yellow fever , brucellosis , leprosy , tuberculosis , and typhoid . In part as a result of the successes of the Conferences, the Pan-American Sanitary Bureau (1902), and the Office International d'Hygiène Publique or " International office of Public Hygiene " in english(1907) were soon founded. When the League of Nations was formed in 1920, it established

4048-494: The International Health Regulations as well as a new legally binding agreement (most likely a treaty) on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. Proposals include the possibility of issuing intermediate public health alerts (short of PHEICs) and determining public health emergencies of regional concern. Notably, although COVID-19 is routinely referred to as a pandemic, this word is not used in

4140-422: The International Health Regulations." With the emergency phase of the pandemic being regarded as having ended, more subtle and robust institutional responses and protocols are in the works for further iterations of this pandemic as well as global pandemics of whatever etiology . At the second IHR meeting for the 2022–2023 mpox outbreak on 21 July 2022, members of the emergency committee were divided about issuing

4232-588: The United Nations together with the exchange of letters related thereto, and taking into account the respective co-ordinating responsibilities of both organizations, it is recognized by the World Health Organization that the International Atomic Energy Agency has the primary responsibility for encouraging, assisting and co-ordinating research and development and practical application of atomic energy for peaceful uses throughout

4324-465: The WHO announced a reconvening of a fourth EC meeting on 17 July 2019, when they officially announced it "a regional emergency, and by no means a global threat" and declared it as a PHEIC, without restrictions on trade or travel. In response to the declaration, the president of the DRC, together with an expert committee led by a virologist, took responsibility for directly supervising action, while in protest of

4416-473: The WHO did not consider the 2018–2020 Kivu Ebola epidemic to be a PHEIC. The decision was controversial, with Michael Osterholm , director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP) responding with disappointment and describing the situation as "an Ebola gas can sitting in DRC that's just waiting for a match to hit it", while the WHO panel were unanimous in their decision that declaring it

4508-483: The WHO over the organization's unwillingness to share the penicillin recipe. They would not return until 1956. 1950: A mass tuberculosis inoculation drive using the BCG vaccine gets under way. 1955: The malaria eradication programme was launched, although objectives were later modified. (In most areas, the programme goals became control instead of eradication.) 1958: Viktor Zhdanov , Deputy Minister of Health for

4600-604: The WHO was to report as to whether RTS,S /AS01, were a viable malaria vaccine . For the time being, insecticide -treated mosquito nets and insecticide sprays are used to prevent the spread of malaria, as are antimalarial drugs – particularly to vulnerable people such as pregnant women and young children. In 1988, WHO launched the Global Polio Eradication Initiative to eradicate polio . It has also been successful in helping to reduce cases by 99% since WHO partnered with Rotary International ,

4692-425: The WHO's role and priorities in public health, ranging from narrowing its mandate to strengthening its independence and authority. During the 1970s, WHO had dropped its commitment to a global malaria eradication campaign as too ambitious, it retained a strong commitment to malaria control. WHO's Global Malaria Programme works to keep track of malaria cases, and future problems in malaria control schemes. As of 2012,

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4784-503: The World Health Organization was signed by all 51 countries of the United Nations, and by 10 other countries, on 22 July 1946. It thus became the first specialized agency of the United Nations to which every member subscribed. Its constitution formally came into force on the first World Health Day on 7 April 1948, when it was ratified by the 26th member state. The WHO formally began its work in September 1, 1948. The first meeting of

4876-630: The authorities. The complete list can be found in the Article L. 223-22 du code rural , it is updated with every new entry on World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) lists A and B and with European Union mandatory lists. Notification is regulated under the Health Act 1956 , except for tuberculosis which is regulated under the Tuberculosis Act 1948 . All diseases Requirement for the notification of infectious diseases originated near

4968-577: The basis for global prevention, treatment, and support the plan to fight the AIDS pandemic . 2006: The WHO launches the Global action plan for influenza vaccines 2016: The Global action plan for influenza vaccines ends with a report which concludes that while substantial progress has been made over the 10 years of the Plan, the world is still not ready to respond to an influenza pandemic. 2016: Following

5060-424: The budget and activities. The WHO is funded primarily by contributions from member states (both assessed and voluntary), followed by private donors. Its total approved budget for 2020–2021 is over $ 7.2 billion, while the approved budget for 2022–2023 is over $ 6.2 billion. The budget is $ 6.83 billion for 2024–2025. The International Sanitary Conferences (ISC), the first of which was held on 23 June 1851, were

5152-627: The continuing effects of nuclear disasters in Chernobyl and Fukushima . They believe WHO must regain what they see as independence. Independent WHO held a weekly vigil from 2007 to 2017 in front of WHO headquarters. However, as pointed out by Foreman in clause 2 it states: In particular, and in accordance with the Constitution of the World Health Organization and the Statute of the International Atomic Energy Agency and its agreement with

5244-426: The declaration health minister Oly Ilunga Kalenga resigned. A review of the PHEIC had been planned at a fifth meeting of the EC on 10 October 2019 and on 18 October 2019 it remained a PHEIC until 26 June 2020 when it was decided that the situation no longer constituted a PHEIC, as the outbreak was considered over. On 30 January 2020, the WHO declared the outbreak of COVID-19 , centered on Wuhan in central China ,

5336-493: The director-general of the WHO, announced that the third meeting of a group of experts would be held on 14 June 2019 to assess whether the Ebola spread had become a PHEIC. The conclusion was that while the outbreak was a health emergency in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the region, it did not meet all the three criteria for a PHEIC. Despite the number of deaths reaching 1,405 by 11 June 2019 and 1,440 by 17 June 2019,

5428-520: The disease moving into nearby Goma, Congo—a city of 1 million residents with an international airport—or crossing into the massive refugee camps in South Sudan is mounting. With a limited number of vaccine doses remaining, either would be a catastrophe". Four days later, on 14 July 2019, a case of Ebola was confirmed in Goma, which has an international airport and a highly mobile population. Subsequently,

5520-454: The emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance may constitute a PHEIC. World Health Organization The World Health Organization ( WHO ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for global public health . It is headquartered in Geneva , Switzerland, and has six regional offices and 150 field offices worldwide. Only sovereign States can participate, and it

5612-569: The emergencies did not coincide with holidays. PHEIC was not invoked with the Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak in 2013. Originating in Saudi Arabia, MERS reached more than 24 countries and resulted in 876 deaths by May 2020, although most cases were in hospital settings rather than sustained community spread. As a result, what constitutes a PHEIC has been unclear. PHEIC are not confined to only infectious diseases or biological ones. It may cover events caused by chemical agents or radioactive materials. Debate exists regarding whether

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5704-532: The end of the 19th century. The list started with a few select diseases and has since grown to 31. Currently disease notification for humans in the UK is regulated under the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 and Public Health (Infectious Diseases) Regulations 1988 . The governing body is Public Health England Public Health England List of Notifiable Diseases can be found here Notifiable diseases and causative organisms: how to report . There are also requirements for notification specific to children in

5796-415: The environment ( Lead poisoning and Mesothelioma ). Notifications of both the disease and the distribution of specific medicine are made to a regional desk governmental agency called Agence régionale de santé by : Anonymous records are then used by the government health-insurance system. Ill people must cure them and in many case are put in quarantine. Only infectious diseases are notifiable to

5888-420: The event. Upon declaration, the EC then makes recommendations on what actions the director-general and member states should take to address the crisis. The recommendations are temporary and require review every three months while in place. Summary of PHEIC declarations In the spring of 2009, a novel influenza A (H1N1) virus emerged. It was detected first in Mexico , North America . It spread quickly across

5980-410: The failures and lessons from the past 3 years are not wasted but are constructively used to build more resilient health systems and stronger political systems that support the health and wellbeing of people and planet during the 21st century." The formal end of the COVID-19 PHEIC is a matter of much nuance which carries its own risks, and as of March 2023, "WHO member states are negotiating amendments to

6072-471: The fiftieth anniversary of WHO's founding. He, did, however, accept that more had to be done to assist maternal health and that progress in this area had been slow. 2000: The Stop TB Partnership was created along with the UN's formulation of the Millennium Development Goals . 2001: The measles initiative was formed, and credited with reducing global deaths from the disease by 68% by 2007. 2002: The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

6164-449: The global smallpox eradication campaign by contributing $ 2.4 million annually to the effort and adopted a new disease surveillance method, at a time when 2 million people were dying from smallpox per year. The initial problem the WHO team faced was inadequate reporting of smallpox cases. WHO established a network of consultants who assisted countries in setting up surveillance and containment activities. The WHO also helped contain

6256-409: The international system in dealing with these emergencies was "robust". Another review of the first four declarations, with the exception of wild polio, demonstrated that responses were varied. Severe outbreaks, or those that threatened larger numbers of people, did not receive a swift PHEIC declaration, and the study hypothesized that responses were quicker when American citizens were infected and when

6348-427: The last European outbreak in Yugoslavia in 1972 . After over two decades of fighting smallpox, a Global Commission declared in 1979 that the disease had been eradicated – the first disease in history to be eliminated by human effort. 1974: The Expanded Programme on Immunization and the control programme of onchocerciasis was started, an important partnership between the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO),

6440-402: The late 20th century, the rise of new actors engaged in global health—such as the World Bank , the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief ( PEPFAR ) and dozens of public-private partnerships for global health—have weakened the WHO's role as a coordinator and policy leader in the field; subsequently, there are various proposals to reform or reorient

6532-477: The monitoring of public health risks, coordinating responses to health emergencies, and promoting health and well-being generally. The WHO is governed by the World Health Assembly (WHA), which is composed of its 194 member states. The WHA elects and advises an executive board made up of 34 health specialists; selects the WHO's chief administrator, the director-general (currently Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus of Ethiopia ); sets goals and priorities; and approves

6624-493: The names of IHR EC members were not publicly disclosed; in the wake of reforms, now they are. These members are selected according to the disease in question and the nature of the event. Names are taken from the IHR Experts Roster . The director-general takes the advice of the EC, following their technical assessment of the crisis using legal criteria and a predetermined algorithm after a review of all available data on

6716-455: The ongoing 2015–16 Zika virus epidemic . Later research and evidence bore out these concerns; in April, the WHO stated that "there is scientific consensus that Zika virus is a cause of microcephaly and Guillain–Barré syndrome." This was the first time a PHEIC was declared for a mosquito‐borne disease . This declaration was lifted on 18 November 2016. In October 2018 and then later in April 2019,

6808-474: The other organization has or may have a substantial interest, the first party shall consult the other with a view to adjusting the matter by mutual agreement. The nature of this statement has led some groups and activists including Women in Europe for a Common Future to claim that the WHO is restricted in its ability to investigate the effects on human health of radiation caused by the use of nuclear power and

6900-472: The outbreak, which had more than 2,100 cases in over 42 countries at that point; it did not reach the criteria for a PHEIC alert at the time. It was re-classified a PHEIC in August 2024. After an IHR meeting on 14 August 2024, the WHO declared an mpox outbreak in parts of Africa , of a new variant of the disease, a PHEIC. This marks the second time in three years that the WHO has classified an mpox outbreak as

6992-564: The perceived failure of the response to the West Africa Ebola outbreak , the World Health Emergencies programme was formed, changing the WHO from just being a "normative" agency to one that responds operationally to health emergencies. 2020: the World Health Organization announced that it had classified the novel coronavirus outbreak as a public health emergency of international concern. The novel coronavirus

7084-416: The reason for not declaring a PHEIC was that the overall risk of international spread was deemed to be low, and the risk of damaging the economy of the DRC high. Adhanom also stated that declaring a PHEIC would be an inappropriate way to raise money for the epidemic. Following a visit to the DRC in July 2019, Rory Stewart , the UK's DfID minister, called for the WHO to declare it an emergency. Acknowledging

7176-713: The risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic among others, polio remains a PHEIC. Confirmed cases of Ebola were being reported in Guinea in December 2013 and Liberia in March 2014 and Sierra Leone by May 2014. On 8 August 2014, following the occurrence of Ebola in the United States and Europe and with the already intense transmission ongoing in three other countries for months, the WHO declared its third PHEIC in response to

7268-599: The scope of the IHR (2005) to include any novel or evolving risk to international public health, taking into account the context in which the event occurs. Such notifiable events can extend beyond communicable diseases and arise from any origin or source. This broad notification requirement aims at detecting, early on, all public health events that could have serious and international consequences, and preventing or containing them at source through an adapted response before they spread across borders." The OIE ( World Organisation for Animal Health ) monitors specific animal diseases on

7360-424: The spread and effect of tuberculosis, and stabilising the drug supply. It has also recognized the vulnerability of victims of HIV/AIDS to tuberculosis. Notifiable disease The World Health Organization 's International Health Regulations 1969 require disease reporting to the organization in order to help with its global surveillance and advisory role. The current (1969) regulations are rather limited with

7452-541: The teaching and training in public health, the medical treatment of disease and related matters; and to promote the establishment of international standards for biological products. The WHO was established on April 7, 1948, and formally began its work on September 1, 1948. It incorporated the assets, personnel, and duties of the League of Nations ' Health Organization and the Paris-based Office International d'Hygiène Publique , including

7544-469: The then-scale of global impact. The WHO recognized the spread of COVID-19 as a pandemic on 11 March 2020. The emergency committee convened its third meeting on 30 April 2020, fourth on 31 July, fifth on 29 October, sixth on 14 January 2021, seventh on 15 April 2021, ninth in October 2021, tenth in January 2022, eleventh in April 2022, twelfth in July 2022, thirteenth in October 2022, fourteenth in January 2023, and fifteenth in May 2023. In September 2022,

7636-604: The time, 34 diseases were surveyed on the list of communicable diseases while another 13 were recommended for addition to the list. As of 1 January 2000, a total of 43 diseases were given the status of notifiable. In 2006, the Final report and recommendations from the National Notifiable Diseases Working Group found that certain diseases should be added and certain diseases should not. The Canadian Notifiable Disease Surveillance System

7728-488: The world without prejudice to the right of the World Health Organization to concern itself with promoting, developing, assisting and co-ordinating international health work, including research, in all its aspects. The key text is highlighted in bold, the agreement in clause 2 states that the WHO is free to perform any health-related work. 1947: The WHO established an epidemiological information service via telex . 1949: The Soviet Union and its constituent republics quit

7820-425: Was a new strain of coronavirus that had never been detected in humans before. The WHO named this new coronavirus " COVID-19 " or "2019-nCov". 2022: The WHO suggests formation of a Global Health Emergency Council, with a new global health emergency workforce, and recommends revision of the International Health Regulations. 2024: WHO has declared the spread of mpox (formerly monkeypox) in several African countries

7912-558: Was argued that the declaration of the H1N1 outbreak as a PHEIC, was fueling public fear. A 2013 study sponsored by the WHO estimated that, although similar in magnitude to seasonal influenza, it cost more life-years than seasonal flu, due to a shift toward mortality among persons less than 65 years of age. The second PHEIC was the 2014 polio declaration , issued on 5 May 2014 with a rise in cases of wild polio and circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus. The status achieved, as global eradication,

8004-543: Was concerning the compilation of accurate statistics on the spread and morbidity of disease. The logo of the World Health Organization features the Rod of Asclepius as a symbol for healing. In 1959, the WHO signed Agreement WHA 12–40 with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which says: whenever either organization proposes to initiate a programme or activity on a subject in which

8096-645: Was deemed to be at risk by air travel and border crossing overland, with small numbers of cases in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Nigeria. In October 2019, continuing cases of wild polio in Pakistan and Afghanistan, in addition to new vaccine-derived cases in Africa and Asia, was reviewed and polio continued to be a PHEIC. As of November 2021, taking into account recent events in Afghanistan, a large number of unvaccinated children, increasing mobile people in Pakistan and

8188-700: Was developed following the 2002–2004 SARS outbreak . Since 2005, there have been eight PHEIC declarations: the 2009–2010 H1N1 (or swine flu) pandemic , the ongoing 2014 polio declaration , the 2013–2016 outbreak of Ebola in Western Africa , the 2015–16 Zika virus epidemic , the 2018–2020 Kivu Ebola epidemic , the 2020–2023 declaration for the COVID-19 pandemic , and the 2022–2023 and 2024 mpox outbreaks . The recommendations are temporary and require reviews every three months. Automatically, SARS , smallpox , wild type poliomyelitis , and any new subtype of human influenza are considered as PHEICs and thus do not require an IHR decision to declare them as such. A PHEIC

8280-475: Was difficult to reach. Seven of these international conferences, spanning 41 years, were convened before any resulted in a multi-state international agreement. The seventh conference, in Venice in 1892, finally resulted in a convention. It was concerned only with the sanitary control of shipping traversing the Suez Canal , and was an effort to guard against importation of cholera. Five years later, in 1897,

8372-416: Was drawn up to improve the resources available. 2005: The WHO revises International Health Regulations (IHR) in light of emerging health threats and the experience of the 2002/3 SARS epidemic , authorizing WHO, among other things, to declare a health threat a Public Health Emergency of International Concern . 2006: The WHO endorsed the world's first official HIV/AIDS Toolkit for Zimbabwe, which formed

8464-705: Was formed. 1988: The Global Polio Eradication Initiative was established. 1995: The WHO established an independent International Commission for the Certification of Dracunculiasis Eradication (Guinea worm disease eradication; ICCDE). The ICCDE recommends to the WHO which countries fulfil requirements for certification. It also has role in advising on progress made towards elimination of transmission and processes for verification. 1998: The WHO's director-general highlighted gains in child survival, reduced infant mortality , increased life expectancy and reduced rates of "scourges" such as smallpox and polio on

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