WHO Director-General opens the European Medical
Corps
Dr. Margaret Chan
Director General of the World Health Organization
Speech at the opening of the European Medical Corps
Brussels, Belgium
February 15, 2016
In my time as a young doctor, I took delivery. Today
were born a very healthy child.
Responding to an outbreak of Ebola in West Africa
has become the most extensive logistics operations in connection with an
infectious disease since the elimination of the 1979 outbreak of smallpox in
the Horn of Africa.
At the time of start of the outbreak more than two
years ago, humanity and WHO have been poorly prepared for the deployment of
retaliatory measures of this magnitude. We have experienced a shortage of everything,
including medical teams. The situation has changed thanks to the support of the
European Union, which has played a crucial role in overcoming the Ebola
outbreak.
You had mass support, which included the second dement
of experts and direction of medical teams, construction of special treatment
centers and operational bases, training forces of European civil society
organizations, the use of military aircraft and ships to deliver much-needed
mobile laboratories, motorcycles and huge amounts of equipment and materials.
The support provided by you facilitate reciprocal
activities far beyond the European region. Your efforts to ensure medical
evacuation and medical assistance to participants to respond to an outbreak of
open possibilities for directing teams of emergency medical care and public
health professionals from around the world.
Outbreak of Ebola has become very sharp wake-up
call. Humanity is never more should not be taken by surprise, so unprepared to
face the challenges. All that can be done in advance, must make the most urgent
way.
In the framework of such readiness delegates last
year's World Health Assembly, invited me to create a global talent pool to
respond to emergencies in the health field. This presentation of the European
Medical Corps is an important milestone in achieving this goal. It is the
culmination of the joint work of WHO / EU for the last year to establish
standards to ensure the quality, classification and registration of medical
teams to respond to emergencies.
housing starts today is a visible and highly
effective contribution to the strengthening of global personnel for emergency
response in the area of public
health. I thank you all for everything you have done. In this case it embodies
much more than knowledge in the field of public health and medical teams.
It includes medical evacuation team, logistics team,
with skills repair damaged hospitals, management of incidents and information
management, as well as mobile laboratories and materials for them. I
congratulate you on the first contribution to the global health workforce, you
set an example for others to follow others.
The basis of a public health system that can respond
to outbreaks and emergencies, is laid on the national level. European Medical
Corps and its "voluntary pool" based on the national capacity to
respond, which may be provided for use by other countries facing emergency.
This is extremely important, not only at the regional level, but also in the
global response becomes necessary.
Emergency response to complement national capacities
through regional capacity always more timely, predictable, effective and
relevant.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
What do today together the EU and WHO, organizes a
situation that has become chaotic, with increased amounts, scope and severity
of health emergencies to unprecedented levels.
When you create an outbreak of Ebola have been taken
into account European Medical Corps, as well as the results of previous
response to sudden emergencies, such as earthquakes, floods and tropical
storms.
The turning point came five years ago when, after
the earthquake in Haiti, there are numerous low-skilled rushed, not coordinated
and poorly equipped rescue workers. According to many observers, emergency
assistance in Haiti has brought more harm than good.
In order to avoid chaos, the global system has been
established to ensure the quality of medical teams to respond to emergencies,
categorize their skills and to register them as an element of global
preparedness for sudden natural disasters. This system allows you to quickly
and carefully pick up medical teams in accordance with the specific needs and
eliminates uncoordinated and inadequate assistance.
This system dramatically changed the response to the
typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, the cyclone Pam in Vanuatu and the
earthquake in Nepal, where 98% of the 149 medical teams were registered and
jointly coordinated by WHO and the Ministry of Health and Population.
These more recent examples demonstrate the
possibility of a global health workforce and the changes they may bring. This
is a manifestation of global solidarity. Together, we will never allow other
viruses to get out of control. We owe it to more than 11,000 people have died
of Ebola ─ be better prepared.
I am fully convinced that the European Medical Corps
will mark a paradigm shift in the global preparedness for outbreaks and
emergencies.
I repeat: the return on this achievement goes well
beyond Europe. Your work closely duplicated in similar efforts in Southeast
Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean and the Western Pacific.
Many of you mentioned disease virus Zika as the
source of the next global crisis. Between Ebola Zikoy and there are many
differences. Ebola is one of the most deadly pathogens planet. Zika virus has
no reputation of people killer. Since the first appearance of Ebola in 1976, we
learned a lot about the disease. About Zika virus, we know very little, and we
are just beginning to understand its features.
The risk of spreading the virus Zika high. Zika
virus is transmitted primarily through mosquito species Aedes aegypti, which
are present in many equatorial and subtropical countries.
These mosquitoes can breed in tiny containers, such
as plastic cups and lids from bottles. The responsibility for the fight against
mosquitoes is to every family. Two-thirds of these mosquitoes live on the
premises, not outside. Each family must contribute to the elimination of
breeding sites. Governments can not do it alone.
In accordance with existing knowledge, Zika virus
causes most people to easily flowing disease, and 80% of those infected have no
symptoms. Most people recover. A great concern to us pregnant women. In the
case of virus infection can have children born with small heads or other
neurological disorders. Science has not yet given a definitive answer, but we
have more conclusive evidence.
February 1, WHO announced an emergency situation in
the field of public health emergency of international concern, because of gaps
in our knowledge about the disease and the virus and its possible association
with congenital anomalies. You can not imagine the stress, anxiety and
heartfelt contrition, experiencing family with babies suffering from
microcephaly. Raising these children is difficult, and they are a heavy burden
on families and local communities.
WHO was requested to declare the state of emergency
on the experts' recommendations. The work of WHO is coordinating the efforts of
the best minds in the conduct of scientific research that would clarify this
relationship.
I especially want to mention the case study, which
was published last week in the New England Journal of Medicine. It was a series
of very fine studies by European experts. This study gives us the most
convincing factual information about the presence of a possible association
between infection during pregnancy and microscopically.
Ebola require mass support and the mobilization of
teams, and many tons of material. The disease is caused by a virus Zika, it
requires mass mobilization of local communities. At the moment, mosquito
control is an advanced line of defense.
We also need to empower women with information that
will allow them to make difficult decisions. The evidence is now compelling
enough to recommend pregnant women to consider postponing the trip to a country
where the virus is circulating. It is also important to prevent the surrender
of persons blood returning from travel to such countries. The European
countries have a very high quality guidelines to ensure safe blood supplies.
The disease is caused by a virus Zika is not a deadly
disease like Ebola, but it brings sorrow to the families.
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