LifeScience WorldWide’s Post

I'm excited to share an article that I co-authored with my talented colleague, Emma Loebler, titled "The Next Public Health Threat for Europe: Why Mpox Is the Tip of the Iceberg". In the article, we explore the emerging public health risks facing Europe and delve into what industries should anticipate in the coming years. Public health preparedness is more important than ever, and we hope our insights shed light on how to navigate these complex issues. 👉 Check out the full article here: The Next Public Health Threat for Europe https://lnkd.in/ehJsA8rQ A big thank you to Emma for the collaboration! Let’s continue the conversation on this important topic. #PublicHealth #HealthThreats #IndustryInsights #Collaboration #Healthcare

Wondering what the next big public health threat we should be worrying about here in Europe? I wrote a few thoughts with my colleague Sorina Chivu. In short: 🔥 The Russian invasion of Ukraine and now the war between Israel and Gaza has brought conflict to the borders of Europe, creating an environment for disease to spread and propagate, particularly anti-microbial resistance. ☣ The increasing complexity of the geopolitical landscape is increasing the risks from the use of biological weapons. 🌍 Climate change is increasing the likelihood of new diseases emerging from existing animal reservoirs as humans and wildlife are brought into contact in new ways. So what should industry expect? ➡ Increased focus on preparedness from European authorities and EU Member States, particularly on stockpiling strategies to secure supply chains ➡ Greater industry collaboration as authorities recognise it as a crucial ally ➡ Increased need for cross-border collaboration and data sharing ➡ Continued need to build public trust in communications on health crises ➡ Increased funding for research into emerging infectious diseases ➡ Growing recognition of the need for a One Health approach to pandemic preparedness Want to know more? Get in touch!

The GoC announced the creation of a new agency, Health Emergency Readiness Canada, the same week it publicly released the list of national intelligence priorities. This will place renewed emphasis on public health intelligence, which is critical to bolstering pandemic preparedness and operational readiness.  https://lnkd.in/eXkiXCg. Health Canada | Santé Canada Public Health Agency of Canada | Agence de la santé publique du Canada #healthemergencyReadinessCanada #cdnpoli #publichealthintelligence #intelligencepriorities #healthsecurity #readiness #strategicintelligence #strategicmanagement #healthinnovation #strategicforesight Ritu Banerjee Canadian Association for Global Health Canadian Medical Association Michael Smith Health Research BC BC Centre for Disease Control Innovate BC

https://lnkd.in/gWAEsrM6 H5N1 HAVE BEEN REPORTED SINCE 1996- ONE HEALTH!!! The concept of One Health, although often acknowledged, is rarely prioritized and operationalized. The result is a missed opportunity to not just respond to pandemic threats, but to prevent them altogether.

'A sense of complacency has already set in since the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. The desire to return to “normality” and putting the pandemic behind us, while understandable, has meant we may have forgotten the mistakes that were made during the initial COVID-19 outbreak.' 'Ahead of the 2024 election, political parties should outline their plans for the next pandemic. This is a case of not if, but rather when.[1] With bird flu now being recorded in cows for the first time in the US,[2] there is a real possibility of novel viruses passing from animals to humans. Recently, the UK’s former chief scientist, Sir Patrick Vallance, has argued that the UK is not ready for another pandemic, urging the next government to implement “better surveillance to be able to pick these things up”.[3] ' 'While the UK is a world-leader in monitoring and disease profiling, the lack of urgency in response to initial COVID-19 surveillance reports in early 2020 proved to be a failure of not taking decisive action. As Professor Devi Sridhar highlights in her book, Preventable, UK political and health leaders had only prepared for a flu outbreak without consideration for other types of pathogens. Simply applying these preparations to a novel coronavirus like COVID-19 – a disease similar in symptoms but very different in the way it spreads – led to adverse and costly outcomes.' https://lnkd.in/eWzhxBzJ

The Global Health Security Conference has been rich in discussions around the 7-1-7 target. It was inspiring to see the growing interest and demand for 7-1-7! I am getting great questions which I should have suspected at a scientific conference like ; where is the data? Why 7-1-7 and not 3-1-5?? Where is the the evidence of impact? And most importantly’how do I get my country involved ?? ? These three amazing women can answer these questions better than me and are our best ambassadors for the approach. They are ‘changing the game’ of strengthening health security systems using every outbreak as an opportunity to learn. But if you can’t find Immaculate Nabukenya Maureen Nabatanzi or Lydia Nakiire walking the halls you can also find some key resources and the brand new digital tool kit and training materials to get you started. Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI)Global Health Security Network Ltd 7-1-7 Alliance   🆕 Where to start https://lnkd.in/dSsqiR9v 🕖 Why 7-1-7? https://lnkd.in/dnZyRNup ❓FAQ https://lnkd.in/d5w5FsiM 🧰 7-1-7 digital toolkit https://lnkd.in/dstj2Q43 ⏩ 7-1-7 basics https://lnkd.in/drwiHgsf

Mpox, caused by the monkeypox virus, has emerged as a critical public health threat in the East African Community (EAC) due to its transboundary spread from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), an endemic region. The increased incidence of M-pox in the DRC, coupled with the region's porous borders and limited healthcare infrastructure, has facilitated the cross-border transmission of the virus. Epidemiological concerns centre on the potential for sustained human-to-human transmission within EAC member states, which could result in significant morbidity and strain on healthcare systems. The absence of robust surveillance and public health interventions in some border districts further elevates the risk of widespread outbreaks. Effective containment of M-pox in the EAC necessitates enhanced surveillance, rapid response, regional collaboration, and the activation of rapid response teams in border districts to prevent widespread transmission and mitigate the public health impact.

In this piece I’m quoted about why mpox will always be a problem until the virus is addressed in endemic countries with vaccine deployment https://lnkd.in/e-zgffCM

Enlightening read that emphasizes the importance of preparing for pandemics and taking a One Health approach. More than ever, global cooperation is crucial to enhancing our health security. #onehealth #pandemicpreparedness #globalhealth #epidemicresponse https://lnkd.in/e_xhx4DN

What are the key determinants of health system resilience? This newly published "Handbook of Health System Resilience" edited by Steve Thomas and Padraic Fleming provides insightful analysis on examples from all over the world under different contexts and threats. "Chapter 21: Lessons from 2003 SARS in Taiwan - decisions against threat matter" is my insight from Taiwan's experiences. What did Taiwan learn from SARS outbreak which led to its outstanding performance in 2020-2021 against COVID-19, and why in 2022, the same system performed so differently? The link to its absctract is here: https://lnkd.in/gXjxB6cC