"The world is not prepared to cope" with threat of infectious disease, WHO boss says

Record ID: 102375

  • Title: "The world is not prepared to cope" with threat of infectious disease, WHO boss says
  • Date: 23rd May 2016
  • Summary: GENEVA, SWITZERLAND (MAY 23, 2016) (REUTERS) DELEGATES LISTENING / CHAN GIVING SPEECH (SOUNDBITE) (English) WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION DIRECTOR-GENERAL, MARGARET CHAN, SAYING: "Changes in the way humanity inhabits the planet have given the volatile microbial world multiple new opportunities to exploit. There will always be surprises. The possibility that a mosquito bite during pregnancy could be linked to severe brain abnormalities in newborns alarmed the public and astonished scientists. Confirmation of a causal link between infection and microcephaly has transformed the profile of Zika from a mild disease to a devastating diagnosis for pregnant women and a significant threat to global health."
  • Embargoed: 7th June 2016 16:07
  • Keywords: United Nations World Health Organization Margaret Chan Zika Ebola disease
  • Location: GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
  • City: GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
  • Country: Switzerland
  • Topics: Government/Politics,United Nations
  • Reuters ID: LVA0054J15BUV
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The rise of infectious diseases and a series of slow-moving, man-made disasters are among the most urgent challenges that must be addressed in today's health landscape, the leader of the World Health Organization said on Monday (May 23).
    Speaking at the 69th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Margaret Chan urged for stronger health systems, citing the global response to Ebola as a failure not to be repeated.
    "What we are seeing now looks more and more like a dramatic resurgence of the threat from emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. The world is not prepared to cope. High-level assessments of the Ebola response have consistently called for more resilient health systems as a first line of defense. And this is also the position taken at the G7 summit being held later this week in Japan," Chan said.
    Chan congratulated delegates on "critical victories" over the past year, including progress made on polio eradication and anti-tobacco measures, like the UK's recent plain packaging legislation for tobacco.
    She warned against profit-oriented policies that put lives in danger, creating "slow-motion disasters" like climate change, antibiotic resistance and the rise of chronic non-communicable diseases.
    "Changes in the way humanity inhabits the planet have given the volatile microbial world multiple new opportunities to exploit. There will always be surprises. The possibility that a mosquito bite during pregnancy could be linked to severe brain abnormalities in newborns alarmed the public and astonished scientists. Confirmation of a causal link between infection and microcephaly has transformed the profile of Zika from a mild disease to a devastating diagnosis for pregnant women and a significant threat to global health," she said.
    According to the World Health Organization, there is a strong scientific consensus that Zika can cause microcephaly as well as Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare neurological disorder that can result in paralysis, though conclusive proof may take months or years.
    Brazil has confirmed about 1,200 cases of microcephaly and considers most of them to be related to Zika infections.
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