WHO launches Medical Emergency Strategy amid global crises | Tellwell Newspaper
Tellwell Newspaper, Abuja – Nigeria:
The World Health Organization (WHO) has activated a medical response mechanism for effective and rapid response to emergencies as the world is besieged by natural and man-made disasters, the global body said Wednesday.
Tagged ‘Emergency Medical Teams 2030 Strategy’, the plan entails new approaches to to more swift and effectual response to crises worldwide, including natural disasters, disease outbreaks and conflicts, WHO said in a statement obtained by Tellwell Newspaper.
The emergency strategy was unveiled at the organization’s 5th Emergency Medical Team gathering which opened today in the Armenian capital Yerevan.
WHO drew the new medical action plan due to increasingly mounting emergencies worldwide, ranging from COVID-19 pandemic, climate-related disasters to the protracted war in Ukraine, the statement said.
The three-day meeting which draws 500 participants from 110 countries, including technical experts and international partners across a range of organizations, intends to provide an opportunity to reflect on lessons learnt from the response to multiple emergencies, including innovative and lifesaving approaches.
The Emergency Medical Strategy will serve as the blueprint for the next eight years to continue to develop a network of effective and high-performing emergency medical teams (EMTs) in line with the WHO classification and minimum standards.
“As we build a new and stronger architecture for health emergency preparedness and response, a rapidly deployable global health emergency corps will be vital, building on the experience and capacities of Emergency Medical Teams,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus in his opening statement at the meeting.
”The EMT 2030 strategy envisions a world in which every country has the ability to respond rapidly and effectively to national emergencies, leveraging regional and sub-regional capacities to support vulnerable communities and others in need,” Ghebreyesus said.
EMTs are groups of health professionals, including doctors, nurses, paramedics, support workers and logisticians, who provide care for patients affected by an emergency.
The Initiative was formed after the devastating 2010 earthquake in Haiti, quickly growing into a significant network of qualified medical teams, trained and prepared to provide immediate support during an emergency, according to the WHO.
