Health emergencies
Keeping the world safe and protecting the vulnerable are top priorities for WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme. We work with countries and partners around the world, around the clock, to prepare for, prevent, detect and respond to disease outbreaks and other health emergencies.
WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme works with all countries and partners to ensure the world is better prepared for all-hazards health emergencies that threaten global health security. We work around the world to research, prevent and manage epidemic and pandemic-prone diseases; to strengthen and expand systems to rapidly detect, investigate and assess potential threats to public health; and to respond immediately and systematically to manage acute emergencies. In some conflict affected and humanitarian settings, WHO staff and operational partners even act as health-care provider of last resort.
WHO's Health Emergencies Programme
WHO's Health Emergencies Programme has two overarching areas of work; Health Preparedness and Health Response.
WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme works with all countries and partners to ensure the world is better prepared for all-hazards health emergencies that threaten global health security.
Emergency Response
Health Emergency Interventions
The HEI works closely with countries and regions to advocate for access to timely and effective priority lifesaving health services, health systems strengthening, and mitigating health risks in Fragile, Vulnerable and Conflict Settings. This includes WHO’s work in the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) on health partner coordination, positioning health risk in IASC discussions, and mitigating high-impact epidemics such as Viral Haemorrhagic Fevers, Yellow Fever, Meningitis and Cholera. HEI supports the most vulnerable and low-capacity countries, and when required, scales up response in graded humanitarian crises. HEI also hosts the advocacy on Global Health and Peace Initiative, Attacks on Health and Humanitarian trends in emergencies response.
Emergency Response
Health Emergency Information and Risk Assessment
The Health Emergency Information and Risk Assessment area of work provides authoritative information for public health decision-making in emergencies, with responsibility for identifying new public health events, assessing risks to public health, conducting epidemiological surveillance and field investigations, monitoring public health interventions, and communicating public health information to technical partners.
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Emergency Response
Strategic Health Operations
The Strategic Health Operations leads the innovation in communication and coordination across all levels of WHE’s operations including trainings and conference services, publishing guidance documents and setting best-practices, monitoring of and reporting in emergencies, programme management, and events planning and administration. It also leads the delivery of supplies, services, facilities, and technical staff in crises, emergencies, and humanitarian areas across all of WHO’s regions and with partner institutions; including budgeting and deployment of surge staff and capacity building initiatives to countries.
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Emergency Preparedness
Health Security Preparedness
The Health Security Preparedness mission is to enable countries to apply evidence-based data and actions in strengthening and sustaining functional capacities to prevent, detect and respond to public health emergencies. HSP supports countries to continuously assess, monitor, evaluate and build national and sub-national capacities; and develop, implement and finance National Action Plans including for Health Security. It also facilitates multi-sectoral engagement and investments at the highest levels of government through a One Health, whole-of-society approach in preparedness and capacity building.
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Emergency Preparedness
Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness and Prevention
EPP’s two-pronged approach includes actions to strengthen epidemic and pandemic preparedness for both existing and new/emerging pathogens. The department advances these global efforts by increasing access to evidence-based interventions; fostering impactful innovation; and leveraging technical, operational and strategic partnerships. EPP develops global mechanisms to facilitate coordination and collaboration between countries and multi-sectoral partners to increase preparedness for high-impact outbreaks.
Emergency Preparedness
Country Readiness Strengthening
WHO’s Country Readiness Strengthening department works with communities, networks and health systems so individuals, health workers, health authorities and partners can respond quickly to public health emergencies. This is done through assessing threats facing countries and their readiness capacity, engaging leaders and increasing political will, and building knowledge to achieve long-term improvements in country readiness and public health systems. It works with other clusters in risk-specific and community-centric approach, strong leadership and governance, multi-sectoral coordination and collaboration, and ethical and evidence-informed action.
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- Independent Oversight and Advisory Committee for the WHO Health Emergencies Programme
- Emerging Diseases Clinical Assessment and Response Network (EDCARN)
- Public Health Emergency Operations Centre Network (EOC-NET)
- Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Ethics Network (PHEPREN)
- Radiation Emergency Medical Preparedness and Assistance Network (REMPAN)
- Technical Advisory Group on Simulation Exercises
- COVID-19 IHR Emergency Committee
- Ebola Virus Disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Equateur) IHR Emergency Committee
- Ebola Virus Disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kivu and Ituri) IHR Emergency Committee
- Ebola Virus Disease in West Africa (2014-2015) IHR Emergency Committee
- H1N1 IHR Emergency Committee
- MERS-CoV IHR Emergency Committee
- Poliovirus IHR Emergency Committee
- Yellow fever IHR Emergency Committee
- Zika Virus IHR Emergency Committee
- Epidemic Intelligence from Open Sources (EIOS)
- Global Emergency and Trauma Care Initiative (GETI)
- Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS)
- Global Laboratory Leadership Programme (GLLP)
- Health Resources and Services Availability Monitoring System (HeRAMS)
- WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence