Pandemic Preparedness

 

More and more, scientists and public health experts are stressing the fact that the health of people, animals, plants, and the Earth itself are inextricably linked. Zoonotic diseases — a disease that jumps from wild or domestic animals to humans — are on the rise. COVID-19, for example, first existed in bats then moved to another host animal before spilling over to humans. Other examples of zoonotic diseases that have emerged over the last century include Ebola, HIV, SARS, MERS, Monkey Pox, and Zika. As we continue to encroach on animal habitats and perpetuate unhealthy and unsustainable agricultural practices, such as large-scale factory farms, the likelihood of spillover events increases apace.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO), and other renown public health agencies note that the One Health approach recognizes that the health of people is closely connected to the health of animals and the environment. According to the CDC, One Health is not a new concept but, because so many factors have changed the way we now interact with animals, plants, and our environment, it has become more important in recent years.

WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme is working with member states to help countries prepare for large-scale outbreaks and pandemics, such as COVID-19 or virulent strains of influenza, which continue to be a priority public health threat throughout much of the world.

On June 10, 2024, WHO announced that its 194 member states have agreed to “a global process to draft and negotiate an international instrument to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response.”

The need to develop and implement a global accord delineating cohesive and evidence-based pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response actions, standards, and protocols became all too apparent in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This was driven by the need to ensure communities, governments, and all sectors of society – within countries and globally – are better prepared and protected, in order to prevent and respond to future pandemics. The great loss of human life, disruption to households and societies at large, and impact on development are among the factors cited by governments to support the need for lasting action to prevent a repeat of such crises.”   

               — WHO, during the June 10, 2024 announcement of plans for an international instrument to strengthen pandemic                                prevention, preparedness, and response. 

Our Response

 

Dr. Joseph R. Masci Legacy Project (2024 – Present)

AIHA, with support from the Masci family, launched the Dr. Joseph R. Masci Legacy Project in September 2024. This two-year initiative is working to strengthen institutional and human resource capacity at two international hospitals – one of which is the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) in Manilla.

Through this project, PGH created a multi-disciplinary Pandemic Preparedness Team that has already completed an assessment of the hospital using the PanFlu Planning Checklist developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This checklist focuses on preparedness, response, and recovery across areas including healthcare, community, and individual actions.

PGH shared the results of the survey with their U.S. partners, along with best practices developed and implemented during the hospital’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Philippine Department of Health’s Interim Guideline for the Implementation of Enhanced Avian Flu Surveillance, Management, and Infection Control.

AIHA has assembled a Pandemic Preparedness Team for the project, which includes internationally recognized experts drawn from NYC Health + Hospitals, Elmhurst Medical Center, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, the University of Minnesota, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ASPR TRACIE program.

 

Twinning Partnership Program to Strengthen Primary Health Care in Ethiopia (2020 – Present)

Under this project designed to build the capacity of the International Institute for Primary Health Care – Ethiopia (IPHC-E) launched in November 2024 with support from the Gates Foundation, AIHA and our partners at the University of Queensland (UQ) in Brisbane, Australia, supported the development of four training courses on pandemic preparedness:

  • Overview of Pandemic Preparedness in Primary Health Care Settings
  • Primary Care in Pandemic Preparedness in Primary Health Care Settings
  • Community Engagement & Multi-sectoral Action in Pandemic Preparedness in Primary Health Care Settings
  • Monitoring & Evaluation of Pandemic Preparedness in Primary Health Care Settings

 

Responding to COVID-19 in Ethiopia (2020 – 2021)

AIHA launched this project in Ethiopia with support from the Gates Foundation to support the Government of Ethiopia’s efforts to address the COVID-19 pandemic. In this project, AIHA played a key role in coordinating the transactional and logistical elements of Ethiopia’s response to COVID-19 in response to a range of requests based on the country’s needs. Technical assistance focused on supporting Ethiopia’s ability to make informed, evidence-based decisions to strengthen emergency response  and analytical capacity to enhance preparedness at both the community and national levels.  

The effort was supported through the existing Advisory Committee established by AIHA to vet funding requests from the Government of Ethiopia under our BMGF-funded projects in country. The Advisory Committee was comprised of representatives from BMGF, AIHA, and multi-sectoral experts from the development community. AIHA was directly involved in evaluating identified partners to implement activities. We also managed the processing of all contracts and payments across the scope of the project, including the production of various communications materials, recruitment of consultants, and other related activities and costs to support Ethiopia’s efforts to effectively address the COVID-19 pandemic.