Health crises due to infectious and communicable diseases : European preparedness and response tools in an international context
Abstract
The combination of changes in eating habits, ways of living, globalisation, extensive travelling and the migration of millions of people around the world may be contributing to increased health risks. Certainly, health crises today are proving highly complex. More and more people are travelling and may carry with them unexpected virus vectors such as mosquitoes. Preparedness is challenging and there is a need for action plans to safeguard the growing at-risk population. Health crises can potentially affect a large proportion of the population and may lead to a significant increase in mortality or to an abnormally high death rate. This should be integrated into the general concept of national and international surveillance in order to provide a prepared response in the event of crisis. This paper provides an inventory of the relevant laws, guidelines and tools in Europe (and to a lesser degree, beyond), and proposes answers to the health crisis problems associated with infectious and communicable diseases. In crisis management, communication is an important factor to consider. This paper can serve as a tool for people involved in crisis preparedness.
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Author's Biography
Patrick Mahy is Head of the Customer Relationship Unit at the Scientific Institute of Public Health in Brussels, where he is also responsible for the institute’s intellectual propriety. He completed a PhD in biochemistry at the University of California at Los Angeles and the Free University of Brussels.
Jean-Marc Collard is Crisis Manager for the Scientific Institute of Public Health and Head of the Experimental Bacteriology Unit at the Pasteur Institute of Madagascar. He gained experience in genetic engineering and bacteriology during his post-doc at the Flemish Institute of Technological Research and has a PhD in biology from the University of Liège.
Jean-Luc Gala is a full professor at Université catholique de Louvain where he teaches molecular genetics, and Chief Resident (Chef de Clinique) at St-Luc Academic Hospital. He is the founder and chairman of the CTMA/ DLD-Bio technological platform, which hosts collaborative military, academic and industrial research and development projects. His work focuses on developing and validating innovative DNA-based diagnostic and prognostic tools for infectious and genetic-based diseases.
Philippe Herman is Director a.i. of Expertise, Service Provision and Customer Relations at the Scientific Institute of Public Health in Belgium, and an invited lecturer at several Belgian universities. He graduated in immunohaematology and has a PhD in biomedical sciences.
Dirk De Groof works for the Belgian Ministry of Health in the service of international relations. He studied medicines at the University of Antwerp and subsequently specialised in tropical medicine and public health.
Sophie Quoilin is Head of the Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases Unit at the Scientific Institute for Public Health in Brussels. She has a master’s degree in hospital management from the Université catholique de Louvain.
Myriam Sneyers is General Director, a.i. at the Scientific Institute of Public Health (WIV-ISP). She received her master’s degree and PhD in agronomy from the Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Gembloux. She also has post-graduate certificates in business administration and management (Université catholique de Louvain) and public management (Solvay Business School, Free University of Brussels).
Citation
Mahy, Patrick, Collard, Jean-Marc, Gala, Jean-Luc, Herman, Philippe, Groof, Dirk De, Quoilin, Sophie and Sneyers, Myriam (2017, June 1). Health crises due to infectious and communicable diseases : European preparedness and response tools in an international context. In the Journal of Business Continuity & Emergency Planning, Volume 10, Issue 4. https://doi.org/10.69554/AWHY7218.
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