WEBINAR: "ARE WE READY FOR THE NEXT CROSS-BORDER HEALTH CRISIS?" #
Date: MAY 8, 2023, 13:00 CEST.The webinar on 8 May focuses on cross-border health crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The cost of COVID-19 and its cascading effects continues to add up, and infectious disease epidemics are occurring more often and spreading faster than ever before. The webinar will explore how we can ensure that Europe is ready for the next pandemic or bioterrorism threat, including strategic crisis management and risk monitoring, coordination at different governance levels, and the 'one health' approach.
The European Union was not ready for COVID-19, despite the history of the spread of serious infectious diseases and the presence of special services and road maps. The cost of COVID-19 and its cascading effects is still adding up and may soon exceed 3 trillion euros. The probability of such events to occur is difficult to calculate. This is particularly true for new health threats, since mutations occur completely randomly.
On a global scale, infectious disease epidemics are occurring more often, and spreading faster and further than ever. Threats to public health do not stop at national borders, as shown by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Diseases can spread rapidly across borders through travel, trade in human and animal food, insects and other disease carriers.
What can be done to ensure that Europe is ready for the next pandemic or bioterrorism threat? How can we effectively set up strategic crisis management, including foresight and risk monitoring in the public health sector? What are the gaps in coordination and unclear competences at different governance levels, and how can they be solved? Is the ‘one health’ approach the right path for Europe? Are there any good examples we can learn from?
Three recently published reports will give the impulse to this conversation:
- SAPEA Evidence Review Report “Strategic crisis management in the EU
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- Scientific opinion from the Group of Chief Scientific Advisors to the European Commission “Strategic crisis management in the EU”.
- Statement from the European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies “Values in times of crisis: Strategic crisis management in the EU”.
Speakers#
- Simo Nikkari, SAPEA Working Group on Strategic Crisis Management in the EU
- Marija Jevtic, Serbian Academy of Medical Sciences, Co-Chair of the FEAM One Health subcommittee on environment
, the Group of Chief Scientific Advisors and the European Group on Ethics. It is hosted by Academia Europaea.
