Whatistheworlddoinginordertopreventhumansfromturningintozombies?

ATheoriticalFrameworkforGlobalPandemicResponse
Pandemics are for the most part disease outbreaks that become widespread as a result of the
spread of human-to-human infection.

Marriage between Life and Health

Life. When the constitution speaks of right to life, it refers not just to physical safety but also to the
importance of quality of life. Thus, right to life means right to be alive, right to ones limbs against physical
harm, and, equally important, right to a good quality of life.[2] Life means something more than mere
animal existence. (Philippine concept)
World Health Organization (WHO) Constitution defines health broadly as "a state of complete
physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity."
WHO Constitution as "claiming ... the full area of contemporary international public health,"
establishing the right to health as a "fundamental, inalienable human right" that governments
cannot abridge, and are rather obligated to protect and uphold.[2] The WHO Constitution,
notably, marks the first formal demarcation of a right to health in international law.
In international scale
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that is concerned with
international public health.
Under Articles
21(a) and 22, the Constitution of WHO confers upon the World Health Assembly the authority to
adopt regulations designed to prevent the international spread of disease
Why the concern about pandemics?
Because pandemics do not respect international borders
The global threat posed by pandemics required a global approach to security as the rapid
transmission of disease in a globalized world means that capacity failures in any member State
could place any other state or society in peril.
How do we respond?
International Health Regulations (IHR 2005)
the only international legal framework governing how WHO and its member States should respond
to infectious disease outbreaks
What is IHR 2005?
Entry into force: 15 June 2007
States Parties: 196, As of 16 April 2013
adopted by the Fifty-eighth World Health Assembly
on 23 May 2005

It is legally binding regulations. The IHR (2005) entered into force, generally, on 15 June 2007

, 196 States are parties to the IHR (2005).

The purpose and scope of IHR 2005 are 1) to prevent, protect against, control and provide a
public health response to the international spread of disease in ways that are commensurate
with and restricted to public health risks, and 2) which avoid unnecessary interference with
international traffic and trade. (Art. 2, IHR 2005)
IHR are not limited to specific diseases, but are applicable to health risks, irrespective of their
origin or source that presents or could present significant harm to humans
What is public health risk?
public health risk means a likelihood of an event that may affect adversely the health of
human populations, with an emphasis on one which may spread internationally or may
present a
serious and direct danger (Sec. 1, IHR 2005)
Whats new?
During the Forty-Eighth World Health Assembly in 1995, WHO and Member States agreed on
the need to revise the IHR (1969). The revision of IHR (1969) came about because of its
inherent limitations, most notably:

narrow scope of notifiable diseases (cholera, plague, yellow fever).[2] The past few decades
have seen the emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases. The emergence of new
infectious agents Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever and the re-emergence of cholera and plague in
South America and India, respectively;
dependence on official country notification; and
lack of a formal internationally coordinated mechanism to prevent the international spread of
disease.
The IHR (2005) contain a range of innovations, including:
(a) a scope not limited to any
specific disease or manner of transmission, but covering illness or medical condition,
irrespective of
origin or source, that presents or could present significant harm to humans;
The focus of IHR is on the prevention and containment of public health emergencies of
international concern. Member States committed themselves to building core capacities in the
areas of national legislation, policy and financing, coordination and National Focal Point (NFP)
communications, surveillance, response, preparedness, risk communication, and human
resources and laboratories.
(b) State Party obligations
to develop certain minimum core public health capacities;
the responsibility of states to protect as many of their citizens as possible and their
responsibility to health security between states.
(c) obligations on States Parties to notify

WHO of events that may constitute a public health emergency of international concern
according to
defined criteria;

National IHR Focal Point means the national centre, designated by each State Party, which
shall be accessible at all times for communications with WHO IHR Contact Points under these
Regulations;
In order to meet the mandated core capacities under the revised regulations, WHO outlined
seven work areas. Those with the most functional relevance for pandemic preparedness focus
on strengthening: national disease prevention, surveillance, control and response systems;
public health security in travel and transport; WHO global alert and response systems; and
capabilities to manage specific risks (such as novel influenza strains).
(d) provisions authorizing WHO to take into consideration unofficial reports of public
health events and to obtain verification from States Parties concerning such events;
The legally binding mandate that State Parties meet minimum core capacity
requirements for disease detection, assessment, reporting, and response constitutes the
heart of the revised regulations. These activities build on WHOs core competencies as the
primary instrument of global health governance: setting priorities and establishing norms to
help national authorities prepare for public health crises.
(e) procedures for
the determination by the Director-General of a public health emergency of international
concern and
issuance of corresponding temporary recommendations, after taking into account the views of
an
Emergency Committee; (f) protection of the human rights of persons and travellers; and (g)
the establishment of National IHR Focal Points and WHO IHR Contact Points for urgent
communications
between States Parties and WHO.
By not limiting the application of the IHR (2005) to specific diseases, it is intended that the
Regulations will maintain their relevance and applicability for many years to come even in the
face of
the continued evolution of diseases and of the factors determining their emergence and
transmission.
The regulations themselves, with 10 parts and 9 annexes, have several key provisions worth
noting. First and foremost, the scope of the IHR (2005) expands beyond a specific disease list
to include any event that would constitute a public health emergency of international concern
(PHEIC). Second, the regulations emphasize the importance of global communications and
cooperation for early detection and mitigation of potential PHEICs. This includes obligations
for each nation to develop the means to detect, report, and respond to public health
emergencies. To that end, the regulations require that every Member State establish a
National IHR Focal Point for communication to and from WHO (both headquarters and the
regional offices), and meet core capacities for disease surveillance and response, as defined
by Annex 1 of the IHR (2005). Using these mechanisms, nations must notify WHO within 24
hours of a national assessment of any event that may constitute a public health risk to other
States requiring a coordinated international response. In exchange, WHO will coordinate

communications across nations, provide technical assistance to responding nations, and work
with international scientific experts to develop recommendations for mitigating the
consequences of the event. The revised IHR (2005) retained directions about the importance
of responding to public health emergencies in ways that minimize the impact on travel and
trade, and at the same time respect individual human rights. The IHR (2005) greatly
expanded WHOs authorities in global governance, allowing WHO to use external sources of
information to identify possible PHEICs, to make inquiries of national authorities based on
unofficial information sources, and to set forth recommendations even in the absence of
cooperation or agreement from affected Member States [see Table 1 for a comparison of the
IHR (2005) and previous regimes].
WHO plays the coordinating role in IHR and, together with its partners, helps countries to build capacities.

IHR also includes specific measures at ports, airports and ground crossings to limit the spread
of health risks to neighboring countries, and to prevent unwarranted travel and trade
restrictions so that traffic and trade disruption is kept to a minimum.
pandemics as a security issue has encouraged a deepening of commitment to international
cooperation and pandemic preparedness, but some of the associated structural changes will take
more time.