WHO, experts discuss respiratory infections, pandemic preparedness

WHO, experts discuss respiratory infections, pandemic preparedness

Muscat – The third Scientific Conference and the sixth meeting of the Eastern Mediterranean Acute Respiratory Infection Surveillance (EMARIS) network kicked off on Monday in Muscat, to deliberate on the region’s preparedness for any influenza pandemic.

The three-day conference is being organised by the World Health Organization (WHO) together with partner organisations and hosted by the Ministry of Health in the Sultanate of Oman.

The theme of this year’s conference – ‘Better preparedness, early detection, and rapid response for respiratory diseases’ – reflects the recommendations from the previous EMARIS meeting and Scientific Conference for the member states, WHO, and partners to enhance their pandemic influenza preparedness plans.

Three days of intense discussions among more than 200 speakers and participants of ministries of health, regional and global experts, including WHO and the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will shape the upcoming plans of ‘Acute Respiratory Infections in the Region’.

In his inaugural speech, Dr Ahmed al Mandhari, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, highlighted that this year’s EMARIS Conference has been taking place at a critical time as the region is facing multiple large-scale emergencies caused by conflict, major natural disasters, food insecurity, and numerous outbreaks.

Dr Mandhari stressed the importance of