Health Desk- 21 March 2020: Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General
of World Health Organization (WHO), has spoken in a recent media briefing. The
speech of WHO DG has been presented entirely as follows.
Good morning, good afternoon and
good evening, wherever you are.
Every day, COVID-19 seems to reach
a new and tragic milestone.
More than 210,000 cases have now
been reported to WHO, and more than 9,000 people have lost their lives.
Every loss of life is a tragedy.
It’s also motivation to double down and do everything we can to stop
transmission and save lives.
We also need to celebrate our
successes. Yesterday, Wuhan reported no new cases for the first time since the
outbreak started.
Wuhan provides hope for the rest
of the world, that even the most severe situation can be turned around.
Of course, we must exercise
caution – the situation can reverse. But the experience of cities and countries
that have pushed back this virus give hope and courage to the rest of the
world.
Every day, we are learning more
about this virus and the disease it causes.
One of the things we are learning
is that although older people are the hardest hit, younger people are not
spared.
Data from many countries clearly
show that people under 50 make up a significant proportion of patients
requiring hospitalization.
Today, I have a message for young
people: you are not invincible. This virus could put you in hospital for weeks,
or even kill you.
Even if you don’t get sick, the
choices you make about where you go could be the difference between life and
death for someone else.
I’m grateful that so many young
people are spreading the word and not the virus.
As I keep saying, solidarity is
the key to defeating COVID-19 - solidarity between countries, but also between
age groups.
Thank you for heeding our call for
solidarity, solidarity, solidarity.
We’ve said from the beginning that
our greatest concern is the impact this virus could have if it gains a foothold
in countries with weaker health systems, or with vulnerable populations.
We know that if this disease takes
hold in these countries, there could be significant sickness and loss of life.
But that is not inevitable. Unlike
any pandemic in history, we have the power to change the way this goes.
WHO is working actively to support
all countries, and especially those that need our support the most.
As you know, the collapse of the
market for personal protective equipment has created extreme difficulties in
ensuring health workers have access to the equipment they need to do their jobs
safely and effectively.
This is an area of key concern for
us.
We have now identified some
producers in China who have agreed to supply WHO.
We’re currently finalizing the
arrangements and coordinating shipments so we can refill our warehouse to ship
PPE to whoever needs it most.
Our aim is to build a pipeline to
ensure continuity of supply, with support from our partners, governments and
the private sector. I am grateful to Jack Ma and his foundation as well as
Aliko Dangote for their willingness to help provide essential supplies to
countries in need.
To support our call to test every
suspected case, we are also working hard to increase the global supply of
diagnostic tests.
There are many companies globally
that produce diagnostic kits, but WHO can only buy or recommend kits that have
been evaluated independently, to ensure their quality.
So we have worked with FIND – the
Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics – to contract additional labs to
evaluate new diagnostics.
In parallel, we’re working with
companies to secure the supply and equitable distribution of these tests.
And we’re also working with
companies to increase production of the other products needed to perform the
tests, from the swabs used to take samples to the large machines needed to
process them.
We’re very grateful for the way
the private sector has stepped up to lend its support to the global response.
Just in the past few days I’ve
spoken with the International Chamber of Commerce, with many CEOs through the
World Economic Forum, and with the “B20” group of business leaders from the G20
countries.
We understand the heavy financial
toll this pandemic is taking on businesses and the global economy.
And we’re also encouraged that
countries around the world continue to support the global response. We thank
Kuwait for its contribution of 40 million U.S. dollars.
In addition to increasing access
to masks, gloves, gowns and tests, we’re also increasing access to the
evidence-based technical guidance countries and health workers need to save
lives.
WHO has published guidelines for
health ministers, health system administrators, and other decision-makers, to
help them provide life-saving treatment as health systems are challenged,
without compromising the safety of health workers.
The guidelines detail actions all
countries can take to provide care for patients, regardless of how many cases
they have. They also outline specific actions to prepare health systems,
according to each of the “4 Cs” – no cases, sporadic cases, clusters of cases,
and community transmission.
These guidelines provide a wealth
of practical information on screening and triage, referral, staff, supplies,
standard of care, community engagement and more.
We encourage all countries to use
these and the many other guidelines, which are all available on the WHO
website.
But we’re not only advising
countries. We also have advice for individuals around the world, especially
those who are now adjusting to a new reality.
We know that for many people, life
is changing dramatically.
My family is no different – my
daughter is now taking her classes online from home because her school is
closed.
During this difficult time, it’s
important to continue looking after your physical and mental health. This will
not only help you in the long-term, it will also help you fight COVID-19 if you
get it.
First, eat a health and nutritious
diet, which helps your immune system to function properly.
Second, limit your alcohol
consumption, and avoid sugary drinks.
Third, don’t smoke. Smoking can
increase your risk of developing severe disease if you become infected with
COVID-19.
If your local or national
guidelines allow it, go outside for a walk, a run or a ride, and keep a safe
distance from others. If you can’t leave the house, find an exercise video
online, dance to music, do some yoga, or walk up and down the stairs.
If you’re working at home, make
sure you don’t sit in the same position for long periods. Get up and take a
3-minute break every 30 minutes.
We will be providing more advice
on how to stay healthy at home in the coming days and weeks.
Fifth, look after your mental
health. It’s normal to feel stressed, confused and scared during a crisis.
Talking to people you know and trust can help.
Supporting other people in your
community can help you as much as it does them. Check in on neighbours, family
and friends. Compassion is a medicine.
Listen to music, read a book or
play a game.
And try not to read or watch too
much news if it makes you anxious. Get your information from reliable sources
once or twice a day.
To increase access to reliable
information, WHO has worked with WhatsApp and Facebook to launch a new WHO
Health Alert messaging service.
This service will provide the
latest news and information on COVID-19, including details on symptoms and how
to protect yourself.
The Health Alert service is now
available in English and will be introduced in other languages next week.
To access it, send the word
"hi" to the following number on WhatsApp: +41 798 931 892. We will
make this information available on our website later today.
COVID-19 is taking so much from
us. But it’s also giving us something special – the opportunity to come
together as one humanity – to work together, to learn together, to grow
together.
I thank you.
Source: https://www.who.int
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