On January 26, 2022, TEPHINET director Dr. Carl Reddy delivered a statement to the 150th session of the World Health Organization (WHO) Executive Board. During this session, which is taking place from January 24-29, the Board will discuss many important topics (more than 40 agenda items) including reports and next steps for the working group on strengthening WHO preparedness and response to health emergencies and the working group on sustainable financing.
As a delegate from TEPHINET’s parent organization, The Task Force for Global Health--a WHO Non-State Actor--Dr. Reddy was invited to speak on the topic of strengthening WHO preparedness for and response to health emergencies.
Read the text of TEPHINET’s statement below. Proceedings of the 150th session are webcast on this page.
Statement:
Thank you for this opportunity to comment on behalf of the Training Programs in Epidemiology and Public Health Interventions Network (TEPHINET), a program in The Task Force for Global Health.
TEPHINET is the global network of more than 75 Field Epidemiology Training Programs serving 160 countries. Our more than 19,000 alumni play a critical role in pandemic preparedness and response.
We thank WHO and Member States for their strong commitment and solidarity. We urge WHO and Member States to consider expanding the global field epidemiology workforce needed to detect and respond to disease outbreaks and other health emergencies.
To do so, we suggest that you consider recommendations from our Global Field Epidemiology Roadmap, developed through a robust consultative process co-chaired by WHO and the U.S. CDC.
These recommendations can help to ensure that all countries have the epidemiology capacities needed to protect the health of their citizens--and to collaborate with others--to ensure global health security.