Reference Library

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Facilitator guide for training materials for national and sub-national surveillance and response training.

The directory of the members of WHO REMPAN - Radiation Emergency Medical Preparedness and Response Network

This article discusses how new information and communication technologies can help to overcome healthcare workforce development challenges.

This article describes the long history and experiences of the U.S. CDC in developing training programs for field epidemiologists and also describes more recent efforts to strengthen the competencies of different cadres of public health staff.

This article describes the process that was used to develop a standard curriculum based on 15 public health competencies.

This report calls for a rapid and significant scaling up of the education and training of health workers as part of a broader effort to strengthen health systems and highlights the importance of training to meet a country’s own health needs.

This review examines the body of literature on the best social media practices to promote health protection and dispel misinformation during disasters.

This literature review characterizes the scientific literature that examined issues related to communications to the public during the H1N1 pandemic.

Preparing a National AMR Dataset and Guidelines for EARS Net.

This guide is based on an all-hazards approach and is intended to guide the efforts of community leaders, institutional policy makers, health services providers, emergency planners and managers, and others who are responsible for the management of the health-related consequences of emergency events.

This document provides a standard framework and best practices for implementing an early warning and response network and its operation in the field, following humanitarian emergencies.

This guide was developed to inform the design of event-based surveillance systems and presents a thorough comparison of event-based and indicator-based surveillance systems.

Early detection, assessment and response to acute public health events: Implementation of Early Warning and Response with a focus on Event-Based Surveillance.

The specific aim of the toolkit is to enable antimicrobial stewardship in health-care facilities in low- and middle-income countries.

This document offers advice on the potential role of antigen-detecting RDTs (Ag-RDT) in the diagnosis of COVID-19 and the need for careful test selection. The information on Ag-RDTs in this document updates guidance that was included in the Scientific Brief entitled WHO Advice on use of point of care immunodiagnostics test for COVID-19 published on 8 April 2020. Guidance on the use of Ag-RDTs will be regularly updated as new evidence becomes available.

In this document, WHO outlined the instructions about the shipment mechanism to expedite and cover the costs of the shipment of clinical samples from patients with suspected COVID-19 from the country of collection to one of the WHO reference laboratories providing confirmatory molecular testing for COVID-19.

The purpose of this checklist is to identify the topics that should be considered and addressed prior to the incorporation of antigen-detecting rapid diagnostic tests (Ag-RDTs) into a national COVID-19 diagnostic strategy.

The purpose of this document is to provide a practical guide for the UNCTs and partners to develop a CPRP to immediately support national governments to prepare for and respond to COVID-19.

This document provides guidance for responding to community transmission of COVID-19. This document also compiles technical guidance for government authorities, health workers, and other key stakeholders to guide response to community spread. It will be updated as new information or technical guidance become available. For countries that are already preparing or responding, this document can also serve as a checklist to identify any remaining gaps.

In response to COVID-19, countries around the world have put in place a range of public health and social measures, which are actions by individuals, institutions, communities, local and national governments, and international bodies, to suppress or stop community spread of COVID-19. The purpose of this document is to provide an overview of public health and social measures, and to propose strategies to limit any possible harm resulting from these interventions. The document is intended to inform national and local health authorities and other decision-makers at all levels.

This document is an update to the interim guidance published on 16 April 2020 entitled “Considerations in adjusting public health and social measures in the context of COVID-19”. Public health and social measures (PHSM) are being implemented across the globe to limit transmission and reduce mortality and morbidity from COVID-19. PHSM include non-pharmaceutical individual and societal interventions to control COVID-19.

Annex to Considerations in adjusting public health and social measures in the context of COVID-19

This WHO health advisory provides guidance to countries on adapting all existing preparedness and response plans and procedures for cyclones, tropical storms, tornadoes, floods, earthquakes and potential outbreaks of other diseases to their COVID-19 strategic preparedness and response plans (SPRPs).

This guidance supplements the COVID-19 SPRP, the strategy update and the operational planning guidelines. Its aim is to help multisectoral decision-makers and policy-makers in Member States to ‘build back better’ by undertaking the following: build on actions taken as part of their COVID-19 SPRP to improve national medium- to long-term preparedness for future all-hazards; locate relevant supporting WHO resources that are not specific to COVID-19 but can help build sustainable capacities; and advocate for the conscious and effective allocation of COVID-19 funds to meet these longer-term needs, including their obligations under the International Health Regulations 2005 (IHR 2005). The guidance should also help partners and other stakeholders to support Member States in these efforts to build sustainable capacities for longer-term preparedness.

This document accompanies the interim guidance on “Strengthening Preparedness for COVID-19 in cities and urban settings”. It provides local authorities, leaders and policy-makers in cities with a checklist tool to ensure that key areas have been covered. An excel version that local authorities may wish to adapt to meet their needs is also available. It allows filtering by steps of action; suggested domains and responsible teams within local governments for each action; and phase(s) of the emergency management cycle.

The Tripartite Zoonoses Guide (TZG) has been jointly developed by the FAO, OIE, and WHO to support countries in taking a multisectoral, One Health approach to address zoonotic diseases. It provides principles, best practices and options to assist countries in achieving sustainable and functional collaboration at the human-animal-environment interface.

This handbook supports veterinary services personnel to collaborate with key stakeholders and concerned publics especially in terms of engaging health professionals, farmers, civil society, communities, media and others who are largely unfamiliar with the scientific knowledge of the world of animal health.

The aim of this manual is to set out in a systematic way the elements required to achieve control of transboundary animal diseases (TADs).

The main objective of the NBW is to provide an opportunity to human and animal health services of hosting countries to review their current collaboration gaps in key technical areas and to develop a joint road-map of corrective measures and strategic investments to improve the work at the animal-human interface in the prevention, detection and control of zoonotic diseases.

The PVS Evaluation comprises a 2-6 week mission which delivers a thorough, qualitative assessment of the performance of a country’s Veterinary Services and their compliance with OIE international Standards. It is an external evaluation conducted by a group of OIE trained and certified experts which collect and analyse baseline information and evidence collated during the mission, including an extensive field component. The mission uses the proven OIE PVS Tool, where 45 Critical Competencies are systematically evaluated via documentation reviews, interviews and physical observations against five qualitative graded levels of advancement, each with detailed descriptions or indicators to transparently guide the process.

SET is a tool developed by FAO that supports the comprehensive and comparative assessment of a country's surveillance system for animal diseases, including zoonoses. The objectives of SET evaluations are to (i) Evaluate a country's animal disease surveillance system to support the development of a locally-relevant action plan for improvement; and (ii) Use a standardized and reproducible tool to monitor progress of the system over time.

This tool supports national human and animal health sectors to jointly assess health risks from zoonotic disease. It supports decision-makers to build and implement science-based risk management measures and communication messages aligned between sectors or implemented jointly.

This tool-kit of 10 items (6 learning activities and 4 case studies) aims to provide a basic understanding on both the legislative and technical components of the human-animal-environment health interface to help participants identify how they relate to the IHR and supports their effective implementation. Includes also a Reading list and a facilitator’s guide. The target audience is academia, NGO or development agencies who wish to conduct training on the One Health approach in the framework of the IHR.

This video collection will guide the participants in integrating a One Health approach in the work of the Rapid Response Teams.

Provides information and learning materials on how to run exercises and training for emergency planning and preparedness, with an introduction to the Central Government Emergency Response Training (CGERT) Course.

This handbook gives the guidelines for organizing, developing, and evaluating simulations and drills and describes different uses for the exercises in the context of emergencies and disasters. It has been written primarily for health sector organizations that are in the process of reviewing and updating emergency preparedness and response plans, but institutions from other sectors will also find it useful.

The purpose of this guide is to support countries in their testing and updating of their national pandemic influenza preparedness plans. It is intended to provide guidance on how to select, plan, conduct and evaluate simulation exercises specific to pandemic influenza, and how to set up a process for using the outcomes of these exercises to review and improve pandemic plans.

This paper was developed to support AMR coordination committees and others tasked with addressing AMR at country level. Drawing on the published literature and the operational experience and expertise of different low- and middle-income countries, the paper points to six key strategies for success and offers a series of practical tips and suggestions on how to implement each one.

Development of National Health Laboratory Policy and Plan - Guide that provides the role of lab services in the health system and identifies essential elements of the national health lab policy and national health lab plan.

Guidance on Regulations for the Transport of Infectious Substances (2013-2014) - Definitions of different categories of samples and guidelines for packaging, labeling, and documentation requirements for each.

Laboratory quality management system training toolkit: overview and tips for training design.

Guidance for developing PHEOC Policy plans and procedures.

Training and exercising of PHEOCs.

This safety guide presents a coherent set of generic criteria (expressed numerically in terms of radiation dose) that form a basis for developing the operational levels needed for decision making concerning protective and response actions. The set of generic criteria addresses the requirements established in IAEA Safety Standards Series No. GS-R-2 for emergency preparedness and response, including lessons learned from responses to past emergencies, and provides an internally consistent foundation for the application of principles of radiation protection. The publication also provides a basis for a plain language explanation of the criteria for the public and for public officials.

This article provides results from a project that aimed to develop emergency preparedness and response competencies for public health workers and reports on methods that may be used to develop competencies in other areas of public health practice.

This document by the WHO-Director General contains a conceptual plan for a workforce established to respond to acute or protracted risks and emergencies with health consequences.

This article reports on the major findings of a Lancet Commission that sought to to develop a shared vision and a common strategy for holistic postsecondary education in medicine, nursing, and public health.

Complete guideline for developing field epidemiology training programs.

This article discusses the risk communication strategies used by the U.S. CDC in West Africa and the United States during the 2014-2016 Ebola epidemic and concludes with a summary of the lessons learned.

This article proposes framework for the evaluation of risk communication strategies that espouses an understanding of risk communication as an interactive, holistic, continuous and engaging activity that focuses on dialogue, intelligence gathering, and building relationships.

This article examines the role that risk, and especially the perception and communication of risk played in driving the economic impact of 2003 SARS outbreak.

This literature review summarizes the best practices for engaging communities, in preparing for and responding to emergencies with public health implications.

This rapid review focuses exclusively on gray literature and seeks to identify the lessons learned from recent Ebola, Zika, and yellow fever to improve emergency risk communication.

This guidance document introduces the principles of and practical tools for risk communication during a crisis or emergency.

This document is an example of interim guidance for effective risk communication for Zika virus transmission and potential complications from infection.

This document seeks to provide guidance to help national authorities apply the World Health Organization outbreak communication principles to outbreak planning and preparation activities.

This guidance describes a seven-step process to assist officials and others to communicate effectively during emergencies.

This document outlines the principles used by the IFRC to implement community based surveillance and empower communities to play an essential role in their own health security.

These guidelines are intended to be used as (i) a general reference for surveillance activities, (ii) a resource for developing training, supervision and evaluation of surveillance activities, and (iii) a guide for improving early detection and preparedness for outbreak response.

This article describes the U.S. CDC's challenges and solutions for including traditional public health response functions within the national incident management system.

This document provides detailed guidance for developing and implementing policies, plans and procedures for the WHO’s framework for a public health emergency operations center.

Example of a questionnaire for use in conducting a facility level biosecurity gaps assessment.

This document provides detailed guidance for developing and implementing trainings and exercises for the WHO’s framework for a public health emergency operations center.

This 3-hour training seeks to provide individuals with a foundational understanding of the World Health Organization’s Incident Management System (IMS) structure and its procedures.

This article presents two case studies to examine how to develop sustainable models for public health emergency operation centers.

Early detection, assessment and response to acute public health events: Implementation of Early Warning and Response with a focus on Event-Based Surveillance.

This guide provides an overview of the steps needed to routinely train staff on relevant surveillance protocols and links back to relevant training materials.

Guide to planning, implementing, M&E for AMR surveillance.

This document focuses on the laboratory component of IHR. It can be used in identifying approaches to develop the laboratory capacity for implementation of IHR in the WHO African Region in accordance with the specifications outlined in Annex 1A of IHR. Since IHR does not provide clear guidance on the laboratory component, this document will define specific elements for laboratory capacity requirements to facilitate the monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of IHR, and also will supplement existing WHO reference documents.

This document summarizes current WHO guidance for public health surveillance of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in humans caused by infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)

This guidance document is intended for clinicians caring for COVID-19 patients during all phases of their disease (i.e. screening to discharge). This update has been expanded to meet the needs of front-line clinicians and promotes a multi-disciplinary approach to care for patients with COVID-19, including those with mild, moderate, severe, and critical disease. The following sections are entirely new: COVID-19 care pathway, treatment of acute and chronic infections, management of neurological and mental manifestations, noncommunicable diseases, rehabilitation, palliative care, ethical principles, and reporting of death; while previous chapters have also been significantly expanded.

This document provides interim guidance to laboratories and other stakeholders involved in diagnostics for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It covers the main considerations for specimen collection, nucleic acid amplification testing (NAAT), antigen (Ag), antibody (Ab) detection and quality assurance. This document will be updated as new information becomes available. Feedback can be sent to WHElab@who.int.

The purpose of this document is to provide interim guidance on laboratory biosafety related to the testing of clinical specimens of patients that meet the case definition of coronavirus disease (COVID-19). This version is an update to the interim guidance adding recommendations on point of care (POC) or near-POC assays.

The purpose of this document is to provide interim guidance to laboratories and stakeholders involved in laboratory testing of patients who meet the definition of suspected case of pneumonia associated with a novel coronavirus identified in Wuhan, China.

This document provides guidance to policy makers and laboratories on testing strategies for each of these four scenarios, including the scenario in which testing can be performed only on a limited number of patients.

This tool has been designed to assess the capacity of laboratories that have implemented or intend to implement testing for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The tool is a shortened version of the 2012 Laboratory assessment tool that is widely used to assess national laboratory systems and the capacity of laboratories.

This document provides interim guidance to laboratories and stakeholders involved in COVID-19 virus laboratory testing of patients. It is based in part on the interim guidance on laboratory testing for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus. 1-6 Information on human infection with the COVID-19 virus is evolving and WHO continues to monitor developments and revise recommendations, as necessary.

This guide provides an overview of the major elements that must be considered before, during and after the implementation of antigen-detecting rapid diagnostic tests (Ag-RDTs) for SARS-CoV-2. This guide is complementary to policy guidance issued by the World Health Organization (WHO). The guide may appeal to a range of audiences including Ministries of Health, donors, public and private organizations/agencies acting as implementing partners and community based and civil society organizations with experience working on health, especially organizations familiar with similar testing campaigns for other disease programs like HIV and malaria.

On 16 April 2020, WHO published interim guidance that provides advice on adjusting PHSM, while managing the risk of resurgence of cases. A series of annexes was developed to help guide countries through adjusting various public health measures in different contexts. This annex shows a pragmatic decision process for adapting PHSM based on epidemiological and public health criteria, and it should be read in conjunction with the interim guidance document. 1 The document presents only public health criteria, while other critical factors, such as economic factors, security-related factors, human rights, food security, and public sentiment, should also be considered. This document is intended for national authorities and decision makers in countries that have introduced large scale PHSM and are considering adjusting them.

The purpose of this annex is to provide key considerations to health authorities and event organizers for reopening mass gatherings (MG); it should be read in conjunction with the interim guidance.

This course is free and geared to professionals from human, animal or environmental health sectors involved in the implementation of the International Health Regulations (2005). Objectives are to (i) Describe the One Health approach and principles of multisectoral collaboration; (ii) Provide examples of how a One Health approach may be taken to address a health threat or disease event; and (iii) Explain how a One Health approach contributes to a functional national health system, including national IHR implementation, evaluation, and capacity building.

The purpose of this simulation exercise handbook is to support organisations in the public health sector in strengthening their response to events involving communicable diseases, based on effective simulation exercises as a part of preparedness. This handbook is meant to serve as a guide on: how to guarantee strategic-level support of decision-makers in order to set an exercise programme within the preparedness plans of the organisation; and how to set all necessary steps in conceptualising, designing, planning, coordinating, conducting and evaluating simulation exercises.

This concise guideline on design and conduct of simulation exercises (SIMEX) is part of the Words into Action Guideline series on practical implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction Priority 4 component on enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response. It targets emergency managers, relevant government officials and many other actors responsible for disaster preparedness planning and drills. It consists of three main sections: General Information on Simulation Exercise, or SIMEX; the Process; and Existing Guidance.

The aim of this publication is to serve as a practical tool for the preparation, conduct and evaluation of exercises to test preparedness for response to a nuclear or radiological emergency. It fulfils in part the functions assigned to the IAEA under Article 5.a(ii) of the Convention on Assistance in Case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency (Assistance Convention), namely, to collect and disseminate to States Parties and Member States information concerning the methodologies, techniques and available results of research on such emergencies. To ensure effective response to radiation emergencies when needed, provisions should be made for regular training of emergency response personnel.

The Tabletop Exercise Tool for Drinking Water and Wastewater Utilities (TTX Tool) provides users with the resources to plan, conduct and evaluate tabletop exercises that focus on Water Sector-related incidents and challenges.

This exercise manual has been designed to meet the needs of WHO, its Member States and its partners to support and develop exercise practitioners’ competency to plan, implement and evaluate simulation exercises. The manual complements existing WHO exercise methodologies, helping ensure common understandings and approaches across the organization. It describes how exercise teams work, and can supplement future training courses for WHO staff, ministries of health, governments, and preparedness and response partners.

This document is to support local authorities, leaders and policy-makers in cities and other urban settlements in identifying effective approaches and implementing recommended actions that enhance the prevention, preparedness and readiness for COVID-19 in urban settings, to ensure a robust response and eventual recovery. It covers factors unique to cities and urban settings, considerations in urbam preparedness, key areas of focus and preparing for future emergencies.

All WHO resources for training, planning and implementing simulation exercises can be found here

This document provides States Parties, ministries, and relevant sectors and stakeholders with an overview of the key elements for overarching, all hazard, multisectoral coordination for emergency preparedness and health security, informed by best practices, country case studies and technical input from an expert group.

WHO COVID-19: Updated Case Definitions for COVID-19

This document offers operational guidance to Member States for the rapid investigation of suspected COVID-19 cases after an alert or signal. It is a tool to be used by local, regional, or national health authorities that addresses considerations in investigating cases of COVID-19.

The purpose of this document is to offer guidance to Member States on quarantine measures for individuals in the context of COVID-19. It is intended for those responsible for establishing local or national policy for quarantine of individuals, and adherence to infection prevention and control measures.

This document provides an overview of surveillance strategies that Member States should consider as part of comprehensive national surveillance for COVID-19. This document emphasises the need to adapt and reinforce existing national systems where appropriate and to scale-up surveillance capacities as needed

This document is an update of the guidance published in May 2020. It provides public health authorities with guidance on risk-based prioritization of contact tracing activities when transmission is at high levels. Other sections of the guidance have also been updated to reflect lessons learned on contact definition, community engagement operational principles in the context of contact tracing, digital tools for contact tracing, and examples of key performance indicators (KPIs).

This interim guidance is intended to inform public health programmes and governments that are considering whether to develop or implement digital proximity tracking technologies for COVID-19 contact tracing. The document covers ethical principles, technical considerations and requirements that are consistent with these principles; and how to achieve equitable and appropriate use of such technologies

This document is intended for Ministry of Health and other government officials responsible for COVID-19 and influenza surveillance and summarizes the operational considerations for leveraging influenza surveillance systems to incorporate COVID-19 testing. The enhanced surveillance outputs will support national, regional, and global situation monitoring, knowledge building, risk assessment, and response actions.

This document is the update of an interim guidance originally published under the title “ Clinical management of COVID-19: interim guidance, 27 May 2020". Providing trustworthy guidance that is comprehensive and holistic for the optimal care of COVID-19 patients, throughout their entire illness is necessary. The previous version of the Clinical management of COVID-19 provided recommendations that can be applied when caring for patients during the COVID-19 care pathway. This guideline now also includes Best Practice Statement on caring for COVID-19 patients after their acute illness and 5 new recommendations.

This document is an update of the guidance published on 17 March 2020 entitled “Home care for patients with COVID-19 presenting with mild symptoms and management of their contacts”. This interim guidance has been updated with advice on safe and appropriate home care for patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and on the public health measures related to the management of their contacts. This rapid advice is intended to guide public health and infection prevention and control (IPC) professionals, health facility managers, health workers a and other trained community-based providers when addressing issues related to home care for patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19, and thus refers to a patient with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 throughout the document.

This document is intended for health ministers, health system administrators, and other decision-makers. It is meant to guide the care of COVID-19 patients as the response capacity of health systems is challenged; to ensure that COVID-19 patients can access life-saving treatment, without compromising public health objectives and safety of health workers

This is the first edition of the practical manual to set up and manage a severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) treatment centre and a SARI screening facility in health-care facilities. The document has been developed to meet the operational needs emerging with the COVID-19 pandemic.

This document provides interim guidance on infection prevention and control (IPC) strategies during health care when coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is suspected or confirmed. It is intended for health workers, including health-care managers and IPC teams at the facility level, but it is also relevant for the national and district/provincial levels. In this updated version, the scope and structure of the earlier guidance have been expanded with several new or revised sections, bringing together other interim recommendations as well as considerations and advice from international experts.

This document summarizes WHO recommendations for the rational use of personal protective equipment (PPE) in health care settings and temporary strategies during acute supply shortages. This document also contains 2 Annex sections describing updated PPE use recommendations for health workers based on the transmission scenario, setting, and activity in the context of COVID-19 (Annex 1), and updated considerations for the decontamination or reprocessing of PPE (Annex 2). This guidance is intended for public health authorities, organizations, and focal persons involved in decisions regarding PPE distribution, management, and use by health workers.

This document provides updated guidance on mask use in health care and community settings, and during home care for COVID-19 cases. It is intended for policy makers, public health and infection prevention and control professionals, health care managers and health workers.

This guidance provides specific considerations for the use of non-medical masks, also known as fabric masks, by children as a means for source control in the context of the current COVID-19 pandemic. It also advises on the use of medical masks for children under certain conditions. The document is an annex to the Advice on the use of masks in the context of COVID-19, in which further details on fabric masks can be found.

The provision of safe water, sanitation and waste management and hygienic conditions is essential for preventing and for protecting human health during all infectious disease outbreaks, including of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Ensuring evidenced-based and consistently applied WASH and waste management practices in communities, homes, schools, marketplaces, and healthcare facilities will help prevent human-to-human transmission of pathogens including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

This interim guidance is designed for individuals who tend to the bodies of persons who have died of suspected or confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Potential users include managers of health-care facilities and mortuaries, as well as religious leaders and public health authorities. Moreover, this document provides guidance for the management of the dead in the context of COVID-19 in low, middle- and high-income settings.

This interim guidance is for LTCF managers and corresponding infection prevention and control (IPC) focal persons in LTCF and updates the guidance published in March 2020. The objective of this document is to provide guidance on IPC in LTCFs in the context of COVID-19 to 1) prevent COVID-19-virus from entering the facility and spreading within the facility, and 2) to support safe conditions for visiting through the rigorous application of IPC procedures for the residents’ well-being. WHO will update these recommendations as new information becomes available. All technical guidance for COVID-19 is available online.

The purpose of this document is to provide guidance on the cleaning and disinfection of environmental surfaces in the context of COVID-19. This guidance is intended for health care professionals, public health professionals and health authorities that are developing and implementing policies and standard operating procedures (SOP) on the cleaning and disinfection of environmental surfaces in the context of COVID-19.

This is a surveillance protocol targeting health workers who are found positive to COVID-19. This represents a technical tool and service that WHO is providing to countries who want to better understand the characteristics and exposure of health workers infected with COVID-19. It is the global adaptation of a tool WHO HQ and WHO EURO has helped develop in March 2020 in Italy for surveillance and epidemiological investigation on COVID-19 positive health workers.

This tool is to be used by health care facilities that have either cared for or admitted COVID-19 patients. This form is to be completed for all health workers who have been exposed to a confirmed COVID-19 patient in a health care facility. It is intended to be an operational tool used by health care facilities once a COVID-19 patient has been identified within the facility. This tool will help determine the risk of COVID-19 virus infection of all HCWs who have been exposed to a COVID-19 patient and then provides recommendations for appropriate management of these HCWs, according to their infection risk.

This document provides technical details and methodological explanations on the structure of the COVID-19 Essential Supplies Forecasting Tool (ESFT). It is intended to provide information that will allow users to a) trace and understand the calculations, assumptions, and limitations of ESFT; and b) modify these assumptions for different contexts or use cases. It is updated with each iteration of the tool.

The WHO COVID-19 Essential Supplies Forecasting Tool (ESFT) assists governments, partners, and other stakeholders to forecast the necessary volume of personal protective equipment, diagnostic equipment, consumable medical supplies, biomedical equipment for case management, and essential drugs for supportive care and treatment of COVID-19. The tool provides the user with a choice among several epidemiological methods for forecasting COVID-19 cases, including an integration with Imperial College’s Susceptible-Exposed-Infectious-Removed (SEIR) model.

This document provides WHO checklists for risk communication and community engagement (RCCE) readiness and initial response for novel coronaviruses (nCoV) recently identified in Wuhan, China (2019-nCoV). The objective of this document is to provide actionable guidance for countries to implement effective RCCE strategies which will help protect the public’s health in the early response to nCoV. This document includes recommended RCCE goals and actions for countries preparing for nCoV cases and for countries that have confirmed -nCoV cases.

This message library, provided by WHO, is intended to be locally adapted and delivered to the general public in countries around the world via SMS or voice message. Member States are encouraged to localize and translate the messages below as necessary.

This document provides advice on the detection and management of ill travellers suspected to have COVID-19 at points of entry and on conveyances of all types, with the following measures to be implemented based on country priorities and capacities

This guidance advises countries how to reduce the spread of COVID-19 resulting from travel, transportation, and trade on and around ground crossings

This document provides guidance for shipowners, seafarers, unions and associations and competent authorities for health and transport on protecting seafarers working on cargo ships and fishing vessels from transmission of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) and management of COVID-19.

This document provides a COVID-19 risk assessment and mitigation checklist for use by host countries and mass gathering organizers. It also includes an operational tool which offers guidance for organizers holding meetings during the COVID-19 outbreak and which should be accompanied by the WHO COVID-19 Generic Risk Assessment Excel file. It should be read in conjunction with WHO’s Key planning recommendations for Mass Gatherings in the context of the current COVID-19 outbreak (Interim guidance).

This document and risk assessment tool provides practical guidance and recommendations to support the special role of religious leaders, faith-based organizations, and faith communities in COVID-19 education, preparedness, and response.

The content of this Risk Assessment tool has been updated to reflect new WHO guidance and new evidence on both COVID-19 and mass gatherings, as well as feedback from end-users. Additional improvements have been made to the way the information is organized and presented: the Decision Tree is now built into the tool and a new tab dedicated to Risk Communication has been added. The expanded tool now includes six tabs: 1. Instructions; 2. Decision Tree; 3. Risk Evaluation; 4. Risk Mitigation; 5. Decision Matrix; 6. Risk Communication.

The holy month of Ramadan (mid-April to mid-May 2021) is marked by social and religious gatherings. Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to observe the holiday with caution and care. This document provides up-to-date public health advice that can be applied across different national contexts to make Ramadan-related activities safer.

This document highlights public health advice for social and religious practices and gatherings during Eid al Adha that can be applied across different national contexts.

This document provides recommendations to reduce risk of transmission of emerging pathogens from animals to humans in live animal markets or animal product markets

Define the objectives and process of event registration, describe key data elements and outbreak metrics to capture by an event management system, describe the objectives and process of event reporting, describe key reporting products and describe the utility of developing an EBS database and analyzing EBS performance.

Identify public health advantages of implementing EBS and early warning systems, Understand the contexts for indicator based (IBS) and event-based surveillance (EBS), Describe key terms in EBS and early warning, Identify the 3 phases of EBS (detect, verify, communicate), Identify resources needed to implement and sustain EBS activities.

Describe EBS work protocols for detection of signals, describe types of electronic or digital information that can be used as non-traditional/unstructured sources of data on public health event and use publicly accessible international sources to identify events of potential public health significance.

Describe a process for evaluating signals identified through systematic searches of electronic resource, how verification is an essential step in confirming the reality and characteristics of an EBS signal, the various steps of rapid event assessment for EBS, including and key resources for event assessment, including IHR annex 2, and available SOPs.

Describe a process for evaluating signals identified through systematic searches of electronic resources, describe how verification is an essential step in confirming the reality and characteristics of an EBS signal, describe the various steps of rapid event assessment for EBS, including, describe key resources for event assessment, including IHR annex 2, and available SOPs.

Describe the daily workflow of an EBS unit (sequence of tasks to be performed). Identify the core competencies and specialized skills required to conduct EBS. Define key resources and tools necessary for an EBS Unit.

Review the modules covered during the training, review Epidemic Intelligence cascade and check knowledge, review key definitions learned throughout the training.

These guidelines are intended to be used as (i) a general reference for surveillance activities, (ii) a resource for developing training, supervision and evaluation of surveillance activities, and (iii) a guide for improving early detection and preparedness for outbreak response.

The Epidemic Intelligence from Open Sources (EIOS) initiative is a unique collaboration between various public health stakeholders around the globe. It brings together new and existing initiatives, networks and systems to create a unified all-hazards, One Health approach to early detection, verification and assessment of public health risks and threats using open source information.

GIDEON is the “Global Infectious Disease and Epidemiology Network, Global infectious disease database•GIDEON’s Infectious Disease section contains information on over 350 infectious diseases globally, able to display the epidemiologic profile of a selected disease and list diseases that fit a set of epidemiological parameters, able to review over 20,000 country specific notes and pre-travel information for travelers and medical practitioners for over 35,000 outbreaks.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Global Disease Detection (GDD) Operations Center, established in early 2007, monitors infectious and non-infectious public health events to identify new or unexplained global public health threats and better position CDC to respond, if public health assistance is requested or required. At any one time, the GDD Operations Center actively monitors approximately 30-40 such public health threats; here we provide our perspective onfive of the top global infectious disease threats that we were watching in 2012: (1) avian influenza A (H5N1), (2) cholera, (3) wild poliovirus, (4) enterovirus-71, and (5) extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis.

This document provides a standard framework and best practices for implementing an early warning and response network and its operation in the field, following humanitarian emergencies.

This document provides a standard framework and best practices for implementing an early warning and response network and its operation in the field, following humanitarian emergencies.

This document provides a standard framework and best practices for implementing an early warning and response network and its operation in the field, following humanitarian emergencies.

These guidelines are intended to be used as (i) a general reference for surveillance activities, (ii) a resource for developing training, supervision and evaluation of surveillance activities, and (iii) a guide for improving early detection and preparedness for outbreak response.

These guidelines are intended to be used as (i) a general reference for surveillance activities, (ii) a resource for developing training, supervision and evaluation of surveillance activities, and (iii) a guide for improving early detection and preparedness for outbreak response.

These guidelines are intended to be used as (i) a general reference for surveillance activities, (ii) a resource for developing training, supervision and evaluation of surveillance activities, and (iii) a guide for improving early detection and preparedness for outbreak response.

These guidelines are intended to be used as (i) a general reference for surveillance activities, (ii) a resource for developing training, supervision and evaluation of surveillance activities, and (iii) a guide for improving early detection and preparedness for outbreak response.

These guidelines are intended to be used as (i) a general reference for surveillance activities, (ii) a resource for developing training, supervision and evaluation of surveillance activities, and (iii) a guide for improving early detection and preparedness for outbreak response.

This document provides the key available protocols for COVID-19 molecular testing.

This guidance document develops a methodology for rapid risk assessments undertaken in the initial stages of an event or incident of potential public health concern. It describes an operational tool to facilitate rapid risk assessments for communicable disease incidents at both Member State and European level. The tool comprises information tables and risk-ranking algorithms to give an estimate of risk posed by a threat.

IAEA - GS-G-2.1 Under the Convention on Assistance in the Case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency, one function of the IAEA is to collect and disseminate to States Parties and Member States information concerning methodologies, techniques and research data relating to emergency response. The primary objectives of this Safety Guide, co-sponsored by FAO, OCHA, ILO, PAHO and WHO, are to provide guidance on preparedness for and response to a nuclear or radiological emergency, to describe appropriate responses to a range of emergencies, and to provide background information on past experience, thereby helping the user to better implement arrangements that address the underlying issues.

The Framework for Event-based Surveillance offers guidance to public health practitioners seeking to implement EBS at each administrative level in their countries. This document has been organized in a modular fashion, Module 1: Introduction to the Framework for Event-based Surveillance, Module 2: Event-based surveillance at the national level, Module 3: Event-based surveillance at the intermediate level, Module 4: Health facility event-based surveillance, Module 5: Community-based surveillance.

Rapid detection, reporting, and response to an infectious disease outbreak are critical to prevent localized health events from emerging as pandemic threats. Metrics to evaluate the timeliness of these critical activities, however, are lacking. Easily understood and comparable measures for tracking progress and encouraging investment in rapid detection, reporting, and response are sorely needed. We propose that the timeliness of outbreak detection, reporting, laboratory confirmation, response, and public communication should be considered as measures for improving global health security at the national level, allowing countries to track progress over time and inform investments in disease surveillance.

This guidance document is intended to serve as an outline that can guide stakeholders interested in implementing event-based surveillance.

Provides guidance for U.S. jurisdictions (e.g., state, local, tribal and territorial governments) establish and implement sound disaster financial management practices.

This guide has been written to accompany the DVD and assist viewers in working through the five steps of the exercise cycle. Each of the six sections of this guide reiterates key points from the DVD and provides all the necessary forms and templates you will need to complete that step.

This manual for developing national action plans to address antimicrobial resistance has been developed at the request of the World Health Assembly to assist countries in the initial phase of developing new, or refining existing national action plans in line with the strategic objectives of the Global Action Plan. It proposes an incremental approach that countries can adapt to the specific needs, circumstances and available resources of each individual country. Details of actions to be taken will vary according to national contexts.

Sample conceptual monitoring and evaluation framework for NAPs on antimicrobial resistance

This article provides the history of and describes the traditional 2-year Field Epidemiology Training Program that has been supported by CDC in many countries; it also describes the effect of these programs, their role in the development of a public health workforce, and how they are enhancing global health security.

This review article describes the training model, outcomes, and impact of the Central America Field Epidemiology Training Program.

This article reviews the basic concepts in emergency preparedness with an emphasis on integration into a health system.

This report summarizes the discussions and agreements at a consultative meeting focusing on emergency operations centers.

This peer-reviewed article contains a checklist for laboratories to use to assess the status of biosecurity. This biosecurity checklist is an information-gathering tool for external assessments and is aimed to assist organizations that handle valuable biological materials (VBMs), to assess the aspects of biosecurity and laboratory capacity.

This article includes a description of how the Government of Uganda instituted a dangerous pathogen inventory. The methods section of the article summarizes the primary steps in the process.

Provides guidance on emergency preparedness, including a brief note on managing financial and in-kind resources from local, national or international sources.

Tackling antimicrobial resistance in the COVID-19 pandemic

The target audience are all those working to evaluate assays for COVID-19 or to develop new assays for COVID-19. The document is also aimed at those developing COVID-19 assays that have not yet reached the clinical testing phase. This document is relevant to those groups who wish to obtain WHO policy recommendations for use and WHO prequalification for their products.

The Pandemic Influenza Electronic Exercise Tool (hereafter referred to as the Tool) is designed to help exercise planners from communities with limited resources to develop and conduct a pandemic influenza exercise. The Tool provides community planners with an easy-to-use format for developing and conducting an exercise using e-mail or other electronic format.

Sample terms of reference for a national multisectoral coordinating group, for a national focal point and for a technical working group.

A review of field research on joint human and animal vaccination campaigns among nomadic pastoralists of Chad, advocating for intersectoral approaches for service delivery in similar remote rural, hard-to-reach settings.

Manual for the Laboratory diagnosis and virological surveillance of influenza - This manual includes a background on flu virology, epidemiology, control, and surveillance as well as a number of diagnostic test instructions and transport SOPs.

Laboratory Quality Standards and their Implementation: Highlights how to develop and implement quality Laboratory standards that align with international norms and standards.

This article describes the process and early results on the implementation of FETP-Frontline -- a 3-month field training program targeting local Ministry of Health staff in over 20 countries to augment local public health capacity.

This article presents an overview of the Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program of Nigeria – describing its history, objectives, and successes from its establishment in 2008 through 2014.

This article describes a process used to develop 10 Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Programs covering 15 countries in sub-Saharan Africa as a strategy to develop a locally trained public health workforce that can operate multi-disease surveillance and response systems.

The article describes lessons learned from the implementation of a pilot community event-based surveillance system – the lessons are now being used by the ministry of health in the national scale-up of the program.

This article discusses the pilot of a community event-based surveillance system that resulted in the early detection and reporting of outbreaks, improved collaboration between relevant sectors, and increased community participation in surveillance and reporting.

This evaluation assess whether the a surveillance system is meeting its objectives, examines progress made since its last evaluation, and provides recommendations to enhance future performance.

This article reviews the event-based surveillance system of Papua New Guinea and evaluates its performance from 2009 to 2012, sharing lessons that may be useful to other low-resource public health practitioners working in surveillance.

This study discusses appropriate surveillance strategies and frameworks for the detection of Zika virus infection (which, may also apply to other diseases carried by Aedes mosquitoes).

This document outlines the key concepts and essential requirements for developing and managing a public health emergency operations center.

This article outlines the essential concepts, elements, design, and operational aspects of public health emergency operations centers during mass gathering events.

This WHO report summarized the methodology, results and conclusions of = four systematic reviews conducted on EOCs.

Manual for early implementation of AMR surveillance systems

Summarises observed budgetary allocation actions across a sample of countries in response to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The present publication brings together and updates the various guidelines produced by WHO over the years on sampling of specimens for laboratory investigation, identification of bacteria, and testing of antimicrobial resistance. The information included is intended to lead to harmonization of microbiological investigations and susceptibility testing, and to improve the quality of laboratories at both central and intermediate levels. It concentrates on the procedures to be followed, rather than the basic techniques of microscopy and staining, which have been described in detail in another WHO publication.

This document aims to provide health authorities with guidance for implementing or enhancing the all hazards early warning and response within national surveillance systems.

These guidelines are intended to provide a wide range of information related to public health emergency management exercise development. Users should be aware that this document is not regulatory and represents guidelines only. It should not replace appropriate consultation with public health emergency management professionals. This course material has been designed for emergency exercise staff to acquire in-depth knowledge and skills related to the exercise development process, including management, control, simulation and evaluation. Emphasis is on the construction of exercise planning documents; staffing and training of team leaders in control, simulation and evaluation; the development of expected player actions and points of review; and exercise administration and logistics.

The Public Health Exercise Evaluation Toolkit contains information for exercise planners and evaluators to use when preparing to conduct and evaluate any form of emergency preparedness exercise.

Description of establishment of an AMR sentinel surveillance system in Ethiopia.

The main aim of the national capacities review tool is to better understand existing capacities in the area of detection and response to a novel coronavirus (nCoV) that is zoonotic and causes respiratory disease. The tool was developed with other coronaviruses, such as SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, in mind and in consultation with member states. This information will help national authorities to i) identify main gaps ii) perform risk assessments and iii) plan for additional investigations, response and control actions.

This book is based on more than four decades of experience and provides a clear and up-to-date understanding of how an EOC should operate within the guidance of various federal and national programs.

Guidance for developing, exercising and managing a Public Health Emergency Operations Centre.

This article presents competencies and training curricula that were identified through a collaboration between the World Health Organization and WHO-AFRO, describes the stages of their development, and proposes recommendations for their completion and integration into the curricula of African public health training institutions.

This article - an opinion piece - reflects on the history of infectious disease surveillance efforts and discusses recent developments related to use of big data for disease surveillance (e.g., Google Flu Trends).

In order to assist UN country teams in scaling up country preparedness and response to COVID-19, WHO has developed these learning modules as a companion to the Operational Planning Guidelines to Support Country Preparedness and Response. The training is intended: for UN country teams (UNCTs); for other relevant stakeholders, including partners, donors and civil society; to support national readiness and preparedness for COVID-19; to help countries increase their capacity to respond to COVID-19; to increase international coordination for response and preparedness; to streamline the process of coordinating resources and assessing country preparedness level. This learning package consists of 3 modules with videos and downloadable presentations.

Whole-of-government biosafety and biosecurity system is in place for all sectors (including human, animal (domestic animals and wildlife) and environmental facilities).

This literature review focuses on public health emergency operations centers in the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Australia, with the intent of summarizing good practice for the improvement of other EOCs.

This guide’s purpose is to be a practical and action-oriented tool that helps your Country Office in supporting and collaborating with government emergency/management disaster structures in various countries to establishing adequate preparedness and response capacity for emergencies through planning/organizing/implementing Desktop Simulations.

This document expands on the content of the WHO Operational planning guidelines to support country preparedness and response for COVID-19. It provides guidance on a set of targeted immediate actions that countries should consider at national, regional, and local level to reorganize and maintain access to essential quality health services for all. It complements existing and forthcoming WHO guidance on the wider implications of COVID-19 for health systems and cross-government strategies for responding to the COVID-19 outbreak, including region-specific technical guidance being developed by WHO Regional Offices.

This toolkit is intended for clinicians working in acute care hospitals in low- and middle-income countries, managing adult and paediatric patients with acute respiratory infection, including severe pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, sepsis and septic shock. The main objective is to provide some of the necessary tools that can be used to care for the critically ill patient from hospital entry to hospital discharge.

All WHO resources for training, planning and implementing AARs can be found here.

Define the objectives and process of event registration, describe key data elements and outbreak metrics to capture by an event management system, describe the objectives and process of event reporting, describe key reporting products, describe the utility of developing an EBS database and analyzing EBS performance.

Outlines the value of investing in One Health and offers information on the impacts of disease outbreaks, the value of actions, suggest opportunities of action, and outlines basic guidance for analysis.

Outlines summary information and key issues linked to the creation of dedicated COVID-19 extrabudgetary funds (EBFs), including examining the motivation for setting up such funds, describing a database of more than 40 funds that has been compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO), and provides guidance on how to improve the design and management of COVID-19 funds to make them efficient, transparent, and accountable.

In line with the recommendations of the Asia Pacific technical Advisory Group (tAG) on Emerging Infectious Diseases and in response to requests from Member States, the WHO Western Pacific regional office has developed the following guide for the design of event-based surveillance systems.

Social stigma in the context of health is the negative association between a person or group of people who share certain characteristics and a specific disease. In an outbreak, this may mean people are labelled, stereotyped, discriminated against, treated separately, and/or experience loss of status because of a perceived link with a disease. Such treatment can negatively affect those with the disease, as well as their caregivers, family, friends and communities. People who don’t have the disease but share other characteristics with this group may also suffer from stigma.

This literature review examines the peer-reviewed and grey literature in order to document global best practices for effective public health emergency response by EOCs; to identify indicators to monitor EOC performance; to describe risk communication in EOC settings; to outline research needs; and to identify standardized terminology.

This brief gives advice and recommendations from WHO on the use of point-of-care immunodiagnostic tests for COVID-19.

This tool has been designed to assess the capacity of laboratories that have implemented or intend to implement testing for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The tool is a shortened version of the 2012 Laboratory assessment tool that is widely used to assess national laboratory systems and the capacity of laboratories.

This report describes infectious disease outbreaks and the many difficult challenges they present for communicators and identifies best practices for communication during an outbreak.

This article presents a checklist of best practices that should be considered for public health risk and crisis communication plans.

This is a decision tree for risk assessment tool for Religious Leaders and Faith-based Communities in the context of COVID-19

In the context of COVID-19, contact tracing requires identifying persons who may have been exposed to a person with COVID-19 and following them up.

This document delineates the WHO’s roles, responsibilities, and approach for its work in emergencies.

This package provides practical guidance to assist Resident/humanitarian Coordinators and humanitarian country teams in preparing to respond to potential emergencies with appropriate humanitarian assistance and protection.

The ESSD is a compilation for information and resources that would typically be available in any community as they respond to and manage an emergency or disaster in a local community.

Global monitoring of country progress on AMR (self-assessment) - This questionnaire collects information on country progress on AMR for inclusion in the report to the World Health Assembly and for other organizations’ global reporting.

This guide provides the instructions and documentation needed to support facilitators in the design and delivery of the Integrated Approach to Emergency Simulation or “GES”, an emergency preparedness and response simulation exercise and follow-up debriefing workshop. The GES is based on a United Nations simulation model and methodology, and has been adapted to address the learning needs of government agencies and organisations that wish to use this methodology to support their emergency planning processes. The GES is intended to provide an opportunity to practice the skills and knowledge of disaster management organisations within the setting of emergency preparedness and response. Its design enables participants to apply existing disaster preparedness policies, contingency plans and emergency procedures to prepare their responses to a given disaster scenario. In so doing they confront and are forced to deal with many of the real challenges imposed by such crises, including coordination, management, security, administrative, and technical sector challenges.

This guidance for conducting a country COVID-19 intra-action review (IAR) and the accompanying package of templates and facilitation documents have been developed by the Country Simulation Exercises and Review (CER) unit of the Health Security Department (HSP) at WHO headquarters in collaboration with WHO regional offices.

The purpose of this document is to provide guidance to host governments, health authorities and national or international organizers of mass gatherings on containing risks of COVID-19 transmission associated with mass gathering events. General considerations and advice applicable to the organization of mass gatherings, and addressing risks of any origin, should also be taken into account when planning an event, as highlighted in WHO’s publication Public health for mass gatherings: key considerations

The third edition of the WHO Laboratory biosafety manual is a helpful reference and guide to nations that accept the challenge to develop and establish national codes of practice for securing microbiological assets, yet ensuring their availability for clinical, research and epidemiological purposes.

This document is based on the evidence currently available about coronavirus disease (COVID-19) transmission (human-to-human transmission primarily via respiratory droplets from, or direct contact with, an infected individual). It should be used in conjunction with WHO’s Handbook for the Management of Public Health Events in Air Transport. The target audience is any authority involved in public health response to a public health event in aviation, including International Health Regulations (IHR) National Focal Points (NFP), health authorities at airports, local, provincial and national health surveillance and response systems, as well as civil aviation authorities, airport operators, aircraft operators, airports and airlines.

This document has been prepared based on the evidence currently available about Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmission (human-to-human transmission via respiratory droplets or direct contact from an infected individual). It is recommended to use it in conjunction with the published World Health Organization (WHO) Handbook for management of public health events on board ships. The target audience of this documents is any authority involved in public health response to a COVID-19 public health event on board ships, including International Health Regulations (IHR) National Focal Point (NFP), port health authorities, local, provincial and national health surveillance and response system, as well as port operators and ship operators.

This document is from the IAEA's international safety standard series, co-sponsored by WHO and several other IOs. It provides high-level guidance on the requirements for preparedness and response to radiological and nuclear emergencies.

This publication is intended for use by persons responsible for the safe and secure transport of nuclear or other radioactive material, to ensure that all the measures dedicated to the protection of such material function as intended, and that everyone has a full understanding of their roles and the roles of others. It provides a single source of advice on preparing, conducting and evaluating transport security exercises to comprehend the level of readiness that the nuclear security regime has attained.

Countries can use this checklist of hospital governance, structures, plans and protocols to rapidly determine the current capacities of hospitals to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and to identify gaps and major areas that require investment and action for the development of hospital readiness improvement plans. The tool can be used periodically to monitor hospital emergency operational readiness capacity development

The REMAP tool helps countries meet the requirements of the International Health Regulations (IHR, 2005) by facilitating the mobilization of financial and technical resources for implementation of National Action Plans for Health Security (NAPHS) and other country plans with relevance to health security. The tool supports countries in donor coordination, identifying gaps and needs, monitoring of plan implementation, and in the linkage of different plans to increase efficiency and achieve synergies.

This report by the International Working Group on Financing Preparedness (IWG) proposes ways in which national governments and development partners can finance investments in-country and regional preparedness and response capacities for pandemics and other health emergencies. The report outlines 12 specific recommendations to ensure adequate and sustained financing of preparedness.

The framework identifies lessons learned from recent participation of military health services in responding to natural disasters, chemical, nuclear or radiological incidents, and disease outbreaks, including linkages to public health emergency operation centres and emergency medical teams. Key elements for effective civil–military health collaboration for the development of national core capacity to prevent, detect, respond to and recover from health emergencies are highlighted

This document is a detailed legislative reference and includes a legislative assessment tool and examples of national legislation.

This webpage provides general information on the implementation of the International Health Regulations (2005).

This document provides information on the implementation of the International Health Regulations (2005) in national legislation with a particular focus on the National IHR Focal Point and its functions.

This document provides a brief introduction to legislative implementation of the International Health Regulations (2005)

The Report analyses current domestic laws and policies and provides recommendations in three main areas: (1) overarching domestic legal and institutional frameworks for PHEs (i.e., the architecture of PHE risk management); (2) legal measures for mitigating both the secondary impacts of PHEs and impacts on vulnerable groups; and (3) legal facilities for humanitarian actors during PHEs. The recommendations seek to identify the key legal issues that decision-makers need to consider and to provide general guidance on how PHE laws and policies can – similar to more general disaster laws – underpin the key components of effective and equitable preparedness and response.

Annex to Considerations in adjusting public health and social measures in the context of COVID-19.