International Day of Epidemic Preparedness

December 27 - International Day of Anti-Epidemic Preparedness is a new holiday that appeared quite recently and literally before our eyes It has been celebrated since 2020 The reason for establishing the date was the new and unprecedented threat to humanity that the world faced in 2019 - COVID-19 The pandemic has shown how vulnerable we all are to a common enemy and how strongly interconnected different countries are in the modern world The coronavirus infection has not only become one of the global problems of our time, but has also supplanted them and forced the whole world to temporarily focus on itself This happened thanks to: • high speed of spread of a new infection across the planet; • a previously unknown global problem (we have encountered outbreaks of infectious diseases before, but never before have they taken such a scale); • a record number of victims around the world, the severity of the consequences for the health of those who have recovered; • constant the emergence of new strains of coronavirus infection requiring new measures;• the crisis of the health care systems of almost all countries facing the pandemic;• the dire consequences faced by the world economy, as well as the economies of individual countries and regions;• damage caused to the long-term socio-economic development of various states A new disease that could not be eradicated at the initial stage led to the declaration of a pandemic It became obvious that the world community was completely unprepared for such a threat The epidemic spread quickly and led to serious consequences that probably affected every modern person But in this way we know exactly what large-scale epidemics threaten in the future: • the actual collapse of healthcare systems caused by their critical overload; • disruption of global production and supply chains (provoked by restrictions on the movement of people and goods, coupled with the fact that the economies of different regions and countries are closely connected); • a strong destructive impact on the economies of states (in The economies of the poorest and most undeveloped countries are the ones most affected) The COVID-19 pandemic has made clear the urgent need to build strong health systems that can reach all vulnerable populations or people in vulnerable situations In the absence of proper efforts by the international community, future epidemics may surpass previous ones in their intensity and severity of consequences That is why it is necessary to improve the quality of basic education and the level of public awareness of epidemiological threats, to provide conditions for the exchange of scientific knowledge and best practices in the treatment of infectious diseases and countering epidemics Educational programs and greater funding for existing scientific programs are needed To successfully combat epidemics, international cooperation is required, which will make it possible to quickly and comprehensively respond to threats, no matter in which part of the planet they arise Therefore, on the day of anti-epidemic preparedness, the UN General Assembly calls on all countries to take measures to consolidate efforts in the fight against the pandemic and mitigate its consequences Educating the population is also of utmost importance After all, the consequences of the epidemic depend on the willingness of each citizen to comply with restrictive measures Therefore, it is necessary to explain to people the importance and necessity of the vaccination campaign, self-isolation, restrictions on movement, and the mask regime