Explainer: When a public health emergency declared by WHO

New Delhi, Jan 31: Amid the outbreak of the deadly Coronavirus all over the world and in China, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared it a public health emergency of international concern.

The came after an emergency committee reconvened Thursday in Geneva, the headquarter of WHO.

Last week, WHO said that the virus did not serve the cause for declaring an international health emergency. But as the outbreak is spreading across the globe with killed 213 and effected more than 9,000 alone in China, WHO today has declared it as an emergency.

The motto of emergency declaring is to weaken the spreading of viruses.

According to officials, the declaration was due to "the potential for this virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems which are ill-prepared to deal with it."

World's highest populous country, China, with 1.4 billion people, has taken extreme measures to try to stop the disease.

Wuhan, the epicentre of the virus, has stopped travel in and out of that city and surrounding ones.

The outbreak killed one Indian student in the country, becoming the first country outside of China having a death out of the virus.

Germany confirmed with five cases, where in Australia nine and one in Sri Lanka. Also, other countries like Japan, Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand, Nepal, France, the US and Canada are being hit by the novel virus.

WHO declared a public health emergency of international concern as describing the outbreak as "an extraordinary event", which constitutes public health risk to other States through the international spread of disease.

Criteria of declaring an emergency

A group of experts of WHO call PHEIC or "public health emergency of international concern," to trigger global action.

There are two criteria to define an outbreak as PHEIC.

One, the outbreak must pose a risk to more than one country.

The second, the outbreak requires "a coordinated international response."

According to WHO's official definition, this means a "situation that is serious, unusual or unexpected."

Implications

A PHEIC declaration in the host country leads to a boost in public health measures, funding and resources to prevent and reduce international spread.

The measures include restrictions on trade and travel, including airport screening of passengers.

WHO's other declared health emergencies

2009 Swine flu declaration

• On June 11, 2009, WHO declared that a global emergency of novel influenza H1N1 when more than 70 countries reported cases of the influenza A (H1N1) infection.
• The outbreak originated in Veracruz, Mexico.
• The pandemic killed 203,000 people worldwide.

2014 Ebola declaration

• The outbreak of the Ebola virus between 2013 and 2016 killed at least 11,300 people.
• The outbreak originated in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia.

2016 Zika virus declaration

• On 1 February 2016, outspread of the Zika virus was declared a PHEIC by WHO.
• The outbreak originated in Brazil.
• Zika spreaded in 60 countries with 2,300 confirmed cases in new born.

2018-20 Ebola declaration

• In July 2019, WHO declared Ebola outbreak a PHEIC.
• The outbreak originated in Democratic Republic of Congo.
• WHO confirmed 3,406 cases with 2,236 deaths out of Ebola.