‘40c of the world at risk of dengue’: Global body identifies 10 key health issues for action in 2019

Islamabad: The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified 10 key health issues that demand action in 2019. Included among these is Dengue, which causes around 390 million infections a year, putting an estimated 40% of the world at risk. WHO’s dengue control strategy aims to reduce deaths by 50% by 2020.

“Dengue can be lethal and kill up to 20% of those with severe Dengue. It has been a growing threat for decades. A high number of cases occur in rainy seasons of countries such as Bangladesh and India.

Now, its season in these countries is lengthening significantly (in 2018, Bangladesh saw the highest number of deaths in almost two decades), and the disease is spreading to less tropical and more temperate countries such as Nepal, that have not traditionally seen the disease,” the WHO reports.

The HIV epidemic, which continues to rage with nearly a million people every year dying of HIV/AIDS, is another action area identified by the WHO.

Since the beginning of the epidemic, more than 70 million people have acquired the infection, and about 35 million people have died. Today, around 37 million worldwide live with HIV.

This year, WHO will work with countries to support the introduction of self-testing so that more people living with HIV know their status and can receive treatment. One activity will be to act on new guidance announced in December 2018, by WHO and the International Labour Organization to support companies and organizations to offer HIV self-tests in the workplace.

Vaccine hesitancy is also seen by WHO as a challenge that needs to be attended this year. Vaccination currently prevents 2-3 million deaths a year, and a further 1.5 million could be avoided if global coverage of vaccinations improved. In 2019, WHO will ramp up work to eliminate cerbical cancer worldwide by increasing coverage of the HPV vaccine, among other interventions. 2019 may also be the year when transmission of wild poliovirus is stopped in Afghanistan and Pakistan, WHO believes. Last year, less than 30 cases were reported in both countries; this year, Pakistan alone has reported 74 cases so far.

The WHO is also alive to the possibility of the world facing another influenza pandemic.

Every year, WHO recommends which strains should be included in the flu vaccine to protect people from seasonal flu.

Should a new flu strain develop pandemic potential, WHO has set up a partnership with all major players to ensure access to diagnostics, vaccines and antiviral, especially in developing countries.

Other issues featuring on the WHO radar range from increasing reports of drug-resistant pathogens, growing rates of obesity and physical inactivity to the health impacts of environmental pollution and climate change and multiple humanitarian crises. Among many things, this year WHO will work with governments to help them meet the global target of reducing physical inactivity by 15% by 2030.

To address these and other threats, 2019 sees the start of the WHO’s new 5-year strategic plan – the 13th General Programme of Work. This plan focuses on a triple billion target: ensuring 1 billion more people benefit from access to universal health coverage, 1 billion more people are protected from health emergencies and 1 billion more people enjoy better health and well-being.

Reaching this goal will require addressing the threats to health from a variety of angles.