COVID-19 cases reported in last 4 weeks exceeded first 6 months' total: WHO

Stressing that the UN agency is “extremely concerned” by the second wave surge, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on November 20 said that the coronavirus cases reported in the last 4 weeks exceeded the overall figures reported in the first six months when the pandemic hit. “Across Europe and North America, hospitals and ICU units are filling up or are full”, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) said at a regular press briefing in Geneva. He added, that while there’s still some hope and good news from vaccine trials, countries still needed to continue the “use of the tools we have to interrupt the chains of transmission and save lives”.  

Meanwhile highlighting the rise of the antimicrobial resistance, which he described as “one of the greatest health threats of our time”, the WHO chief said, “we cannot protect and promote human health without paying attention to the health of animals.” He stressed that the antimicrobial resistance, although, may not seem as urgent as a pandemic but it was just as dangerous. Antimicrobial resistance threatens the efficacy of the antibiotics, Tedros said, adding, it threatens to “unwind a century of medical progress and leave us defenseless against infections that today can be treated easily”. 

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$13 million funding

WHO chief addressed the issue on the occasion of World Antimicrobial Awareness Week as he launched a new report with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Organization for Animal Health. The document emphasized the best antimicrobial practices and pointed out the discrepancies in regulations in over 136 countries. While 90 per cent of States were armed with a robust national action plans, 20 per cent were in dire need of funding for implementation of the regulations. “To help address that gap, together we have established a trust fund to support low and middle-income countries to develop a truly ‘One Health’ approach to addressing antimicrobial resistance”, Tedros said. He acknowledged countries such as the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom for helping the underprivileged nations with $13 million funding. 

World Antimicrobial Awareness Week (WAAW) explained

The days commemorated as Antimicrobial Awareness week aim to boost global antimicrobial resistance (AMR) awareness and encourage best practices among the general public, health workers, and policymakers to stem the spread of drug-resistant infections worldwide. According to the WHO, the Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) occurs in individuals when bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites demonstrate strong resistance to the medications, making common infections "harder to treat and increasing the risk of disease spread, severe illness, and death". the scope of the WAAW was expanded by the Tripartite Organizations (the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and WHO) which switched the focus from "antibiotics" to the inclusive term "antimicrobials", some key facts can be accessed on WHO's dedicated campaign site.

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