Our newest publication “Recovery is missing in the Pandemic Treaty” has now been published in the BMJ opinions section.
In 2022 the World Health Organization began creating an international treaty designed to address the “serious shortcomings” in national and global pandemic preparedness highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. If ratified, the WHO Pandemic Treaty could be an effective tool to improve global health safety, unfortunately there are also several serious concerns about the treaty. As a consequence, the Pandemic Treaty failed to be ratified in its current form and is now undergoing revisions in advance of its next presentation at the 2025 World Health Assembly. Our article focuses on one glaring omission in the Pandemic Treaty, that of pandemic recovery.
Our recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic is still on-going and is hindered by the continued spread of SARS-CoV-2, causing new infections and further damages to health and wellbeing. Unfortunately, many areas around the world do not have pandemic recovery plans or resources, and individuals are often missing the support and guidance needed to manage current risks and facilitate recovery. This recovery is critical, not only on an individual basis, but also to repair damages from the pandemic that could hinder our ability to respond to future disease outbreaks or pandemics.
Since 2019, we have gained critical insight about how to effectively manage disease outbreaks, at community and national levels. We have seen a clear importance of transparency in political decision making and the impact that makes on public trust. We know that social inequities can be widened in a pandemic and can cause great harms to vulnerable populations. We also know that we need to plan for the long-term effects of a pandemic, both on individual’s health, as well as the economy. These lessons can be applied today to help manage the continued risks of COVID-19 while rebuilding public trust. Pandemic recovery is a critical component of pandemic preparedness and the actions that we take today will affect our ability to manage the next pandemic. Our hope is that with key changes, the WHO Pandemic Treaty could truly be an effective “accord for equitable pandemic prevention, preparedness, response and recovery”.
