The world has been dealing with a number of epidemics lately. It has only been a few months ago that we have seen the images of pigs being slaughtered in China due to African swine fever. Avian influenza has also recently resurged in China. These epidemics are still ongoing, but are largely overshadowed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In their letter to the editor, the SAFOSO team provides arguments that in today’s globalized world, animals and humans are highly interconnected and that it is therefore no longer sufficient to deal with emergency outbreaks in isolation.
The situation calls for a health network of global scope for the rapid and open exchange of information between human and animal health sectors. Such a One Health approach has the potential to not only save human and animal lives, but also safeguard the global economy.
The ongoing crises in China illustrate that the assessment of epidemics in isolation is no longer sufficient.Stoffel C, Schuppers M, Buholzer P, Muñoz V, Lechner I, Sperling U, Küker S, De Nardi M. Transbound Emerg Dis. 2020 Mar 7. Article
Every six weeks, the newsletter provides a summary of relevant articles as well as our viewpoint on the news.
The newsletter is free and without obligation. You can unsubscribe from the distribution list at any time.
