Panel criticises WHO’s slow response to Ebola outbreak
Proposes 10-point plan to improve future
reactions
The report of an independent panel set up
recently by the Harvard Global Health Institute
and the United Kingdom (UK’s) London School of
Hygiene & Tropical Medicine to discuss and pick
apart the global reaction to the recent Ebola
Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak has criticised the
World Health Organisation’s (WHO) slow
response even as it recommends a 10-point
proposed plan to improve future reactions to
similar emergencies.
The group of 20 experts consisting of members
drawn from academia, think tanks and civil
society, collectively reviewed the worldwide
response and combined their findings.
The title of the panel’s report, published in The
Lancet, begins: “Will Ebola change the game?”
According to the findings, a greater attention to
detail and a stronger, quicker response is not
only essential, but also achievable.
The WHO was at the front of the firing line. The
think tank puts a large burden of responsibility
around its necks: “WHO was aware of the
outbreak in spring but did not declare a public
health emergency until August.” According to the
team, WHO’s delay in sounding the alarm was a
pivotal error.
Headed by Professor Peter Piot, Director of the
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
and co-discoverer of the Ebola virus, the panel
praised individual acts of courage and solidarity.
However, he made it clear that the outbreak also
caused: “…immense human suffering, fear and
chaos, largely unchecked by high-level political
leadership or reliable and rapid institutional
responses.”
The report’s 10 recommendations hope to give
stronger guidance and bolster global systems in
preparation for future outbreaks:
A global strategy should be constructed to fund,
observe and maintain each nation’s ability to
prevent major outbreaks. It is essential that
poorer countries are provided with the funding
and support necessary for such strategies;
Incentivize early flagging of outbreaks. On the
other side of the coin, countries that are late to
report cases should be published publicly;
Create a separately governed WHO department
with clear accountability for outbreak response
and others.
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