An assessment has looked at a number of threats and challenges with which public health organizations can be confronted in the future, including the impact on infections transferred by food.
In 2022, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) started a foresight process to consider a series of potential scenarios and to improve preparedness and resilience against such threats. This was as recognition for the volatility and complexity of the Public Health systems.
Six focus groups related to topics such as emerging, vector transferred and food and water transferred by water.
The process began through Horizon Scanning on global trends that are relevant to public health and the assessment of their driving forces. Subsequently, it interpreted the impact, uncertainties and implications of alternative paths to 2040 to develop images of different possible futures of the resulting circumstances, as well as their associated challenges for prevention and control of infectious diseases.
It concluded with me what a robust future organization Would look like under such circumstancesTo assess which actions must be taken and testing these steps under the reach of plausible operational conditions.
Potential impact of food safety
Five common challenges were identified, including if climate change persists or worsens. This worsens infectious diseases in various ways, such as higher risks of zoosotic diseases, a higher incidence of infections transferred by food and the rise of new pathogens, which emphasizes the importance of one health hearings.
Challenges for the implementation of Ideas Before would be reinforced with a lower confidence of the public and higher social fragmentation. The proliferation of wrong information worsens these difficulties. Data, digitization and new technologies influence disease surveillance, access to healthcare services and information ecosystems. Artificial intelligence (AI) can create opportunities and risks for disease prevention and control.
Actions include strengthening external communication and outreach possibilities to promote the trust of the public, as well as entering into locals that are more exposed to the identified threats to build trust, to give access to data and to give advice that is easier to receive and followed.
Six scenarios described potential operational environments for public health professionals in Europe in 2040. In the context of one scenario, there is a higher incidence of food -carried diseases due to production and supply chain problems and late detection of illegally imported food from outside the EU. Under another there is an increased risk of food safety and problems with antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
According to the report, actions include taking improving the monitoring of climate -sensitive diseases; Promote the knowledge and public awareness of AMR; Tackle potential gaps in the supervision of diseases; ensure a good quality of epidemiological data; And use new technologies in surveillance.
As part of an assessment of the actions, improving the quality of epidemiological data through training to national authorities and other stakeholders and the setting up of an ECDC team of climate change became very relevant.
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