WHO requests $675 million for coronavirus battle

By Angela Betsaida B. Laguipo, BSNFeb 6 2020

The Wuhan coronavirus is vastly spreading in China and other countries across the globe. Since it was declared to be a global health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO), many countries have imposed travel bans and on the ground response to contain the virus and prevent further spread.

Credit: Regenstrief Institute

To protect vulnerable countries from the deadly virus and to initiate preparedness and response global plan against the novel coronavirus, the WHO is requesting for global donations to help in the outbreak battle, covering the months of February to April 2020.

“My biggest worry is that there are countries today who do not have the systems in place to detect people who have contracted with the virus, even if it were to emerge. Urgent support is needed to bolster weak health systems to detect, diagnose and care for people with the virus, to prevent further human to human transmission and protect health workers,” Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, said in a statement.

The WHO Director-General worry about countries with weak healthcare systems since these are not equipped to fight a deadly virus that can spread like wildfire. Populated countries are also at stake in the fast spread of the contagious infection.

Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan (SPRP)

The Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan (SPRP) for the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV or Wuhan coronavirus) aims to layout activities and resources that are necessary for international health organizations, including WHO, to impose health measures supporting countries. These organizations will help various countries to prepare and respond to the current outbreak.

The plan’s focus is to establish participation and coordination among countries across the globe, speeding up response operations, and hastening research and innovation for new diagnostic and treatment approaches.

“The effectiveness of outbreak response depends on the preparedness measures put in place before outbreaks strike. That is why we are seeking resources to safeguard the most vulnerable countries to protect people from the new coronavirus before it arrives on the doorstep,” Dr. Mike Ryan, head of WHO’s Health Emergencies Program.

Coronavirus spread

The first cluster of pneumonia-like illnesses reported to the WHO happened on Dec. 31, 2019, in Wuhan City in Hubei province, which is home to 11 million people. On Jan. 27, 2020, Chinese authorities reported that they have found a new strain of coronavirus, causing respiratory distress among patients.

Named 2019-nCoV, the virus has since spread to more than 25 countries, killin 565 patients and infecting more than 28,256 people. In China, 60.5 percent of all cases have been reported in Hubei Province, starting in a seafood market in Wuhan City, one of the busiest cities in China.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak a global health emergency, speeding up efforts and funding to fight the deadly disease.

The WHO assessed that the outbreak poses a very high risk in China, including other countries. The health agency based its assessment on how the virus spreads, the likelihood and speed of its spread, and potential health impact. Also, it considered how countries are prepared to respond to the outbreak.