<p>According to the World Health Organization, <em>a pandemic is declared when a new disease for which people do not have immunity spreads around the world beyond expectations.</em><br></p>


The pandemic

<p>When declaring a pandemic, the World Health Organization has the last word. There is no threshold, such as a certain number of deaths or infections, or a number of countries affected, that needs to be met.<br>And once a pandemic is declared, it becomes more likely that community spread will eventually happen, and governments and health systems need to ensure they are prepared for that.</p>


Declaring a pandemic 

<p>Although a pandemic has been declared, there is no need for global panic. Panic would defeat the purpose of trying to raise awareness.<br>It is still urging countries to detect, test, treat, isolate, trace and mobilize their people.</p>


Dealing with the current pandemic

<p><em>“The use of this term [pandemic] however highlights the importance of countries throughout the world working cooperatively and openly with one another and coming together as a united front in our efforts to bring this situation under control.”</em></p>

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<p>Declaring a pandemic has nothing to do with changes to the characteristics of a disease, but is instead associated with concerns over its geographic spread. According to the World Health Organization, a pandemic is declared when a new disease for which people do not have immunity spreads around the world beyond expectations.</p>
<p>Declaring a pandemic has nothing to do with changes to the characteristics of a disease, but is instead associated with concerns over its geographic spread. According to the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/world-health-organization">World Health Organization</a>, a pandemic is declared when a new disease for which people do not have immunity spreads around the world beyond expectations.</p>
<h2>How does the WHO decide whether to call it a pandemic?</h2>
<p>Cases that involve travellers who have been infected in a foreign country and have then returned to their home country, or who have been infected by that traveller, known as the "index case", do not count towards declaring a pandemic. There needs to be a second wave of infection from person to person throughout the community.</p>
<p>Once a pandemic is declared, it becomes more likely that community spread will eventually happen, and governments and health systems need to ensure they are prepared for that.</p>
<p>An epidemic, on the other hand, is a sudden increase in cases of an illness or disease that can be unique to one country or community.</p>
<h2>When is a pandemic declared?</h2>
<p>Ultimately, the WHO gets the final say. There is no threshold, such as a certain number of deaths or infections, or number of countries affected, that needs to be met. For example, the Sars coronavirus, identified in 2003, was not declared a pandemic by the WHO despite affecting 26 countries. However, its spread was contained quickly, and only a handful of nations were significantly affected, including China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Canada.</p>
<p>If declaring a pandemic triggers global panic, this can defeat the purpose of trying to raise awareness. Much <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1440-1754.2010.01912.x">has been written</a> about whether <a href="http://europepmc.org/article/MED/21734768">the declaration of H1N1</a>, colloquially known as "swine flu", as a pandemic in 2009, caused unnecessary panic, overwhelming emergency departments and causing governments to overspend on antiviral medications. Coronavirus symptoms are generally mild and most people recover within six days.</p>
<h2>Now the WHO has declared Covid-19 a pandemic, what will it mean for the way the outbreak is treated and prepared for?</h2>
<p>The WHO has stressed that using the word "pandemic" does not signal a change in its advice. It is still urging countries to "detect, test, treat, isolate, trace and mobilise their people".</p>
<p>Dr Nathalie MacDermott, National Institute for Health Research academic clinical lecturer King's College London, says: "The change of term does not alter anything practically as the world has been advised for the last few weeks to prepare for a potential pandemic, which has hopefully been taken seriously by all countries.</p>
<p>"The use of this term however highlights the importance of countries throughout the world working cooperatively and openly with one another and coming together as a united front in our efforts to bring this situation under control."</p> Topics
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Declaring a pandemic has nothing to do with changes to the characteristics of a disease, but is instead associated with concerns over its geographic spread. According to the World Health Organization, a pandemic is declared when a new disease for which people do not have immunity spreads around the world beyond expectations.

What is a pandemic?

The pandemic

Declaring a pandemic

Dealing with the current pandemic

DR NATHALIE MACDERMOTT

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