Epidemic preparedness: The role of public health services in epidemic response

Epidemic preparedness, the ability to prevent, respond and control epidemic outbreaks, has remained a neglected concept and policy practice for many years, detached from health policy and health systems planning. The cornerstone of epidemic preparedness is the preparedness of public health services, which consists of effective early warning systems and control of cross-border spread of communicable diseases, the ability to design and implement focused and proportional non pharmaceutical interventions, the effective epidemiological surveillance and transparent management of epidemiological data, the scientific consistency and accountability of public health authorities. The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed, both on a national and international level, the significant gaps and structural deficiencies of all the above mentioned elements of public health (services') preparedness. Current and expected future public health threats leave no room for complacency; public health services need to be urgently reorganized through integration into comprehensive public primary healthcare systems and strengthened through increased public investment in financial resources, infrastructure and healthcare workers.