Europe in 'permacrisis' - WHO

Wednesday September 28th 2022

The WHO European Region is in “permacrisis”, with populations affected by a multitude of health problems and more, according to the World Health Organization.

Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, which comprises 53 countries across a geographical region that spans the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans, said COVID-19, the climate emergency and the war in Ukraine are among the grave causes for concern.

But there are other issues that also need to be tackled.

He said WHO must urgently prepare for health emergencies, such as pandemics, climate-related crises and conflicts, as well as urgently strengthen health systems and essential services to address the “permacrisis” of noncommunicable diseases and HIV.

Investment in the health workforce and mental health is also needed, he said.

While there have been more than two million recorded deaths in Europe and Central Asia, Dr Kluge warned there are the additional burdens of non-communicable diseases, including cancer, heart disease and obesity, that are piling pressure on health systems.

“No doubt COVID-19 is the most visible pandemic in our lifetime, but it is not the deadliest. It is not the most preventable,” he said.

“That distinction goes to the pandemic of cardiovascular diseases. During COVID-19, five times more people have died at a younger average age due to heart attacks and strokes, than COVID-19 at its worst.”

He said the three main, preventable drivers of stroke and heart attacks are tobacco use, hypertension and air pollution.

The second biggest killer in the Region behind tobacco is hypertension, which is responsible for 2.4 million people a year - one in four deaths.

Hypertension is also linked with obesity and one in four children of primary school age in the Region is overweight or living with obesity.

Earlier this month, the Regional Committee in Tel Aviv announced it was to establish the first WHO Pan-European Summit of First Ladies and First Gentlemen to tackle childhood obesity, with the first summit taking place in Croatia next year.

Dr Kluge said hypertension is also linked to alcohol consumption and the Europe Region has the heaviest drinkers in the world, with one in three deaths among young people linked to alcohol.

The third big driver of strokes and heart attacks is air pollution, which kills 550,000 people in the Europe Region every year, half of which are due to cardiovascular diseases.

“The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is another crisis that has put health higher on the political and development agenda, but whose lessons many countries may not yet have fully absorbed,” he said.

“Then, we have the current monkeypox public health emergency of international concern, as well as the recent re-emergence of vaccine-derived polio in our region.

“And, not least, a devastating war in Ukraine, which unfortunately shows no signals of de-escalation, and is compounded by horrific attacks on health facilities and providers –also triggering a mental health crisis of immense proportions.”

Tags: Europe | General Health

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