A workshop on how to incorporate the latest thinking and resources on integrated, all hazards inter-sectoral preparedness and response into your planning for serious cross-border health threats

Dates: Monday 20 March 2023 – Tuesday 21 March 2023 Eastern European time

Venue: Wellton Riverside SPA Hotel, 11. Novembra Krastmala, 33, Riga, 1050

Contact:  sharp@rivm.nl

Why you should attend

States parties have made efforts to encourage sectors other than health to contribute to assessments, planning and interventions aimed at strengthening preparedness and response capacities under the IHR (2005).

Nevertheless, effective multisectoral collaboration remains a challenge in most, if not all, countries.  

As SHARP Joint Action moves into its final year, Work Package 6 would like to share the insights, knowledge; guidance and tools developed to support EU member states (MS) and Joint Action partner countries in developing operational, multisectoral preparedness and response plans for serious cross-border health threats – with an integrated, all hazards approach.   

This interactive workshop aims to share and discuss several, highly useful deliverables with the Joint Action’s partner countries to

• Identify priority outcomes for implementation in national preparedness and response plans
• Propose and agree the concrete steps needed to implement the priority outcomes in national preparedness and response plans

What you’ll learn

The focus of the work is the improvement of collaboration across sectors via preparedness and response plans that consider shared and effective governance, communication, collaboration and coordination.

Participants will gain a good overview of the work package that helps mitigate the complexity of multi sectoral planning, from WP6 expert organisations – Lead: National Institute of Public Health; and the Environment (RIVM), Netherlands; ErasmusMC; and the Insstituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), Spain. 

There will be access to materials and guidance on how to incorporate the latest thinking and resources on integrated, all hazards inter-sectoral preparedness and response into your planning for serious cross-border health threats. 

The workshop is designed to inform and debate the following topics:

• The role of healthcare in public health emergency preparedness and response (PHEPR)
• Identifying the sectors involved in European PHEPR
• The role of diagnostic experts in PHEPR
• Which factors explain the similarities and differences in EU member state adherence to WHO advice concerning SARS-CoV-2 testing strategies?
• Public engagement in PHEPR
• The citizen’s role during PHEPR
• The government’s responsibility during PHEPR
• Which sectors should be involved in  public health emergency preparedness, response and recovery phases
• Literature review on lessons learnt during recent threats
• Implementation and sustainability of WP6’s results
• Presentation of an e-learning and tabletop exercise to improve IHR capacity

Programme and timings.

Who should attend

• Those experienced in national preparedness and response in SHARP partner countries, preferably from health, diagnostic laboratory, citizen engagement and governmental institutions.
• Competent authorities and contact points in your organisation/National focal points (NFPs) for the International Health Regulations (2005).
• Individuals  involved in the development and implementation of policies, guidelines, etc. who can take these recommendations into consideration, when they adjust their national preparedness and response plans to meet the demands of the new legislation on cross-border threats to health to strengthen the crisis-preparedness framework.

Register today!

Places are limited to 35 and we reserve the right to close registrations when this capacity is reached. Link to registration form

Co-funded by the Health Programme of the European Union this, in-person event is free to attend.

However, participants will need to arrange and cover their travel, accommodation and subsistence costs from their own budget.

Guidance on travel budgets for partners, affiliated entities and collaborating partners of SHARP Joint Action – SHARP Joint Action (sharpja.eu)

• These partners have WP6 travel funds: INMI, MCA, CIPH, SUJCHBO, MOH-FR, MFH, MS, IPHS, ISCIII and THL

• RKI, BMSGPK, NNK, MOHLT and NIZP partners could apply to use WP8 travel funds.  Email: sharpwp8@batut.org.rs

• EODY can use WP3 funds, and PHW WP2 funds.

• Affiliated entities: e.g., UKHSA may use travel budget held by WP9.  Email: Tom.Gaulton@uksa.gov.uk

• EODY can naturally use their WP3 travel funds

For specific advice, please email sharp@thl.fi

Practical Information for your attendance can be found at LiveRiga | LiveRiga.

The Wellton Riverside SPA Hotel offers attractive room rates booked through their website.

About the Host Institute: State Emergency Medical Service (SEMS), Latvia

The mission of the SEMS is to save and preserve lives.

The SEMS aims to implement a unified national policy on emergency and disaster medicine. The service is relatively new, established in 2009 when the centralisation of the pre-hospital emergency medicine function and the pooling of resources under the responsibility of local authorities created a unified SEMS that is unique in Europe. It is recognised as one of the most successful structural reforms in health care not only by local and international experts such as the World Bank.

The SEMS organises and provides pre-hospital emergency care daily and in emergency situations throughout Latvia. It also provides specialised medical assistance to Latvian hospitals when the scope of assistance required exceeds their resources and capacity.

A key function is the planning of the national disaster medicine system and the establishment, maintenance and renewal of national medical equipment and drug stocks. The SEMS prepares first aid training curricula and provides both training of trainers according to international guidelines and training and certification of first aid trainers.

In addition, medical evacuation in the country and medical repatriation of Latvian citizens to and from abroad are coordinated and ensured.

For queries, please email diana.koerna@nmpd.gov.lv

Read more about work package 6 and the achievements to date