H1N1 influenza

[Save the Date] Third Flu Summit of the European Scientific Working Group on Influenza (ESI)

The third annual Flu Summit organised by EPHA member the European Scientific Working Group on Influenza will take place on 2 May 2013 in Brussels. It will be an opportunity to learn about and discuss with experts issues such as pandemic preparedness, new influenza target groups, and vaccination strategies. This year’s edition focuses on new developments and challenges in the influenza field, with special attention for discussions on safety and effectiveness of influenza vaccines. (...)

European Scientific Working Group on Influenza Flu Summit - Bringing all stakeholders on board

The second Flu Summit organised by EPHA member the European Scientific Working Group on Influenza (ESWI) took place on 23 March 2012. The event explored new concepts and ideas for bringing together all stakeholders in the fight against flu - both seasonal and pandemic. Taking off where the ESWI’s First Flu Summit wound up a year ago, the event once again brought together researchers and academics, policy-makers, NGOs, health professionals and industry representatives to debate a (...)

Save the Date - 2012 ESWI Flu Summit

On 23 May 2012, the second edition of the European Scientific Working Group on Influenza’s (ESWI) European Influenza Summit will be held at the Albert Hall Complex in Brussels. The aim of this one-day free of charge meeting will be to provide all influenza partners with an informal platform to exchange good practices and to initiate concrete actions to improve public health protection against influenza. Please visit www.flusummit.org regularly to stay informed of all developments in (...)

Release of ESWI Flu documentary

EPHA member the European Scientific Working Group on Influenza (ESWI) has released an influenza documentary that covers all aspects of the disease, ranging from the characteristics of the flu virus itself to the impact of pandemic and epidemic influenza. The result is a highly attractive and informative influenza movie (38 min of length), which can be accessed free of charge in ESWI’s media library at the following address www.flucentre.org/media-library/ (title: Influenza - aiming (...)

Health threats: EU proposal for better protection and more coordination

The European Commission has adopted a legislative proposal to address serious cross-border health threats. It builds on the careful analysis of ’’lessons learnt’’ from recent health crises.

Fourth International Influenza Conference highlights gap between vaccination recommendations and practice

The Fourth International Influenza Conference in Malta underlined the need to forge closer links between science and policy, and to address the ongoing dichotomy between the recognised need to vaccinate at-risk groups and the reluctance of individuals - including health professionals - to comply with WHO and EU recommendations. EPHA was invited to attend the Fourth International Influenza Conference in Malta, which brought together leading scientists, academics, policy makers and industry (...)

*Updated* EPHA briefing on health threats from communicable diseases

EPHA has developed a ’’Briefing on Health Threats from Communicable Diseases, including well-prepared Health Systems’’. The paper provides an overview of the existing structure at EU level and internationally, and it stresses the importance of ensuring that health systems are adequately financed, equipped and coordinated in order to cope with outbreaks and epidemics such as the H1N1 pandemic in 2009. *UPDATE* September 2012 This briefing has now been updated to (...)

First European Flu Summit

The First European Flu Summit took place on 26 May 2011 in Brussels, organised by EPHA member the European Scientific Working Group on Influenza (ESWI), whose goal is to reduce the burden of influenza in Europe. The Summit gathered representatives of the medical research community, the European Commission, and health professionals. EPHA attended the Flu Summit as a follow-up to its recent work on health security in the EU, which is also informed by the H1N1 ’’lessons (...)

EPHA position on health security in the EU

On 11 May 2011, EPHA responded to the European Commission consultation on health security in the EU. The European Commission launched a consultation on what action the European Commission should take to protect EU citizens more effectively against serious cross-border health threats. EPHA stressed the following elements in its response: 1. European health systems must be coordinated and interconnected amongst themselves and with non-health sectors in order to guarantee informed, coherent (...)

European Commission public consultation on Public Health Threats

EPHA will be responding to the public consultation launched by the Commission on protecting citizens against crossborder public health threats. The submission deadline for responses is 29 April 2011. The aim of this consultation, managed by DG SANCO, is to seek the views of stakeholders on what action the European Commission should take to protect EU citizens more effectively against serious cross-border health threats. The Council of the European Union invited Member States in 2010 to (...)