“Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next” - Arundhati Roy, ”The Pandemic is a Portal”

COVID-19 SUMMARY

*Source: John Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Centre as of June 13 2022, Our world in data- Coronavirus vaccination, DOH Philippines

SARS-Cov-2 illness is a zoonotic disease transmitted between human and animals. The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China in December 2019.

The Covid Pandemic crisis widened the gaps between the high-income countries (HICs) and low-to-middle income countries (LMICs). Both the rich and poor people were hit hard most especially the most vulnerable populations i.e., elderly, people with co-morbidities such as obesity, diabetes, chronic conditions like heart or lung diseases or immune deficiencies, including disadvantaged communities (“Health inequality”, “Health inequity”).

Testing, Tracing, Isolation and Quarantine (TTIQ) remained the cornerstone in monitoring and containing Covid caseloads and prevention of community outbreaks.

Accurate data, epidemiologic modelling and real-time digital health information system is time-critical to deliver rapid response from primary healthcare responders and also, will guide government and policy-makers to formulate appropriate public health policies and interventions. Basic preventative measures such as hand washing, respiratory hygiene, social-distancing and mask wearing are proven effective public health interventions.

Covid 19 Vaccine save lives, prevent severe Covid disease and reduce hospitalisation rate. The revolutionary mRNA vaccine platform technology had fast-tracked the manufacturing, global production and distribution of Covid vaccine.

Epidemiologic monitoring and genomic surveillance are important in tracking the SARS-CoV2 virus behavioural pattern and its variant changes – previous Variants of Interests (VOI) include Alpha, Beta, Delta, Gamma and the latest variant, Omicron and its sub-lineage BA.2 and BA 1.1.529 Pangolin lineage circulating in the community.

Pandemic Covid crisis caused an immediate socioeconomic impact due to global economy, open trade, increased travel, highly dense cities and changes in human behaviour.

There is a major expansion in digital behaviour such as remote working, distant education and learning, telemedicine or telehealth and delivery services.

International community must work together to reform the global power distributions and structural imbalances affecting human race and must build a new world of sustainable development and inclusive growth centered on human rights, gender equality and climate change.

The WHO #17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) agenda by 2030 to transform human development including good health, no poverty or hunger, better education and renewable energy has been derailed its progress due to Covid crisis.

“One Health principle” shared the health threats interconnecting the human, animal and environmental health leading to zoonotic disease outbreak such as Zika (mosquito), Ebola (bats), SARS (bats, palm civets), H3N2 (HK avian flu), H1N1 (swine flu), H5N1 (birds or avian flu), MERS-CoV (camel) and SARS-CoV2 (bats, pangolin?) in the last decades.

The call for an early warning systems based on integrated and dynamic, “One Health approach” is a key in controlling and preventing emerging infectious zoonotic disease outbreak in the future.