The European Respiratory Society course on acute respiratory pandemics: how to plan for and manage them

Adeoti, Adekunle Olatayo; Marbus, Sierk

Acute respiratory infectious diseases are more likely to cause future pandemics, as droplet generation and potential transmission of infectious agents could constitute a major public health threat [1] . The exposure and associated risk of infections are not limited to the individuals' immediate environment, as some cases could cross boundaries and constitute global health challenges of international concern [2] . A gap in emergency preparedness in the event of an outbreak was apparent during pandemics like those of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (CoV), influenza virus A (H1N1), Ebola virus and Middle East respiratory syndrome CoV [1, [3] [4] [5] . It is apparent that conducting clinical research in response to swiftly emerging disease outbreaks could be challenging and is often delayed [6] . Moreover, transmission of such infections during pandemics may be widespread in healthcare settings, especially with the increased demand on medical personnel and associated morbidity, resulting in a reduction in the available workforce. Hence, it is imperative to create awareness among medical personnel, and train them on how to prepare for pandemics and conduct research in order to reduce mortality and morbidity during epidemics.