The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is urging countries in the region to be on the alert for, and to strengthen their surveillance systems against high-risk pathogens to prevent the spread of other diseases that can jump from animals to humans, similar to the novel coronavirus.

“We have a list of emerging pathogens that have the potential for public health risk, and almost all of those are either zoonotic, meaning that they can transmit from animals to people, or common to humans and animals,” PAHO Director Dr Carissa Etienne said Wednesday at its weekly virtual press briefing.

She urged countries in the Caribbean and Latin America to ensure that animal, agricultural, and environmental partners are brought to the table to build more robust surveillance systems that can detect risks faster and prioritise investments in research and development for high-risk pathogens.

“The cost of preventing a pandemic is much less than the cost of responding to one,” she said, pointing out that while COVID-19 has been unique in its scale and impact, it is not the first emerging disease to severely impact the world.

Dr Etienne noted other virus outbreaks such as Ebola, Zika, chikungunya, yellow fever, and avian influenza.

“We’ve seen that diseases that spill from animals to people can have severe impacts,” said Dr Etienne as she stressed that COVID-19 has caused a loss of US$4 trillion in global gross domestic product, “and we’re not yet out of the woods”.

Dr Etienne said in the coming months, as countries in the region revisit their health budgets, they should rethink health-care delivery strategies and engage in global efforts to prevent another pandemic.

She urged countries to build on PAHO’s ‘One Health’ approach, which was developed in the 1990s, as a strategy for strengthening surveillance of emerging infectious diseases, including zoonotic illnesses.

The director explained that this approach uses integrated surveillance to leverage animal health institutes to monitor animal and human diseases, conduct joint risk assessments, and provide training on related issues.

She argued that this strategy is the smartest, most cost-effective way to protect the region from another crisis that can lead to a pandemic, noting that recently ministers of health at PAHO’s Directing Council had approved a new ‘One Health’ policy that outlines a blueprint for countries to bring together a cross-section of experts and officials to address issues such as zoonotic diseases, food safety, anti-microbial resistance, and climate change.

Dr Etienne said it is crucial that pandemic plans and policies reflect the expertise and the recommendations of public health, animal health, and environmental sectors, as tropical regions have a high potential to harbour new diseases.

“The economies of many countries in the Americas also rely heavily on agricultural production and exportation, so the threat of animal diseases looms large and has the potential to impact entire industries and national development. And, of course, the risk for a new pandemic,” she cautioned.