Did you know that some time back the World Health Organisation decided to put spotlight on respiratory diseases, including asthma and COPD and established GARD - the Global Alliance against chronic Respiratory Diseases. EFA was one of the founding members. Over the years other major diseases such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes were in the focus of action and GARD slowed down after a good start in starting supporting countries in setting up national programmes on respiratory diseases.
EFA is delighted that GARD is back, as shown by the participation of the high level Assistant Director-General for Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs) and Mental Health at WHO, Oleg Chestnov in the GARD Assembly in Lisbon, Portugal in July, hosted by our dear supporter Jose Rosado Pinto and the Portuguese Ministry of Health. More than 70 respiratory professional and patient leaders (only 5 of us..) all over the globe presented progress and activities in the prevention, care and advocacy in respiratory diseases in their countries.
EFA’s Susanna Palkonen presented our activities linked broadly to ‘education’; access to care, including our Adherence project for young people with asthma, COPD project featuring promoting the role of EFA members as stakeholders in decitions for COPD care in their country adn access to medical for traveling COPD patients and our Allergy awereness project that has just ended. We also talked about how national patient groups are growing and active in advocacy and what we as EFA are contributing in our Capacity building project and EMA and EU health policy trainings for members to support that. Finally we mentioned our ‘patient perspective’ role in tobacco and air pollution prevention advocacy.
Asthma UK presented and pledged for support for the European Innovation Partnership on Asthma that they are leading, Austrian Lung Association on their recent survey for people with severe asthma, which indeed has severe impact on people’s lives and GAAP their two new members from Africa who have fantastically advocated for care, through success in media coverage.
GARD is back and it matters since WHO works with the Ministries of Health and the EC health priorities follow the lead of WHO. When the report of the meeting and presentations are available we will share them in this website.
EFA Presentation is available here.