Message from Dr Adriana Velazquez Berumen

Senior Adviser for Medical Devices.
Essential Medicines and Health Products Department
Health Systems and Innovation Cluster
World Health Organisation

2nd October 2014

Yesterday, the United Nations Secretary-General Mr Ban Ki-moon  visited WHO and urged for actions.

He said that  all  the United Nations and many partners are now joining forces to contain Ebola, under  the  “UN  Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER)”.

So the need for information, guidance and action is urgent also in our area. Thus we hereby want to share with you new information in our page: http://www.who.int/medical_devices/meddev_ebola/en/  where you will find:

  1.  Information and lists of medical devices required for infection protection and for patient care
  2. The call for innovative technologies,  that  was extended to invite colleagues and academicians and industry to provide information on technologies that can be used to support Ebola patients and health care workers
  3. Invitation to Biomedical Engineers to support this work on Ebola

As you know,  as of today,  there is no vaccine ,  no diagnostic point of care,  no specific treatment, so the situation to manage the patients care,  is really challenging.

But also many UN organizations and NGOs,  are providing material,  deploying human resources, so we should  use this opportunity to build a better health system in the affected countries.

You can find more  information on  Ebola  in http://www.who.int/csr/disease/ebola/en

Your help will be much appreciated by those who need it the most:  the patients, the health workers and the population affected by Ebola.

Thank you  very much ,

Adriana
Adriana Velazquez Berumen
Senior Adviser for Medical Devices.
Essential Medicines and Health Products Department
Health Systems and Innovation Cluster
+41 22 791 1239   office M521
http://www.who.int/medical_devices/en/