Main virtual event: Qatar Health 2021 Pandemic Mitigation: Best Practice for Disaster Medicine, Mass Gatherings and Trauma Systems
Pre-conference seminar: Travel Health Preparedness During Sporting Events
Wednesday, 20 January 2021
9am to 11am
Background
International travel has led to a global network for infectious diseases with the potential of bringing new pathogens to non-endemic countries and enable their spread. Travel serves as one of the main mechanisms by which communicable diseases spread throughout the world. National travel health preparedness is crucial in mitigating the transmission and spread of infectious diseases, especially during sporting events. Sporting events bring in a large number of incoming travelers from different countries, which means high concentrations of people in airports and other points of entry to the country.
This seminar introduces participants to the significance of travel health preparedness during sporting events by discussing different concepts:
- Epidemiology and profile of travelers during COVID-19 pandemic
- Risk assessment and preparedness in travel health
- Experience of different authorities and organizations in dealing with the recent COVID-9 pandemic
- Future of travel post-COVID-19 pandemic (vaccines)
Rational
Qatar is undergoing extensive preparations for FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and those preparations include assessing the health situation with the high numbers of expected incoming travelers. As mentioned earlier, with travelling, the potential of introducing new pathogens and the spread of diseases is higher, which could overwhelm the healthcare system in Qatar. Therefore, a travel health preparedness plan involving national and international stakeholder needs to be developed, monitored and evaluated before, during and after the sporting events.
